01.31.07
Posted in Anything goes, Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Uncategorized at 5:23 pm by Administrator
While rummaging through my closet today, I ran into a bag of my old Desferal infusion supplies. I know that Desferal isn’t technically a “natural” treatment, but I was not able to find anything else that could keep up with my iron overload while transfusion dependent. So, I did use it. The one consolation I had about it was that it is not a drug designed to “alter” cellular function or other functions of my body. Desferal is basically a chelating agent used to escort iron out along with itself, not designed to induce growth or suppress cells, or trick the body into anything.
Since there has been discussion of iron overload on the blood forums in relation to possible trouble with Exjade, I thought I might post some pictures of the Desferal delivery equipment for those curious about it. It’s quite small and compact, really. Below is a picture of what a Grasby pump looks like. There are several types of delivery systems. I tried two different types, but I liked the Grasby best.
Below is another picture of what the Grasby looks like with the syring loaded on. It’s shown on a stand, but it doesn’t need one if you want to just carry it around your waist in a little pouch.
The tubing and the needle that attaches to the pump is quite small in comparison to all the other needles we blood people tend to get poked with. The tubing is long, so there can be plenty of space between you and the pump. I used to sleep while I got my infusions, so I could just leave the pump on the floor while I slept in my bed. When I woke up in the morning, I would disconnect and be free of it. The needle used to attach to you can be very small depending upon which set up you get. The sub-q needles I used were 27gauge (tinier than the 24 gauge pediatric needles), and only 6mm long and had a little clear plastic disk attached so that the needle could lie flat underneath the tagaderm. below is a picture of the set up I used.
Only one needle and tubing is used at a time. I just put these three on here so that both the front and the back of the packaging can be seen as well as what the tubing and tagaderm look like. Below is a closer picture of the sub-q needle. The small clear plastic disk can be seen as well as an idea of the size of the needle.
If delivering your own Desferal, the pharmacy will likely give you a medical biohazard container for the disposal of used needles. As tiny as these sub-q needles are, they should not be thrown in the regular waste can. When the container gets full, they will collect it and dispose of it for you.
It’s been over 5 1/2 years since I used one of these. I forgot I still had these in my closet.
Marlakins
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01.29.07
Posted in Anything goes, Uncategorized, knitting and crocheting at 12:58 am by Administrator
Okay, I’ve been playing more with balls of yarn. . . Maybe I’m part cat? I thought I’d try my hand at making baby hats. There are so many cute patterns out there, and so many options to use for making hats, that it sure feels like the possibilities are endless. Below is a picture of a few baby hats I made this week. The little hat on the far left with the leaves on it and the brown beenie lying in the center are from patterns I’ve found. The three remaining hats (the green 3-pointed, the pink sack-looking, and the multi-colored cap) were my designs. I don’t have any bonafide hat stands, or actual babies, so I have those three hats propped up on coconuts and a pepper shaker, ha!
Since these hats are just “test” hats, I just used up some spare yarns, which are of mostly synthetic fibers. Well, the green, 3-pointed hat is actually 90% wool and 10% acrylic. The multi-colored, striped one is 100% cotton, but the other hats are 100% acrylic.
One of my new year’s resolutions for 2007 was to learn to make hats and socks. January isn’t even out yet, and I “think” I’ve got the hang of hats now! I’ve actually completed a new year’s resolution! Oye. . . To think I was a little intimidated by “hats,” but I’m already designing my own! And it’s fun, too! Hee! Somehow, this time around, I’m finding it much easier to “think.” (I used to knit and crochet many, many moons ago, but never had the patience to “carefully” read instructions or “figure” things out). This time around I’m enjoying the “figuring” part. . . I wonder if my improved diet since AA has helped my ability to think? I know that since I cleaned up my diet I’m not as tired as I used to be, nor am I as quick to get angry. I feel I have more patience, and I think it’s showing in my knitting, ha! If I ever become a grandma, I’ll be ready! 
There are so many other styles I want to try, and I haven’t even gotten to the crocheted patterns or felting, yet. . . So I’m off!
Toodles!
