Sat, 27 Oct 2007
The Passing of a Medical Pioneer
Dr. Robert Cathcart has passed away. He had broken his hip a couple of
weeks ago and apparently developed complications which lead to
him developing pneumonia in the hospital. There are some reports that
the hospital denied him the use of vitamin C which of course he was
a pioneer in the use of in the treatment of disease. If this
is true it is definitely a scandalous decision which may have tragically
contributed to Dr. Cathcarts death.
His web site is still up and is a tremendous resource, despite the scoffing that it encounters from mainstream medical students and doctors. The vitamin C foundation will also be archiving it. This site contains Cathcarts theories and suggestions based on thousands of patients and a couple of decades of clinical experience. I am still shocked at the reaction most of this material gets from medical students and doctors that I share it with. There is unfortunately, a long way to go before medical science will embrace and investigate the multifaceted capabilities of this amazing molecule (vitamin c). I for one am grateful that Dr. Cathcart so stubbornly refused to be discouraged and shared his information freely with all of us on the Internet.
This nice article gives an overview of Dr. Cathcart's work and summarizes the rejection he encountered from the establishment.
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Tue, 21 Aug 2007
Recent Vitamin C Common Cold Trials
There has been some recent news about vitamin C. I know I saw a report at the
BBC saying something like "world's most useless vitamin" but I can't
seem to find it now. This report suggests that vitamin C supplements would
result in very small prevention of colds. It also notes
increased protection for athletes and those under higher levels of
stress.
The important thing to keep in mind with trials like these is that they do not follow the protocol suggested by Linus Pauling. The article mentions that Pauling suggested 1000 mg per day. But according to the vitamin C foundation, Pauling's recommendation was 6000 to 18000 mg. He split his dose taking half in the morning and the other half at night. At the onset of a cold, Pauling recommended taking 1000mg every hour until symptoms decrease. According to recent pharmacokinetic data, researcher Steve Hickey suggests that taking 500 mg every hour will maintain a constant blood level. Dr. Robert Cathcart suggest that you learn to identify bowl tolerance and at the onset of a cold or flu, take the proper amount to maintain this tolerance. If you look at any of the trials, past a present, you will notice that none come anywhere close to these protocols.
The Orthomolecular News Service has just issued a bulletin which I reproduce here. There is discussion of the Japanese 5 year study which the Linus Pauling Institute also mentioned in the 2006 spring/summer newsletter.
But one thing to keep in mind is that vitamin C is quite safe. You can experiment yourself and see how it works. Try the recommendation of the Vitamin C foundation and take 3000mg per day. I would suggest taking 1000mg with each meal. Then see how you do with colds (and flu). I would also suggest using vitamin D supplements in the fall and winter.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, August 17, 2007 Vitamin C: A Highly Effective Treatment for Colds A recent and well-publicized review of vitamin C by the Cochrane Collaboration has resulted in much misguided discussion in the popular press (1). There are important facts that emerge from the review. At least 30 controlled clinical trials (many double-blind and placebo-controlled) involving a total of over 11,000 participants have been conducted. Vitamin C in doses ranging from 200 mg to 2,000 mg per day (the dosage range used in a large majority of the studies) reduces the duration of colds by 7% for adults and 15% for children. The data indicates that there is a normal dose-response relationship. Vitamin C is more effective the higher the dose. The most effective doses are far more than 2,000 mg/day. Exclusion of higher-dose studies because they were not placebo controlled is not justified. The effectiveness of vitamin C against colds could well provide a justification for the Food and Nutrition Board raise the RDA of vitamin C. The primary reason for reluctance to take this action is because it would, for most persons, require vitamin C supplementation or a plant-based diet, or both. The results of a trial conducted in Japan have just been published (2). It is a double blind, 5-yr randomized controlled trial involving 439 participants. The supplemented groups received either 50 or 500 mg/day of vitamin C. The study indicates that vitamin C supplementation does indeed reduce the frequency of colds. The probability of suffering from 3 colds over the course of the study period was reduced by 66% in the group supplementing at 500 mg/day. For decades, numerous reports from physicians have provided ample clinical confirmation about the effectiveness of vitamin C for treating the common cold (3-5). Orthomolecular physicians have worked with