At the beginning of the study, with most participants in their 50s, they were running four hours per week.  Twenty years later they averaged 76 minutes per week and still felt running helped them maintain their obvious higher quality of health.  Running turns on gene switches that help maximize your potential to be healthy.  There is clear scientific evidence showing that we are all “born to run.” Running raises endorphins and boosts your supply of the vital brain repair compound called BDNF (which also helps you eat less food).

During my 30s and 40s I used to run 20-25 miles a week.  Now, I’m simply happy to be out running.  I do three 5 mile runs a week, and go slower than I used to.  However, I get just as good a metabolic response to running as I used to.  I attribute this to my use of nutrition prior to running, which helps me get the most out of the exercise I do.  Here is a list of my favorite running nutrients, which I take just prior to running:

1) Pantethine.  I call pantethine “runner’s high in a bottle.” It fuels the production of energy in numerous ways, providing great support for your adrenals, your mood, and your ability to mobilize fat into calorie burning while you run.  I take 600 mg before running (2 caps).
2) Cardio Helper.  I call Cardio Helper “oxygen in a bottle.” I simply cannot believe how much more oxygen I feel in my body when taking 2 capsules of Cardio Helper before running.  As any runner knows, the more oxygen you have going the less lactic acid gets in the way.
3) Muscle Mag.  Muscle Mag provides magnesium, malic acid, and related co-factors that reduce muscle fatigue and reduce the rate at which muscles make lactic acid while running.  It is a lot easier to maintain a higher-level aerobic pace for an extended period of time with Muscle Mag (2 caps before running).
4) Q10.  I call Q10 the “cellular spark plug.” If you are lacking Q10, as is typical with age, you simply cannot make energy efficiently and this includes the energy you need to get a positive benefit from running.  Q10 has been shown to help muscles function better and to turn on genes in muscles that help you burn fat while you exercise (200 mg before running).

That is my basic recipe for running.  It never fails me and I hope it helps you!

Maybe we should ask Big Pharma, who is spending a pile of cash on metabolites of resveratrol that they hope to patent as weight loss drugs, diabetes drugs, and a new generation of anti-aging medicines.  Part of the way resveratrol works is by activating a powerful metabolic fat-burning and anti-aging gene called SIRT1.  In newly published Big Pharma animal research their resveratrol drug activated SIRT1, prevented weight gain on a high fat diet, improved blood sugar and insulin function, and doubled the exercise endurance of the mice. 

Interestingly, resveratrol dietary supplements have been shown to do essentially the same thing.  The resveratrol drug (SRT1720) is apparently six times more potent at activating SIRT1 than plain resveratrol.  However, plain resveratrol operates in a number of different ways besides activating SIRT1, providing a broader base of potential health benefits including comprehensive cardiovascular support. 

What is Resveratrol?

Interest in resveratrol research took off when it was identified as a component in red wine that may be partly responsible for the “French Paradox,” the ability to eat a higher fat diet with less heart disease than Americans.  Research shows that resveratrol helps your liver metabolize fat and helps break down stored fat contained in your white adipose tissue.

Resveratrol is a type of polyphenol known as a stilbenoid, which is produced in grapes and blueberries to protect themselves from bacterial and fungal infection, and to a lesser extent from UV radiation.  It was discovered that grapes growing in damp and moldy areas had the highest content of resveratrol of any known commonly consumed food/beverage.  Resveratrol is obviously a potent anti-fungal compound and antioxidant.

Resveratrol is a different compound than the flavonoid proanthocyanidins of grape seed extracts, which also contribute to the notion of the French Paradox.  Blueberries, by comparison, also contain flavonoids and a different stilbenoid called pterostilbene (pronounced “tero-STILL-bean"). Significant research at the USDA has shown that pterostilbene has a powerful ability to influence the metabolism of cholesterol and the synthesis of triglycerides by improving metabolism within cells, as well as providing brain-protecting anti-aging properties. 

The amount of resveratrol in a bottle of red wine varies from 2 mg to 14 mg, mostly on the lower side.  Dietary supplements of resveratrol are typically derived from the roots of Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum), a far more economical source than grapes.  Doses will range from a basic protective dose of a few milligrams (like a bottle of red wine), up to 100 mg per serving or more (a therapeutic dose).  It is readily absorbed, reaching peak blood levels in 30 minutes, and then rather rapidly cleared by your liver.  Thus, it is better to spread out intake during the day than take a large amount all at once.

At this point, other than the colorful history and longevity benefits associated with red wine consumption, the majority of the extensive resveratrol research has been carried out with cell studies and small animals.  The implications of this research are mind-boggling, clearly showing significant extension of life span. 

The Fat-Burning and Anti-Aging Properties of Resveratrol

SIRT1 first drew attention as the primary gene signal involved with the longevity benefits of calorie restriction. A very simple explanation is that when you are in a food scarcity situation, SIRT1 is activated so as to help break down your stored fat to use as fuel as well as to boost up your energy so that you have enough energy to hunt for new food.  SIRT1 is part of a famine-related survival system.

Many experiments with animals show that by restricting calorie intake SIRT1 is naturally activated, a finding that goes along with a noticeably extended lifespan, better fat and cholesterol metabolism, more efficient immune function, and better cardiovascular health.  A number of humans have taken up calorie restriction experiments on themselves, and pictures of them do not portray the portrait of health.  In fact, you would be hard pressed to pick out of a line-up someone on a self-induced calorie restriction diet and someone coming in for anorexia treatment.  Which gets to my point, what is the difference between a calorie restriction diet and anorexia? 

I have studied the calorie restriction science for 20 years and I am also the leading diet expert on the fat-derived hormone leptin, which is the overall boss hormone that controls your metabolic rate and your ability to survive a period of famine.  Thus, I will give you answers in this area that you won’t find elsewhere.  There is a very fine line between prolonged calorie restriction and anorexia.

In the case of someone consuming too much food, their extra pounds of fat crank out inflammatory messengers (TNFa and IL6), in turn stimulating the liver to make the inflammatory CRP.  This combination of inflammation induces significant free radical damage in the circulatory system and all around the body.  As the waistline expands the volume knob on inflammation and free radical production is turned up.  At the same time the liver becomes clogged with fat, which in turn is “cooked” by free radicals from the inflammation, eventually sending the liver on the path to looking like a fried piece of bacon.  Arteries are also getting fat around the outside of the arterial wall structure, in turn generating more inflammation to the inside of arteries and deactivating friendly nitric oxide production.  This makes blood pressure go up and blood not flow well and further induces free radical production in arteries that damages LDL cholesterol, promoting the formation of plaque. 

In this scenario leptin levels are also high (leptin resistance), which lowers another fat-derived hormone called adiponectin, in turn causing a bad mood and insulin resistance that leads to type II diabetes.  Leptin problems cripple thyroid function as well as promoting never-ending cravings to eat more food.  This is the precise metabolic profile of millions of Americans on the fast track to diabetes, heart disease, and poor health.  Ironically, they are being poisoned to death by too much food with no easy way out of the misguided subconscious drive to continue excess eating.

