Monday, September 20, 2010
S 510 and Codex Alimentarius - the removal of nutrition




by A. Goodwin







S 510 includes passages that would force harmonization with Codex Alimentarius. It is a name most people do not know and one that the media has not exposed though its consequences to human health would be extreme. Codex threatens the lives of millions through limiting access to adequate supplementation.


From an open letter by Dr. Matthias Rath, a renowned cardiologist, sent to Helmut Kohl, the German chancellor and one time pharmaceutical lobbyist who introduced Codex to the world.





This "Codex" Commission is overwhelmingly composed of representatives of German and international pharmaceutical corporations, and its aim is to set world-wide guidelines for vitamins, amino acids, minerals and other dietary supplements. Spearheaded by the German pharmaceutical corporations, this Codex Commission plans to ban, on a world wide scale, any health statements in relation to vitamins, be it preventive or therapeutic. Moreover, the only vitamin formulas which would still be available would have to meet the arbitrary restrictions of the Codex Commission. The nations that do not comply with these restrictions are faced with economic sanctions.



These plans of the pharmaceutical corporations and the Codex Commission are in direct opposition to the overwhelming importance of vitamins and other essential nutrients for human health and, in particular, for preventing cardiovascular disease. ...


With this background, the attack of the Codex Commission is a desperate act by pharmaceutical companies to protect their world-wide drug market against naturally effective and much more affordable vitamins. Particularly disturbing is the spearheading role of the German pharmaceutical corporations within the Codex Commission. Once before in this century, a German pharmaceutical and chemical corporation, I.G. Farben, became responsible for the deaths of millions of people and consequently, was dismantled in 1946 by the Nuremberg Tribunal and split into Bayer, BASF and Hoechst. With the current plans of the German pharmaceutical companies, the predictable dimension of the unnecessary and premature death of millions of people is unavoidable. If the Codex Commission is allowed to obstruct the eradication of heart disease by restricting access to nutritional supplements, more than 12 million people world-wide will continue to die every year from premature heart attacks and strokes. Within the next generation alone, this would result in over 300 million premature deaths, more than in all the wars of mankind together.




Codex for the US began on December 31, 2009. There have been five bills so far this year to remove access to supplements, if one adds S 3767 introduced by Senators Leahy, Klobuchar, and Franken on September 13th.


How dangerous are supplements that they are subject to FDA armed raids?


The Hazardous-Nutritional-Supplements -Target of FDA Police Raids:




Annual Deaths From:




FDA-Approved Drugs (1).......60,000 - 140,000

Food Contamination (2)...........................9,100

Aspirin (3)......................................................90

All vitamins (4). ............................................ 0

Uncontaminated amino acids (4)..................0

Commercial herbs (4).................................... 0





Why is this happening? The logic is inescapable - illness is worth money and health is worth $0. The FDA would be in charge of whatever agency is set up under S 510 (and S 3767) which would destroy availability of adequate nutrition. The dark history of the FDA's work to cut off knowledge of and access to all treatments for cancer not coming from the pharmaceutical industry is extensive but mostly unknown. The current FDA, pleading it doesn't have enough power to stop food contamination, finds power when it comes to stopping gentle cancer treatments and safe treatments for pain, and loses it again when it comes to drugs causing thousands of heart attacks or deaths and is silent on common pharmaceutical industry pain medications which routinely kill.




The value of supplements is abundantly clear to the pharmaceutical industry. When they were the main support for Germany during WWII, it was "A crime punishable by death to spread information in regard to nutrition in Norway, Belgium, Holland, and all other conquered countries." - D.T. Quigley, MD, Fellow American College of Surgeons, in The National Malnutrition




Today, the FDA is involved in an on-going, unconstitutional effort to stop information about the effectiveness of supplements, especially those which offer alternatives to H1N1 vaccines. The FDA has been and is increasing its removal of freedoms around speech, and health (as relates to food and vaccines/drugs), and now, just as they hope to control vast power over food and remove supplements, has gone so far as to assert in court that there is no fundamental right to one's bodily and physical health. (Is this a necessary legal accompaniment to the devastation that Codex would cause, and to forcing people into exposure to pharmaceutical industry's vaccines which have become increasingly unsafe?)




