Make stomach ulcer drugs work better with fewer side effects

H. pylori is the germ that causes stomach ulcers. It’s also associated with a myriad of stomach problems from gastritis to reflux. Getting rid of it totally can be difficult. And sometimes drugs are required. But drugs can often cause serious side effects. But there’s an easy way to help these drugs work better — and reduce their side effects.

The standard allopathic treatment is “triple therapy.” Triple therapy refers to the use of three drugs: a proton pump inhibitor, such as omeprazole, and two different antibiotics, usually amoxicillin and clarithromycin. Of course, the petrochemical approach is expected to have “side effects.” The most obvious is other digestive problems due to the antibiotics wiping out your good gut flora (bacteria).

4 common supplements make your arteries soft and supple

I’ve told you for years that I prefer to get my vitamins and minerals from food rather than supplements. But there are times when supplements are absolutely vital. In fact, if you’re one of the millions of people with risk factors for heart disease, certain supplements are critical to prevent a heart attack.

One of the big hallmarks of arterial disease is the elasticity of your blood vessels. That is, they need to expand while your heart is contracting. And while your heart is at rest, like a balloon expelling its air, your arteries continue to expel the blood they contain.

Scientists did a randomized, placebo-controlled study with 70 patients. They all had multiple cardiovascular risk factors. The intervention group took a daily regimen of vitamin C (100 mg), vitamin E (400 IU), CoQ10 (120 mg), and selenium (200 mcg). Compared to the placebo group, the supplemented group saw significant increases in large and small artery elasticity. Additionally, the supplemented group had better glucose control and higher HDL (“good”) cholesterol.

This natural compound drops cholesterol by 17.4%

Does your doctor still hound you with warnings about cholesterol? Do you feel the pressure to knuckle under to his demands and take a dangerous statin? I’ve always said that I see no place for statins in 99% of people. Here’s more proof. Common molecules in plants can dramatically lower your cholesterol, and totally without risk.

In this study, researchers followed 93 healthy subjects with slightly elevated cholesterol 193-309 mg/dl. They wanted to see if plant stanols could lower their cholesterol. Stanols are molecules in plants with a very similar structure to cholesterol called phytosterols.

The researchers divided the subjects into four groups. They gave the patients either a control product or a stanol product daily for four weeks. The stanol product was a margarine/soy-based “yogurt” that provided 3, 6, or 9 grams of plant stanols. Each stanol group had lowered cholesterol. But the 9 gram group lowered the most – 27mg/dl. The 9 gram group dropped cholesterol a whopping 17.4%.