It is important to understand that just about everyone who is overweight and having trouble with their cravings has high leptin in their blood (leptin resistance), and that leptin is not getting into their brains correctly (a false state of misperceived starvation).  Leptin resistance is caused by consistently eating meals that are too large, by eating after dinner at night, and by snacking. 

Human beings do not have the genes to deal with the abuse of eating too much food, as during evolution this was never the problem.  Rather, a scarcity of food was the primary issue that constantly threatened the survival of the human race – and so it is that we have a lot of mechanisms built in to help deal with starvation.  The ability to survive famine is controlled by leptin.  During famine leptin levels have gone low as your fat mass that secretes leptin in the first place has been reduced in size to use the stored fat for energy, which is how your subconscious brain knows a famine is occurring.  In response to this low-leptin famine issue, your liver turns on the production of SIRT1.  This helps your liver know to break down fat to use as fuel, not store calories as fat, as well as to boost physical energy to be able to hunt or gather new food.

Considering all the interest in both SIRT1 and leptin, the number of studies linking the function of the two is remarkably absent from the literature.  New research shows that SIRT1 is active in key regions of your brain that relate to appetite and energy, which are governed by leptin.  Leptin deficient mice do not activate SIRT1 properly, and are always obese.  The details of this relationship are far from clear.  It is easy to predict that low levels of leptin from true starvation are able to trigger SIRT1 activation in your liver based on messages received from SIRT1 signaling systems in your brain.  It is also easy to predict that high levels of leptin in your blood (obesity-related leptin resistance) turn SIRT1 off as they would be signaling your liver that famine is over or not happening. 

As you begin to diet (especially if you follow the Leptin Diet) and drop your first 10-15 pounds you will clear high leptin from your blood, which is always reflected by your cravings going away.  For a while your body is set to burn more calories based on your pre-dieting metabolic set point.  The problem for many people is that you hit a plateau after a month or so of dieting that is too far from your goal weight.

If you eat less you can’t function.  Your head is heavy, you are irritable, your sleep gets disturbed, your immune system goes on the blink, and you are much more likely to get sick.  If you exercise more you must eat more or you will be completely exhausted and feel even worse.  If you get stressed, unlike the stress-free monkeys practicing calorie restriction, you are in real trouble and likely to eat the house down.  Yes, you are practicing calorie restriction – how on earth is this state of feeling going to help you live longer?  Answer – its not.  You start generating inflammation the longer you are in this condition.  The inflammation is no longer coming from your extra pounds of fat.  It is coming from the trauma of the diet combined with stressors in your life. 

Under these circumstances you are much more likely to break down muscle, a key sign of inappropriate weight loss.  If you keep trying to lose weight while you feel this way you may be able to do so, but you will progressively lose more muscle, increase inflammation, generate a lot of free radical damage, disturb digestion, get sick really easily, and presto – you are anorexic.  Funny thing is, you may still be an overweight anorexic.  Wow – is that any way to diet? 

If you start eating more food you will feel much better.  Unfortunately, you messed with leptin in the wrong way.  Leptin now turns off SIRT1 and goes into a famine-recovery mode.  It commands that a large portion of the calories you are now eating go back to fat storage.  Most people find themselves rapidly gaining weight on formerly normal amounts of food.  Once the yo-yo routine comes to a halt you are likely to find yourself 5-10 pounds heavier than when you first started, as an insurance policy in case you attempt another dieting stunt in the future.

Solving this dilemma requires that you eat in harmony with leptin, which means following the five simple rules of the Leptin Diet.  In many cases you will never hit this problematic plateau.  However, many people will, especially if they have a history of yo-yo dieting.  Enter resveratrol.  Resveratrol is an ideal nutrient to enhance weight loss and maintain energy ONCE YOU HAVE GOTTEN PAST THE INITITAL PHASE OF 10-15 POUNDS OF WEIGHT LOSS, especially if you are getting stuck at a plateau.

Resveratrol will help turn on the SIRT1 gene, which will promote fat-burning in the presence of lower calorie intake.  This is a terrific use of this nutrient.  How do you know its working?  You have energy to exercise, you feel good, and your weight is trending downward while you are happy eating less food.  This either is or isn’t happening, thus it isn’t very hard to figure out if resveratrol helps you.

One of the real values of this nutrient in the weight management context is helping you to not slide into an inflammatory anorexic-like metabolic problem as you try to lose weight.  It is also a tool to help you break through weight loss plateaus should they occur.  Resveratrol will work best when you are eating less food and have already cleared surplus leptin out of your blood through initial dieting efforts.  However, you don’t need to eat so little that you are on the scarecrow diet.

Research indicates that resveratrol will still help you out even if you aren’t dieting or you don’t need to lose weight.  After all, the French had resveratrol in their diet when they were mostly thin.  I might point out, however, that while the French were eating a higher saturated fat diet they were not overeating, their food was fresh and mostly organic, and they did not snack.  The effects of resveratrol will be easily overloaded by overeating.  Even the French Paradox has been doomed by an epidemic of leptin-disrupting snacking and junk food consumption.

Having a large waistline is clearly linked to premature death, a risk that goes up in direct proportion to your waistline’s rate of expansion.  Anything safe and natural that can help you get it back to optimal and keep it that way qualifies as life extending.

Cardiovascular and Other Benefits of Resveratrol

Simply losing weight healthfully will improve your cardiovascular health.  If resveratrol is able to help you in this endeavor, regardless of any other cardiovascular help it provides, then it is a success as a cardio-friendly nutrient. 

There is plenty of animal and cell science to predict that resveratrol assists the healthy structure and function of your cardiovascular system in multiple ways.  It has been found to reduce the stickiness or adherence of immune cells to the walls of arteries, prevent adverse changes in the smooth muscle cells of arteries that lead to plaque accumulation, boost friendly nitric oxide levels (eNOS) that relax arteries and improve blood flow, help keep platelets from sticking together, reduce irregular heart beats, and reduce circulatory inflammation.  It even helps protect against circulatory damage from high blood sugar.  Keep in mind that in “modern” medicine, each one of these points requires a different drug that has other adverse side effects.

One of the first human resveratrol studies shows that resveratrol improved heart function in type II diabetic patients following a heart attack.

Resveratrol, like grape seed extract, operates in part as a protector of human body structure.  This is clearly related to its anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, which include regulation of the primary inflammatory gene switch NF-kappaB.  New animal and cell studies shows it helps bone health, reduces cataracts, helps coordination, reduces disk deterioration and protects joints, guards against Parkinson’s, improves erectile performance, protects the liver, protects the pancreas, and helps regulate cell health while protecting against adverse cell changes.

This is a rather impressive array of science-backed support for any one nutrient.  Maybe the anti-aging promise is real.  The explosion of scientific interest in the compound ensures that you will be hearing a lot more about it in the very near future.

Common doses of resveratrol that show benefit and safety in animal studies range from 2.5 mg – to 10 mg per kilogram.  This translates to an approximate dose range of 150 mg – 700 mg per day for a 150 pound adult, a sensible and safe dose range until more data is in.