The removal of rights is the focus of

this video on Codex: "We Become Silent - The Last Days of Health Freedom" with Dame Judy Dench.





While people may sense that the consequences of the removal of nutritional supplements would be serious, it is possible to see in advance what would result from Codex-compelled vitamin and minerals deficiencies. In viewing the list, however, it is important to realize that those born or already sick with diseases and certain groups such as children, pregnant women and the elderly would be impacted first, given their greatly elevated requirement for nutritional supplementation. And hyper-supplementation to actually treat diseases would be available. Adults who do not fall into those categories would became ill from lack of adequate nutrition, at which point they would join the ranks of the ill and their own nutritional requirements to sustain lives would go up.







This following list is brief, not including hundreds herbs or any of the specially combined nutritional formulations, including those with absolute evidence of their effectiveness, and the absence of which would mean death.










Vitamin D


http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(09)00440-9/fulltext

From the American Journal of Medicine:




"Adequate vitamin D status is necessary and beneficial for health, although deficiency plagues much of the world's population. In addition to reducing the risk for bone disease, vitamin D plays a role in reduction of falls, as well as decreases in pain, autoimmune diseases, cancer, heart disease, mortality, and cognitive function. On the basis of this emerging understanding, improving patients' vitamin D status has become an essential aspect of primary care. Although some have suggested increased sun exposure to increase serum vitamin D levels, this has the potential to induce photoaging and skin cancer, especially in patients at risk for these conditions. Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency can be both corrected and prevented safely through supplementation."







Vitamin A deficiency

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_A_deficiency

Vitamin A deficiency is a lack of vitamin A in humans. It is common in developing countries but rarely seen in developed countries. Night blindness is one of the first signs of vitamin A deficiency. Xerophthalmia and complete blindness can also occur since Vitamin A has a major role in phototransduction. Approximately 250,000 to 500,000 malnourished children in the developing world go blind each year from a deficiency of vitamin A, approximately half of which die within a year of becoming blind. The United Nations Special Session on Children in 2002 set the elimination of vitamin A deficiency by 2010. The prevalence of night blindness due to vitamin A deficiency is also high among pregnant women in many developing countries. Vitamin A deficiency also contributes to maternal mortality and other poor outcomes in pregnancy and lactation.[1][2][3][4]

Vitamin A deficiency also diminishes the ability to fight infections. In countries where children are not immunized, infectious disease like measles have higher fatality rates. As elucidated by Dr. Alfred Sommer, even mild, subclinical deficiency can also be a problem, as it may increase children's risk of developing respiratory and diarrheal infections, decrease growth rate, slow bone development, and decrease likelihood of survival from serious illness.

Alfred (Al) Sommer's research on vitamin A in the 1970s and 1980s revealed that dosing severely vitamin A deficient children with an inexpensive, large dose vitamin A capsule twice a year reduces child mortality by as much as 34 percent.[1] The World Bank and, recently, the Copenhagen Consensus list vitamin A supplementation as one of the most cost-effective health interventions in the world.[2][3]




Vitamin B deficiency

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B_vitamins#B_vitamin_deficiency




Vitamin
Name
Deficiency effects

Vitamin B1
thiamine
Deficiency causes beriberi. Symptoms of this disease of the nervous system include weight loss, emotional disturbances, Wernicke's encephalopathy (impaired sensory perception), weakness and pain in the limbs, periods of irregular heartbeat, and edema (swelling of bodily tissues). Heart failure and death may occur in advanced cases. Chronic thiamine deficiency can also cause Korsakoff's syndrome, an irreversible psychosis characterized by amnesia and confabulation.







Vitamin B2
riboflavin
Deficiency causes ariboflavinosis. Symptoms may include cheilosis (cracks in the lips), high sensitivity to sunlight, angular cheilitis, glossitis (inflammation of the tongue), seborrheic dermatitis or pseudo-syphilis (particularly affecting the scrotum or labia majora and the mouth), pharyngitis (sore throat), hyperemia, and edema of the pharyngeal and oral mucosa.

