Statins and Dementia

A July 2019 report by University Medical Center Ljubljana, Slovenia and the Karolinska Institutet, Sweden finds that, “…the use of statins is significantly associated with a reduction in the risk of mortality in dementia patients” and that, “…statin users had a 23% reduction in the risk of stroke, which is three times more likely in patients with mild dementia and seven times more likely in those with severe dementia.”

Dr Sara Garcia-Ptacek said, "This is a cohort study, which means patients were not randomized to a treatment like they would be in a clinical trial. For this reason, we can only show an association, and not definitely prove that statins caused this decline in mortality. However, our results are encouraging and suggest that patients with dementia benefit from statins to a similar extent than patients without dementia."

Sleep and Weight Loss

 A June 2019 study by Rovira i Virgili University found that, “…individuals with highly variable sleep patterns - that's to say, who did not sleep the same number of hours every night - at the beginning of the study lost less weight after a follow-up period of 12 months. What is more, a high sleep variability and sleeping little - less than six hours - a day was associated with a lower decrease in body mass index and waist circumference.”

Salt and Bloating

Dr Noel Mueller of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in a June 2019 study found that, “Bloating is one of the leading gastrointestinal complaints …” and can be made worse by “…by a high-fiber diet; our results suggest that they might be able to reduce that bloating, without compromising on healthy fiber, by lowering their sodium intake."

Statins and Glaucoma

In a June 2019 report from Brigham and Women's Hospital Professor Jae Hee Kang suggests, “… possible protective associations beyond cardiovascular conditions for long-term statin use. Statins may also strengthen neuroprotective mechanisms that prevent degeneration of cells in the optic nerve…"

Acupuncture for Excess Phlegm and Other Imbalances

These are some of the acupuncture points for excess phlegm (and other imbalances). The treatment takes four sessions, at weekly intervals. Core points, including the Four Gates, the Kidney Formula and Ying Tang, form the basis of the treatment with specific additional points in each weekly session:

Week One

Governing Vessel 26: inappropriate laughing or crying, irritability, fatigue, epilepsy.

Lung 11: epilepsy, sore throat, heat.

Spleen 1: disorientation, epilepsy.

Week Two

Pericardium 7: inflexible attitude, irritability, material desires, inordinate crying or laughing, lack of direction in life.

Bladder 62: headaches, epilepsy.

Governing Vessel 16: rigid tongue, lock jaw, loss of voice, headache.

Week Three

Stomach 7: lock jaw, neurological conditions.

Conception Vessel 24: weak, thin, body, deteriorating, nosebleeds.

Pericardium 8: paranoia, fever, sweats.

Week Four

Governing Vessel 23: phlegm, nasal congestion, poor vision, dizziness, Alzheimer’s.

Conception Vessel 1:  urinary and bowel leakages or obstructions, menstrual issues, prolapses. Because of it’s invasive nature, normally this point is replaced with Kidney 1.

Large Intestine 11: fever and vomiting.

Heart Disease: Sitting at work -v- Sitting at home

A June 2019 study by Columbia University finds that, “…leisure-time sitting (while watching TV)--but not sitting at work--was associated with a greater risk of heart disease and death among the study's more than 3,500 participants. The study also found that moderate-to-vigorous exercise may reduce or eliminate the harmful effects of sedentary television watching.”

Dr Keith Diaz said, “Our findings show that how you spend your time outside of work may matter more when it comes to heart health … Even if you have a job that requires you to sit for long periods of time, replacing the time you spend sitting at home with strenuous exercise could reduce your risk of heart disease and death."

Statins and Diabetes

 A June 2019 study by Ohio State University suggests that, “those who were prescribed cholesterol-lowering statins had at least double the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.”

Victoria Zigmont, who lead the study, said, “The fact that increased duration of statin use was associated with an increased risk of diabetes - something we call a dose-dependent relationship - makes us think that this is likely a causal relationship,"

"That said, statins are very effective in preventing heart attacks and strokes. I would never recommend that people stop taking the statin they've been prescribed based on this study, but it should open up further discussions about diabetes prevention and patient and provider awareness of the issue."

Turmeric and Bone Cancer

A June 2019 study by Washington State University says that it has, “…developed a drug delivery system using curcumin, the main ingredient in the spice turmeric, that successfully inhibits bone cancer cells while promoting growth of healthy bone cells.”

Case Study: Crohn's Disease remission with Plant-based diet

Dr Hana Kahleova of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine reports on a case study which suggests that, “Eating a plant-based diet may be an effective treatment for Crohn's disease … The patient decided to maintain the new dietary pattern--which was based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes--and experienced a complete remission of Crohn's disease ...[the study suggests that] food really is medicine."

Coffee and Obesity

A June 2019 study by the University of Nottingham has found that, “…drinking a cup of coffee can stimulate 'brown fat', [brown adipose tissue (BAT)],  the body's own fat-fighting defences, which could be the key to tackling obesity and diabetes.”

