Daniel Schatzman, editor of Nutritional Outlook magazine, wrote a great column for the magazine’s June issue about a recent study that asserts a bias against nutritional supplements in medical journals. While it certainly seems that a bias exists, Schatzman makes a good argument as to why supplements seem unfairly represented in these publications.

After examining 11 medical journals – among these were the Journal of the American Medical Association and the New England Journal of Medicine – two university researchers concluded the following:

– Journals with the most pharmaceutical drug ads published no clinical or cohort studies on dietary supplements.
– In journals with the most drug ads, mentions of supplements being unsafe or ineffective were 63 percent and 50 percent higher, respectively.

Schatzman’s take: Though advertising might have something to do with the apparent bias, there are many other factors that might be keeping supplements down. Here are some other reasons:

– There might be a bias in the article acceptance and peer-review processes at some journals.
– Editors and authors might influence these publications with their own views and interests.
– Studies on pharmaceuticals outnumber those on supplements and supplement ingredients.

Finally, Schatzman calls for the dietary supplement industry to “step up” and fund major research. Although this is certainly a great recommendation, he goes no further as to how such initiatives would be supported.

Since big pharmaceutical companies have the big bucks to conduct clinical trials and other studies, supplement manufacturers must find other ways to compete. One way might be to form partnerships or associations that would study certain ingredients. The industry at large might benefit from the results of these studies.

Now that probiotics are popping up in everything from cereal to chocolate to cheese, the mainstream press is pushing praises toward beneficial bacteria.

A mid-April story from the Washington Post asserts probiotics might help “thwart an array of conditions from allergies, asthma and eczema to gastrointestinal ailments.” The story goes on to say the friendly bacteria fit with a trend toward promoting overall health and using fewer prescription drugs.

The Washington Post says the following about probiotics:

- They might fight off food-borne infections and the gastrointestinal illness C. difficile
- Probiotics seem to thwart rotavirus in infants and children
- Friendly bacteria might keep people regular and could prevent antibiotic-induced diarrhea
- A German study found probiotics might decrease the duration of colds and dampen cold symptoms

In the WellZymes™ line of nutritional supplements is Colon Health, a probiotic that provides a blend of more than 3 billion friendly bacteria to restore the colon’s flora balance. Colon Health impedes the growth of harmful bacteria, viruses, fungi and yeast while it raises the colon’s pH to resist harmful tissue changes.

A story on foodproductiondaily.com reports that probiotics might play a role in metabolism. According to a recent study, probiotics could change the way bile acids are metabolized, which could affect how individuals absorb fat.

Now, the story never went into what altering “how much fat the body is able to absorb” could mean for humans, but another story at healthcarerepublic.com asserts probiotics might assist in weight loss. In fact, the report says the findings could lead to the development of probiotic therapies for obesity or diabetes.

It’s hard to say where this type of research might lead. Although probiotics are being widely used in a variety of food products, the mechanism by which they act is largely a mystery. The stories pointed out that the research, performed on mice that had human microbes in their guts, was important because it pinpoints one way probiotic strains might work.

That probiotics could help increase energy and improve metabolism is great news, especially if it leads to more healthful choices when it comes to dieting for weight loss. It seems there’s a new weight-loss pill or method on the market every week, and the long-term safety of many of these products is anybody’s guess.

The popular weight-loss product on the market today, alli, works by preventing the body from absorbing some of the fat ingested from food. Is the $60 per month price tag and side effects, including fecal urgency, loss of bowel control and gas, worth it? Plus, is it healthful, in the long term, to keep a body from absorbing fat, an essential nutrient?

A natural way to achieve weight loss, of course, is exercise and proper diet. And to supplement those methods, Enzymes, Inc., carries an extensive line of highly effective digestive enzyme products that help the body fully absorb nutrients from food. Digestive enzyme supplements also can boost energy for immune function and ease gastrointestinal problems, such as gas and bloating. The great thing is, enzymes occur naturally in the body.

Other natural products include WellZymes™ Metabolic Balance,™ which contains herbal extracts to stimulate the body’s metabolic processes. It helps the body burn fat calories and possibly helps burn stored fat. Also, WellZymes™ Colon Health, a probiotic supplement, contains more than 3 billion “friendly bacteria” for digestive health. These strains help to impede the growth of harmful gut bacteria. They also can promote a healthy immune system.

Be sure to check out the story on www.enzymeexperts.com about insurance companies and alternative care options. Today, it seems that several employers are trying to find new ways to decrease health insurance costs. In this election year, when health care is a top political issue, stories such as this show how consumers are responding to the costly and sometimes ineffective U.S. health care system.

One option is to include coverage for alternative health care from chiropractors, acupuncturists and other practitioners. Also, some plans are covering the costs of supplements, such as herbals and nutritional products. In addition, some plans could allow participants to purchase supplements with money from health savings accounts.