Vitamin B3
niacin
Deficiency, along with a deficiency of tryptophan causes pellagra. Symptoms include aggression, dermatitis, insomnia, weakness, mental confusion, and diarrhea. In advanced cases, pellagra may lead to dementia and death (the 3(+1) Ds: dermatitis, diarrhea, dementia, and death).




Pellagra is a vitamin deficiency disease most commonly caused by a chronic lack of niacin (vitamin B3) in the diet. It can be caused by decreased intake of niacin or tryptophan[1], and possibly by excessive intake of leucine.[2] It may also result from alterations in protein metabolism in disorders such as carcinoid syndrome. A deficiency of the amino acid lysine can lead to a deficiency of niacin as well, meaning that another potential cause of pellagra is lysine deficiency.[3]

Vitamin B5
pantothenic acid
Deficiency can result in acne and paresthesia, although it is uncommon.

Vitamin B6
pyridoxine
Deficiency may lead to microcytic anemia (because pyridoxyl phosphate is the cofactor for heme synthesis), depression, dermatitis, high blood pressure (hypertension), water retention, and elevated levels of homocysteine.

Vitamin B7
biotin
Deficiency does not typically cause symptoms in adults but may lead to impaired growth and neurological disorders in infants. Multiple carboxylase deficiency, an inborn error of metabolism, can lead to biotin deficiency even when dietary biotin intake is normal.




Initial symptoms of biotin deficiency include:

Dry skin
Seborrheic dermatitis
Fungal infections
Rashes including red, patchy ones near the mouth (erythematous periorofacial macular rash)
Fine and brittle hair
Hair loss or total baldness (alopecia)
If left untreated, neurological symptoms can develop, including:

Mild depression, which may progress to profound lassitude and, eventually, to somnolence
Changes in mental status
Generalized muscular pains (myalgias)
Hyperesthesias and paresthesias

Vitamin B9
folic acid
Deficiency results in a macrocytic anemia, and elevated levels of homocysteine. Deficiency in pregnant women can lead to birth defects. Supplementation is often recommended during pregnancy. Researchers have shown that folic acid might also slow the insidious effects of age on the brain.

Vitamin B12
cobalamin
Deficiency results in a macrocytic anemia, elevated homocysteine, peripheral neuropathy, memory loss and other cognitive deficits. It is most likely to occur among elderly people, as absorption through the gut declines with age; the autoimmune disease pernicious anemia is another common cause. It can also cause symptoms of mania and psychosis. In rare extreme cases, paralysis can result.





Vitamin B12 deficiency is a reduction in vitamin B12 from inadequate dietary intake or impaired absorption. The condition is commonly asymptomatic, but can also present as anemia characterized by enlarged blood corpuscles with characteristic changes in neutrophils, known as megaloblastic anemia.

In serious cases deficiency can potentially cause severe and irreversible damage to the nervous system, including subacute combined degeneration of spinal cord.

The anemia is thought to be due to problems in DNA synthesis, specifically in the synthesis of thymine, which is dependent on products of the MTR reaction. Other blood cell types such as white blood cells and platelets are often also low. Bone marrow examination may show megaloblastic hemopoiesis. The anemia responds completely to vitamin B12; the neurological symptoms (if any) respond partly or completely, depending on prior severity and duration.









Vitamin C deficiency




Symptoms and Signs of Vitamin C Deficiency

It takes several months of low amounts of vitamin C to lead to the symptoms of scurvy. The classic symptoms are bleeding gums, scaly skin, loose teeth, fatigue, increased risk of infection, and poor wound healing. Children and infants with an ascorbic acid deficiency usually have poor bone growth and anemia.

http://www4.dr-rath-foundation.org/NHC/cardiovascular_disease/lectu...

