Newsletter v1n8

"Doctors put drugs of which they know little, into bodies of which they know less, for diseases of which they know nothing at all." Voltaire

The DOCTOR YOURSELF(SM) NEWSLETTER Vol 1, No 8 February 16, 2001 "Free of charge, free of advertising, and free of the A.M.A." Written by ANDREW SAUL, PhD of http://www.doctoryourself.com , a free online library of more than 180 natural healing articles with over 2,500 scientific references.

VITAMINS FIGHT ALCOHOLISM Wait to you read Dr. Roger J. Williams' protocol for treating alcoholism nutritionally. It is very interesting, and very effective. A case story on that subject is posted at http://doctoryourself.com/alcoholism.html and there is more to read at http://doctoryourself.com/alcohol_protocol.html

I was pleased to discover that the complete bibliography of Roger J. Williams, Ph.D. is posted at http://www.cm.utexas.edu/williams . Dr. Williams was the discoverer of the B-vitamin pantothenic acid and a pioneer of therapeutic nutrition research. He advocated supplemental doses of vitamins for all alcoholics...over fifty years ago. Bill W., the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, and Abram Hoffer, M.D. have also been strong supporters of nutrition therapy for alcoholism.

Even more interesting, you can obtain single copies of Williams' papers (free of charge) from Donald R. Davis, Ph.D., who administers http://www.cm.utexas.edu/williams at the University of Texas. If you are seriously studying vitamin therapy, this is a most helpful resource. Email Dr. Davis at d.r.davis@mail.utexas.edu .

SO EXACTLY WHAT IS A ROSE HIP, ANYWAY? Any biologist knows that roses don't have hips because they are not vertebrates. Ha! Okay, back on task:

Rose hips are the fruit of a rose bush. All flowers give rise to fruits, and the rose is no exception. When I hike (just got back from another one), I look for wild or feral rosebushes and munch out on the "hips" as soon as they are ready (usually early autumn). They are often found on the bushes throughout the entire winter, just waiting for you to come along. Eaten fresh or dried, they are high in vitamin C.

Rose hips are a rich source of bioflavinoids. Bioflavinoids improve uptake and utilization of vitamin C. Albert Szent-Gyorgyi won the Nobel prize for his research with vitamin C and related factors back in the 30's. He actually proposed the term "Vitamin P" for the ("protective"?) phytochemicals in bioflavinoids. In a rather adorable, unplanned bit of research, Szent-Gyorgyi was feeding pure vitamin C to his lab animals. One evening, some of them snuck out of their cage and ate his dinner when he wasn't looking: the meal consisted of stuffed green peppers. Szent-Gyorgyi observed that the animals that ate the peppers seemed to require considerably less pure ascorbic acid than did the less lucky critters. Peppers, along with many fruits and vegetables, are high in bioflavinoids.

Many folks would do well to note this next section: there is so very little rose hips powder in most "rose-hips C" tablets that it is a waste of money to pay extra for what amounts to nearly zilch. I (in agreement with Linus Pauling) recommend that people buy the cheapest vitamin C they can find, and take a lot of it. This means moderate amounts very frequently. The only reason to pay more for "C" is if you have a sensitive tummy and need a buffered form, and rose hips have essentially nothing to do with that.

I recommend that people take cheap C, AND eat right. Foods are a lousy source of vitamin C but an excellent source of bioflavinoids. Vitamin C tablets are a lousy source of bioflavinoids, but a good source of C. Good match.

And by the way, a green or red pepper IS a fruit. So are pumpkins, green beans and squash. They all come from flowers. A rose by any other name?

References: Hughes R.E. and Jones P.R. (1971) Natural and synthetic sources of vitamin C. J. Sci. Food. Agric. 22 551 552.

Jones E. and Hughes R.E. (1984) The influence of bioflavonoids on the absorption of vitamin C. IRCS Med. Sci. 12 320

Vinson J A, Bose P. (1983) Comparative bioavailability of synthetic and natural vitamin C in Guinea pigs. Nutr Rep Intl 27(4):875.

Vinson J A, Bose P. (1988) Comparative bioavailability to humans of ascorbic acid alone or in a citrus extract. Am J Clin Nutr 48:6014.

DoctorYourself Recommended WEBSITE OF THE MONTH: Would you like to know which countries do *not* fluoridate their water? Go to http://www.fluoridation.com/c-country.htm What is really neat is that the original letters from the responding governments are posted there to read firsthand.