Professor Michael Symonds said:

"Brown fat works in a different way to other fat in your body and produces heat by burning sugar and fat, often in response to cold. Increasing its activity improves blood sugar control as well as improving blood lipid levels and the extra calories burnt help with weight loss. However, until now, no one has found an acceptable way to stimulate its activity in humans.

"This is the first study in humans to show that something like a cup of coffee can have a direct effect on our brown fat functions. The potential implications of our results are pretty big, as obesity is a major health concern for society and we also have a growing diabetes epidemic and brown fat could potentially be part of the solution in tackling them."

"From our previous work, we knew that brown fat is mainly located in the neck region, so we were able to image someone straight after they had a drink to see if the brown fat got hotter," said Professor Symonds.

"The results were positive and we now need to ascertain that caffeine as one of the ingredients in the coffee is acting as the stimulus or if there's another component helping with the activation of brown fat. We are currently looking at caffeine supplements to test whether the effect is similar.

Once we have confirmed which component is responsible for this, it could potentially be used as part of a weight management regime or as part of glucose regulation programme to help prevent diabetes."

Psoriasis - Indigo Naturalis - Qinq Dai

A June 2019 survey by George Washington University found that, “Patients with psoriasis frequently use complementary or alternative therapies to treat their symptoms.”

The survey found, “… indigo naturalis [Qing Dai]-- a plant extract widely used in Traditional Chinese Medicine and recognized as a therapy for several inflammatory conditions -- has shown efficacy, but was not reported in the survey.”

Keeping strong by eating enough protein

A June 2019 study by the University of Eastern Finland and Kuopio University Hospital found that, “Adequate intake of protein [defined as at least 1.1 g per kg of body weight] is associated with a reduced risk of frailty and prefrailty in older women.” And, “…the consumption of animal protein was associated with a lower likelihood of frailty.”

“For someone weighting 70kg [this translates as] a minimum intake of 77 g of protein [and by way of illustration] the protein content of a chicken breast per portion is 25 g, one boiled egg is 6g, and two slices of whole grain bread is 6g.”

Acupuncture for Wellness and Prevention

An April 2019 study suggests that apart from the well-known therapeutic effects of acupuncture, it’s positive impact on wellness and as a preventative tool is becoming more recognised.

“…The researchers studied the effects of acupuncture on the victims of a 6.0 earthquake that caused nearly 300 deaths and left 30,000 people homeless in Amatrice, Central Italy … After the third treatment, both the pain and psychological symptom scores had significantly improved, with no serious adverse effects attributed to the treatment.”

Songxuan Zhou Niemtzow, MD (China), a Traditional Chinese Medicine physician in Alexandria, VA, states, "If acupuncture had an alternative name, it would be called 'prevention,'"

Nadia Volf, MD, PhD, Paris XI University (Paris, France) writes "although acupuncture can be a wonderful tool for treating a number of diseases, this therapy can be an even more wonderful tool for preventing them."

Teenagers, Sleep problems, Screen Use

Recent research by Dr Dirk Jan Stenvers of the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism of the Amsterdam UMC indicates that sleep problems in teenagers can be reversed in just one week by limiting screen use. Dr Stenvers said, “Adolescents increasingly spend more time on devices with screens and sleep complaints are frequent in this age group. Here we show very simply that these sleep complaints can be easily reversed by minimising evening screen use or exposure to blue light. Based on our data, it is likely that adolescent sleep complaints and delayed sleep onset are at least partly mediated by blue light from screens"

25% of adults over 50+ are Vitamin D deficient

A June 2019 study by Trinity College Dublin found that, “Over a quarter of adults aged 50+ are deficient in vitamin D” and “Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in older adult populations living at Northern latitudes”

“Our study identified factors associated with vitamin D deficiency, including being aged 80+ years, obesity and sedentary lifestyles; all of which are increasing traits in western populations.” said Professor Maria O'Sullivan

Dr Niamh Aspell said, “Those who used a vitamin D supplement, were less likely to be vitamin D deficient as may be expected, but supplement use was low (4.4%) …”

Constipation - Qabz - Imsak-ul-Batan

Constipation, Qabz, Husr, Ehtebaas-al- batan, Eátaqaal-al- batan, Ehtabas-al- tabiya, Eátaqaal-al- tabiya  and Imsaak-ul- batan

The home of disease and the mother of disease

The Arabs of old said, “The stomach is the home of disease and restraint is the basis of the remedy.” There is also an old saying that “constipation is the mother of all diseases”. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The son of Adam does not fill any vessel worse than his stomach. It is sufficient for the son of Adam to eat a few mouthfuls, to keep him going. If he must do that (fill his stomach), then let him fill one third with food, one third with drink and one third with air.”