This animation (requires RealVideoPlayer) shows the connection between cardiovascular disease and the sailor's disease scurvy. As opposed to animals, the human body cannot synthesize vitamin C. Ascorbate deficiency results in two distinct morphological changes of the vascular wall: Impaired vascular stability due to decreased collagen synthesis and loss of the endothelial barrier function.






The sailors of earlier centuries died within a few months from hemorrhagic blood loss due to lack of endogenous ascorbate synthesis combined with a vitamin deficient diet aboard. When the Indians gave those sailors tea from tree barks and other vitamin rich nutrition, blood loss was stopped and the vascular wall healed naturally.

Today, everyone gets some vitamin C and open scurvy is rare. But almost everyone suffers from chronic vitamin deficiency. Over decades, micro lesions develop in the vascular wall, especially in areas of high mechanical stress such as the coronary arteries.



Vitamin E deficiency

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_E_deficiency

Vitamin E deficiency causes neurological problems due to poor nerve conduction. These include neuromuscular problems such as spinocerebellar ataxia and myopathies.[1] Deficiency can also cause anemia, due to oxidative damage to red blood cells.

Vitamin E deficiency is rare in humans and is almost never caused by a poor diet.[1] Instead, there are three specific situations when a vitamin E deficiency is likely to occur. It is seen in persons who cannot absorb dietary fat, has been found in premature, very low birth weight infants (birth weights less than 1500 grams, or 3.5 pounds), and is seen in individuals with rare disorders of fat metabolism.[2]

Individuals who cannot absorb fat may require a vitamin E supplement because some dietary fat is needed for the absorption of vitamin E from the gastrointestinal tract. Anyone diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, individuals who have had part or all of their stomach removed, and individuals with malabsorptive problems such as Crohn's disease, liver disease or pancreatic insufficiency may not absorb fat and should discuss the need for supplemental vitamin E with their physician. People who cannot absorb fat often pass greasy stools or have chronic diarrhea and bloating.

Very low birth weight infants may be deficient in vitamin E. A neonatologist, a pediatrician specializing in the care of newborns, typically evaluates the nutritional needs of premature infants.

Abetalipoproteinemia is a rare inherited disorder of fat metabolism that results in poor absorption of dietary fat and vitamin E.[3] The vitamin E deficiency associated with this disease causes problems such as poor transmission of nerve impulses, muscle weakness, and degeneration of the retina that can cause blindness. Individuals with abetalipoproteinemia may be prescribed special vitamin E supplements by a physician to treat this disorder. In addition, there is a rare genetic condition termed isolated vitamin E deficiency or ataxia with isolated with vitamin E deficiency, caused by mutations in the gene for the tocopherol transfer protein.[4] These individuals have an extremely poor capacity to absorb vitamin E and develop neurological complications that are reversed by high doses of vitamin E.





Vitamin K deficiency

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_K

Vitamin K is a group of lipophilic, hydrophobic vitamins that are needed for the posttranslational modification of certain proteins, mostly required for blood coagulation but also involved in metabolism pathways in bone and other tissue.




Symptoms of Vitamin K Deficiencies

Vitamin K is known to be needed to coagulate blood and to maintain proper bone density. It plays a key role in proper development of the fetus. Deficiencies of vitamin K have been linked to:

Heavy menstrual bleeding*
Gastrointestinal bleeding
Hematuria (blood in the urine)
Nosebleeds
Eye hemorrhages
Anemia
Gum bleeding
Prolonged clotting times
Hematomas
Hemorrhaging
Ovarian Hemorrhaging
Easy bruising
Purpura
Osteopenia
Osteoporosis
Fractures
Hypercalciuria
Liver Cancer
Calcification of soft tissue, especially heart valves (See my section on Calcium Deposits for more on this topic).