This is great news for people who have already found relief from chronic or bothersome conditions through alternative practitioners and supplements. And for those that haven’t looked beyond traditional medicine, this could open their lives and minds to highly effective alternative care. It would be wise to ask employers about these options, as that will send a message to insurance companies that alternative health care could be one step toward healing what ails U.S. medicine. According to smartmoney.com, about 75 percent of U.S. adults have tried some sort of alternative care.

We can also encourage our local, state and national representatives to consider the benefits of alternative health care. At the very least, it would be nice to hear more discussion about the options as legislators and presidential candidates offer their solutions for the country’s medical woes. As the rates of diabetes, obesity and other chronic conditions keep climbing, we have to make it clear that alternative medicine might not only decrease the costs of health care coverage, but might also help create a more healthful society.

Check out the SmartMoney story here, as it also offers some excellent suggestions we should all consider about alternative health care options in our insurance plans. For example, some plans might only offer discounts, and some might not accept claims for myriad reasons. Also, it’s a good idea to use caution when choosing a practitioner for alternative care. Of course, we strongly recommend BioSET™ certified practitioners, as well as those that offer the BioSET,™ Advanced Formula™ and NESS™ lines of nutritional supplements.

Good question.

An enzyme is a protein that makes everything in your body work… it’s like a spark plug in a car. The spark plug ignites the fuel and converts it to the energy that moves the car. An enzyme ignites your fuel, you could say. Your fuel is food. Enzymes break it down into the energy your body needs to function. If your food is not converted to energy–if you don’t have enzymes, your body won’t work.

Enzymes are the spark of life – without them life would cease to exist. Although the action of enzymes much like electricity, and cannot be seen, it is the driving force behind virtually all life processes. Scientists have identified literally hundreds of thousands of enzymes active in the human body. Enzymes move your muscles, stimulate your nerves, make your heart beat, keep you breathing, digest your food and even allow you to think.
An enzyme is defined in the dictionary as: a protein functioning as a biochemical catalyst in a living organism - in other words, it either starts or accelerates a chemical reaction while remaining unchanged itself. Enzymes are present in every cell in both plants and animals; and are responsible for regulating the biochemical reactions necessary to sustain life. Enzymes are at the heart of all of your body’s activities, from digesting your food to blinking your eyes. The human body is actually a series of thousands of enzymatic reactions constantly happening! Enzymes are very specific for the type of reaction they catalyze, the type of substance they work on, and the conditions under which they will work - which is why there are many thousands of enzymes in the human body. The enzymes involved in the digestion or break down of food include proteases for protein, amylases for starches, lipase for fat, cellulases for fiber, invertase for refined sugar, lactase for milk sugar and alpha-galactosidase for sugars in beans.

Taking digestive enzymes supplements before meals will help “lighten the load” on the body’s own enzyme production. The help to break down the food, and fully assimilate its nutritional components. For more information visit www.enzymesinc.com!

An article appeared on Forbes.com yesterday concerning the data from new cox-2 inhibitor research. A Journal of Clinical Investigation study focused research on two Cyclooxegenase-2 (cox-2) derived compounds, referred to as PGI2 and PGE2. The production of these two compounds is “inhibited” when a cox-2 specific medication - like Vioxx, Celebrex, or Bextra - is taken for pain and inflammation.

Apparently PGI2 and PGE2 are: “thought to help maintain cardiovascular health by preventing platelets in blood vessels from clumping together.” Hence the heightened risk of heart attack when taking a cox-2 medication. The researchers studied PGI2 and PGE2 in an attempt to determine which of the two compounds was paramount in this increased risk.

Through the study of genetically engineered mice, the researchers determined the “depression of cox-2-dependent PGI2″ was the “biochemical culprit.” In the PGE2 portion of the research, the focus was directed on the enzyme microsomal PGE synthase-1 (mPGES-1), which “works as a partner with cox-2 in the biosynthesis of PGE2.” It was determined “that inhibiting mPGES-1 suppressed PGE2 (just as cox-2 medications do) while increasing PGI2 to heart-healthy levels had no measurable effect on either blood pressure or clotting in the treated mice.”

So, get ready folks. There is another medication soon to be rushed through all the appropriate channels…bye bye cox-2 inhibitor, hello mPGES-1 inhibitor. A new wave of promotional pens, golf tees, and other big-pharma chattel will be popping up in no time (and we wonder why medication is so expensive…).

In the article, an expert on cox-2 medication stated: “the safety and efficacy of ‘mPGES-1 inhibitor’ drugs is in its infancy, and it will be many years before consumers see these medications available in pharmacies — if ever.” It will be interesting to see how quickly big-pharma runs this race.