DON'T GET MAD; GET PUBLISHED! One of the great things about the internet is that is brings back the power of the pamphleteer. As Thomas Paine's thirst for freedom in Common Sense spoke the hearts of Yankee patriots, so you too can be heard today. Want to speak out on the benefits of natural health? Post your opinions on the 'net newsgroups. You can search the Internet for discussion groups on many health topics, or start with this list of some of the better-known ones:

misc.health.alternative sci.med sci.med.nutrition alt.health misc.kids.health misc.kids.pregnancy talk.politics.medicine alt.med.fibromyalgia sci.life-extension alt.support.menopause misc.fitness.weights own.health.homeopathy sci.med.diseases.hepatitis alt.support.cancer alt.support.attn-deficit alt.support.chronic pain alt.support.depression misc.health.arthritis sci.med.dentistry alt.support.tinnitus alt.support.diabetes alt.parenting.solutions alt.support.depression alt.support.depression.manic

You are doing a public service every time you post your message to let the world know that natural healing works, and works well, and that we can prove it both through personal experience and with thousands of scientific references, many of which are at http://doctoryourself.com

READERS SAY: "As a child I occasionally suffered migraines, and later (from the age of 30 to 50) were replaced by periodic cluster headaches lasting at least several weeks each time. Each of these bouts would increase in both frequency and intensity, reach a crescendo, and suddenly cease. Although breathing pure oxygen would provide immediate and complete relief, pain would return within several minutes after coming off of it.

So I found the following to be effective, at least during the first half of these periods of increasing frequency/intensity: Immediately upon the onset of the headache, I dissolved a very large heaping tablespoon of granulated ascorbic acid into a glass of water and drank it. If taken soon enough, it would stop cluster headaches in their tracks. I do not know however, whether or not it would also do the same with migraine."

Regards, Michael

(Editors note: a heaping tablespoon of vitamin C as ascorbic acid amounts to about 15 grams or more. That may be too much for some, and may require a buffer (such as a calcium supplement) for others. Be sure to read the excellent vitamin C megadosage guide by Robert Cathcart, M.D. posted at http://www.doctoryourself.com/titration.html so you take enough, but not too much.)

BOOK REVIEW: Hawkins, David and Pauling, Linus: Orthomolecular Psychiatry (1973) San Francisco: W.H. Freeman and Co.

It is not speculation that high doses of vitamins can effectively treat mental illness; it is a fact. Here is an entire textbook devoted to the subject. 37 contributing experts in thirty articles provide abundant scientific basis for the immediate, aggressive use of orthomolecular (megavitamin) therapy, especially for psychosis. Though not for the general reader, this book is a powerful response to those who insist, still, that RDA or RDI quantities of vitamins are quite adequate for all. Complete from case histories to biochemical mechanisms, Orthomolecular Psychiatry and its many hundreds of included references firmly establish very-high-dose vitamin therapy as the treatment of choice for schizophrenia, dementia, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and related illnesses. Detailed clinical instructions are provided, with emphasis on the most important outcome: results. This is a very important book. It is probably out of print, but your public librarian can get you a copy through interlibrary loan. (679 pages, cloth)

More information on orthomolecular (megavitamin) therapy at http://www.orthomed.org and http://www.soe.nl/home.htm . You might also want to read http://doctoryourself.com/hoffer_ABC.html http://doctoryourself.com/hoffer_psychosis.html http://doctoryourself.com/hoffer_paradigm.html http://doctoryourself.com/hoffer_editorial.html http://doctoryourself.com/hoffer_JOM.html

Privacy Statement: We do not sell, and we do not share, our mailing list or your email address with anyone. You may notice that there is no advertising at http://doctoryourself.com and no advertising in this newsletter. We also do not sell vitamins or other health products, except for Dr. Saul's books, which help fund these free public services.

Today's Reason to Become (More of) a Vegetarian: BECAUSE IT'S FUN!

I regularly took my three-year-old son with me when shopping at the local supermarket . We inevitably passed through the meat department. My son pointed to the blood-red packages and loudly asked me, "What's that Daddy?" I replied, much more quietly, "That is meat." He then said, just as loudly as before, "We don't eat meat, do we, Daddy!" He was correct, of course, and I told him so. He smiled, and in a voice that could easily be heard in the Produce department on the other side of the store, declared for all to hear: "We don't eat meat! We're not Italian!"

I think he meant to say, "We're vegetarian," but I kinda like it better his way.

DoctorYourself JOKE OF THE WEEK: It seems that this elephant woke up one morning with a very stuffy nose. Now to an elephant, a congested nose seems life threatening, so he gave away all his possessions, made funeral arrangements, and then went to a naturopathic doctor expecting to hear the worst. The doctor said, "Relax, you'll get better in a few days." That goes to show that just because your trunk is packed doesn't mean you're ready to go.

(adapted from Peter Shickele, aka PDQ Bach, in The Carnival of the Animals

COMING IN THE NEXT ISSUE: FIBROMYALGIA ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE Yet Another VITAMIN MYTH And MUCH MORE, OF COURSE!

Got Ideas? To submit a question or suggest a topic for the newsletter, email me at doctoryourself.com/contact.html

Did You Want a Back Issue of this newsletter? All are available free of charge at http://www.doctoryourself.com/backissues.html

Copyright c 2001 and prior years Andrew W. Saul Permission to reproduce single copies of this newsletter FOR NON-COMMERCIAL, PERSONAL USE ONLY is hereby granted providing no alteration of content is made and authorship credit is given.