Birth defects linked directly to vitamin K deficiencies include:

Underdevelopment of the nose, mouth and mid face
Shortened fingers
Cupped ears
Flat nasal bridges

The following birth defects have been linked to anticonvulsant drugs, which block vitamin K:

Epicanthal folds
Flat nasal bridge
Short noses
Variety of craniofacial abnormalities
Neural tube defects
Mental retardation
Learning disabilities
Long, thin overlapping fingers
Hypertelorism
Upslanting palpebral fissures
Microcephaly
Cardiac abnormalities
Distal digit hypoplasia (shortened pinkie fingers)
Growth deficiency





Iron deficiency

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_deficiency_(medicine)




Iron deficiency (sideropenia or hypoferremia) is one of the most commonly known forms of nutritional deficiencies. In the human body, iron is present in all cells and has several vital functions—as a carrier of oxygen to the tissues from the lungs in the form of hemoglobin, as a transport medium for electrons within the cells in the form of cytochromes, and as an integral part of enzyme reactions in various tissues. Too little iron can interfere with these vital functions and lead to morbidity and death.

The direct consequence of iron deficiency is iron deficiency anemia. Groups that are most prone to developing this disease are children and pre-menopausal women.







Boron deficiency

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boron_deficiency_(medicine)

Boron deficiency is a pathology which may occur in animals due to a lack of boron. A report given by E. Wayne Johnson et al. at the 2005 Alan D. Leman Swine Conference[1] suggests that boron deficiency produces osteochondrosis in swine that is correctable by addition of 50 ppm of boron to the diet. The amount of boron required by animals and humans is not yet well established.

According to some natural therapy researchers,[2] topsoil used over long periods of time for agriculture become boron-deficient to some extent, and humans eating produce from boron-rich soils have reduced incidence of arthritis and osteoporosis.




http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FDN/is_4_9/ai_n9479460/

Deficiency States

Information on boron deficiency in humans is minimal; however, it appears a deficiency in boron impacts mineral metabolism, cognitive function, steroid hormone and vitamin levels, and bone integrity. (20) Boron-deficient diets have resulted in embryological defects in some but not all animals (e.g., not in rodents), pointing to a possible role in reproduction and/or development. Limited growth is also commonly noted in boron-depleted animals, (17,21) while boron-deficient chicks present increased insulin secretion. (19,22)

Clinical Applications Anemia

Boron supplementation to subjects who had previously followed a dietary regimen deficient in boron resulted in increases in blood hemoglobin concentrations, mean corpuscular hemoglobin, and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, and decreases in hematocrit, red cell count and platelet count. (23)

Osteo- and Rheumatoid Arthritis

In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 20 subjects with osteoarthritis, half of the subjects receiving a daily supplement containing 6 mg boron noted subjective improvement in their condition. (24)

Clinical commentary suggests children with juvenile arthritis (Still's disease) improve with boron supplementation (6-9 mg daily). (25)

Individuals with rheumatoid arthritis might experience an aggravation of symptoms (Herxheimer response) for 1-3 weeks, but generally notice improvement within four weeks of beginning boron supplementation (6-9 mg daily). (25)

Cognitive Function

Collectively, data indicate that boron might play a role in human brain function, alertness, and cognitive performance. In humans, low boron intake compared to high boron intake was associated with poor short- and long-term memory, eye-hand coordination, and manual dexterity. (26) Boron deficiency has also been associated with decreased brain electrical activity similar to brainwave patterns observed in nonspecific malnutrition. (27)




Selenium Deficiency

http://www.suite101.com/content/selenium-deficiency-a10750

Selenium deficiency is thought to contribute to autoimmune disease by making the body more susceptible to nutritional and biochemical stresses as well as infectious diseases. Three diseases caused directly by selenium deficiency include Keshan Disease, which causes an enlarged heart, Kashin-Beck Disease, which causes osteoarthropathy, and Myxedematous Endemic Cretinism, a form of hypothyroidism which results in mental retardation.





http://www.testcountry.org/signs-and-symptoms-of-selenium-deficienc...




Fatigue
Miscarriage
Hyperthyroidism
Lack of mental dexterity
However, there are diseases that can be caused by this deficiency as well and they include Keshan disease and Kashin-Beck disease.