Marlakins 
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01.27.07
Posted in Anything goes, Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Uncategorized at 3:27 pm by Administrator
Although diet is a very important part of natural healing, there are other aspects to consider. One in particular is the quality of our air. Many toxins can enter our bodies from the air we breathe. Many times we don’t even realize the toxins we’re taking into our bodies just by the air we breathe. For people who are indoors much of the time, there has been a phenomena called “sick building syndrome.” It appears that some buildings had been built so efficiently in terms of being well-insulated (thus air tight) that much of the air inside some buildings are constantly recycled. Not only do some buildings prevent significant amount of air to enter the building, it also prevents a significant amount of air to exit. This becomes a problem when many of the buildings, furniture, cleaning agents, and office materials within the buildings are continually off-gasing toxins such as formaldehyde, toulene, benzene, etc. Then day after day, we sit there and breathe in all these toxins and wonder why when we get home we feel tired and exhausted. Our bodies are being over-taxed with airborne toxins.
Fortunately, God has provided natural air purifiers in abundance in the form of common houseplants. A review of the book How to Grow Fresh Air by Dr. B.C. Wolverton states that, “In research designed to create a breathable environment for a NASA lunar habitat, noted scientist Dr. B.C. Wolverton discovered that houseplants are the best filters of common pollutants such as ammonia, formaldehyde, and benzene. Hundreds of these poisonous chemicals can be released by furniture, carpets, and building material, and then trapped by closed ventilation systems, leading to the host of respiratory and allergic reactions now called Sick Building Syndrome.” Wolverton’s book discusses 50 houseplants that can help purify the home and office. Examples of these houseplants can be viewed at Denverplants.com. The list categorizes airborne toxins and the plants which are good filters for those toxins. Below are examples:
Sources of Airborne Toxins
Benzene Based Toxins:
Detergent, inks and dyes, petroleum products, plastics, rubber products, synthetic fibers, tobacco smoke.
Plants that Remove Toxins:
Chinese evergreens, chrysanthemum, dragon tree, English ivy, gerbera daisys, Janet Craig dracaena, peace lily, striped dracaena.
Formaldehyde Based Toxins:
Carpeting, cleaners, foam insulation, furniture, paper products, plywood and particle board.
Plants that Remove Toxins:
Bamboo palm, corn stalk plant, devil’s ivy, ficus trees, philodendrons, snake plants, spider plants.
For their full list, click here. For more information, here’s another link.
I like Wolverton’s book because he lists 50 houseplants, rates them as to their effectiveness and which toxins they clean, plant care instructions, and basic understanding of how houseplants do their magic to clean the air for us. For more information on Dr. Wolverton, his website can be viewed here.
The plant below is a syngonium podophyllum. Wolverton rates this plant a 7.0 overall for it’s ability to remove chemical vapors, resistance to insect infestation, transpiration rate, and ease of growth and maintenance.
Wolverton’s book is complete with pictures, so if one is not familiar with the common houseplant names or their scientific names, one merely has to look at the pictures to see which plants are available at their local nursery. I love Wolverton’s work and remain in awe that God has provided us with ways to clean up our messes. Toxic gases we expose ourselves to like formaldehyde can be removed by simple and aesthetically pleasing houseplants like Boston ferns, florist mums, gerbera daisies, dwarf date palms, Janet Craig, Bamboo palm, Kimberley queen fern, and the list goes on. Wolverton doesn’t stop his research with cleaning the air, but also has researched naturally cleaning water. The world needs more men like him.
Marlakins
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01.24.07
Posted in Anything goes, God, History, Uncategorized at 12:53 pm by Administrator
The internet has been such an asset for me in regard to research. However, I have realized that even among all the helpful information available over the internet, the internet is not without censorship and those who want to censor information (see the importance of network neutrality). I have already encountered the opposition to alternative or natural medicine on the net, and have also seen some sites that are opposed to Christian views. More recently, I have found another site which appears to be censoring information on “Creationism.” My son recently posted a section in Wikipedia regarding the neanderthal under the “popular culture” section. Due to the intolerance to the opposing view of the “theory” of evolution, his post was “removed.” A pitiful explanation given was that they didn’t need more Creationist views, so they would prefer to just “note” or “mention” that there is opposition by Creationists to the evolutionary model. Where is the freedom to express ideas? Is it not more “logical” and “fair” to present all views and let the reader decide which they feel has the better explanation? Rather than argue with those bigots, I’ll just post my son’s article here. At least this way, this information is still available on the net for those who seek truth and are willing to consider other possibilities before coming to a conclusion.
