Burkini - 'To cover up or Not to cover up?' Vit D deficiency in covered up individuals higher than uncovered.

Burkini - 'To cover up or Not to cover up?' Vit D deficiency in covered up individuals higher than uncovered. (MFS).

As a Canadian i remember the hype a number of years ago about Canadians having low levels of Vit D in our system.

According to Stats Canada:

Vitamin D plays an important role in bone growth and maintenance because it helps the body absorb calcium and phosphorus.1,2

In children, low levels of vitamin D can cause rickets, a condition characterized by soft bones and skeletal deformities. 

In adults, low levels of vitamin D can lead to osteoporosis (decreased bone mass) which is especially true for women, which also increases the risk of fractures. 

Some research suggests that adequate vitamin D may have benefits, such as lowering the risk of breast and colorectal cancer3,4, cardiovascular disease in men5, and multiple sclerosis. However, the research supporting the benefits of vitamin D, other than for bone health, is still inconclusive.

Vitamin D is unique because it can be made by the body through exposure to sunlight while most vitamins need to be ingested. That is why it is commonly known as the 'sunshine vitamin.' The body's ability to produce vitamin D is affected by factors such as latitude (distance from the sun), season, time of day, cloud cover, smog, clothing coverage, and sunscreen use.

Skin pigmentation is also linked to vitamin D levels. Melanin in the skin evolved as an effective natural sunscreen. Those with darker skin pigment, or more melanin, have more difficulty producing vitamin D from the sun.

The body's ability to produce vitamin D from the sun also declines with age. For example, a person aged 70 makes, on average, 25% of the vitamin D that a 20-year-old makes when exposed to the same amount of sunlight.

The most comprehensive survey ever undertaken on vitamin D in Canadians has found widespread deficiencies of the sunshine vitamin, which is being promoted for everything from the prevention of cancer to reducing heart attack risk.

The survey, conducted by Statistics Canada, found that two-thirds of the population has vitamin D levels below the amounts research is associating with reduced risk of chronic diseases such as cancer, while one in 10, or more than three million people, have such low readings that they don’t have enough for good bone health. About 4 per cent have so little that they’re at risk for rickets, a debilitating childhood bone disease.

Statscan also found a huge vitamin D disparity among Canadians based on racial origin, with whites having substantially higher concentrations than the prevailing levels in the country’s growing non-white population. Whites had an average of nearly 40 per cent more of the nutrient than non-whites.

It termed low levels of the vitamin a “worldwide problem,” and said most Canadians don’t have concentrations at “the level proposed for optimal health.”

2. So is covering up with a Burkini a wise idea? 

Scientific study in Turkey: Clothing preference affects vitamin D status of young women.

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with several chronic diseases, which include cardiovascular, autoimmune diseases, and cancer.

Several factors such as exposure to sunlight, skin color, dietary habits, and cultural factors affect serum vitamin D levels.

We hypothesized that serum vitamin D levels in young women are associated with clothing styles and investigated this via a cross-sectional study that included 100 female students at Istanbul Medipol University.

Our study used a questionnaire in order to collect demographic information. Serum calcium, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, alkaline phosphatase, and parathyroid hormone levels were determined via standard laboratory tests. We deployed bioelectrical impedance analysis to measure body composition, and we then determined the body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, and total body fat values. The mean age was 20.9 ± 2.1 years.

Subjects' data were divided into 2 groups based on their clothing styles: covered (Muslim style clothing) and uncovered.

Muslim style clothing, which covers the whole body but leaves the face and hands exposed, was worn by 40.0% of the undergraduate students. 

The mean BMI (in kilograms per meter squared) of the subjects was 23.0 ± 3.6. The BMI value for the covered students was 24.0 ± 4.0, and that for the uncovered students was 22.3 ± 3.1. Of the subjects, 28.0% had a BMI of at least 25 kg/m(2) (overweight). Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (in nanograms per milliliter), parathyroid hormone (in picograms per milliliter), alkaline phosphatase (in units per liter), and calcium levels (in milligrams per deciliter) were 21.1 ± 6.7, 27.5 ± 9.2, 65.9 ± 10.9, and 9.0 ± 0.2 for covered students, respectively, and 29.7 ± 3.1, 24.3 ± 6.1, 62.8 ± 13.2, and 9.0 ± 0.4, respectively, for uncovered students. 

The prevalence of vitamin D deficiencies was 55.0% for covered and 20.0% for uncovered students. 

The vitamin D status was found to be statistically significant and had a negative correlation with the duration of Islamic dressing (P < .05, r = -0.334). 

We concluded that the vitamin D levels of young women are associated with clothing style, and the age at which a female begins wearing Muslim style clothing is related.