The Cause of constipation

The National Health Portal India states that, “According to Unani Medicine, constipation (qabz) is caused by intake of less quantity of food, consumption of constipative and flatulent diets, decreased repulsive force or increased retensive force of intestine, weakened intestinal sensation and muscles, excessive absorption of chyme by the liver, decreased flow of secretions towards intestine and weakened heat of stomach and intestine…” and is a result of a “faulty lifestyle and wrong dietary pattern. Causes like untimely, unbalanced food habits, irregular sleeping habits, and low physical exercise are few of them. It is also mentioned that constipation is the mother of all diseases. It causes gastritis, piles, duodenal ulcer and severe abdominal pain.”

Diagnosing Constipation

 In June 2019 research by King's College London it was reported that

1. The “public's perception of constipation differs drastically from that of doctors' and from the formal diagnosis guidelines.”

2. “Currently prescription medication for constipation fails in nearly 60% of patients and almost half report not being satisfied with their treatment.”

3. “Nearly one in three "healthy" patients were … clinically constipated but did not recognise it.”

4. “The study also highlighted six key symptom clusters which were commonly agreed upon across the study groups: abdominal discomfort, pain and bloating; rectal discomfort; infrequent bowel movements and hard stools; sensory dysfunction; flatulence and bloating; fecal incontinence.”

Recommendations

• Drink more water.

• Do more exercise.

• Walk or do light exercise in the open air in the morning.

• Take a hot bath on an empty stomach.

• Eat radishes, turnips, peas, carrots, tomatoes, beetroot, sprouts, coriander, cabbage, and mint.

• Eat avocados, guava, mangoes, oranges, papaya, and grapes.

• Eat dried figs, almonds, apricots, and dates.

• Drink apple-pear juice.

• Eat stewed prunes, figs, and dates.

• Chew food properly.

• Drink more soup.

• At the end of meal, eat watermelon, mangoes, and cucumber.

• Eat honey and lentils.

• Reduce bread, white flour, biscuits, preserves, sugar, cakes, pasta, pizzas, burgers, cookies.

• Avoid fast foods, coffee and strong tea, fried foods, oily and junk foods.

• Avoid boiled eggs, cheese and yoghurt.

• Avoid spices, fats, and excessive salt. 

Unsalted Tomato Juice Lowers Blood Pressure and LDL Cholesterol

Tomato contains a variety of compounds, such as carotenoid, vitamin A, calcium, and gamma‐aminobutyric acid. A May 2019 study reports that “unsalted tomato juice lowered blood pressure and LDL cholesterol … adults at risk of cardiovascular disease.”

Sunnah Dates in June 2019

INTRODUCTION

Each month we publish the Sunnah Dates as published by the Saudi Press Agency, by the Moroccan Ministry of Awqaf and by the ICOUK.

There are differences of opinion about sighting of the new moon. We do not decide who is right nor impose one opinion over others. We simply offer a service to all members of the community whatever view they take about the matter.  And Allah knows best.

SUNNAH DATES IN JUNE 2019. in shaa Allah

North Africa - Europe - UK

Friday 21 June 2019

Sunday 23 June 2019

Tuesday 25 June 2019

Saudi Arabia - Europe - UK

Thursday 20 June 2019

Saturday 22 June 2019

Monday 24 June 2019

Please remember that a new Islamic day starts at sunset - Maghrib. 

Checklist of Essential Minerals and Vitamins

Minerals

Calcium

Phosphorus

Potassium

Sulphur

Sodium

Chloride

Magnesium

Iron

Iodide

Manganese

Copper

Cobalt

Zinc

Fluoride

Selenium

Chromium

Vitamins

Vitamin A

Vitamin D

Vitamin E

Vitamin K

Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)

Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)

Niacin

Vitamin B6

Vitamin B12

Pantothenic Acid

Folic Acid (Folate)

Biotin

Vitamin C

Plantar Fasciitis

Although the causes of plantar fasciitis are not completely understood, the issue may be a muscle knot, or “myofascial pain” and is likely to be referred pain. This can be treated by acupuncture, gua sha or acupressure of its *trigger point* (often located away from the point of pain). In this case, the trigger point may be located at a precise point on the back of the calf muscle.  In acupuncture, this point will be at or close to a point known as “Bladder 57” on the bladder meridian (in this case, nothing to do with the bladder … or perhaps it is) 

Bladder 57 is also the feature point (the specialist point) for haemorrhoids and constipation. We have at least one case where a lady had all three (seemingly unrelated) conditions.

Perhaps there has been an injury to the back of your calf muscle (you might have knocked it on something, when getting in or out of the car or because of an insect bite).  

It’s worth noting that ice therapy is contra-indicated after the first day of the pain because it blocks the blood flow and the healing processes that normally kick-in.

Is the plantar pain accompanied by calf pain, occipital headaches or upper back pain? The bladder meridian also runs through the lung 1.5 Chinese inches (Bladder 13) and at 3 Chinese inches (Bladder 43) on the back, measuring right and left from spinal point T3. It may be worth palpating those points to see if there is any tenderness, along with Bladder 10 (on the neck).