Just as I’m typing this my son just informed me that someone put his Creation article on neanderthal back up at Wiki. . .(with a goofy biased comment regarding it’s content, but oh well, cripes. Seems they’re scrambling to find stuff to refute it, which is fine. Just leave the article up for consideration. I’m just gonna post in here, too, just in case someone takes it off again. . . grrr).
~~~In Creation Media~~~~
see also creationism
Creation scientists have put forth several alternative views to the identity of the Neanderthals. These theories and beliefs are primarily from the young earth creationism camp. These views are not held by the scientific community[I differ with this comment from my son's. There are bonafide scientists who DO believe in the young earth model]. One which holds no basis in the scientific evidence is the argument that Neanderthals are not of the group ”Homo”, but rather belong to the category of apes. Other Creationists, such as with the Answers in Genesis Institute state that Neanderthals were fully human, along with categories such as Cro-Magnon, but unlike the full ape australopithecines. (Anthropology and Apeman Questions and Answers). According to some, diseases such a rickets caused the unusual shapes of the bones. An additional factor to disease may have been undue stress on the jaw, since the Neanderthals were likely to have used their mandibles as tools. This theory is put forth in the book by the author, Marvin L. Lubenow, entitled ”Bones of Contention: A Creationist Assessment of Human Fossils”. The Creationists who support the full humanity of Neanderthals as ”Homo sapiens neanderthalensis,” or even as ”Homo sapiens sapiens,” use as support the find that Neanderthal DNA is 99.5% to 99.9% identical to modern humans. They point out that 99.9 percent is the same percentage similarity as between any two modern humans National Geographic.
Another view is proposed by author and webmaster Dr. Jack Cuozzo, which contends that Neanderthals were fully human individuals who lived to extreme age. Jack Cuozzo homesite. His book Buried ”Alive: The Startling, Untold Story About Neanderthal Man” gives details to his researching a number of original Neanderthal skulls. His theory states that the unusual skeletal shapes are due to the life-long outward growth exhibited by the bones of humans. Long life is also used to explain in part the great deal of injuries that appear to have been sustained by the individuals. Under this view, the Neanderthals would have been physically superior to modern humans due to them having been closer to the creation, and therefore having been less degenerated from the “fall” than modern humans. Attesting to this view is the apparent strength and dexterity described in CNN of the Neanderthals, as well as their greater cranial capacity. Under the Cuozzo theory, all modern humans are 100% descended from the Neanderthals. The proponents of the full human views generally accuse evolutionists of ignoring or downplaying physical evidence of the Neanderthals’ technological sophistication, due to evolutionists not wishing to compromise their “dogmatic” paradigm. (Those Sophisticated Cave Men). The purpose of these Creationist theories is to attempt to fit them into the early Biblical accounts of people living past nine hundred years. This would place the neanderthals in the period before Noah’s flood as well as in the period shortly thereafter. Noah, who lived to be 950 years old according to the Bible, would have been a Neanderthal, as would Adam (930 years) and Methuselah (969 years).
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01.23.07
Posted in Anything goes, Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Uncategorized at 12:10 am by Administrator
In Chinese herbalism jujubees are commonly added to food as a tonic. Both the fruit and the seed are used as medicine to calm nerves and induce sleep. Before I knew any of this, I had eaten quite a few American jujubees while recovering from aplastic anemia because I just thought they tasted good. I didn’t realize that they were supposed to be good for my condition. However, more recently, I’ve read from two other blood patients that their Chinese herbalist/doctor has recommended jujubees for them. So since I happened to have some, I thought I would share what they look like for anyone interested. One thing I learned recently, though, is that they are commonly recommended to be cooked and added to stews and other foods. I ate them straight out of the package. . . The seeds are ground up and made into teas.
The larger ones on the left are American jujubees, while the smaller ones on the right are Chinese jujubees. They are also called red dates. I purchased the American (larger on the left) from a local farmer’s market at a stall operated by Burkitt’s Farm. They sell very nice organic fruits. The Chinese (smaller on the right) jujubees I found at a Chinese herb shop in Sherman Oaks. They aren’t labeled organic, but I haven’t found any organic Chinese jujubees anywhere else.
