In response to R. Stoffanellar of Wassen International (WDDTY vol 14 no 7) who said my 'article gives ammunition to the anti-supplements brigade', I say 'Hardly'.
Q I’ve just had what my doctors call a ‘transient ischaemic attack, or TIA. For about 20 minutes, my sight blurred and dimmed, and I lost my hearing and ability to speak.
There are literally scores of ways to reduce high blood pressure (BP) without having to take recourse to drugs.
Using anticoagulants such as warfarin requires walking a tightrope between decreasing the blood’s ability to clot to prevent strokes without bringing on a haemorrhage somewhere in the body.
There’s a old sexist saying in France that if you want to discover the cause of a problem, cherchez la femme - find the woman. But, if the problem is medical, I say cherchez la pharm - find the drug.
The nutritional supplement coenzyme Q10 could slow the progress of early-stage Parkinson’s.
Did Lamisil cause my high cholesterol? I am 5 foot 3 inches tall, weigh 8 stone 10 pounds, don’t smoke, follow a healthy diet (I am vegetarian most days), take daily supplements and exercise regularly - I even enjoy a five-mile walk at weekends.
While I agree that drug-nutrient interactions are complex, with much yet to be learned, I feel that Alternatives (WDDTY vol 14 no 4) did not provide a balanced view. It could even provide more ammunition to the anti-food-supplement lobby.
If I had more money than morals, the first thing I’d do is plough every last red cent of mine into a drug company. No other profession, to my mind, has such total success in inventing a dubious solution, manufacturing the market to peddle it to and...
Heart failure is epidemic in the UK and US, and so is statin use. Millions of patients are taking statins, which are increasingly more potent and enthusiastically prescribed in ever-higher dosages.