Hmmmm........So ladies go ahead coverup but don't complain about Osteoporosis, Cancer, Cardio vascular problems....etc, the choice is yours! 

Israeli company develops Drugs that act like ‘guided missiles’ in cancer treatment.

Israeli company develops Drugs that act like ‘guided missiles’ in cancer treatment.(Israel21c).By Abigail Klein Leichman.“Monoclonal antibodies” may sound like a great name for a heavy-metal band, but actually they’re the basis of best-selling pharmaceuticals raking in about $50 billion dollars a year.
The two-year-old Israeli company Immune Pharmaceuticals is fast emerging as a leader in developing new ways to use these antibodies, which are found in drugs such as Herceptin for breast cancer, Remicade to treat autoimmune diseases and Erbitux for head, neck and colorectal cancer.
“We are building an Israel-based Center of Excellence for Monoclonal Antibody Drug Development with access to best-in-class novel technologies from world-class academic institutions including the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Weizmann Institute of Science,” says founder and CEO Daniel Teper. “We expect to initiate collaborative research programs with biotech and pharmaceutical companies later this year.”
Teper explains that monoclonal antibodies were discovered in Britain about three decades ago and led to a Nobel Prize for Georges Köhler and César Milstein in 1984, but early attempts to use them in pharmaceuticals met with failure.
“Only in the late 1990s did the first monoclonals become successful, and in the last 10 to 15 years they’ve become one of most important classes of drugs,” Teper tells ISRAEL21c.
Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science played a significant role in developing these drugs, which are prescribed selectively to patients likely to respond best. “This is a big step up from the 1990s, when everyone with a certain disease got the same drug,” says Teper.
‘Guided missiles’ are the future of medicine'
Today’s monoclonal antibody drugs must be administered together with chemotherapy, which often is effective but can cause significant collateral damage.
At the recent meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago, the buzz was about new drugs combining the power of anti-cancer drugs with the targeting abilities of antibodies. The first generation of those drugs, antibody drug conjugates, is now being approved for resistant cases of Hodgkin’s disease and breast cancer.
Immune is going one step further, using nanotechnology and biotechnology to deliver existing and new cancer drugs more safely and effectively.
While currently only a few chemo pharmaceuticals can be attached to each antibody, Immune’s “guided missile” system “puts thousands of toxic drug molecules inside a nanoparticle like a spaceship, so it’s imprisoned until it gets to the cancerous tissue,” says Teper.The method was developed by a team under Hebrew University Pharmacy School dean Shimon Benita, who chairs Immune’s scientific advisory board. Immune licensed it from the university’s technology transfer company.
“It has a double targeting mechanism — it goes through vessels into tissue, and the antibody gets it right into the cell. People are now saying the future of medicine, and specifically the future of treating cancer, is in the targeted missile.”
In May, the company began collaborating with the Weizmann Institute to develop antibody therapeutics targeting a growth factor that causes chemotherapy resistance in many patients with gastric, head and neck, ovarian and breast cancers.
The second focus for Immune Pharmaceuticals is Bertilimumab, which targets a substance found in the blood and tissue that contributes to increased inflammation. The investigational drug now entering clinical Phase II trials in all major Israeli hospitals, with results expected in mid- to late 2013.
“We know it’s well tolerated in humans, and our priority is to develop it for gastrointestinal diseases such as Crohn’s and colitis,” says Teper. “We’re finding more potential every day for this drug. It has indications for eye diseases, too — it can be administered as drops for severe eye inflammation potentially leading to corneal damage and blindness.”Read the full story here.

What a drag, Israeli firm grows "highless" marijuana.