Marlakins
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01.18.07
Posted in Anything goes, God, Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Uncategorized at 12:26 pm by Administrator
A friend of mine sent me an email last night. I thought it was very cute, and relevant in that “attitude” is so important to our well-being and happiness. The Bible tells us to keep our minds on good thoughts. I think there is a reason for that, and that is that our thoughts affect our minds and bodies whether it is positive or negative. Negative emotions have been shown to lower or depress our immune systems, while positive emotions have been shown to boost our immune systems.
Some say that laughter is a way to give your body an internal massage. Have you ever laughed so much your sides hurt? I know I have, and boy can laughing be a rush! Even the Bible says, ” A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.”
Getting back to “attitude,” I do think a good attitude is important to health and the ability to heal. There are more passages in the Bible which seem to indicate the affects of attitude on our health. Another example is, “A sound heart is life to the body, But envy is rottenness to the bones.” Proverbs 15:30 states, “The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, And a good report makes the bones healthy.” Proverbs 16:24 states, “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.” Psalm 51:8 states, “Make me hear joy and gladness,That the bones You have broken may rejoice.” This makes me wonder sometimes about the increase of disease in the world and the difficulty to heal these new diseases. Could part of it be due to wrongful attitudes? I’m sure there are many, many causes, but I feel that attitudes do contribute to our health, either for good or bad. In search of information for blood diseases, I have come across some angry or unhappy people who even though we share the same or similar illness seem more bent on pitting natural healing against conventional drugs rather than just plain rejoicing in success whether it’s from natural or conventional. I think that shows a bad attitude. Why are people so angry? It’s people like that who I try to avoid because the Bible makes references to grief causing rottenness to the bones and to avoid strife. Also, from a person who has suffered a bone marrow disorder, I realise the importance of our bones. It encases the blood producing cells in our bodies, blood being essential to life. A study of blood in the Bible also yields many references to the importance of blood and life.
A search on “mind” in the Bible also seems to yield many references to not only our physical health, but our spiritual health. We are instructed to keep our minds on good things. “8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” And, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” The examples go on and on, and that is why I think the Bible is so practical. Often people spiritualize the Bible, but I think it has so much practical advice that we can use now, which helps our physical needs.
The bottom line is, I believe we need to cultivate good thoughts and good attitudes, so that we can live more fully, and that is why the email my friend, Vickey, sent me last night has moved me to share what she sent. It was titled “Attitude.”
Attitude
There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror,and noticed she had only three hairs on her head. Well,” she said, “I think I’ll braid my hair today?” So she did and she had a wonderful day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head. “H-M-M,” she said, “I think I’ll part my hair down the middle today?” So she did and she had a grand day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head. “Well,” she said, “today I’m going to wear my hair in a pony tail.” So she did and she had a fun, fun day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn’t a single hair on her head. “YEA!” she exclaimed, “I don’t have to fix my hair today!”
Attitude is everything.
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
Live simply,
Love generously,
Care deeply,
Speak kindly…….
Leave the rest to God
With love
Thank you, Vickey.
Marlakins
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01.17.07
Posted in Anything goes, Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Uncategorized, knitting and crocheting at 9:15 am by Administrator
Last night I cooked up some burdock root with carrots and onions and decided to take some pictures just for the fun of it. Some people may not be familiar with burdock root, but it’s the same as gobo root. Burdock root is the name used by herbalist. The markets may have it under “gobo root,” which I believe is the Japanese name for the same thing. Articum lappa is the scientific name, while common names are lappa, bardane, and beggar’s buttons. The roots, leaves, and seeds can be used, but I’ve only used the roots, so far. According to herbalists, burdock root is used to promote kidney functions and helps these organs to filter blood. It is a good blood purifier and is used for arthritis rheumatism, sciatica and lumbago. The seeds and leaves are a strong surface purifier and are used for treating skin disorders. (According to Chinese medicine, food is better than herbs in regards to good health. Herbs are fast acting, but foods are long lasting. I sure hope they’re right. In that case, I try to focus on eating healthful foods to improve my health even if it may be slow in seeing healing results.) This is what burdock root looks like before it’s chopped and cooked. I suggest only using organic burdock root to avoid artificial chemicals.
To prepare it, take a veggie brush and brush it well. Then chop it up. I like to chop it into sticks as shown in the picture below. For this dish, I chopped up two burdock roots, two carrots, and half a yellow onion. This is what they look like chopped just before cooking.