Arteries deliver oxygenated blood from your heart to the rest of your body.  A network of veins returns de-oxygenated blood to your heart which sends it over to your lungs to pick up more oxygen.  In your legs you have three types of veins that work together to pump blood “uphill” against gravity to get it back to your heart.  Superficial veins lie close to your skin.  When they become enlarged and twisted they are called varicose veins.  This can happen from the pressure of too much standing, extra body weight (from obesity or pregnancy), or from problems with valves in your veins or problems in deeper veins that are resulting in a pressure build up in superficial veins (a pressure back-up issue).

You also have perforating veins which connect your superficial veins to your deep veins.  Your deep veins lie in groups of muscles and are the main workhorses that pump the blood back up to your heart.  The flow of blood upwards is driven by pressure within the system (the push factor), muscle contractions (the massage factor), and valves that prevent blood that is moving up from going back down (the backflow factor).  Another issue is the structural integrity of the veins and valves themselves.

Your veins are much thinner than your arteries, as the blood flowing through them is under much less pressure.  As you age your veins lose tone which causes them to stretch out too easily (like skin that is wrinkling or not so elastic anymore).  They also develop little gaps in their structure and leak fluids too easily.  This creates a tendency for fluid and pressure to build up in your legs (sock marking lines or noticeably swollen ankles on lower legs).  Your heart tends to compensate by increasing blood pressure (the push factor) which of course raises blood pressure for the rest of your body.  If you lack muscle fitness or activity then the massage factor isn’t working right, which is ½ of the reason blood moves upwards, again causing lower leg pressure and the tendency to increase overall blood pressure.  On top of that, your backflow prevention valves in the veins may lose fitness, which means they don’t close all the way and blood tends to leak back downhill. 

When your veins weaken too much, your valves show signs of wear and tear, and your muscles in your legs lose fitness you end up with a problem called chronic venous insufficiency (CVI).  This means your veins don’t work right any more and have become a problem to your circulation and your cardiovascular health.  In this condition the stress and inflammation from poor function can make them painful, and the chance of forming clots in deep veins rises – which is a serious problem.  Initial symptoms include ankle swelling, tight calf muscles, and a heavy or achy feeling in the legs.  Pain during and/or after walking develops as the problem worsens.  The reduced ability to oxygenate your body at the proper rate makes you tire more easily.  It is common that blood pressure will rise.  And for women especially, varicose veins may develop or become worse.  This problem in women typically sets in between ages 40-50 (in men a bit later), and it gets worse with age. 

Horse Chestnut and Chronic Venous Insufficiency

The horse chestnut tree (Aesculus hippocastanum) produces a seed that is used as a dietary supplement extract.  Horse chestnut seed extract (HCSE) is a rich source of a nutrient called aescin (also escin), which is believed to be its biologically active compound. 

HCSE works in multiple ways to support the health of your capillaries and veins.  It is a direct tonic substance for veins and valves, a source of nourishment that enhances their structure.  It has been shown to close small gaps in veins that allow fluid leakage that contributes to edema.  In addition to its structural support for veins and values it has a regulating function relating to both capillaries and veins that involves ion channels and the flow of calcium in particular.  Its actions are unique and fascinating. 

On the one hand HCSE relaxes the endothelial lining of capillaries, enhancing friendly nitric oxide production, and reducing inflammation.  This generally supports lower pressure or push coming from the arteries (lower general blood pressure).  It also helps seal up capillaries that leak too much water into the tissues, helping to reduce edema.  On the other hand, while assisting the structural integrity of veins and valves, it increases the pressure in veins so they can pump blood more efficiently against gravity (as opposed to the relaxing effect it has on capillaries).  It also helps improve flow through the closely related lymphatic system, another pressure system that can get backed up and cause problems for circulation.  This is a unique combination of beneficial actions that are helpful to lower leg circulation.

While many Americans tend to think of cardiovascular health in terms of cholesterol and plaque, the issue of vein health is also extremely important.  Up to 5% of the U.S. population suffers from some level of chronic venous insufficiency, while 26 million Americans have varicose veins (a warning sign).  A lot more Americans than that have initial stages of mild ankle swelling and sock indentation marks, a little red flag that warns of future issues. 

The front line treatment for initial stages of the problem is compression stockings, though several studies show that horse chestnut works just as well.  There have been a number of controlled studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of horse chestnut for chronic venous insufficiency.  The study that put HCSE on the map in the United States was published by the major British medical journal, the Lancet, back in 1996.  In the most recent meta-analysis of these studies it was found that horse chestnut was effective at reducing pain and swelling, while improving circulation.  This makes it a great tool to naturally improve the circulation in those with vein-related problems.

As a dietary supplement horse chestnut is synergistic with other supplements that support cardiovascular integrity, such as grape seed extract, hawthorn, trans-resveratrol, DHA, pomegranate, polymethoxylated flavones, and tocotrienols – with each nutrient adding its own unique benefits to a support plan for cardiovascular integrity and improved function.

Hawthorn berries contain a wide range of flavonoids which give them diverse mechanisms of operation.  These include hyperoside, rutin, quercetin, vitexin, epicatechin, catechin, and proanthocyanidins.  They also contain germ-controlling phenols such as chlorogenic acid.  There are many varieties of hawthorn.  The best one for dietary supplements is a from of hawthorn called Crataegus oxyacantha, and is standardized at 1.8% to contain the heart-friendly flavonoid vitexin.  Common doses used in hawthorn studies range from 160-1800 mg, with the most common doses tested in the range of 600-900 mg per day. 

Hawthorn and Heart Failure

Hawthorn is widely used in Europe as an approved treatment for the initial stages of heart failure (Class I and II), hoping to improve patients and keep them from needing drugs.  It has also been tested and favorably helps patients with Class III heart failure, in conjunction with their medical treatment.

Heart failure implies that the heart is not fit enough to supply blood for your body’s needs.  Common symptoms include shortness of breath, coughing, fluid retention (especially ankle swelling), fatigue, and a reduced ability to exercise.  The severity of the problem is classified as to how well your heart performs based on a four-class scale known as the New York Heart Association Functional Classification.
• Class I: no limitation is experienced in any activities; there are no symptoms from ordinary activities. 
• Class II: slight, mild limitation of activity; the patient is comfortable at rest or with mild exertion. 
• Class III: marked limitation of any activity; the patient is comfortable only at rest.
• Class IV: any physical activity brings on discomfort and symptoms occur at rest.

A recent scientific review of all double-blind controlled studies on hawthorn (of which there are many) found a “significant benefit in symptom control and physiologic outcomes from hawthorn extract as an adjunctive treatment for chronic heart failure.” Hawthorn was shown to improve the heart’s maximum workload which resulted in improved exercise tolerance.  Shortness of breath and fatigue were improved significantly, and the ability of the heart to use oxygen was enhanced.  These are very significant findings for a dietary supplement.