their patients to optimize the dose and have confirmed the conclusions reached by the authors of the Cochrane report that higher doses of vitamin C are more effective (6). They have concluded that patients will benefit by taking as much vitamin C as they can tolerate, and encourage patients to balance the benefits of fighting off a cold sooner with the drawback of intestinal discomforts. These discomforts are harmless and last at most for a few hours. Epidemiological studies associate long-term vitamin C supplementation with health benefits and increased longevity. A 23-year review of collected US poison control center annual reports (7) tells a remarkable and largely ignored story: vitamin C is extraordinarily safe. We are confident that the RDA/DRI for vitamin C will eventually be raised. It is just a matter of time. References [1] Douglas RM, Hemilä H, Chalker E, Treacy B. Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2007. Issue 3. http://www.mrw.interscience.wiley.com/cochrane/clsysrev/articles/CD000980/abstract.html [2] Sasazuki S, Sasaki S, Tsubono Y, Okubo S, Hayashi M, Tsugane S. Effect of vitamin C on common cold: randomized controlled trial. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2006. 60(1), 9-17. [3] Cathcart RF. Vitamin C, titrating to bowel tolerance, asascorbemia and acute induced scurvy. Medical Hypotheses, 1981. 7:1359-1376. http://www.orthomed.com/titrate.htm [4] Klenner FR. Significance of high daily intake of ascorbic acid in preventive medicine. Megascorbic therapies: Vitamin C in medicine. Vol 1, 1. http://www.vitamincfoundation.org/news.htm See also: Saul AW. Hidden in plain sight: The pioneering work of Frederick Robert Klenner, M.D.. J Orthomolecular Med, 2007. Vol 22, No 1, p 31-38. http://www.doctoryourself.com/klennerbio.html [5] Smith LH, Klenner FR. Clinical guide to the use of vitamin C. http://www.seanet.com/~alexs/ascorbate/198x/smith-lh-clinical_guide_1988.htm [6] Levy, Thomas E. Curing the Incurable: Vitamin C, Infectious Diseases, and Toxins. Livon Books, 2002. ISBN-10 1401069630 [7] http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v03n04.shtml Linus Pauling defined orthomolecular medicine as "the treatment of disease by the provision of the optimum molecular environment, especially the optimum concentrations of substances normally present in the human body." Orthomolecular medicine uses safe, effective nutritional therapy to fight illness. For more information: http://www.orthomolecular.org The peer-reviewed Orthomolecular Medicine News Service is a non-profit and non-commercial informational resource. Editorial Review Board: Abram Hoffer, M.D., Ph.D. Harold D. Foster, Ph.D. Bradford Weeks, M.D. Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D. Erik Paterson, M.D. Thomas Levy, M.D., J.D. Steve Hickey, Ph.D. Andrew W. Saul, Editor and contact person. email: drsaul@doctoryourself.com . To subscribe at no charge: http://www.orthomolecular.org/subscribe.html
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Thu, 09 Aug 2007
Detailed Vitamin C Questions
The other day as I was riding my bike home I came across a
fellow rider who is an emergency room pediatrician at Children's Hospital.
He's a very friendly fellow who I have come across before in
the past. On this occasion I asked him what he thought about
vitamin C and we had a nice little discussion while we were riding.
Without getting into too much detail, I just shared a few things
with him that I had learned in addition to asking him a few things
to see where his knowledge was at on this topic. It was not
a contentious discussion at all and I enjoyed it while it
lasted. But as I have been thinking about it and reviewing the
two books by Steve Hickey which originally got my interest up
on this topic, I thought of formulating a list of questions to
ask someone who is in the medical field (or biology). Here's
what I have come up with. Feel free to provide answers or
discuss these questions if you like.
- To what extent are free radicals involved in disease?
- What is the function of vitamin C in the many animals who synthesize it endogenously within their own bodies?
- How much vitamin C do animals make that are able to synthesize it?
- How does the ratio of ascorbate to dehydroascorbate relate to disease and healthy conditions within the tissue of our bodies?
- The fact that humans are unable to synthesize vitamin C due to a gene which appears to not function correctly, is this a good thing or a bad thing?
- If you put a sponge under water and totally saturated it, then took it out and let it set for a couple of hours and then determined how much water was in it, would this be an accurate measurement of the volume of water the sponge was able to hold at saturation?
- If you drink a glass of water and then some time later have to urinate, does this mean that some of the water you drank was waisted?
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Tue, 20 Mar 2007
Bright Spot Clinic: Cancer Research Pioneer
Mike Hope from my old church needs our prayers. He has done
very well since he was found to have stage 4 colon cancer in 2005.
