I wish to know if there are any nutrient supplements that can be used for gastritis or ulcerative colitis or general prevention of gastric problems. Particularly does beta-carotene play any role in these situations?

I wish to know if beta-carotene or similar nutrients can be taken prophylactically for general good health of the GI tract? What is your view on L-arginine, NAC, Glutamine, melatonin, isoflavonoids and trace elements?

Beta caroteen is not one that is usually associated with gi health. UC is a difficult problem, but yes, there are many things that can help provided that you have a logical and systematic approach.

Beta carotene is not specific for gi tract. There is no harm to take beta carotene , except if you are a smoker, in which case low dose is not good and actually can increase lung cancer risk. For general health, beta carotene 10-20,000 IU is fine.

L-arginine is a precursor to nitrous oxide , the most potent vasodilator in the body. It therefore be helpful in cardiovascular system enhancement as well as a potential "viagra" substitute. Note that high dose is required, about 4-6 grams a day, together with vitamin C.

Melatonin is an excellent antioxidant. Most people are unaware of its fantastic use. I use it routinely not for sleeping and circadian cycle management but for cancer, especially breast cancer. Interestingly,melatonin's effect is not dose depending. It is very safe. Dosage 0.5 to 50 mg.

NAC is a precursor to glutathione and is very good to help the liver's detoxification process.

Isofavonoids are good, but don't overdo it, as the latest research is showing mixed results.

Trace elements is a gray zone. Some people can benefit. You can get blood test for trace element analysis prior to proceeding.

As you can see, each nutrient has specific function. There are over 1000 specialized nutrients out there, and depending on your goal, normally only 10 is enough. Overtaking may not be good, and there can be undesirable interactions, not to mention the binders and fillers in each pill.

Can you please tell me how to figure out the number of calories I need to have to loose weight?

The following formula will help you figure out how many calories you need to maintain your weight. To lose 1 lb a week, you need to take 500 calories less or increase your activity level by 500 calories each day.

CALORIES FOR WEIGHT MAINTENANCE
To maintain one's weight, the following formula can be used:

10 Calories per pound of desirable body weight if the person is sedentary or if they are very obese.

13(m) / 12 (f) Calories per pound of desirable body weight for low activity level, or after the age of 55 years.

15 (m) / 13.5 (f) Calories per pound of desirable body weight for moderate activity.

17 (m) /15 (f) Calories per pound of desirable body weight for strenuous activity.

Activity levels:

Strenuous activity: Participation in vigorous physical activity for 60 minutes or more at least 4 to 5 days per week. Moderate activity: Participation in physical activity like swimming, jogging, or fast walking, 30 to 60 minutes each time. Low activity: No planned, regular physical activity; occasional weekend or weekly activity is the only type of physical activity (like golf or recreational tennis).

What about taking a cherry fruit extract (pill form) to assist in controlling the uric acid?

Also, should red meat be avoided all together or can you have it once a week? What about lean pork? I'm rather overwhelmed because it seems like the proteins are so limited.

Cherries alleviate Gout by lowering Uric Acid levels - as little as 250
grams of Cherries per day can lower Uric Acid levels.

You can take some type of meat / chicken / fish, 3 oz. once a day is a
general rule of thumb.

The following food are extremely high in uric acid:
Anchovies
chicken soup
Organ Meats
mutton / lamb
salmon
turkey
bacon
crab.
sweetbreads
sausage
veal
Beef
lobster
pheasant
trout
venison

I want to know if there are certain foods that a person should avoid eating while taking the drug warfarin. If there are any could you please tell me what these foods are. I was hearing that one to avoid is mauby, is this true?

People taking warfarin should avoid food high in Vitamin K. These foods are high in Vitamin K:
Broccoli
Cabbage
Turnip Greens
Tomatoes
Spinach
Beans - String
Cauliflower
Brussels Sprouts
Kale
Green Tea
Liver - Pig's

Could you explain what you meant by "low grade" fish oil and that I'm only getting "30% active ingredient". I am taking NOW Foods Omega 3 fish oil concentrate and am going to try Natural Factors RX omega 3 Factors. I looked up NOW's profile on the net and found that the fish oil contains less than 10ppm of heavy metals. I was surprised since the label stated "It is screened to ensure the absence of potentially harmful contaminants".