Hawthorn Berry In Action

Hawthorn has a relaxing effect on the arteries, in turn improving circulation that facilitates healthy blood pressure.  Hawthorn has been shown to enhance the flow of blood through the heart while helping the heart beat tone up (inotropic effect).  In fact, hawthorn was found to be far friendlier and more energy efficient as it helps the heart muscle contract to produce an effective beat, compared to drugs that seek to do the same thing.  A randomized controlled trial showed that hawthorn lowered diastolic blood pressure (the lower number) in patients with type II diabetes.

A flavonoid contained in hawthorn has been shown to have a natural regulating effect on angiotensin converting enzyme, acting as a natural ACE inhibitor.  ACE converts the inactive form of angiotensin (angiotensin I) into the active vasoconstrictor (angiotensin II).  A system with inadequate brakes leads to higher blood pressure.  Better tone in this system also supports kidney health.

During times of circulatory stress immune cells may release an enzyme called human neutrophil elastase (HNE). While this is a normal enzyme, too much of it can induce wear and tear. Hawthorn berry helps to modulate the release of HNE, thereby supporting cardiovascular health.

Hawthorn protects animals from experimentally induced heart attack.  It maintained the antioxidant status within the heart as well as boosting its use of oxygen.  During a heart attack liver injury is common. In another experiment these researchers showed that hawthorn was able to protect the liver from any adverse changes, indicating protection beyond just the heart and circulation.

In a study of rabbits fed a high cholesterol diet, those on hawthorn had a 23% reduction in total cholesterol and a 22% reduction in triglycerides.  The researchers believed hawthorn helped reduce cholesterol absorption from the diet.  This finding is similar to another animal study, which not only found similar reductions in cholesterol and triglycerides but also found that damage to the liver was not occurring at the same rate when hawthorn was taken.  Yet another animal study found that hawthorn helped activate LDL receptors in the liver that promoted the natural clearance of cholesterol through the bile.

Hawthorn helps prevent LDL cholesterol from being oxidized by free radicals, a step that must happen before LDL can become plaque in arteries.  It also was shown to protect vitamin E from damage and synergistically boost up vitamin E status by 18%-20%.

While hawthorn has been extensively studied and is in widespread use in Europe for heart failure, its general effect on your heart is relaxing and toning – an overall improvement in fitness.  It also exerts multiple actions in your circulatory system that are synergistic with many other cardio-friendly nutrients towards the goal of improved cardiovascular health.

New molecular science is showing that the effects of GSE are much more diverse than previously understood.  GSE works actively at the gene transcription level to promote changes favorable to cardiovascular health that include the reduction of inflammation and improved metabolism of cholesterol and triglycerides.  They have even been found to have natural germ-regulating properties and are a potent anti-Candida compound. 

What Are Grape Seed Extracts?

A great deal of grape research has been spurred on by what is known as the French Paradox, i.e., consuming a higher saturated fat diet with far less heart disease.  Red wine has been actively researched in an effort to explain why it may be protective, research that was pioneered back in 1936 by Professor Jacques Masquelier.  Modern day research has validated, explained, and expanded on the earlier findings.  For example, in 2006 researchers pinpointed that a compound in red wine relaxed your circulation and that these compounds were highest in red wines from southwestern France and Sardinia, regions that are associated with increased longevity.  In 2004 researchers found that postmenopausal women consuming red wine absorbed less fat from a meal (compared to those who drank water).  By all means, have red wine in moderation with your largest meal of the day, as desired. 

Polyphenols are a broad group of substances found in all plants.  Flavonoids are one type of polyphenol, and there are thousands of different flavonoids.  Red grapes are a rich source of a type of flavonoid called a proanthocyanidin.  Other common foods that contain some proanthocyanidins are apples, cinnamon, cocoa, cranberry, green tea, and black tea.  White grapes contain proanthocyanidins, but many less than red grapes.  All parts of red grapes contain some proanthocyanidins, including the juice, skins and seeds. 

Without any question, the highest source of small molecule and highly bioactive proanthocyanidins are found in red grape seeds.  The research I will be reviewing in this report is based on the use of red grape seed extract (GSE).  Please do not be confused and think this research translates to products made from white grapes or with grape skins, or even red wine.  It is obvious that having any proanthocyanidins in your diet, regardless of their source, is beneficial to your health.  However, when you are looking to use a nutritional product to support your health you want standardization of the highly bioactive compounds that have been proven to assist health.  Even within GSE products there is variation in quality, just as various red wines have more proanthocyanidins than others. 

It is a favorite ploy of misleading marketers of white grape products and lower quality red grape products to quote red grape seed extract research, since the research on their compounds is lacking and inferior.  For the purpose of dietary supplements, only red grape seed extracts have the overwhelming science behind them. 

There is one more common confusion people have, and that relates to ORAC value (ORAC= Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity).  ORAC is a way to measure the antioxidant activity of any substance for one type of free radical (peroxyl free radical).  It is fine if a product has a high ORAC value, but ORAC values are an indirect and imperfect measurement that have not been proven to be associated with any health benefit.  ORAC fails to miss the value of many compounds to quench the wide variety of free radical types and it does not begin to evaluate how a nutrient works in your body.  While red wine has a significantly higher ORAC value than white wine, many compounds can test high in ORAC value and not even hold a candle to what grape seed extracts actually do to assist your health.  I bring this up because higher ORAC values in no way mean a better product.  These ORAC values are being used by various product manufacturers and network marketing companies to mislead the public on the value of a given nutritional compound, implying superiority based on an ORAC score. 

The tested science behind a specific nutritional compound helps you predict how it may be able to help your health.  The science I will be reviewing in this report is specifically on red grape seed extracts (GSE).

How Grape Seed Extract Protects Your Cardiovascular System

It has long been understood that GSE offer potent vascular protection.  Early on this was attributed to high-caliber antioxidant mechanisms that guarded against plaque accumulation in the walls of your arteries.  GSE also attaches itself to collagen and can significantly strengthen collagen if it is weakened.  This aspect of GSE helps the integrity of the structure of your collagen-rich vascular system.  In clinical practice it is one of the best nutrients to prevent bruising and breaking capillaries, including spider veins.  The new science explains that GSE works in many ways to support cardiovascular well being.

One way that GSE assists your cardiovascular system is by helping your arteries relax so that blood can flow easier.  Through a mechanism of gene transcription GSE helps turn on the important enzyme known as nitric oxide synthase, which produces the friendly nitric oxide (eNOS) that is required for the proper relaxed tone of your circulatory system and the smooth regulation of your blood pressure.

It should be pointed out that there is another kind of nitric oxide (iNOS) that is induced from different kinds of stress, such as chemical exposure, which is highly inflammatory in nature and damaging to your cardiovascular system.  GSE has a unique talent.  As mentioned above it helps make friendly nitric oxide (eNOS).  On the other hand, it actually helps regulate the main gene signal involved with inflammation (NF-kappaB), in turn reducing inflammation and preventing the release of the inflammatory form of nitric oxide (iNOS).

