Pregnancy

Vitamin B12, Homocysteine and Methylmalonic Acid

B12 is a group of cobalt-containing vitamins. Hydroxocobalamin and cyanocobalamin are synthetic forms of vitamin B12. The two forms of vitamin B12 naturally occurring in foods are methylcobalamin and adenosylcobalamin. These forms are biologically equivalent.

B12 is produced by a number of different species of bacteria which is found in the soil, on the surface of some plants and some red and green algae.

Lack of vitamin B12 can have serious consequences as does high levels of homocysteine. Determining the status of vitamin B12 and homocysteine can be difficult and can be determined by measuring serum vitamin B12, homocysteine and methylmalonic acid (MMA).

A number of products contain riboflavin, pyridoxine, folate, B12 and methionine way in excess of dietary requirements in an attempt to resolve B12 metabolism problems.

Many magnesium supplements contain pyridoxine which is usually unnecessary and possibly detrimental.
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5 August 2021
Pink Day Blues

In 1985, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October) was created by the American Cancer Society. Funding was provided by Zeneca (later AstraZenca) , a British pharmaceutical company. AstraZenca is still (as at 2018) associated with Breast Cancer Awareness Month. AstraZenca produces Tamoxifen. Tamoxifen is an estrogen antagonist or anti-estrogen drug which works by blocking the effects of estrogen.

Pink Day is one day in October which is designated to create awareness of breast cancer and to raise money for research.

Lifetime exposure to estrogen is 2.5-3 times higher in Western women than rural Chinese women in the 1980s. China women reach menarche later, menopause earlier and have reduced levels of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone during their reproductive years.

There is much evidence that increased levels of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone are associated with a significant increase in breast cancer as well as evidence that low-fat, high carbohydrate diet reduces the level of these hormones.
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27 January 2019
The Fund-raising BBQ

A fund-raising BBQ is a popular way of obtaining money for research into common cancers, in particular prostate and breast cancer.

BBQs produce many toxic substances including heterocyclic amines (HCAs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and nitrosamines.
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7 May 2018
Iodine and Thyroid Function Tests

Iodine is a major component of the thyroid hormones, thyroxine (T4), and triiodothyronine (T3). They are based on the amino acid tyrosine. T4 contains four iodine atoms and T3 three iodine atoms. The only known function of iodine is for the production of the thyroid hormones. Excess iodine is secreted in the urine.

Thyroid hormones are required for normal growth and development of the brain and central nervous system. It is required for energy production and oxygen consumption in cells and the maintenance of the metabolic rate.

The regulation of thyroid hormone synthesis, release, and action is a complex process involving the thyroid, the pituitary, the brain, and peripheral tissues.

Sea foods and iodine added to table salt are the highest contributors of iodine to our diet which is why vegans often resort to supplementation which can have unintended consquences.
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23 March 2018
Eggs and the Questionable Benefits of Choline

According to the Australian Eggs website, "choline is used by the body for metabolic processes such as liver function, normal brain development, nerve function and muscle movement. It’s particularly important during pregnancy to support foetal brain development."

Egg consumption has consistently been shown to be associated with an increase in prostate cancer, so what is the story?.
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27 November 2017
CSIRO Low-Carb Diets

The CSIRO Low-Carb Diet and CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet were developed in Australia by the CSIRO.

The CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet plan "is higher in protein, and lower in high Glycemic Index carbohydrates which supports weight loss, especially fat mass whilst helping with appetite control".

The CSIRO Low Carb Diet is "lower in carbohydrate and higher in healthy fats which may improve blood glucose control and possibly a reduction in need for diabetes medication".

The CSIRO Diets DO NOT improve blood glucose control and DOES NOT reduce the need for diabetes medication.
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4 October 2017
The Ketogenic Disadvantage

Several studies have been published comparing low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diets with low-fat diets, mostly regarding the treatment of diabetes in overweight and obese participants. Prominent researchers in this field are Richard Feinman, Stephen Phinney, Mary Vernon, Jeff Volek, Eric Westman, and William Yancy—all supporters of low-carbohydrate dietary regimes.

Ketosis occurs during starvation. It is not a normal, healthy condition. No animal species or human society normally lives in a state of ketosis. Ketosis occurs when fat in the body is utilized to obtain energy in the absence of glucose. Glucose is normally obtained from the digestion of carbohydrates. Ketosis results in the production of ketones—acetone being one of the three types of ketones produced during ketosis. Blood acidity rises with an increase in ketones.

During pregnancy, ketosis has been linked to adverse outcomes for the unborn child.

Ketogenic diet trials almost invariably compare a ketogenic diet with a mislabeled “low-fat, high-carbohydrate” diet. Both the control diet and the ketogenic diet are not healthy diets—the participants are far from healthy at the start of the trial or at the conclusion.

The ketogenic trials appear to assume that the only criteria for a healthy diet is the ratio of fat, carbohydrate, and protein. Many other components are important for health such as fiber, refined sugars, phytonutrients, and protein sources.
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10 January 2017