Keshan disease is viral disease and mostly affects children. It is caused by a deficient amount of selenium present in the body. The main symptom of this condition is myocardial necrosis, which leads to the weakening of the heart and a general weakness of the heart muscle. Keshan disease can also make a person much more susceptible to developing other illnesses.

Kashin-Beck disease occurs when the body is deficient of both selenium and iodine. The symptoms this can then present include the degeneration of cartilage.




So, what exactly causes a selenium deficiency in the first place? Eating food that is grown in soil lacking this nutrient is thought to be the primary cause. Also, people suffering from intestinal disorders that make the absorption of selenium next to impossible are at an elevated risk for developing this deficiency.

Treatment usually consists of taking selenium supplements until the body's levels have returned to normal. However, supplements may always be necessary if absorption is a problem.







Melatonin deficiency

http://www.prevention.com/cda/vendorarticle/melatonin/HN2883002/hea...




Adults with insomnia have been shown to have lower melatonin levels.4 Frequent travelers and shift workers are also likely to benefit from melatonin for the resynchronization of their sleep schedules,5 though a melatonin "deficiency" as such does not exist for these people. Patients with heart disease have been reported to have low melatonin levels, but whether this abnormality increases the risk of heart disease or whether heart disease leads to the low melatonin level is not yet known.6 People with schizophrenia were found to have low melatonin output and experienced significantly improved sleep following melatonin replacement supplementation.7





http://www.restorativemedicine.com/books/fundamentals-of-naturopath...

Adeficient production of melatonin can result in anxiety and mood disorders, lowered basal body temperature insomnia, elevated estrogen/progesterone ratio, and immune suppression associated with cancer.







Magnesium deficiency




http://www.ctds.info/5_13_magnesium.html




The diets of all Americans are likely to be deficient........Even a mild deficiency causes sensitiveness to noise, nervousness, irritability, mental depression, confusion, twitching, trembling, apprehension, insomnia, muscle weakness and cramps in the toes, feet, legs, or fingers.




Magnesium (Mg) is a trace mineral that is known to be required for several hundred different functions in the body. A significant portion of the symptoms of many chronic disorders are identical to symptoms of magnesium deficiency. Studies show many people in the U.S. today do not consume the daily recommended amounts of Mg. A lack of this important nutrient may be a major factor in many common health problems in industrialized countries. Common conditions such as mitral valve prolapse, migraines, attention deficit disorder, fibromyalgia, asthma and allergies have all been linked to a Mg deficiency. Perhaps not coincidentally, these conditions also tend to occur in clusters together within the same individual. A magnesium deficiency as a root cause would provide a logical explanation of why some people suffer from a constellation of these types of problems.

Many of the following conditions commonly occur in conjunction with each other and all have been linked to a Mg deficiency.

Contents:

Allergies, Chemical Sensitivities
Anxiety and Psychiatric Disorders
Aorta Strength
Asthma
Attention Deficit Disorder
Calcification of Soft Tissue Including Heart Valve
Diabetes
Also see:
Magnesium - Part Two - Covers the links between magnesium deficiency and diverse conditions such as fibromyalgia, hearing loss, migraines, menstrual cramps (dysmenorrhea), mitral valve prolapse, muscle cramps, nystagmus, osteoporosis, pectus excavatum, TMJ and more.

What is the percentage of Americans with inadequate intakes of Mg from food based on estimated average requirements?

56%







Calcium deficiency

http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/c/calcium_deficiency/symptoms.htm#sym...

Calcium is the most abundant mineral found in the human body. The majority (99%) is stored in the bones and teeth; the rest is stored in muscle tissue and blood. In addition to bone building and remodeling, calcium is also responsible for muscle contraction, central nervous function and hormone secretion. Calcium deficiency is of major concern in the United States. An estimated 44-87% of Americans don't get enough



Symptoms of Calcium deficiency

The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Calcium deficiency includes the 23 symptoms listed below:

Muscle cramps
Muscle aches
Muscle pain
Muscle twitching
Muscle spasms
Insomnia
Tooth decay
Weak bones
Reduced bone density
Rickets in children
Poor growth in children
Maldeveloped bones in children
Delayed puberty in teens
Menstrual problems in teens
Premenstrual cramps
Increased blood pressure
Pale skin
Listlessness
Dry scaly skin
Coarse hair
Brittle nails
Convulsions - in extreme cases
Easily fatigued
more information...»