One type of cardiovascular toxin that is common to Americans is that produced from poor dental hygiene.  In fact, unfriendly bacteria in your mouth can easily enter your circulation and release toxicity that causes platelets to stick together, significantly increasing your risk for a heart attack or stroke.  GSE has been shown to reduce the oxidative stress associated with such bacterial toxins, directly turning off the unfriendly nitric oxide production (iNOS) they cause.  The researchers concluded “Our findings demonstrate that proanthocyanidins have potent antioxidant properties and should be considered a potential agent in the prevention of periodontal diseases.” Other research also shows GSE helps keep platelets from sticking together and along with the fact it helps strengthen gum tissue (GSE helps any collagen structure) it can be seen to assist this issue in multiple ways.

Smokers are famous for having sticky platelets as cigarettes have at least 80 chemical toxins that irritate platelets, promoting inappropriate clotting, and increases the risk for a heart attack or stroke.  A study showed that GSE significantly reduced the platelet stickiness in male smokers.

A known method of inducing experimental heart injury is to expose rats to the cardio-toxin isoproterenol.  Researchers founds that GSE protected the heart from experimentally induced isoproterenol injury. The researchers concluded that grape seed proanthocyanidins have “a significant effect in the protection of the heart.”

Another common cardiovascular irritant faced by millions of Americans is the toxins produced from an overgrowth of Candida albicans in the digestive tract and/or sinuses.  While Candida can enter the circulation and infect your heart, this only happens in seriously immune compromised patients.  For most people it is the toxins of Candida that act as a cardiovascular irritant by entering your circulation, which also makes you feel tired, irritable, and foggy.  A groundbreaking study shows that GSE directly reduces Candida overgrowth as well as extending the survival of mice subjected to experimental Candida overgrowth.

In one study rats were exposed to lead, with one group getting lead and GSE.  While the GSE did not detoxify the lead, it protected the rats from cardiovascular damage.  Lead-exposed rats with no GSE protection developed significantly high blood pressure and elevated heart rate, whereas GSE-protected rats not develop these cardiovascular problems when exposed to lead.

Chinese researchers proved that GSE directly boosted antioxidant activity in heart cells, in turn protecting heart cells from free radical-induced death.  In their next experiment they tested the chemotherapy drug Adriamycin, which has a limited dose in clinical practice because it is highly toxic to the heart.  They showed that pre-treating animals with GSE significantly reduced the heart-related toxicity, including cell death and DNA fragmentation.  They identified this was partly due to antioxidant mechanisms but also found GSE was helping to regulate genes that helped the heart cells withstand the stress of the toxin.  In addition to helpful protection during chemotherapy, findings of this type suggest that GSE would help those who have to be on toxic drugs regularly – such as those on organ transplant medication or long-term antibiotics.

GSE exerts extraordinary protection to the heart in the face of diabetes.  In diabetes excessive blood sugar links the flexible heart muscle like cement through a process known as glycation (AGEs – advanced glycation end products) resulting in eventual heart failure and heart attacks.  A recent detailed molecular animal study showed that GSE reduced the formation of AGEs in the heart, maintained the health of mitochondria (cell engines), and preserved the healthy structure of the heart.  GSE was shown to work at the gene transcription level, down-regulating the primary inflammatory gene signal NF-kappaB.  The researchers concluded that GSE “plays an important role against diabetic cardiomyopathy. With the decreasing of AGEs, it can ameliorate glycation-associated cardiac damage.  This study may provide a new recognition of natural medicine for the treatment of diabetic cardiomyopathy.”

Other researchers found that GSE directly turns down the gene signaling system that causes AGEs to form, while simultaneously reducing oxidative damage.  This would not only be helpful to the heart but helpful to your entire circulatory system if your blood sugar is running high.  The researchers concluded that GSE “may have therapeutic potential in the prevention and treatment of vascular complications in diabetic patients.”

It can be understood that the fundamental role of GSE in your body is one of added protection against multiple stressors in life.  In addition to all the cardiovascular benefits recent research has also shown that GSE reduces the formation of amyloid plaque in the brain that causes Alzheimer’s disease by 30% – 35% while maintaining cognitive function at a higher level.  GSE also protects your skin from UV radiation, by helping as an antioxidant and also helping at the gene transcription level by modulating NF-kappaB.

Grape Seed Extract Helps Fat and Cholesterol Metabolism

In animal studies GSE has been shown to help break down stored fat from fat cells (lipolysis) as well as reduce food intake.  The effect of GSE on food intake in humans was tested over a three day period in a variety of people of different body composition and age.  Those who were overweight had a 4% reduction in food intake.  This preliminary study suggests that GSE will help an overweight person’s willpower to eat less food should they decide to cut back on calorie intake.

The really exciting news is what GSE is doing at the gene level in relationship to fat, inflammation, diabetes, cholesterol, and triglycerides.

It is well known in human physiology that fat produces hormone messengers such as leptin and adiponectin as well as inflammatory signals such as TNFa and IL6.  It is also known that once inflammation starts in fat, it turns on your liver’s production of CRP, another inflammatory messenger.  Excess and low-grade CRP, TNFa, and IL6 are all associated with increased risk for cardiovascular disease.  This inflammatory situation is accompanied by high levels of leptin in your blood (leptin resistance), high triglycerides, high cholesterol, and low adiponectin.  As adiponectin drops low then insulin resistance is caused in the liver, eventually resulting in type II diabetes.  Correcting leptin problems by following the Leptin Diet, exercising, and using dietary supplements that foster improved leptin function go a long way towards fixing this problem.  Of course, any nutrient that boosts adiponectin and lowers these inflammatory messengers will not only improve metabolism to assist weight management but also reduce the risk for heart disease.

A recent animal study induced this exact metabolic problem profile by feeding rats a high fat diet.  The researchers found that GSE reversed the metabolic problems, lowering the inflammatory signals CRP, IL6, and TNFa.  Of great importance, the GSE boosted the production of adiponectin, indicating that GSE can help prevent metabolic deterioration to the point of type II diabetes. 

Novel animal research is showing that GSE helps your liver clear cholesterol and turns on fat-burning gene signals that help lower triglycerides.  While excess food consumption will overload these mechanisms, those who follow the Leptin Diet and exercise are likely to get a nice metabolic enhancement by consuming GSE as part of their weight management program.

One of the main problems that causes LDL cholesterol to wind up in plaque is that it is damaged (oxidized by free radicals or toxins), at which point it is taken up by macrophages and brought into the lining of arteries.  One key to cardiovascular health is preventing the damage to LDL.  GSE is a water-soluble nutrient and is not found in LDL, thus it is not directly protecting the membrane of LDL as do fat soluble antioxidants like tocotrienols, carotenes, Q10, and R-alpha lipoic acid.  Rather, GSE acts as an antioxidant police force in the circulatory fluid (blood plasma) and interstitial fluid of the arterial wall.  Research shows that GSE directly reduces the oxidation of LDL cholesterol by helping to prevent free radicals from punching the LDL in the nose.

Back in 2000 a study of 40 people with high cholesterol found that a combination of 100 mg GSE twice a day and 200 mcg chromium twice a day lowered LDL cholesterol by 20%.  The GSE also cut autoantibodies to oxidized LDL cholesterol in half, compared to the control group (indicating cholesterol was less likely to be forming plaque in the GSE supplemented group).  Interestingly, these doses of both nutrients are on the conservative side.

