Archive for October, 2011
Decorative contact lenses could haunt you this Halloween
10.28.2011Halloween revelers face a huge risk to their vision by using over-the-counter decorative contact lenses without using proper precautions. Wearing the lenses without taking proper care can lead to a blinding eye infection with an ulcer on the cornea.
The Food and Drug Administration regulates all contact lenses, including lenses that don’t have any corrective power. A federal law classifies all contact lenses as medical devices that must be distributed only to licensed eyecare professionals. Anyone who sells contact lenses without a license faces civil penalties of up to $11,000 per violation.
People who purchase these decorative lenses without going through a doctor will not receive a proper fitting, which could result in a scratch on the cornea. And they will not be educated in the proper cleaning and maintenance of the lenses. So before purchasing any non-prescription lenses, be sure to contact your eyecare professional.
Elise Ervin
Staff Writer
Medical Marijuana: Legalize AND Control It
10.26.2011I recently read an article in the LA Times about the medicinal use of marijuana, and the CA Medical Association’s adoption of a “legalize it” stance.
Several US States have already legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes
Wouldn’t it be great if the medicinal value could be separated from the drug’s high?
During my glaucoma fellowship at Mount Sinai Medical Center, we actually performed a study in which eyedrops containing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC – the active ingredient in marijuana – were used on patients with glaucoma (elevated eye pressure). Unfortunately, the penetration of THC into the eye was poor, and THC eyedrops were of no medical value.
Yet, plant-sourced medication is the foundation of many therapeutic medications. Digitalis, for example, is a common heart medication.
Although widespread abuses exist, no one questions the value of opiates in the treatment of severe pain. Likewise, there are real uses for marijuana, including treatment of intractable nausea, such as experienced by people undergoing chemotherapy.
The answer is to both legalize it and control it – just as is done with opiates. Such a solution doesn’t guarantee that abuses won’t occur, but it provides a compromise solution for those vying for and fighting against its legalization.*
–
Paul Krawitz, M.D., President
VisiVite.Com
Oxidative stress linked to AMD
10.23.2011Researchers identified a key protein that binds to a molecule created by oxidative stress which blocks all subsequent inflammatory immune response. Oxidative stress is the process in which proteins, lipids and DNA which have been damaged by oxygen free radicals and other cellular waste build up and cause an inflammatory response from the immune system. Age-related macular degeneration has been linked to oxidative stress.
The study which was published in the October 6, 2011 issue of Nature reveals significant insights into how the immune system reacts to oxidative stress and how this response might be used to treat AMD and other chronic inflammatory diseases.
Researchers discovered a compound known as malondialdehyde (MDA) which attracted an immune system protein called CFH which bound to it and essentially blocked the uptake of MDA-modified proteins by white blood cells that kill foreign substances.
It is hoped that this new discovery of the protective role of CFH will offer new therapies for treating AMD and other chronic conditions.
Elise Ervin
Staff Writer
New eyedrop therapy may replace eye injections for wet macular degeneration
10.21.2011
A new topical drug developed by MacuCLEAR, Inc. has been give Fast Track status by the Food and Drug Administration. The promising drug known as MC-1101, would offer wet AMD patients an option to the current method of treatment which involves injections into the eye.
MacuCLEAR is currently evaluating which eye drop delivery system will provide the best delivery of the medication. The need for precise delivery of the medication necessitates using another method of delivery besides the standard eyedroppers which can deliver too much medication and is wasteful.
MC-1101 has already passed the Proof of Concept human trial and has successfully demonstrated that is is safe with a low incidence of adverse effects which were typically mild in severity. The drug is now ready to enter the efficacy trial. Once this phase is completed, then a partnership with a pharmaceutical company will be secured and a study will be completed and the drug will hopefully be brought to market.*
Elise Ervin
Staff Writer
Ugly Brother Tries to Ruin Things Again!
10.20.2011
1970.
Layla, from Derek and the Dominos, topped the charts. The Beatles broke up. The United States invaded Cambodia. Midnight Cowboy won the Oscar for Best Motion Picture.
January 1st, 1970 was also the date that cyclamates were taken off the market by the Food and Drug Administration because they were shown to cause cancer in laboratory animals.
But no one would come to the conclusion that honey from a bees nest would do the same, simply because it is also a sweetener.
Yet 41 years later, both the medical and popular press continue to do just that when it comes to a synthetic, petroleum-based molecule that’s created from smashing together ingredients to create a witches’ brew of active vitamin ingredients and bizarro, mirror images of the vitamin molecules that have no beneficial biological activity.
The offender is DL-alpha tocopherol. And it is the “L”, which stands for Levo or Left-handed, that let’s you know you’re dealing with this contaminant-laden mixture. It also goes by the confusing acronym, “all racemic-tocopheryl acetate” which means it contains some beneficial right-handed racemers, and some pollutant left-handed racemers.
Oh, by the way, the other name for this molecule is Synthetic Vitamin E.
The ugly brother continues to drag down the pristine reputation of Natural Vitamin E, which is lovingly derived from healthy plant oils.
The latest tale of worry was a study in the normally responsible Journal of the American Association, which stated that taking high doses of Vitamin E could increases a man’s risk of developing prostate cancer by 17%. Unusually, the findings came from a trial which was attempting to prove just the opposite.
Of course, combing through the Methods section of the study, we found that the scientists were using You Know Who — Ugly Brother Petroleum-Based Synthetic Vitamin E!
Two earlier research papers looked at a large number of men taking vitamin E supplements and each came to different conclusions on how vitamin E affects prostate cancer.
In 2003, data from the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta –Carotene Cancer Prevention (ATBC) Trial showed that study participants taking vitamin E had a 32 percent reduction in prostate cancer. And in the Physicians Health Study II, participants took the same amount of vitamin E as the men in the Select trial but it had no effect on their risk of prostate cancer.
A report last year published in the International Journal of Cancer showed that a form of vitamin E called gamma tocotrienol “stopped tumors forming in more than 70 percent of mice …implanted with the cancer cells.” Tumors developed in 100 percent of the mice in the control group.
The medical literature is replete with studies showing that natural vitamin E is helpful for a wide variety of health conditions, including, but not limited to, cardiovascular disease, cancer prevention, Alzheimer’s and eye health.
Our advice about Vitamin E? Consult with your doctor if you take Coumadin (warfarin), since prothrombin times can be affected when you are on that medication. And seek out supplement manufacturers who use natural forms of Vitamin E in their formulations, without the “L” or “All Racemic” in the chemical name.*
—–
Paul Krawitz, M.D., President
Vitamin Science, Inc.
