Disease Proof : Disease Proof : Health & Nutrition News & Commentary : Dr. Joel Fuhrman

According to a new study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, factory workers exposed to high levels of formaldehyde are more likely to die from cancer. Data on 14,000 deaths among people who worked at facilities manufacturing formaldehyde revealed a 37% higher risk of death from blood and lymphatic cancers. Many preservatives are made with formaldehyde and have been implicated in the unusual rate of leukemia deaths in pathologists; via The New York Times.

In February, researchers discovered female employees working around organic solvents containing formaldehyde had a 30% greater risk of developing non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. And pesticides, like those used on farms and for hobby-gardening, may heighten the risk of Parkinson’s disease.

Now, you got to be careful around chemicals, especially kids. Dr. Fuhrman insists it’s the parents’ responsibility to maintain a chemical-free environment for their children.

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New findings in the journal PLoS Medicine claim moms who take folic acid supplements for one year prior to getting pregnant are 50% less likely to have a premature baby. Experts analyzed self-reporting of folate supplementation by 38,033 mothers and found premature delivery rates were cut up 70%. The drop was most profound for resulting in cerebral palsy, mental retardation, chronic lung disease and blindness. Here are Dr. Fuhrman’s thoughts on the study:

The need for folate is reflective of the inadequacy of the Americans dietary practices. The medical profession and everyone else it seems translate all these findings into the need to take a pill, instead of the lack of green vegetables in the diet.

Taking a pill is permission to eat the same crummy diet that causes child to get cancer, as well as moms. If instead, we stated the truth that a low-folate diet is dangerous and you must eat your greens every day. Then we would really see childhood cancers plummet.

Via EurekAlert!

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• According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America, highly educated people, ages 25 to 74, are healthier than adults who didn’t graduate high school of the same age. Non-graduates are 2.5 times less likely to be in very good health than college graduates; from HealthDay News.

• Writing in the journal Nutrition Reviews, researchers claim immigrant populations moving to European countries tend to replace their traditional healthy diets with the worst aspects of western diets, such as fast food. Ethnic groups with low incomes often can not afford healthier foods and face limited food availability; via EurekAlert!

• Americans are mental! Published in the journal Health Affairs, data shows more Americans are now on medications for mental issues. Compared to 1996, 73% more adults and 50% more children are using psychotropic drugs, medications include antidepressants, antipsychotics and Alzheimer's drugs; Reuters reports.

• United States senators Tom Harkin and Lisa Murkowski want a bill passed allowing the U.S. Agriculture Department to establish nutrition standards for snack food and beverages sold in school vending machines, which are often high in fat, sugar and calories. This sort of legislation may help kick junk foods out of schools; Reuters explains.

• Parents who teach their kids to stay focused and not worry about the small stuff, increase children’s chances of becoming healthier adults, especially girls. The study, in the journal Health Psychology, tracked 569 individuals finding participants with better attention spans and positives outlooks reported better health; from ScienceDaily.

• The Children's Food Campaign has determined many baby foods are worse than junk food. Saying some baby products contain as much sugar and saturated fat as chocolate cookies and cheeseburgers. For example, a brand of cheese biscuits has more saturated fat per gram than a McDonald’s quarter-pounder with cheese; via Reuters.

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Expectant mothers need more sun. Presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting, scientists recommend women of childbearing age spend more time in the sun in order to get sufficient vitamin D. Researchers found over one-third of mothers and 58% of their infants have vitamin D deficiency at birth. Blood samples from 433 women and 376 newborns, within 72 hours of birth, revealed low vitamin D was present in 36% of mothers, with deficiency was considered severe in roughly two-thirds of cases; Reuters reports.

The sun is important to our health. We convert ultraviolet rays into vitamin D, which tells our bodies to absorb calcium and phosphorus. Other studies show mom’s getting enough sun exposure strengths their children’s bones. Now, Dr. Fuhrman sells a vitamin D supplement, in vegan and non-vegan formulations.

In related news, insufficient vitamin D has been linked sudden cardiac death, such as heart failure and cardiac muscle performance, and rickets in young children.

UPDATE: Dr. Fuhrman had some thoughts on this report:

Mothers should be taking Vitamin D supplements and document the adequacy of their Vitamin D with a blood test and also babies and mom’s in northern climates, not getting sufficient sunshine, should use a baby Vitamin D supplement or they can twist open half a capsule of my OsteoSun and sprinkle some of the tasteless white powder into the babies food, water or breast milk.

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