Summary

Grape seed extract is a powerful protector of your heart and general circulation.  It favorably changes a number of metabolic signals towards reduced risk for cardiovascular disease.  It is proven to act as a water-soluble antioxidant and helps lower key inflammatory signals such as CRP, IL6, and TNFa.  It is also proven to act at the gene transcription level, helping to clear cholesterol, reduce triglycerides, and directly helping the key inflammatory gene signal known as NF-kappaB. As far as GSE is concerned, the higher the dose the greater the protection. 

GSE is one of the marvels of Mother Nature.

I would like to focus for a moment on the low-sodium propaganda that has been pushed so heavily on those with high blood pressure.  The current science indicates that 1/3 of individuals with normal blood pressure and ½ of individuals with high blood pressure have some degree of salt sensitivity.  The new research also indicates that a likely cause of this salt sensitivity is a lack of potassium!

The fact the myopic public health “experts” in the cardiovascular field have obsessed themselves with making sure our population restricts sodium is not sound advice and certainly does not apply to everyone.  Sodium is needed by your adrenal glands to help your energy, your stomach to assist digestion, and is of course used by all cells in your body.  The more you sweat the more sodium you need, especially in hot weather.  If your kidneys are normal you can easily handle huge fluctuations in sodium intake, and can process up to 20,000 mgs of dietary salt per day (not that I’m suggesting you eat that much).  If you run low on salt your body’s energy systems will be compromised.

Some rather alarming studies in the past year have demonstrated that having low sodium was linked to increased cardiovascular problems and increased mortality.  One study by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania showed that in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)—chronically high blood pressure in the blood vessels of the lungs—those with the lowest sodium had a ten fold risk of death.  PAH is a syndrome marked by narrowing of the arteries in the lungs. Thus, the right ventricle of the heart has to work increasingly hard to pump blood into the lungs for reoxygenation. The ability of the right ventricle to adapt to this increased workload is the single most important determinant of survival in these patients.  And low sodium makes their hearts unable to keep up with this energetic demand.

Even more surprising findings came from research done at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.  Analyzing the diet histories of 8700 Americans over many years they found that those who reported consuming the lowest amount of sodium were 80% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease compared to the one-fourth of the sample consuming the highest level of sodium.  The risk for death from any cause appeared 24% greater for those consuming lower salt, but this latter difference was not quite large enough to dismiss the role of chance.  The researchers concluded by stating: “Our findings suggest that for the general adult population, higher sodium is very unlikely to be independently associated with higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease or all other causes of death…Our findings do again raise questions about the usefulness or even safety of universal recommendations for lower salt diets for all individuals, regardless of their blood pressure status or other health characteristics.”

It is pretty obvious that increasing potassium, not lowering sodium, is an important basic for healthy blood pressure.  In addition to the blood pressure issue other signs of a lack of potassium include fatigue, muscle weakness, fluid retention, heart arrhythmia or jittery heart feeling, increased feeling of anxiety, and skin problems (including acne).  Low potassium is a primary factor in the development of kidney stones.  Prolonged deficiency leads to glucose intolerance and risk for type II diabetes.  Long-term potassium deficiency increases the risk for and onset of kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and mental decline.

Getting adequate potassium in your diet is a simple health basic that just can’t be ignored.  High-potassium foods include fruits such as bananas, citrus fruits, vegetables, and legumes.  Dietary supplements with potassium are limited to 99 mg a capsule, but offer some advantages when high quality forms of potassium are used that readily transport to your cells.  If you have any of the symptoms on the above list you should increase your dietary and/or supplemental intake of potassium to see how much it helps. 

Potassium’s best friend is magnesium, and both minerals are vital for healthy blood pressure and cardiovascular well being.

All your body organs and cells have receptors for vitamin D, meaning that vitamin D communicates all around your body.  Your cells use vitamin D to directly regulate your genes, making it one of the most powerful compounds in human health.  In fact, one study with 2100 female twins showed that having adequate vitamin D extends life by five years.  This is because vitamin D prevents excessive wear and tear to the telomers that are attached to the ends of your chromosomes that enable cell division (determining potential cell lifespan).  This is truly a new era of nutritional science.

Vitamin D Basics

Vitamin D3 is produced in your skin when exposed to sunlight.  Extra vitamin D from prolonged sun exposure is converted to non-biologically active lumisterol, which can also be converted back to D3 when sun exposure levels drop.  Prolonged sun exposure results in tanning (extra melanin synthesis), which is a natural sunscreen (like clothing) and reduces the amount of vitamin D3 that is made in the first place.  There is no such thing as getting too much vitamin D3 from the sun. 

Vitamin D must be converted into its biologically active form (1,25(OH)2D) before it goes to work.  Your kidneys are the main organ that does this for your body as a whole, but it is now recognized that many cells have the enzymes to directly activate vitamin D.  For example, cells lining your lungs and digestive tract can activate vitamin D to help fight infection.  The vitamin D receptors around your body are capable of binding both the active and inactive forms of vitamin D.  Cells that activate vitamin D can also inactivate it, forming a convenient system of self-regulation based on a variety of needs.

Once vitamin D is active in cells it has one made job, activating genes.  In other words, the basic role of vitamin D in your body is to help regulate its functions at the level of gene transcription.  Because so many different tissues and types of cells use vitamin D, it can be assumed that this is a fundamental need for survival.

Your body places a high value on vitamin D and has made provisions to store it in your liver and the lining of your digestive tract.  This savings account of vitamin D can be called into action during times of need, such as the long winter months.  It is interesting that deficiencies of vitamin D in your liver or digestive tract are associated with the poor health of both organ systems.

When your skin makes vitamin D then the vitamin D turns on antioxidants within your skin to deactivate the free radicals coming from the sun’s UV radiation.  This is a natural defense mechanism (a built in sunscreen).  The new science shows that only 9% of the population has vitamin D receptors that don’t do a good job of this.  It is ridiculous to make 100% of the population think that routine sun exposure is a major health risk when such advice applies mostly to a small group.

How Much Supplemental Vitamin D Do You Need?

It is widely recognized that vitamin D is low in many Americans.  Government levels for vitamin D dietary intake are 400 IU to 600 IU per day and may be lacking based on a significant body of vitamin D science.  Many vitamin D researchers believe that 2000 IU are needed on a daily basis, especially in the winter months in the U.S. 

Vitamin D intake of 2000 IU has been safely tested in children ages 10-17.  In fact, only the dose of 2000 IU was able to bring the common vitamin D deficiency in children up to normal levels. 

In a study of overweight African-American children it was found that 57% who were overweight lacked vitamin D, compared to 40% of the control group.  However, 1 month of vitamin D intake at 400 IU per day failed to bring vitamin D levels into normal range, indicating that current government recommendations are inadequate.

A randomized study of 180 pregnant women found that 800 IU of vitamin D per day improved their blood levels, but only a few of them and their babies reached normal levels of vitamin D on this dose.  In another study with 206 pregnant women only 10% had adequate vitamin D levels.  Those with the lowest D had children who experienced tooth enamel abnormalities and cavities early in life.