In a skillet, I put in about 2 tbsp of sesame oil to a medium heat and put in the chopped burdock root. I stir it up and let it cook for about 3 minutes. If the pan is getting too hot, lower the heat. You don’t want the oil smoking because that means it’s burning. Then I add in the carrots and onions and some spring water (about 1/2 cup or more, I tend to eyeball my cooking). If you want, you can also add a little bit of Tamari sauce. Cover skillet and let cook for about 20 to 30 minutes or until the burdock root is fully cooked. Meanwhile, I roast some sesame seeds, which is very quick, and chop up a little bit of green onion for garnishing. after the roots are all cooked, I transfer them into a dish, and add the green onions and sprinkle the sesame seeds on. The finished dish looks like this.
Aside from this dish, I also cooked up some liver with bacon and onions, rice, and a little beans. And that’s what we had for dinner. I cooked this for my mom the other week, and at first she thought the burdock roots were french fries, ha! They do look that way, tho.
The other thing I’ve been up to lately is hand spinning. While running searches on fibers, I came across spinning and found a local shop which carried spinning wheels, hand spindles, fibers, etc. I popped in and the owner was kind enough to give me a free hand spinning lesson. I ended up coming home with a few items to dabble with hand spinning my own yarns. I’m starting with the undyed stuff first to see how it goes. If I can do it, and it’s enjoyable, I’ll see about dying my own fibers to spin. Here’s a pic of the supplies I got. Apparently, you don’t need much. To get started, all that’s needed is a hand spindle, a niddy noddy to wind the spun yarn, and fiber. I chose wool. The hank in the picture is 4 oz. The brown looking fiber draped over my hand spindle was just the test fiber I was given to learn to spin.
Okay, so I’m off to practice!
Marlakins
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01.16.07
Posted in Anything goes, Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Uncategorized at 12:51 pm by Administrator
The importance of touch to health is recognized in both the medical community and the non-medical community. Studies have shown that infants who are never touched or carried have a higher rate of failure to thrive (death) than those who have had human contact. One study I read years ago involved the help of mentally retarded girls. Their task was to just go in and hold orphaned, newborn babies. Just the mere physical touch and closeness appeared to reduce the number of infant deaths from those babies who were left with no one to come and hold them.
In Russell Blaylock’s book, Excitotoxins, the Taste that Kills, he mentions the importance of touch in relation to the development of the brain and the nerves connected to it. He uses the example of the practice of some animals to lick their newborn babies immediately after birth. Some believe that this practice is to remove the placenta, however, this process appears to also be important to the baby animal’s ability to thrive. Blaylock asserts that the act of licking the newborn baby animal is a way for the mother to stimulate the nerves in the baby’s body. This is extremely important to its physical development.
The above are a couple examples of the importance of touch in the very young, but how is it related to older people, or the very old? As we age, we cease to be the little cute kid that gets the deluge of hugs. It becomes inappropriate to touch one another especially with the fear of being accused of molestation. So generally, how much we are touched during each day, in many cases, is reduced as we get older. Does this reduction in touch negatively affect our health in any way, particularly among our elderly? Would the health of our elderly be much improved if they were touched more? Is the reason that various massages appear so helpful partly due to the fact that the human touch is so essential to our well-being? Should touch be included in any healing practice? I think yes.
As part of a healing regime, I think daily hugs and holding hands can be a simple way to give a person great comfort. Any type of comfort likely also helps our emotional health as well. If possible various massages should also be considered as part of a healing regime. One interesting form of massage that I recently found is called the Bowen Therapy. This therapy was originally designed by Tom Bowen to help heal sports injuries, but with time it developed into a special technique to help stimulate the healing of other ailments such as back or neck pain, headaches and migraines, chronic fatigue, colds and flus, stress or depression, pre-menstrual syndrome, edema, asthma, skin problem, etc. Interestingly, many of the manuevers used in the Bowen therapy lie on meridians that correspond with Chinese meridians. I purchased a book called, Bowen Therapy, Tom Bowen’s gift to the World, by Frank Navratil, BSc. N.D. Although I don’t feel I currently have many health ailments that need dire attention, I do plan to explore this therapy a bit, and hopefully I may have some positive information to update.