But the situation right now is declining. I have suggested
the use of vitamin C on their web site several times. I don't know
if they have looked into this at all. I certainly believe in prayer and
I believe God could intervene as he certainly could have prevented
the cancer from developing initially. But I also feel it is my
responsibility to look at all possibilities for treatment (if it
were me that is).
I just received a message about a student at the school of one of the children of another church friend. Stage 3 Lymphoma has been detected in this person. I sent some information about the Bright Spot clinic in Wichita Kansas. Hugh Riordan, the founder of the clinic who died last year, was a pioneer in the use of intravenous vitamin C. Here is a small article which describes some of the findings of the clinic in their three decades of work with IV vitamin C. The quote from Irving Stone at the top of the article says it all:
...it takes much more than logic and clear-cut demonstrations to overcome the inertia and dogma of established thought.For one, it takes persistence on our part when we are the patient. When we blindly trust the authorities to fix us without learning as much as we can and bringing the information that we find to the attention of the so called experts, I believe progress will be slow. Of course this can be a struggle. But when your life is on the line, it is a struggle worth engaging isn't it?
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Fri, 23 Feb 2007
Hypothetical Conversation
In the spirit of Pastor Meyers of my church who often likes to
teach by presenting a hypothetical dialog, here's my attempt
at teaching someone about vitamin C:
Frodo (a friend): Man, I've been fighting off this cold for most of the day, I hope it doesn't get any worse. RAW (Me): Sorry to hear that, have you tried taking any Vitamin C? Frodo: I drink lots of orange juice. I have some 500 mg pills at home but I know that over 200 mg, it just passes through your urine. So I just take one 500 mg a day and that should be plenty. RAW: So how long does it take for that extra 300 mg to go through your urine? Do you have to go urinate right after you swallow it? Frodo: No, I don't typically have to urinate right after I swallow it and I really don't know how long it takes, that's just what I have heard. RAW: Well, doesn't other medications such as Tylenol or Aspirin dissipate through your urine or in some other manner? Frodo: I suppose they do otherwise I wouldn't need to take more. RAW: Yes, I agree. There is a Field of pharmacology called pharmacokinetics which studies this. You have probably heard of the term "half life." This is the amount of time it takes for a substance to dissipate to half of it's original concentration. By understanding this and using time release techniques as well as dosage techniques, pharmacologists are able to fine tune the amount of a medication in our bodies in order to bring about the desired effect. Frodo: That's interesting. What is the half life of vitamin C? RAW: That's a very good question and it's quite interesting. Under normal circumstances, when ascorbic acid (vitamin C) enters the human blood stream, it's half life will be about 30 minutes. Under times of stress, it can actually be much shorter. Frodo: Wow, if I understand you correctly, it is much better to take vitamin C at regular intervals throughout the day in order to keep the concentration at an effective level. RAW: Yes, that's right. Frodo: So how do I determine what an effective level is? RAW: Another great question. One theory proposed by Dr. Robert Cathcart is what he calls bowel tolerance. This is determined by observing how much vitamin C you can ingest orally before the vitamin C starts to make it all the way through your gut. This is indicated by a small amount of gas passing or what some call a rumbling tummy. During periods of stress this is a great way to make sure you are taking an optimum amount. Frodo: But what if I just drink orange juice throughout the day? RAW: If you look at your orange juice container, it will list an amount of vitamin C as a percentage of RDA per serving. This RDA is set by the FDA and is currently at 60 mg here in the US. I suppose if you were able to drink a whole serving every hour, you might do ok but this could be ineffective depending on what kind of cold or flu you are dealing with. In some instances, I myself have easily taken 40 to 50 grams of vitamin C in a 24 hour period. I don't think I could come close to that drinking OJ. Frodo: This is really great information, why wouldn't my doctor inform me of this? RAW: Good question. Many doctors are convinced that vitamin C is ineffective at treating colds and flu because they have been told that anything over 200 mg is passed out of your urine! Apparently they have not considered this very critically. There is also a large amount of research which suggests that vitamin C does not work. However, from what I have seen, 99% of this research uses very small amounts of vitamin C and does not consider the half life factor at all. The conclusions of this research is true considering the amount and protocol used. Unfortunately, this research is testing flawed theory and protocol. Until we have research which is attempting to test the correct theories and protocols, we simply cannot point to anything other than personal experience and testimonies. Frodo: Wow, I hope there is more testing done in the future. What about safety? Is it safe to ingest all that vitamin C? RAW: There are no deaths reported from vitamin C overdose in recent times. Side effects are only gastric distress with large doses (above bowel tolerance). Some have suggested that vitamin C could cause problems with iron overload but people like Cathcart who have been using and treating individuals with large doses of vitamin C report that it optimizes iron levels and does not overload. Others suggest that vitamin C can become a pro-oxidant at high levels, however, this has been debunked and there is no in vivo evidence of a pro-oxidant effect.