Symptoms of Hypocalcaemia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypocalcaemia#Symptoms

▪ Petechia which appear as one-off spots, then later become rashes.

Perioral tingling and paraesthesia, 'pins and needles' sensation over the extremities of hands and feet. This is the earliest symptom of hypocalcaemia.
Tetany, carpopedal spasm are seen.
Latent tetany
Trousseau sign of latent tetany (eliciting carpal spasm by inflating the blood pressure cuff and maintaining the cuff pressure above systolic)
Chvostek's sign (tapping of the inferior portion of the zygoma will produce facial spasms)
Tendon reflexes are hyperactive
Life threatening complications
Laryngospasm
Cardiac arrhythmias
ECG changes include:
Prolonged QTc
Prolonged ST interval


The FDA beginning to limit nutrients already.


The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday announced a gradual but potentially far-reaching effort to reduce the amount of salt Americans consume in a bid to combat high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes and other health problems that have soared to near-epidemic proportions.







Based on what evidence?

http://www.saltinstitute.org/Issues-in-focus/Food-salt-health/Salt-...

1985. A ten-year study of nearly 8,000 Hawaiian Japanese men concluded: "No relation was found between salt intake and the incidence of stroke."

1995. An eight-year study of a New York City hypertensive population stratified for sodium intake levels found those on low-salt diets had more than four times as many heart attacks as those on normal-sodium diets – the exact opposite of what the “salt hypothesis” would have predicted.

1997. An analysis by NHLBI’s Dr. Cutler of the first six years’ data from the MRFIT database documented no health outcomes benefits of lower-sodium diets.

1997. A ten-year follow-up study to the huge Scottish Heart Health Study found no improved health outcomes for those on low-salt diets.

1998. An analysis of the health outcomes over twenty years from those in the massive US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES I) documented a 20% greater incidence of heart attacks among those on low-salt diets compared to normal-salt diets

1998. A health outcomes study in Finland, reported to the American Heart Association that no health benefits could be identified and concluded “…our results do not support the recommendations for entire populations to reduce dietary sodium intake to prevent coronary heart disease.”

1999. A further analysis of the MRFIT database, this time using fourteen years’ data, confirmed no improved health benefit from low-sodium diets. Its author conceded that there is "no relationship observed between dietary sodium and mortality."

1999. A study of Americans found that less sodium-dense diets did reduce the cardiovascular mortality of one population sub-set, overweight men – the article reporting the findings did not explain why this obese group actually consumed less sodium than normal-weight individuals in the study.

2001. A Finnish study reported an increase in cardiovascular events for obese men (but not women or normal-weight individuals of either gender) – the article, however, failed to adjust for potassium intake levels which many researchers consider a key associated variable.

2002. In September, 2002, the prestigious Cochrane Collaboration produced the latest and highest-quality meta-analysis of clinical trials. It was published in the British Medical Journal and confirmed earlier meta-analyses' conclusions that significant salt reduction would lead to very small blood pressure changes in sensitive populations and no health benefits.

2003. In June 2003, Dutch researchers using a massive database in Rotterdam concluded that "variations in dietary sodium and potassium within the range commonly observed in Westernized societies have no material effect on the occurrence of cardiovascular events and mortality at old age."

2004. In July 2004, the first "outcomes" study identifying a population risk appeared in Stroke magazine. Researchers found that in a Japanese population, "low" sodium intakes (about 20% above Americans' average intake) had one-third the incidence of fatal strokes of those consuming twice as much sodium as Americans.

2006. A March 2006 analysis of the federal NHANES II database in The American Journal of Medicine found a 37% higher cardiovascular mortality rate for low-sodium dieters

2007. A February 2007 reported in the International Journal of Epidemiology studied 40,547 Japanese over seven years and found "the Japanese dietary pattern was associated with a decreased risk of CVD mortality, despite its relation to sodium intake and hypertension."