Marlakins
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01.13.07
Posted in Anything goes, Uncategorized, knitting and crocheting at 9:49 pm by Administrator
Visiting a yarn shop for me is like visiting a candy store to a child. I could spend hours looking at all the yarns. There are so many different types and colors. I particularly like the natural fibers and often wonder where they came from, what did the animal look like that grew this fiber? For fun, I did a search on what some of the animals look like from where we get our weaving, knitting and crocheting fibers. These animals are soooo adorable! Take a look!
Since I recently finished up a project using some alpaca fibers, I checked out what an alpaca looks like. Are they not completely adorable?! Eeee, hee, hee! According to the ladies at the yarn shop, alpaca fibers are five times warmer than wool. According to Katarina Buss, author of Big Book of Knitting, you can get about 2 lbs. of fiber from an alpaca every 2 years. These animals are originally from South America.
Merino wool is another fiber I’ve worked with. Coincidentally, my friend Helen, who lives in Australia, happened to visit their Big Merino facility where they raise merino sheep for wool. Here’s a picture Helen sent to me of that place shaped like a big merino. (Thanks Helen!) Notice the windows down below at the bottom right corner. It looks like that’s the entrance to the building. The next picture is of what real merino sheep look like.
They look a lot like the building, huh?
I have not worked with angora yet, but apparently, there are angora goats and angora rabbits. I got a kick out of these rabbits! Here are a couple pictures on the right. Take a look. . . How can they see with all that fur? LOL The one on the top reminds me of an ewok from Star Wars. Angora fur has a very high moisture absorption capacity. It can absorb twice as much moisture as virgin wool, and four times as much as cotton without feeling wet. The picture below is of angora goats. 
There’s also wool from Shetland sheep, which look like this. 
Cashmere comes from goats like this pictured below. Cashmere are not shorn. Their hair is combed out when they lose their coats in the spring. A cashmere goat only gives about 100 grams (less than 1/4 lb) of fiber a year. That’s one reason why cashmere is so expensive!
How about mohair? They come from these precious little animals:
We also get fibers from llamas such as these pictured below:
There are many other animals from which fibers are used such as camels and even some dogs! Interestingly, camel hair cannot be dyed, so in order to have colored camel hair, it has to be mixed with other fibers for color. I found a neat website which has information of animal breeds like sheep and goats, etc. http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/sheep/ You can pick an animal in the bar at the top of that page to view the different breeds. I think this is a fun thing for the young kids to see (and adults like me!) It’s times like these when I wish I had a daughter who was interested in knitting and other crafts like me. . . But anyhow. . . maybe one day I’ll have a grand daughter to share these things with. Here’s another interesting site where they actually spin yarn out of your pet’s fur! The place is called VIP Fibers. I have never thought of using cat and dog hairs for clothing! Incredible. . . ha! What will they think of next? I love it!
Marlakins
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01.12.07
Posted in Anything goes, Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Hmmm Moments, Uncategorized at 10:20 am by Administrator
One of the books I have checked out from the library is called Pills, Potions, Poisions, How Drugs Work. With a catchy title like that, you’d better believe I would have to check it out to take a peek. The book is by Trevor Stone and Gail Darlington and uses an effective approach of explaining the effects of drugs on the body by first explaining a bit of how the body works, then explaining the action of a given drug on the body. Let me give an example.
Chapter 5 deals with the kidneys, so it starts off explaining some of the functions of the kidneys such as how it is involved in producing urine. After explaining how urine is produced, it goes on to explain how diuretics work. Basically, the kidneys filter the blood, which contains much of the body’s water, then the kidney’s reabsorb about 99% of the water and sodium chloride, which had been filtered, back into the body. What’s not reabsorbed ends up in the bladder as urine. Evidently, lots of water is conserved this way so that we can go for hours without needing to drink. According to Stone and Darlington, the kidneys reabsorb fluid by the help of transporter enzymes. Without these enzymes, the body would not be able to reabsorb fluid, and thus would lose lots of fluids, resulting in the person having to constantly drink water to keep hydrated. So next comes the explanation of how diuretics work.
