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Weight Loss Exercise

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy

Over the last several year, probably more than 10 years now, professional athletes have been using Hyperbaric chambers to improve healing from bruising and injuries and it has worked fantstically for them. I am a big fan at leveraging the tech that professional athletes use for recovery from exercise but I was at the FDA consumer site today and saw that people have stretched the idea of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy into a new cure all for almost everything.

We see these kind of things often. A great idea is extended to be a cure all for lots of things that it was never designed for. Steroids for muscle weight gain, Acai berries for anything, and lately hyperbolic therapy for people with genetic diseases. Not sure how this can be extended to the following diseases but it looks like there is some research that may say it works.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy involves breathing oxygen in a pressurized chamber. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared hyperbaric chambers for certain medical uses, such as treating decompression sickness suffered by divers.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy has not, however, been proven to be the kind of universal treatment it has been touted to be on some Internet sites. FDA is concerned that some claims made by treatment centers using Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy may give consumers a wrong impression that could ultimately endanger their health.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves intermittent inhalation of 100% oxygen under a pressure greater than regular air pressure, so in a pressurized tank. Despite over a century of use in medical settings, hyperbaric oxygen remains a controversial therapy. The last 20 years have seen a clarification of the mechanism of action of hyperbaric therapy and a greater understanding of its potential benefit.

I have been able to find some reports of use for these things. Hyperbaric chamber treatment for Autism, and using it for treatment of  diabetic related foot ulcers, and even a treatment for Hypoxia?

As with other things that we see this looks like a technology that may be promising for some things but of course you need to be careful in what you read and be responsible to check the pros and cons of any therapy.


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Diet Supplement? Sexual Enhancer? or just garbage?



The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers not to purchase or consume Zimaxx, Libidus, Neophase, Nasutra, Vigor-25, Actra-Rx, or 4EVERON. These products are promoted and sold on web sites as “dietary supplements” for treating erectile dysfunction (ED) and enhancing sexual performance, but they are in fact illegal drugs that contain potentially harmful undeclared ingredients. These products have not been approved by FDA, and there is no guarantee of their safety and effectiveness, or of the purity of their ingredients.

What can the FDA do about crap products?

FDA advises consumers who have used any of these products to discontinue use and to consult their health care provider. FDA encourages anyone experiencing ED to seek guidance from a health care provider before purchasing a product to treat this medical condition.

“These products threaten the public health because they contain undeclared chemicals that are similar or identical to the active ingredients used in several FDA-approved prescription drug products. This risk is even more serious because consumers may not know that these ingredients can interact with medications and dangerously lower their blood pressure,” said Dr. Steven Galson, Director of FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

Chemical analysis by FDA revealed that Zimaxx contains sildenafil, which is the active pharmaceutical ingredient in Viagra, a prescription drug approved in the United States to treat ED. The other products contain chemical ingredients that are analogues of either sildenafil or a pharmaceutical ingredient called vardenafil. Vardenafil is the active ingredient in Levitra, a prescription drug that, like Viagra, is approved in the United States to treat ED. There is no mention of any of these ingredients in any of the illegal products’ labeling.

What does the FDA Warning Letter say?
Diet Supplement? Sexual Enhancer? or just garbage?This deception poses a threat to consumers because the undeclared ingredients may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs (such as nitroglycerin) and lower blood pressure to dangerous levels. Consumers with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease often take nitrates. ED is a common problem in men with these conditions, and they may seek products like the ones noted above because these products claim that they are “all natural” or that they do not contain the active ingredients used in FDA-approved ED drugs. In addition, because the manufacturing source of the active ingredients in these “dietary supplements” is unknown, there is no assurance that the ingredients are safe, effective, or pure.

FDA Warning Letters to the firms marketing these products state that the products are illegal drugs based on claims made for the products or their ingredients. The letters also state that the products’ labeling is false and misleading because it fails to disclose the presence of the chemical ingredients or the potential side-effects associated with the products’ consumption. FDA instructed agency staff to stop the importation of Libidus, and the agency recently stopped a shipment of 4 EVERON from entering the United States. Based on responses to these actions, FDA may take additional enforcement steps.

Today’s actions follow a first-of-its-kind FDA survey, in which the agency analyzed 17 dietary supplements marketed on the internet to treat ED and to enhance sexual performance in men. “Our survey found that many of the so-called ‘dietary supplements’ marketed as treatments for erectile dysfunction actually contain non-dietary chemicals, including chemicals used as active ingredients in FDA-approved drugs. The claims made for these products were in fact claims made for the undeclared non-dietary chemicals they contain, which rendered them illegal drugs. FDA is committed to protecting the public health by removing such illegal and dangerous products from the market,” said Margaret O’K. Glavin, FDA’s Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs.

If you are looking for a sexual enhancer there are two products that seem to be popular and work well and those are Zalestra and Fematril.

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Weight Loss Exercise

Omega 3 Benefits outweigh Mercury Concerns



Last week one study said that Omega 3 vitamin benefits were overstated. Today another university study says that Omega benefits outweigh mercury concerns.

Confusing? I agree. Lets look at studies but always do what long term we know that is right. Eat good healthy food.

A team of researchers has conducted a study which found that the health benefits of fish outweigh the negative impacts when consumers choose wisely.

Healthy Salmon Steak

Healthy Salmon Steak

The joint study out of Sweden and Finland aimed to create a risk-benefit model that would shed light on the risk of mercury consumption, versus the value of omega-3 fatty acids, which have been linked to everything from heart health to cognitive function and improved eyesight.

Published in the October issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the study examined mercury levels and omega-3 concentrations in the hair and blood samples of 361 Swedish men and 211 men from Finland, all of whom had suffered from a heart attack.

Is there Much to Worry About?

While methyl mercury in fish may, indeed, pose a health risk, even a small change in fish consumption was found to prevent 7 percent of heart attacks in men, as long as mercury levels remained low.

Eat fish, but avoid large predatory species like pike and perch which contain a lot more mercury than smaller ones.

The Food and Drug Administration also offers a consumer’s guide to different types of fish,

  • Advising against the consumption of shark, swordfish, King mackerel and tilefish for their high mercury content.
  • Five of the most commonly eaten types of seafood low in mercury are shrimp, canned light tuna, salmon, pollock and catfish.
  • Eat up to 12 ounces (the equivalent of two average meals) a week of fish and shellfish that are low in mercury.
  • Opt for canned light tuna over albacore tuna, which contains more mercury.

Do you eat a lot of fish? I know that I do not but should really look at eating more. Fish is high in good fats like Omega 3‘s and more importantly it helps to diversify our diet and make it fuller and richer which is good for most people.

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