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Wed, 21 Feb 2007
Orange Juice?
From time to time I will talk to someone who is feeling a little sick or
has a cold or is beginning to get the flu. Sometimes I will ask them
if they take vitamin C. The most common response that I get is, "I
drink lots of orange juice." The implication being that you will get lots
of vitamin C by drinking orange juice. Looking at the
Minute Maid web
site, I was surprised to see that most of their orange juice products
are listed as containing over 100% RDA of vitamin C. One of them even has
160% which would seem to be quite a bit. At least I must commend them
for putting in an amount that is well over the RDA. I suppose this might
be a tacit acknowledgment that just meeting the RDA is not necessarily
optimum. However, the FDA has still not made any changes to this
RDA in the last several years. It is still sitting at 60 mg per day as
far as I know.
Let's assume that a person gets sick and drinks around 5 glasses of the Country Style orange juice which contains 160% the RDA of vitamin C. If I am doing the math right, that would be 480 mg. Not quite half a gram. If you have been following my blog, you understand that it is not uncommon for me to use 40 to 50 grams in a day if I start to get sick. Linus Pauling suggested that a person should take a gram of vitamin C every hour at the first sign of a cold or flu. Increase this amount if no change for the better is observed. So you can see that if you are sick with a cold or flu, drinking a lot of OJ is not really going to cut it.
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Sat, 13 Jan 2007
Vitamin C Progress
A couple of signs of progress on the vitamin C front. First,
this news that the FDA has OKed a trial for vitamin C and
cancer. Although the Doctor quoted in this piece says he
knows of nobody else doing this. Guess he never heard of
the
Wellness Clinic in Wichita. But this is great news. It's only
been around 30 years since Pauling and Camron suggested that
vitamin C could have positive effects in treating cancer. Better
late then never I suppose.
Knowledge of Health has this interesting item which describes research into what the effects might be of the loss of producing vitamin C which humans experienced some time in the distant past. Not surprisingly heart disease and longevity are implicated.
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Wed, 25 Oct 2006
More Positive Vit C IV News
This study states the important issue with vitamin C
right up front:
The impact of vitamin C on oxidative stress-related diseases is moderate because of its limited oral bioavailability and rapid clearance.It's important to take note that non of the studies which are sited as refuting vitamin C's ability to prevent or treat common cold or influenza mention this (at least non that I have seen). The whole idea of reaching (as proposed by Cathcart) bowl tolerance is an attempt to get as much vitamin C in your system as is possible (as opposed to just recommending an RDA). The whole point of this study (or at least the brief synopsis at Pubmed) is to see if parenteral (new word for me, it means IV from what I can tell) administration is more effective in dealing with oxidative stress. The authors suggest that it is.
Another item which is not a formal study is this post at the vitamin C foundation by a person suffering from Ovarian Cancer:
Scan is now completely clear- Terminal Ovarian cancer 3C Hi, my last scan is completely clear of cancer. In July I had substantial cancer on my bowel and a 1.5 cm tumour in the pelvic cavity. I have ovarian cancer 3C resistant to chemotherapy. Now my body appears to be clear of cancer and ascites. The IV SA was an amazing course of treatment. 100grams IV, four hours drip daily for six weeks with few side effects and a great deal easier than the previous two courses of unsuccessful chemo that I have endured. I thank you all for all your support and advice over these past four months. I am no longer terminally ill. I pray that the future will be bright now for my husband and children. I also take many supplements and have changed my diet radically. I will continue on the same programme for at least two years. If anyone wants to know the full list of supplements that I take please feel free to contact me. My consultant said the scan results are incredible and the Hospice are amazed. Marian M. ( Blackburn UK)This person's husband is a physician and he encouraged her to get the treatment despite resistance from the main stream institutions involved.
This is obviously not a formal study and so I'm sure it would be scoffed at if you brought it up to a doctor. But I don't see how we can get any movement on research without these kinds of things happening. I don't know exactly how research is determined. What are the organizations involved and how is research prioritized? Notice also that the study above is done outside the US. I wonder if there is such a stigma to vitamin C in the US that researchers are discouraged from even trying to propose a study and seek a grant?