High grade fish oil contains about 60% by weight DHA and EPA. Thus a 1000 mg capsule will contain 600 mg of active ingredient dha and EPA . The statement is quite vague and not meaningful. The best pharmaceutical grade fish oil should come in a liquid amber bottle to prevent oxidation, and you don't have to take so many gel caps which in itself is heat processed. When capsules are made and the gel forms, there is high heat, and the fish oil inside is affected by the heat and partially oxidized. The dosage is not affected, but the grade is. The best grade contains less than 10 ppb (billion) of metal. Yours right now is 10 ppm (million). That is a 1000 fold difference in purity and heavy metal content. When you take high dose fish oil, this small amount can add up. Read the fine print is critical, and I am glad you bought it up.

For top grade liquid. you only need to take 1 teaspoon two times a day and that delivers 5.4 grams of active ingredient which is equivalent to about 10 high dose fish oil capsules and 20 regular fish oil capsules like the ones you find in mass merchandizers.

Again, I say that this is only important if you are on high dosage fish oil. If you are just taking 1000 mg once a day, regular fish oil capsules are fine. Using fish oil for therapeutic measures is very different from just taking it for prevention.

I read on your website that DHEA declines as adrenal fatigue progresses. Several women I've met claim they have adrenal fatigue and yet they have high DHEA. Is this possible? I thought I might have adrenal fatigue, but I have high DHEA and am being tested for congenital adrenal hyper plasia. Is it possible to still have adrenal fatigue and have high DHEA?

Depending on the stage of adrenal fatigue and on the person, the dhea level can increase while adrenal fatigue is in progress. That is totally compatible. A high dhea is indicative of an active adrenal gland, and your doctor's concern is correct to make sure there is no tumor etc that is causing excessive dhea secretation. From the adrenal fatigue perspective, dhea must be viewed in conjunction with total cortisol. The purpose is to ascertain the degree of catabolic activity which is what causes the actual symptom of adrenal fatigue. If the total cortisol to dhea ratio is high, then there is excessive cortisol relative to dhea. dhea is an anabolic hormone (build up hormone) while cortisol is a catabolic hormone breakdown tissues). DHEA by itself in the adrenal context has little meaning. Also, the number one cause of high dhea is supplementation. Make sure that you are not on that when being tested.

I have a BPH condition. I am using Dr Whitaker's prostate formula. I now hear about beta- sitosterol as well. Proscar or flow max have side effects. I am taking a good multi -vitamin as well. What's your advice.

I don't know what is inside Dr Whitaker's prostate formula. Basically, you need to consider saw palmetto 320 mg in standardized extract. The active ingredient in it is beta sitosterol. Also natural progesterone for men at 6 mg a day by cream should be considered as progesterone opposes estrogen, and more and more evidence are pointing to estrogen dominance as the causative factor in BPH and prostate cancer. Zinc also helps at about 50 mg a day.

With the findings from the National Institute of Health's lasted double blind study showing Chelation Therapy had no greater effect than palcebo, do you still stand by your claim that Chelation therapy is an appropriate treatment for heart disease?

Chelation therapy is a great way to bind the toxic metals out of the endothelium and vascular wall. This will lead to an increase in nitrous oxide (N0) production. NO is the body's most potent vasodilator, and optimizing its secretion is a key factor in maintaining good blood pressure and healthy blood flow. Too much is being focused on the use of chelation as a "rooter-router" which on careful examination is but one of the many benefits that is very hard to demonstrate due to the many many variables associated with it. The key in our understanding of chelation therapy should be focused on endothelial health and the damaging oxidative properties of heavy metal on it. Aside from cardiovascular effect, a long term study of those who had long term chelation has shown almost 90% reduction in cancer. The benefits of chelation far exceed those of cardiovascular health, and most people don't know that. If we live in a virgin environment, chelation is not needed, but with polluted environment and toxic food consumed, chelation to me is a cheap insurance, especially oral form for those in good health. No amount of "science" can convince a skeptical mind, and I feel that the downside is almost nonexistence compare to the benefit. This type of risk reward ratio is well worth the "risk" which again , is almost zero. As a clinician, I can tell you that chelation is a wonderful modality for anti-aging.

I like to eat a handful daily of mixed organic, raw nuts and seeds. I choose various kinds, Brazil, almond, filberts, walnuts, pecans, and sunflower. I have read in various places that peanuts, pistachios and cashews should be avoided. Any reason? I know about the peanut/allergy connection, but what about the other two?

Peanuts is a legume not nut. It does cause allergy reaction for some people, also when moldy, it has a chemical called aflatoxin that can cause cancer.

Cashew nuts is higher in percentage in saturated fats, so for people that are on diet to lower their cholesterol, cashew nuts should be taken in limited quantity.

As far as pistachios is concern, I am not aware of any harmfulness of it.

All nuts should be soaked over night to deactivate the enzyme inhibitors and activate other enzymes that aids in digestion.