A study by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, studied a sample of 257 patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) out of a sample of over 7 million U.S. military personnel. Serum samples were analyzed for vitamin D levels, and the findings showed that the risks of MS fell 62 percent for those in the top fifth of vitamin D concentration among white people who comprised most of the study population. Besides promoting the absorption of calcium in the body, vitamin D also seems to act as a regulator of the immune system. (source: Reuters News Dec. 19, 2006)
[Ed. note: The body produces vitamin D after exposure to sunlight, but since not many foods are naturally rich in vitamin D, supplementation is often recommended.]

More good news for those who have replaced saturated fat with monounsaturated fats like olive oil in their diets to combat heart disease. A report from the FASEB Journal, a publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology found that olive oil consumption lowered the presence of 8oxodG, a marker of oxidative damage to cells’ DNA, by an average of 13%.

Even more significant was the discovery that phenols found in olive oil, widely touted as powerful antioxidants, did not seem to be responsible for the cancer fighting effect of olive oil. Rather it was the monounsaturated fats in olive oil that are behind the effect.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the FDA moved too slowly in reviewing ads on products ranging from impotence remedies to incontinence pills, and too slowly in trying to stop misleading ads. According to the GAO, drug companies spent $4.2 billion on such ads in 2005. The GAO found that the FDA issues only 19 regulatory letters in 2003 and 2004, and the covered materials had been in the market for an average of 8 months already. Furthermore, drug companies sometimes ignored the regulatory letters anyway.

[Ed. note: We urge all readers to contact their representatives in the US Congress and demand that the FDA begin effectively protecting consumers or be dismantled. Why should taxpayers fund an agency that functions almost exclusively to support the enormously profitable pharmaceutical industry?]

FDA panels had urged new warnings for acetaminophen in 1977 and 2002, but the FDA claimed "laborious" work delayed their action. The recommended warnings apply to acetaminophen, a common ingredient in products like Tylenol (potential liver damage), and for NSAIDs, or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen and ketoprofen (may cause stomach bleeding).

While most people tolerate the recommended dosage well, many people do not realize the dangers of taking too much or combining the medicines with alcohol. Or they may unknowingly use more than one product that contains the same ingredient and accidentally overdose.
(source: Reuters News Dec. 19, 2006)
[Ed. note: Many people do not realize that acetaminophen overdose is the leading cause of acute liver failure.]

A study reported in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, showed that enhanced nutritional supplements containing antioxidants, minerals and other nutrients can boost immune function in the most vulnerable elderly population. In comparing the effects of this supplement with a standard supplement, Ensure Plus, it was evident that seeking out the best supplements pays off in disease fighting efficiency. Specifically in this study, the group administered the enhanced supplement had nearly twice the probability of avoiding the flu, compared to the group given a standard supplement.

Superior ingredients is one reason why Best Health Secrets recommends the supplements of Xtend-Life Natural Products over the cheaper department store multi-vitamins varieties. Other reasons include quality control, advanced delivery and absorption technology and great service.