A new study with young healthy men found they needed 700-800 IU of vitamin D per day in the winter to maintain optimal bone health.  You can imagine that someone older, most woman, or individuals in poor health would need a higher amount.

Even the Mayo Clinic is churning out press releases telling everyone to take 800-1000 IU of vitamin D per day.  They are telling people that Vitamin D can improve muscle strength and help older people not fall, reduce the risk of some cancers, help chronic pain, protect against autoimmune disease, and reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease.  Wow – even mainstream medicine is on the vitamin D bandwagon.

In my view, part of the issue of how much Vitamin D you should take is based on the symptoms you have that indicate likely deficiency.  Keep in mind that these symptoms may crop up as winter moves along and your vitamin D savings account is depleted.  Thus, I will review some of the key findings of recent vitamin D research.

Immunity

The front line troops of your immune system (innate immunity) use vitamin D to help mount an immune response for their foot soldiers.  These immune cells use vitamin D to produce a germ-killing compound called cathelicidin.  Your immune cells then release cathelicidin to kill bacteria, a process that does not work if there is a lack of vitamin D.  The bacteria killing properties have been known for some time and have even been used to help kill tuberculosis. 

Many chronic skin problems are associated with increased infection.  In a recent small study of patients with atopic dermatitis it was found that taking 4000 IU of vitamin D per day for 21 days restored their skin’s production of cathelicidin to normal – offering protection from infection.

A new study shows that vitamin D is directly activated by cells in your lungs to help combat infection.  The researchers showed that this not only boosted the bacteria-killing cathelicidin but also improved the ability of immune troops to identify invaders. 

If you have recurring skin problems or if your lungs are a friendly place for bugs to live (especially a winter-time weak spot) then it is likely you need more vitamin D.

Autoimmune Problems

Vitamin D has a dampening effect on excessive and inappropriate behavior of immune cells.  It helps reduce the amount of inflammation produced by immune cells.  In fact, a deficiency of vitamin D may be an underlying and possibly causative issue for almost any autoimmune problem and a theory can be put forth that vitamin D adequacy is required to prevent your immune system from going into an improper hyperactive and excessively inflammatory state – a problem that is at least a part of all diseases of aging.

Studies show the ability of vitamin D to help prevent as well as improve such issues as arthritis, autoimmune type I diabetes, and inflammatory bowel disease.

Any person with any autoimmune disease should have their vitamin D levels tested by their physician and these should be corrected as a first step in seeking to improve any problem.

It is an interesting point that vitamin D helps both a lacking and hyper-active immune system work well.  A key theme of nutrition is that it works in your body to promote efficiency of healthy function.  In the case of vitamin D it not only boosts up underperformance, it quiets down excessive and improper activity.  Obviously, no drug has such intelligence. 

Cancer

One of the main functions of vitamin D is telling your genes what to do.  Many of these functions relate to cell growth and division.  For example, adequate vitamin D is crucial to the healthy growth of your skin and hair.  In fact, a lack of vitamin D can result in an autoimmune reaction that makes your hair fall out or in disruptions to consistent skin pigmentation. 

Cancer problems imply that cell division has gotten out of control in an inappropriate way.  Just as vitamin D is needed by immune cells so they don’t become hyperactive and inappropriate, so it is that vitamin D may be needed to help regulate cell growth and differentiation to keep it in a healthy condition.

A number of precise cell growth factors are favorably influenced by vitamin D, which is likely to have benefit for many kinds of cancer.  Current vitamin D cancer research has tended to focus on colon, breast, and prostate cancer.

One aspect of the current research shows that vitamin D is a partner in the antioxidant defense system of cells, helping to clear them of free radicals and thereby protecting them from DNA damage that can lead to mutation.  Interestingly, vitamin D is smart enough not to protect cancer cells.  That finding, along with earlier work, led this research group to claim “Our findings reflect what we see in those studies and demonstrate that vitamin D not only can be used as a therapy for prostate cancer, it can prevent prostate cancer from happening.”

Some of the newer colon cancer research finds that vitamin D turns on death signals in colon cancer cells and works synergistically with calcium to help prevent colon cancer cells from spreading.

A definitive German study has now proven that low levels of vitamin D in premenopausal women are associated with an increased risk in breast cancer.  Compared to the women with the highest vitamin D, the increased risk ranged from 45% - 68%, depending on the amount of deficiency. 

Diabetes and Obesity

Vitamin D levels are low in obese adults.  It is well known that vitamin D helps stimulate the release of insulin from your pancreas.  A lack of vitamin D drastically increases the risk for type I diabetes and is likely involved with the insulin and leptin resistance that eventually causes type II diabetes.  There is a lot more work needed in this area to fully understand these issues, but here is what we know so far. 

The further you live from the equator the higher your risk for getting type I diabetes.  If you live in Finland your risk goes up 400 fold.  How vitamin D protects the beta cells of your pancreas is not known, but it likely dampens inflammatory immune signals and boosts antioxidant protection – as it has been shown to do in other areas of your body.

Pooled data from existing studies shows that a child supplemented with vitamin D is 30% less likely to develop type I diabetes even as an adult.  In a very large Finnish study those infants and children who consistently took 2000 IU of vitamin D per day had a 78% reduced risk of type I diabetes.

Many overweight people are low in vitamin D and correcting vitamin D deficiency has been shown to improve insulin resistance, giving vitamin D a role in also helping to prevent type II diabetes (the most common form in society).

New research shows that vitamin D is metabolically active within your stored fat, although we don’t know exactly what it is doing.  We know from earlier research that vitamin D helps reduce excess leptin from fat.  High leptin lowers another fat hormone called adiponectin which we know must be at higher levels to prevent insulin resistance and type II diabetes.  While there is a lot more about this to learn, it does appear that adequate vitamin D is helpful for healthy metabolism of blood sugar and fat.

If you are struggling with weight or the health of your pancreas it may be another sign that some extra vitamin D is needed.

Heart Health

Researchers at the University of Michigan have nick named vitamin D “the heart tranquilizer” because it helps keep your heart from working so hard and swelling in size.  Their findings indicate that vitamin D can help prevent heart failure.

Vitamin D has been shown to improve blood flow in your extremities, helping to improve what researchers call peripheral artery disease (PAD).  The researchers evaluated 4839 U.S. adults and found those with the best vitamin D levels had the least amount of PAD.

Brain Health

Research with animals has shown that low vitamin D during pregnancy causing brain abnormalities similar to those seen in patients with schizophrenia.  Because vitamin D is involved with gene transcription in the evolving nervous system a lack of it is bound to cause some kind of problems.

In older Americans low vitamin D is associated with depression. I think just about everyone feels better when there is more sun.

An interesting study compared vitamin D levels in older Americans to Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.  Patients with Parkinson’s were 55% more likely to be low in vitamin D.

Thus, if your hands are a bit shaky and/or your mood is a bit off then maybe you could use a little more vitamin D.

Summary

Vitamin D does so many things helpful to your health that you absolutely do not want to run short.  Government recommendations for dietary intake of vitamin D are too low, especially for the winter months when vitamin D is so important to the function of your immune system.