2007. An April 2007 article in the British Medical Journal found a 25% lower risk of CV events in a group which years earlier had achieved significant sodium reduction during two clinical trials (TOHP I and TOHP II).

2007. An October 2007 analysis of a large Dutch database published in the European Journal of Epidemiology documented no benefit of low-salt diets in reducing stroke or heart attack incidence nor lowering death rates.

2008. A May 2008 examination of NHANES II (the largest US federal database of nutrition and health) published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine confirmed two earlier studies of earlier NHANES surveys that there is no health benefit (CVD or all-cause mortality) for those on low-sodium diets.





Salt deficiency

http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/salt.htm




Both sea salt and rock salt were well known to the ancient Greeks who noted that eating salty food affected basic body functions such as digestion and excretion (urine and stools). This led to salt being used medically. The healing methods of Hippocrates (460 BC) especially made frequent use of salt. Hippocrates mentions inhalation of steam from salt-water. We know today that the antiinflammatory effects of inhaled salt provide relief from respiratory symptoms (c). Thus, 2000 years ago, Greek medicine had already discovered topical use of salt for skin lesions, drinking salty or mineralized waters for digestive troubles and inhaling salt for respiratory diseases.





http://www.saltinstitute.org/Issues-in-focus/Food-salt-health/Human...
Unless closely supervised by a medical practitioner, low-salt diets can create health problems for vulnerable populations, including

Older persons

Since the elderly are more sensitive to the electrolytic balance in their bodies yet often have elevated blood pressure, and since the media carry endless stories about the dangers of hypertension, older persons may not appreciate the risks of reducing salt intakes which can create hyponatremia, low blood sodium levels. Hyponatremia is also known as "water intoxication;" in this regard, low blood sodium has been fatal to marathoners and football players who disregard proper hydration. The elderly more often become weak, dizzy orconfused.

Expectant mothers

A generation ago, expectant mothers were advised to avoid salt to curb weight gain during pregnancy. Yet this is the very time of life when nutrition is vitally important. Low-salt diets by pregnant women increased stillborn births and low-birthweight infants and has been condemned by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology which has found "There is no clinical benefit in restricting sodium intake during pregnancy and there is the potential for harm.




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyponatremia#Symptoms

Symptoms of hyponatremia [salt deficiency] include nausea and vomiting, headache, confusion, lethargy, fatigue, appetite loss, restlessness and irritability, muscle weakness, spasms, or cramps, seizures, and decreased consciousness or coma. The presence and severity of symptoms are associated with the level of serum sodium, with the lowest levels of serum sodium associated with the more prominent and serious symptoms. However, emerging data suggests that mild hyponatremia (serum sodium levels at 131 mEq/L or above) was associated with numerous complications and undiagnosed symptoms.[3]

Many medical illnesses, such as congestive heart failure, liver failure, renal failure, or pneumonia may be associated with hyponatremia. These patients frequently present because of primary disease symptomatology and are diagnosed after presenting due to manifestations of other medical issues.

Neurological symptoms often show for extremely low levels of sodium. When sodium levels in blood become too low, excess water enters cells and causes the cells to swell. Swelling in the brain is especially dangerous because the brain is confined by the skull and is unable to expand. Neurological symptoms most often are due to very low serum sodium levels (usually <115 mEq/L), resulting in intracerebral osmotic fluid shifts and brain edema. This neurological symptom complex can lead to tentorial herniation with subsequent brain stem compression and respiratory arrest, resulting in death in the most severe cases. The severity of neurological symptoms correlates with the rapidity and severity of the drop in serum sodium. A gradual drop, even to very low levels, may be tolerated well if it occurs over several days or weeks, because of neuronal adaptation. The presence of underlying neurological disease, like a seizure disorder, or non-neurological metabolic abnormalities, also affects the severity of neurologic symptoms.

Posted by yupfarming at 11:18 PM
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