Diuresis means the formation of urine. A diuretic drug, is a substance which increases the production of urine. Apparently, there are several types of diuretics, but they all have a similar function. Some are more harsh on the body than others. Basically how diuretic drugs work is by inhibiting the ability of the transporter enzyme to reabsorb sodium from the kidney tubules. As a result, sodium chloride, and water are lost into the urine–a diuresis. Seems clever, huh? However, this process of inhibiting the transporter enzyme does not come without possible complications. Let me quote a little from the book:
“One of the problems with diuretics is that the increased loss of sodium in the urine is essential for their effects. If a person increases their salt intake in the diet, the effect of the drugs can be cancelled, and they will be less effective. On the other hand, if a person cuts down on their salt intake at the same time as taking diuretics, the effect of the drugs will be increased, with a greater risk of fainting.
“The main problem with all these drugs stems from the fact that some of the sodium reabsorbed from the tubule is exchanged for potassium ions. As diuretics increase the amount of sodium in the urine, there is a greater exchange for potassium, with the result that potassium levels in the blood may fall. When this happens, muscles contract less well, so that peole may have feelings of weakness in their muscles, and may experience constipation as the movements of the intestine are reduced. The most serious risk is that a fall in blood potassium can cause changes in the rhythm of the heartbeat. If patients notice changes in their heartbeat, they should see their doctor immediately. Most of these problems can be corrected by the doctor’s prescribing additional tablets containing potassium to replace that which has been lost in the urine. . . “
The book goes on to explain that other diuretics increase the loss of magnesium, and decrease the loss of calcium. This loss in magnesium can cause muscle twitches, and the loss of calcium can cause muscle weakness. And finally, some diuretics can reduce the excretion of uric acid from the kidneys, which is one of the body’s waste products. So you can imagine that problems can arise from that.
I found that bit of information very interesting. The funny thing is, the purpose of this book as stated in the beginning was to explain to people how drugs work, so that they would “take” the drugs. However, for me, when I read the explanations, it makes me want to “avoid” the drugs even more! Cripes. It also confirms to me that many pharmaceutical drugs simply deal with symptoms, and not the underlying cause of the dis-ease. Let me give another example which explains the action of a drug that makes me “not” want to take it. Here’s a little on drugs that deal with incontinence. But first, a short explanation of the bladder:
When urine passes from the kidneys, it is then stored in the bladder. As the urine fills the bladder, sensory nerves in the bladder wall begin to become active. These nerves send signals to the brain, which make us aware that the bladder is filling and that we need to urinate. Normally, the muscles at the neck of the bladder remain tightly closed until we relax them voluntarily to urinate. Then the parasympathetic nerves become active, secreting acetylcholine and causing the bladder to contract and eliminate the urine.
Some people lose control of their bladder so that urine leaks out even when they are not ready to urinate. This is called incontinence and is due to the fact that the wall of the bladder becomes stiffer with age and can hold a smaller volume of urine before the sensory nerves in the bladder wall initiate the desire to urinate.
Okay, so we look at this explanation, and what I gather from it is the problem with some forms of incontinence is that the nerves in the bladder are not sending the proper signals, regardless of how full the bladder is becoming. One would think that the “nerves” need healing or improvement as well as improvement with the elasticity of the bladder. However, one type of drug used to treat this incontinence messes with our hormones instead of helping the nerve signals or increasing the elasticity of the bladder. The drug is demopressin. This drug increases the amount of water reabsorbed in the kidneys, so that less urine is formed, thus less chance of “leakage” . . . Now, artificially lessening the formation of urine? That sounds like a prescription for disaster to me. Sure the short term results may appear like magic, but long term? Imagine all the natural waste that should be exiting the body, which is now being “reabsorbed?” That can’t be good. Where will the toxins go? Build up in the body? Clogg up things more than they already are? Cripes, no thank you. I would rather work on increasing the health of my nerves, and increasing the health of the elasticity of my bladder, than reabsorbing my urine.
There are other drugs that are used to deal with incontinence that work a different way, but as you can see from the above explanation, chances are these drugs will only be dealing with the symptoms while at the same time creating another set of problems.
Overall, Pills, Potions, Poisons, How Drugs Work, is filled with very useful information, in my opinion. However how I use the information would be a bit different from the book’s recommendation of taking the prescription drugs. The explanations of how the body works and what the drugs target help me to understand what I need to focus on naturally. It helps take some of the mystery out of it, and gives me a direction. I’m glad I found this book.
Marlakins
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