By Dr. Jake Marshall from Maximized Living

Most people in this country are told or believe that cholesterol is a bad thing. But when we break down what cholesterol is used for in the body it’s one of the most important biological substances to human physiology. Cholesterol is one of the basic molecules that help form our hormones in our body. Cholesterol is released by the liver and also makes up part of every single cell in the human body.

What the public usually is concerned with is the buildup of cholesterol in our arteries. The scary part about it is that we cannot feel the plaque building in our arteries the same way we do not feel heart disease or cancer developing until it is too late. There are two types of cholesterol that we are familiar with, HDL (”good”) and LDL (”bad”) cholesterol. The HDL is thought of as good because it moves faster through the blood vessels to clean up plaque or damages to the vessel wall. LDL is the opposite in that it moves slowly trying to clean up whatever the HDL missed.

The problem with cholesterol in America is that everyone thinks high cholesterol causes heart attacks and that LDL is the “bad” cholesterol. A nationwide study from 2009 found that “almost seventy-five percent of heart attack patients fell within recommended targets for LDL cholesterol, demonstrating that the current guidelines may not be low enough to cut heart attack risk in most who could benefit,” said Dr. Gregg C. Fonarow, Eliot Corday Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and Science at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the study’s principal investigator.

Basically the study found that people with normal LDL levels were having heart attacks as opposed to the group who had elevated levels. This is only one study but if we take a look at heart disease and cholesterol drug ratios it’s clear as day. I’m saying that if cholesterol was the cause of heart disease than we would not have the rates that we do. For example, we have more cholesterol drugs being prescribed and taken than we ever have and we have more heart disease than we have ever had in history! We cannot seem to turn on the television for five minutes, these days, without seeing a commercial for Lipitor, Crestor, Zocor or any other statin drug. There is a reason your body raises your cholesterol, usually to heal a part of your body that you have damaged. The reason that your cholesterol raises is not because you do not have enough Lipitor in your blood. If that was the cause, God would have put a Lipitor pump in your body.

The answer to this is to find what is causing the elevation. Eating an organic diet full of vegetables, proper ratio fish oils and exercising have shown to be much more effective in lowering cholesterol. This method is much safer and comes with no warning labels. Most importantly, a properly functioning liver along with associated digestive organs are designed to balance cholesterol levels in the body. The spine and nervous system control the function of these organs; therefore, a spinal correction to create neurological integrity is a foundational factor in normalizing any nutrient in the body including cholesterol.

Since I have a lot of patients with children and grandchildren in my practice, I wanted to share with you some information on Ritalin that I came across.  This is important because ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed disorder in children, and Ritalin is the drug of choice for this condition.

A recent study shows that healthy kids who take Ritalin have a 500% greater risk of sudden death.

Yes, you might want to read that again to let it soak in.

Keep in mind that these aren’t kids with pre-existing health or heart conditions.  These are “healthy” kids we are talking about here.

This is more proof that what you’ve been told for decades about Ritalin…that it’s safe for kids…is far from the truth.

Here’s some more information you need to know about Ritalin…

Ritalin is a stimulant. It causes the heart to beat faster. And that can lead to sudden cardiac arrest.  Ritalin acts exactly like amphetamines such as crystal meth and cocaine.

In spite of evidence that Ritalin can stunt the growth of children (1), and cause irreversible brain damage (2) and that it is linked to serious cardiovascular events, the FDA remains silent about the dangers of this dangerous drug.

Objections to the FDA’s sluggishness are even starting to appear in conservative medical journals like JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association. In a recent editorial, they criticized the FDA by saying the FDA is “interpreting the results cautiously.”

Plus, JAMA notes that the FDA funded and approved the design of the study. Only when the results came out did they have a problem with the design of the study. I guess the FDA didn’t like the results their own design produced.

This is the big point for all of us: Doctors hand out Ritalin prescriptions every day. And too often you aren’t told of the dangers (which is why I’m telling you about them).

What’s more, studies show that Ritalin doesn’t even work. The same study that found Ritalin stunts kids’ growth also found that it has no beneficial effect on behavior over a three-year period.

So if you have kids or grandkids who have trouble concentrating, focusing, or calming down, here are some easy, safe, and natural ways to bring kids “to attention” without endangering their mental and physical health.

1. Increase the consumption of omega-3 in their diet. Studies show that many children with ADHD don’t get enough omega-3.  Try to give the child 1000 mg of omega-3s every day.

2. Pine bark extract.  This is another natural supplement that works. A European study using pycnogenol, an organic compound found in the bark of the French maritime pine tree, showed that after only one month, children’s behavior improved significantly on as little as 1 mg per day. (3)

3. Some naturally occurring amino acids can treat ADHD.

One of them is 5-HTP. Try 50 to 100 mg three times per day with meals.

Another is tyrosine. The optimal dose is 5,000 mg per day for children and up to 10,000 mg per day for adults.

4. Chiropractic care.  Many people still don’t know that chiropractic care works great with children.  With nutritional supplements and chiropractic adjustments, I’ve helped several children who were diagnosed with ADHD improve dramatically.

Sources:
Jensen et al, “3-Year Follow-up of the NIMH MTA Study.” Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. 2007. 46(8):989-1002.
Gray et al, “Methylphenidate Administration to Juvenile Rats Alters Brain Areas Involved in Cognition, Motivated Behaviors, Appetite, and Stress,” Journal of Neuroscience, 2007, 27(27):7196-7207.
Trebatická et al, “Treatment of ADHD with French maritime pine bark extract, Pycnogenol.” European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 2006. 15(6):329-35.