Lactoferrin is a potent nutrient for natural balance and helpful immune support.  Hundreds of studies demonstrate the power of lactoferrin to help defend you against Candida, bacteria, and viruses.  It is a key player in the natural defenses that have enabled the survival of the human race.

Early immune system research on lactoferrin focused on its ability to bind iron (it puts iron in a safe cage and transports iron).  It has long been known that free iron impedes immune cell function and enables many pathogenic bacteria and Candida to grow.  It is rather disturbing that garbage-quality iron supplements, which rapidly produce free iron in the digestive tract, are routinely used in infant formulas, food fortification, many low-quality dietary supplements, and as prescription items for those with anemia.  Such iron compromises immunity and promotes digestive imbalance and the overgrowth of harmful bacterial and Candida. 

Researchers soon found that lactoferrin, in addition to its iron-sequestering talent, possessed multiple strategies for naturally bolstering immunity and knocking out problems.  It prevents bacteria and Candida from forming hostile gangs (biofilms) and from sticking to human cells.  It can help human cells modulate their responses to be more resistant to infection, as well as helping immune cells perform more efficiently.  It can directly enter bacteria and Candida, disrupting their cell membrane and crippling their energy production systems, either killing them directly or enabling other parts of your immune system to fight a weakened opponent.  It can also bind to viral particles and interfere with viral replication as well as occupy receptors on human cells and block a virus from entering. 

A Sample of the Lactoferrin Research

Lactoferrin possesses two known direct anti-microbial peptides called lactoferricin B and lactoferrampin.  Researchers exposed cells of Candida albicans and E. coli to lactoferrin and then watched what happened under a high power laser-scanning microscope.  The lactoferrin was taken up into the cell membranes of both organisms within a few minutes, and then proceeded to disrupt the integrity of their cell membranes, which either kills them directly or enables the immune system to fight an easier battle.  The researchers observed that it was the lactoferrampin peptide that disturbed Candida, whereas the lactoferricin B disrupted E. coli.  This indicates that lactoferrin uses multiple strategies depending on the type of problem.

In addition to direct cell membrane damage a recent study showed how once lactoferrin entered into Candida it proceeded to wreak havoc.  The lactoferrin readily absorbed into the Candida cell through the potassium channels of the Candida cell membrane (a new finding).  Since nutrient influx through potassium channels would be a normal way Candida is trying to nourish itself and stay alive, it must think that lactoferrin is something of nutritional value rather than a Trojan horse.  In essence this is like poking a hole in the defense shield and propping the door open.  Other research shows that once this happens then calcium from the fluids outside of the Candida cell rushes in, raising the internal calcium level three fold.  The excessive calcium is taken up by the Candida’s mitochondria (cell engines) which cause them to malfunction and generate massive numbers of free radicals that kill or weaken the Candida.  This is a rather clever way of killing an enemy – creating a nutrient imbalance that sets off an energy-crippling and deadly chain reaction using the Candida’s own energy systems to self destruct.

At the same time, lactoferrin helps boost front line immune troops so they are better at fighting Candida.  It supports the function of neutrophils and macrophages, boosting direct immune system Candida-killing ability up to 50%. 

It is important that Candida not form gangs, transitioning from its form as single cell into hyphae that form the weed-like biofilms that represent a Candida overgrowth.  Lactoferrin has been shown to inhibit this process, even helping drugs break up such gangs when the drugs were not effective by themselves.

Recently, researchers looked into the ability of lactoferrin to help out with infections in newborn children, as toxic sepsis resulting from such infections is a major health concern.  They exposed various nasty gram positive bacteria and Candida albicans to either strong antibiotics or anti-fungal drugs in combination with lactoferrin.  The synergistic combination raised effectiveness of germ-killing 50% - 90%, depending on the concentrations used.  The researchers were pleased to see that less drugs were needed to get an effective killing response, an important point because the toxicity of such drugs could itself be a major problem to a newborn child.

A major point in maintaining natural Candida balance is keeping the normal Candida in your digestive tract as a single cell happy farmer and not letting it join together in a troublesome gang.  A recent animal study showed that lactoferrin was able to prevent the spreading of Candida into its weed-like gang (biofilm), compared to mice that got no such help and were therefore subject to significant Candida overgrowth.

Lactoferrin is a natural component in your saliva and must be present in adequate amounts to keep Candida in balance.  A study was carried out comparing 30 healthy people to 25 people with oral Candida and 35 people with oral Candida and other significant health problems.  Healthy people had normal levels of lactoferrin in their saliva, whereas those with oral Candida had statistically significant low levels of lactoferrin.  The lowest levels belonged to those in the worst health.  Further analysis of these patients saliva showed that it lacked the ability to inhibit Candida growth.  Furthermore, the immune cells in these patients’s saliva had defective weapons systems that reduced their ability to kill Candida.  Several years later the same researchers continued to document that low levels of lactoferrin in the saliva were found in patients with oral candida (11 +/- 9 microg/ml, compared to the healthy level of 33 +/- 14 microg/ml).  The researchers concluded “These results conclusively suggest that oral candidiasis is associated with salivary gland hypofunction and that decreases of salivary antibacterial proteins induce Candida overgrowth.”

In a novel experiment mice were immuno-suppressed with prednisone and then colonized with Candida.  One group of mice was given lactoferrin and their immune systems remained competent and were able to kill Candida, compared to the non-lactoferrin mice.  The lactoferrin supplement mice had less Candida in their mouths and improved function within their lymphatic system to combat Candida. 

Another problem with Candida overgrowth is that it sticks to mucosal linings and spreads like a weed.  A study with vaginal mucosal lining cells showed that lactoferrin not significantly reduces Candida from sticking; it actually helps detach Candida if it has already latched on.  This finding is likely to apply to other mucosal linings such as the lungs, sinuses, and digestive tract.

Collectively, this information shows that lactoferrin exerts its Candida management strategies through a variety of natural mechanisms, strategies so safe they work in babies and so effective they work in everyone.

Short Chain Fatty Acids

Short chain fatty acids are known to have potent anti-bacterial and anti-Candida properties.  Two of these, lauric acid (12 carbons long) and caprylic acid (8 carbons long) are found in breast milk along with lactoferrin, implying their synergistic compatibility.  I have reviewed lauric acid (monolaurin) in another article.  It is effective against gram positive bacteria.  Interestingly, caprylic acid is helpful in combating many gram negative bacteria such as campylobacter, E. coli, and salmonella (common food contaminants).  Both monolaurin and caprylic acid can kill Candida. 

Undecylenic acid is yet another short chain fatty acid (11 carbons).  This one is not in breast milk but occurs naturally in your sweat, no doubt helping to keep Candida in check on your skin.  It has been in use as a topical antifungal for years, in many over the counter products.  Importantly, it has been shown to help prevent Candida from transforming itself into the weed-like gangs that cause problems.

These simple nutritional fatty acids act as powerful natural immune support.  Along with lactoferrin they form a basic approach to helping maintain Candida in a state of friendly balance that is associated with healthy digestion and overall health.