Of course, a naproxen / proton pump cocktail is recommended in the meantime to relieve pain and inflammation with diminished GI risk - the former duty of the cox-2 inhibitors.

Interestingly enough, a University of Texas SW Medical Center study published in The Journal of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery found InflammEnz, a high-potency proteolytic enzyme based supplement, was incredibly effective in relieving inflammation. The study reported InflammEnz relieved inflammation, and actually accelerated healing time by two to three days - this happened in 77% of the subjects studied.

Why don’t the experts recommend InflammEnz as a cox-2 alternative for inflammation?

Not enough pens and golf tees, I guess…

Nearly eighty years ago, Dr. Edward Howell, a physician and researcher, uncovered nature’s secret to healthy digestion. While others were touting vitamins and minerals as the nutritional breakthrough of the century, Dr. Howell discovered perhaps the most vital nutrients of all – food enzymes. Through his extensive clinical research, he learned that food enzymes are essential for proper digestion which directly correlates with dramatic improvements in health and longevity.

Our bodies are designed to rely on two sources of enzymes in digesting food – the enzymes produced by our digestive system and the enzymes naturally present in the food we eat. Raw food like uncooked fruits and vegetables contribute enzymes to the digestive process, but each one brings only enough enzymes to digest itself and no more. Whenever food is cooked or processed at any time before it is eaten– whether it is microwaved, steamed, broiled, roasted, pasteurized, canned, sautéed, stir-fried or heated in any manner - all of the food enzymes are destroyed in a few short minutes. And this doesn’t mean you have to do the cooking - the enzymes in all processed foods, whether you cook them or not, have been destroyed. In his book, Enzyme Nutrition, Dr. Edward Howell observed that “the refining of food and improved cooking methods have rendered the modern diet enzyme-deficient due to the effective destruction of enzymes in foods by these processes.”

To compensate for a lack of food enzymes, our bodies must assume the full burden of producing all of the enzymes for the digestion of that food. If you’ve ever felt sleepy after a meal, it’s because your body is working harder than it should to digest the food you’ve eaten. This tremendous stress on the digestive system depletes the body of energy and other materials that could be better utilized to support other important functions in the body like protecting against harmful organisms, making new cells and tissues and, simply, enjoying life. Adding to this problem, research tells us that our bodies’ ability to produce digestive enzymes and therefore digest food decreases as we grow older, which explains the higher incidence of digestive complaints and other chronic health problems in older adults.

Although a strong advocate of eating more raw food, Dr. Howell soon realized that most people prefer cooked food over raw food so supplemental enzymes were needed to help digest this food. By carefully selecting the sources and methods of growth and extraction, Dr. Howell was able produce unique and highly active enzymes that, when added to the diet, provide the same type of digestive activity as raw food enzymes, relieving some of the body’s digestive stress. Thus, the first vegetarian enzyme supplement, known as Genuine N-Zimes, was produced in 1932. For the next 60 years, Dr. Howell diligently researched the therapeutic health benefits derived from the use of enzyme supplements. Only two people still in the industry, one of which is Enzymes, Inc. VP Lynn Greaves, had the distinct privilege of working with Dr. Howell and had access to his original formulations and production techniques. While Enzymes, Inc. has expanded on the original research, creating premier lines of products, Dr. Howell’s original formulations are still available through Enzymes, Inc. today.

Business Week.com recently posted an interesting story concerning difficulty Standard Process is having in keeping their products, supposedly exclusively available through health care practitioners, out of the hands of any one with an Internet connection and a credit card (read the story here).

The author, David E. Gumpert, declares it an “uphill battle” while giving the company at least credit for trying. Apparently the company has issued a zero tolerance policy regarding the resale of their supplements online - you get caught, you get cut off - no more Catalyn or Almond Crunch bars for you…

It appears Mr. Gumpert was unfamiliar with Standard Process, and the concept of certain nutritional supplements available only at the recommendation of a health care practitioners, when he began work on this piece. Even after he did a bit of research, he thought of it as simply “making his life more difficult.”

Standard Process has grown into a quite a conglomeration since its humble beginnings in 1929 - perhaps that’s part of the problem. With 175 or so different products, and thousands of qualified buyers, it would be quite a daunting task to monitor the vast expanses of the Internet in search of these renegade supplement suppliers.

As a much smaller company than Standard Process, Enzymes, Inc. has not experienced this degree of problems with our professional product lines. Of course, we are focused mainly on enzyme supplements, and we do offer different product lines available to consumers.

We’ve also heard, through the grapevine, of Standard Process products actually being available at retail health and nutrition outlets. Health care providers can rest assured this will never happen with the professional product lines from Enzymes, Inc.

Like Standard Process, we are vigilant in monitoring the Internet for unauthorized distribution of our products. But since our focus is more concentrated, the road isn’t nearly as rough.