What a drag, Israeli firm grows "highless" marijuana.(Yahoo).SAFED, Israel (Reuters) - They grow in a secret location in northern Israel. A tall fence, security cameras and an armed guard protect them from criminals. A hint of their sweet-scented blossom carries in the air: rows and rows of cannabis plants, as far as the eye can see. It is here, at a medical marijuana plantation atop the hills of the Galilee, where researchers say they have developed marijuana that can be used to ease the symptoms of some ailments without getting patients high. "Sometimes the high is not always what they need. Sometimes it is an unwanted side effect. For some of the people it's not even pleasant," said Zack Klein, head of development at Tikun Olam, the company that developed the plant.
Cannabis has more than 60 constituents called cannabinoids. THC is perhaps the best known of those, less so for its medical benefits and more for its psychoactive properties that give people a "high" feeling. But cannabis also contains Cannabidiol, or CBD, a substance that some researchers say has anti-inflammatory benefits. Unlike THC, it hardly binds to the brain's receptors and can therefore work without getting patients stoned. "CBD plants are available in different forms all over the world," said Klein, adding that the company's plant is free of THC and very high in CBD.
Tikun Olam began its research on CBD enhanced cannabis in 2009 and about six months ago they came up with Avidekel, Klein said, a cannabis strain that contains 15.8 percent CBD and only traces of THC, less than one percent.Today cannabis is used in Israel to treat 9,000 people suffering from illnesses such as cancer, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease and post traumatic stress disorder, according to Israel's health ministry.Although there have been no clinical trials in humans, Mechoulam, who is a leading researcher of cannabinoids, said that Avidekel showed promise as a potent anti-inflammatory. Ruth Gallily of the Hebrew University who works for the company and has been studying CBD for more than 12 years, said she has found that the substance has impressive anti-inflammatory qualities. She has been testing the effects of Tikun Olam's CBD-enhanced cannabis on mice and expects clinical trials to begin in a few months. Avidekel is a new strain of a plant that is already permitted for medical use so there is nothing stopping patients who are already being treated with marijuana from trying Avidekel. About 10 patients began using it in the past six months, Klein said. "The cannabis plant, enriched with CBD, can be used for treating diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, colitis, liver inflammation, heart disease and diabetes," she said, adding there are no side effects. "It's a huge advantage," said one 35-year-old patient who asked not to be identified, "I can smoke during the day, function with a lot less pain and still be focused, work and drive. It is a great gift." The woman began suffering chronic pains after a tumor was removed from her spine. She began treatment with regular THC-containing marijuana eight months ago. Two months ago she started smoking Avidekel.Read the full story here.

Hugo Chavez, the crazed South American leader asked the Munkatcher Rebbe of Brooklyn to pray for his well-being

Hugo Chavez, the crazed South American leader asked the Munkatcher Rebbe of Brooklyn to pray for his well-being.(Matzav).Hugo Chavez, the crazed South American leader who is struggling with cancer for more than a year now, sought a blessing from the Munkatcher Rebbe of Brooklyn. Chavez himself did not visit the Rebbe, but a top Venezuela diplomat and lead Council official both slipped into the Rebbe’s house a while ago asking that the Rebbe pray for Chavez’s well-being. The Rebbe, in exchange, asked that Venezuela, one of a few countries to have full contact with Bolivia, should persuade Bolivia to free Yanky Ostreicher, the Jewish American businessman incarcerated there for almost a year now.It is unclear if the diplomat and Council official channeled the message to Chavez.Hmmmm....."And I will bless them that bless you, and curse him that curses you: and in you shall all families of the earth be blessed." ~ Genesis 12:3.Read the full story here.

Made from Genetically Modified Bacteria Waste, Aspartame Risks Public Health.

Made from Genetically Modified Bacteria Waste, Aspartame Risks Public Health.(NH).By Andre Evans.Aspartame is one of the most used artificial sweeteners in the food supply today. It also happens to be one of the most dangerous. Aspartame is used in thousands of products as a substitute to sugar, though consumers would actually be better off eating regular sugar. Specifically, the toxic substance is often found in diet soft drinks and various candies. You should also be aware that aspartame is even present in a number of lesser-known conventional products as well.
Millions either knowingly or unknowingly consume aspartame on a daily basis. However, if the public was aware of the various dangers aspartame poses to individual health, they would stop — or would they?Aspartame is an addictive substance. Most people who consume diet sodas regularly soon develop a craving for it. This is because of aspartame’s addictive quality. Soon after consuming the ingredient on a normal basis, many people find themselves unable to kick the habit.
This is concerning due to the fact that aspartame has been linked to a number of diseases, can impair the immune system, and is even known to cause cancer. Aspartame has even been found to create tumors in lab rats. One study showed that of 48 rats experimented on, up to 67 percent of all female rats developed tumors roughly the size of golf balls or larger. This is glaringly in contrast to the perceived nature of what a ‘sugar free alternative’ would entail, which is generally thought to be a ‘healthy’ substitute to sugar.
Aspartame works as an excitotoxin, stimulating a response in cells to simulate the effects of sweetness without actually being sweet. Over exertion of these cells leads to the various health conditions that currently wreak havoc on the public.Excitotoxins have been found to stimulate cancer growth and metastasis. Aspartame, essentially, feeds cancer cells. If this weren’t enough to convince you to drop the diet soda habit, the process by which aspartame is made involves a highly toxic and volatile and genetically engineered form of bacteria waste — hardly something that would be considered safe by a reasonable standard.
And yet, the ‘safe and reasonable’ FDA has approved aspartame for use. Knowing the gamut of health risks that aspartame is responsible for, and knowing the history of FDA approved products, your health becomes your own responsibility. Being aware of its presence in over 6,000 products and counting is essential.Read the full story here.

Possible cancer treatment breakthrough

Possible cancer treatment breakthrough! A virus targeting tumours could end up being a safe alternative to chemotherapy.Source.