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Wed, 04 Oct 2006
A Tale of Two Cs
Yes, another vitamin C post. But it's intriguing isn't it? At least
I hope these links will make you think so. They are two very opposing views from
experts. First up, the National Strength and Conditioning Association
has this interesting article entitled, "Do Athletes Need Antioxidants?"
Not surprisingly the author is a Registered Dietitian. This warning
is given with respect to vitamin C (but at least she says these
conditions are rare). However, The single reference given does not appear to be
primarily about vitamin C's toxicity:
Prolonged intake of very large does of vitamin C is associated with kidney oxalate stone formation, impaired absorption of copper, and excessive absorption of iron and predisposition to gout in susceptible individuals. However, these side effects seem to be quite rare (2).All of these charges about vitamin C have been in circulation for quite some time and Linus Pauling actually dealt with some of them over 20 years ago. Also not surprisingly the author recommends that athletes stick to the DRI (daily recommended intake) which is 90 mg for men and 75 mg for women.
Next up is this fascinating article from the LEF. Notice the large amount of references. LEF makes this recommendation for vit C intake:
The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for vitamin C is 75 mg for women and 90 mg for men per day. Since abundant data suggest that far greater doses are needed to support optimal health, Life Extension suggests supplementing with 1000-6000 mg of vitamin C daily with meals, depending on your individual health concerns.So which of these sources of information will you listen to?
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Thu, 28 Sep 2006
The Vitamin C Fighters
My son started to catch something yesterday from one of his
classmates who was sick. We have been having a hard time getting
him to take vitamin C. But last night he had a temperature of
100 so we put him to bed early and put some ascorbic acid powder into
some apple juice and gave it to him. He kept asking me how long
he would be sick and I just told him that the more vitamin C he
could take, the sooner he would get better. I also told him
that when he takes it, the vitamin C fighters will go to work inside
his body and use machine guns on the virus and that they will attack it and
fight it for him so that he gets well soon. This really turned him
on and he was more willing to take it. We also tried using
sodium ascorbate which tastes a little less harsh than the ascorbic
acid powder. Later this morning it seems that his fever is breaking
so it is turning out to be a good experiment. If he goes to school
tomorrow, perhaps he will tell his friends and teachers about how
the vitamin C fighters helped him to get well!
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Tue, 26 Sep 2006
IV Vitamin C Treat's West Nile in Boulder
This article details Boulder Colorado's battle with West Nile virus. Near the
end of the article is mention of intravenous vitamin C used to treat a couple of
cases successfully by Dr. Thomas Levy. One of these people has recently written
this letter to the vitamin C foundation (actually a copy of a letter they
wrote to the news paper) detailing their struggle with the
health authorities trying to get them to look into the details and document
the treatment. Here is the letter as posted at the Foundation's web site:
SUBJECT----- WEST NILE, BOULDER COUNTY I appreciate the good service you are providing to the Boulder community by again reporting in your 9/14/06 headline story how I was cured of West Nile in 2003. My case was confirmed by lab results on my blood which were reported to the Boulder County Health Department. A nurse from that Department followed up a few weeks later by calling me. She was amazed to hear that I was totally free of all symptoms and wanted to know what I did as her job was to gather information on all confirmed cases. I said the basic treatment was 75 grams of vitamin C administered by intravenous drip and that my fever broke and all symptoms disappeared about 36 hours later. I gave the nurse the name and phone number of my doctor, Thomas Levy, M.D. in Denver and urged her to have the appropriate medical personnel call him. I also volunteered to be interviewed by Department medical personnel. Neither Dr Levy nor I received any communication from the health department. Mary Butler, your reporter on the original story (in 2003), called the State Medical Director, Dr Calonge. He responded that vitamin C is an "unproven" therapy (for West Nile) and yet to prove a "benefit." In fact he never called Dr Levy or me. Further, there is a huge amount of readily accessible (via Google) clinical trial proof that mega doses of vitamin C administered intravenously has had consistent highly positive results on a broad range of viral diseases--with no adverse side effects. That's how I very easily (thanks Google) found out about Dr. Levy, a cardiologist, as he is well known as one of the top research/practitioners in this field. It is very sad and a great disservice to our community that those charged with the responsibility to protect our health will not even look at the evidence that West Nile (among other viruses) can be mitigated and even cured cheaply and quickly with no risks. The orthodox medical professionals who I have spoken to about this have a wide variety of excuses for not looking at the evidence. The killer excuse is that, "Even if mega dose IV C cures West Nile, I might lose my