Dr. Woliner's weekly health tip

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Docs:

Here's your weekly health tip from Dr. Woliner.

Lyndon McGill, D.C.

EvolvHealth Wellness Advisory Council Member

Salem, Oregon

www.SalemSpineClinic.com

www.EvolvingDaily.com

This Common "Food" Is Poison to Your Body

If I handed you a glass of poison, would you'd drink it? Probably

not. But millions of Americans - probably including you - do it

every day.

This poison is found in all sorts of processed foods and drinks.

Including many made for infants. Yet it's been linked to kidney

problems, heart trouble and many other health issues.

What is this poison? It's fructose, or "fruit sugar."

Fructose occurs naturally in fruits and honey. And in small

amounts, it's not a problem. But the large amounts in the typical

American diet are a serious threat to your health. Here's why...

First, your body doesn't process fructose the way it does other

sugars. Fructose is processed directly by your liver. So your body

converts more of the fructose you eat straight into fat than other

sugars.

Fructose also lowers your body's production of ATP. ATP is the

substance your cells use for energy. So fructose is one sugar that

can actually rob your body of energy.

Third, fructose increases your body's production of uric acid.

And that's where your problems really begin. When you have too

much uric acid in your body, your risk of all sorts of health

problems goes way up.

High levels of uric acid can lead to kidney problems... including

the formation of crystals that can lead to painful blockages.

A Dutch study also found that high levels of uric acid nearly

triples your risk of serious blood sugar trouble. (1)

And it only gets worse.

A team at Duke University discovered that high levels of uric

acid in joint fluid were linked to severe joint problems. Uric

acid appears to trigger an immune reaction that leads to joint

pain and damage. (2)

And at the renowned Cleveland Clinic, doctors found that people

with heart trouble have a 25% higher risk of dying if their uric

acid levels are high. (3)

And even if you don't have a history of heart trouble, high uric

acid levels increase your risk of dying from a heart problem. Your

risk can jump by as much as 77%. (4)

Fructose has become such a problem because it's become the

sweetener of choice in most professed foods. But you can cut your

intake pretty easily.

First, avoid processed foods as much as possible. Two of the

worst culprits are baked goods and soft drinks. They're often

loaded with fructose.

But you should also avoid most fruit juices. Although the

fructose in 100% fruit juice is natural, it's highly concentrated.

Some fruit juices are higher in fructose than most soft drinks!

Fruit contains some fructose... but much less than juice. And

it's buffered by the fiber contained in the fruit. So you don't

have to give up your favorite fruits.

In fact, you shouldn't, because many fruits are a good source of

vitamin C. And researchers at s Hopkins University discovered

that vitamin C promotes lower levels of uric acid. In their study,

just 500 mg a day for 2 months had a significant impact on uric

acid levels. (5)

Finally, there's one fruit juice you may not want to avoid. It's

tart cherry juice. For most people, tart cherry juice supports

lower levels of uric acid. Some studies show it has the opposite

effect for a few people.

Yours in continued good health,

Dr Woliner, M.D.

(1) Dehghan, A., et al, "High serum uric acid as a novel risk

factor for type 2 diabetes," Diabetes Care. Feb 2008; 31(2):

361-362.

(2) Denoble, A.E., et al, "Uric acid is a danger signal of

increasing risk for osteoarthritis through inflammasome

activation," Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. Feb 1, 2011; 108(5):

2088-2093.

(3) Ioachimescu, A.G., et al, "Serum uric acid is an independent

predictor of all-cause mortality in patients at high risk of

cardiovascular disease: a preventive cardiology information system

(PreCIS) database cohort study," Arthritis Rheum. Feb 2008; 58(2):

623-630.

(4) Fang, J. and Alderman, M.H., "Serum uric acid and

cardiovascular mortality the NHANES I epidemiologic follow-up

study, 1971-1992. National Health and Nutrition Examination

Survey," JAMA. May 10, 2000; 283(18): 2404-2410.

(5) Huang, H.Y., et al, "The effects of vitamin C

supplementation on serum concentrations of uric acid: results of a

randomized controlled trial," Arthritis Rheum. Jun 2005; 52(6):

1843-1847.