license for administering it. Even telling people about it would be risky." I hear excuses like that often. The power of the drug and orthodox medical industry is awesome and the stakes are huge. Can you imagine the blow to the prestige and profits of the drug companies and their dependent down line industries, regulatory agencies, and distributor/doctors if the public became truly informed about how simply and cheaply most viral diseases can be cured? Can you imagine the magnitude of relief from suffering and death that would evolve? A lot of people are suffering life long disabilities because those charged with the responsibility to protect our health are too afraid to look or step out of the protective (prison) walls of their orthodox box. Sadly, their fears are well founded. We need to help break those walls down. We need to help one another by starting a grass roots movement of doctors and patients. Curing West Nile in Boulder County is a great place to start and this could launch a wave of reforms in health care. I invite anyone who wants to help or is interested to contact me. I have no financial interest in medical practices or vitamins. Jack Butler, Founder www.jjjfoundation.org ( http://www.jjjfoundation.org/ ) jbutler@venturainc.com (mailto:jbutler@venturainc.com) Cell-- 303 503 9000West Nile virus is a serious disease with no known cure. But vitamin C is apparently a political hot potato to mainstream medicine. Most current research into vit C is being done in other countries it seems. Grant money is most likely not available to anyone who would propose an experiment in this country. When I mention the possibility of the influence of the pharmaceutical industry in the avoidance of researching or using vitamin C, many people accuse me of buying into conspiracy theories. But how do you explain this attitude? Why are doctors not free to use or consider possible cures, regardless of where they come from? I would appreciate any answers that any of you reading this can provide.
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Another Day, Another Cold
Yep, looks like I caught another one. Right now, it feels
very much like the last one. Came on slowly and now features
a full head congestion experience. Shows signs of moving
down into my chest. Maybe it's from the kids. Just
wait until they are both going to school. Oh well, it's
fun to share.
[/health/vitamin_c] 0 comments permalink
Dr. Thomas Levy on Vit C
Levy is a cardiologist.
Here's an excellent article about
him and his
recent book. Quote from the article:
Levy argues that the medical profession has routinely ignored research showing that high doses of Vitamin C can combat bacteria, toxins and severe viral infections including avian flu, SARS, hepatitis and herpes. And this is not a case of doctors sniffing at anecdotal evidence from a handful of enthusiasts. 'Vitamin C is possibly the best-researched substance in the world. There are more than 24,000 papers and articles on the authoritative clinical website, Medline. Yet virtually all the evidence has been dismissed.' Levy even claims that Aids can be controlled if a high enough dosage of Vitamin C is maintained. This is not the first time doctors have had their cages rattled over the benefits of Vitamin C. The controversy has been simmering since 1753, when just a couple of sucks of a lime were shown to prevent scurvy. In the 1950s the chemist Linus Pauling, a double Nobel prize-winner, promoted the use of mega-doses of Vitamin C, but his research was rubbished by clinicians. Recently, the anti-Vitamin C sentiment has grown. It has been blamed for causing the formation of kidney stones, and a study published in the journal Science in 2001 found that even 200mg doses of Vitamin C 'facilitated the production of DNA-damaging agents associated with a variety of cancers'. This finding was widely interpreted as proving that Vitamin C causes cancer.
Here's an excellent article about this DNA damage charge by Jack Challem. Of course, Levy and Challem are just out to make money off of books right?
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Tue, 29 Aug 2006
Before Pauling there was Klenner and Stone
As well as
Albert Szent-Györgyi, the scientist who discovered vitamin
C and who's work lead to the production of this vitamin. Klenner was
a doctor who started working with vitamin C in his private practice and by
chance discovered that it actually could cure Polio. His work with polio
was carefully documented and published in a regional medical journal
of the time. But surprisingly, most medical students and doctors
do not seem to be aware of
this story today.
Irwin Stone was a biochemist who began working with vitamin C for the use of preserving foods. Here is a paper of Stone's which describes the mutated gene in humans which prevents the synthesis of ascorbate in the liver. It was Irwin Stone who contacted Linus Pauling and alerted him to the potential of vitamin C to combat disease and increase longevity in humans. Notice in this paper the discussions regarding vitamin C's role in evolution. I have no problem acknowledging that God could have used this molecule in a powerful way to diversify the species of life found on this earth.
Many people are aware of Linus Pauling's interest and advocacy of vitamin C. But few are aware of the people who came before him and contributed much of the knowledge of this molecule that we have today. Read this last interview with Pauling to see his acknowledgment of these men.
[/health/vitamin_c] 0 comments permalink
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