In This Issue:

This Week on PeoplesPharmacy.com
Featured Q&A
Featured Home Remedy
FDA Threatens Changes To Chocolate
Pistachios Are The New Health Nut
Green Tea May Protect Joints
Omega-3 Fats Delay Cognitive Decline
Fish In Diet Benefits Brain
DHA Prevents Brain Tangles In Mice
Black Cohosh May Block Breast Cancer

Best Choices from The People's Pharmacy

We are pleased to announce our new book, Best Choices from The People's Pharmacy. Best Choices From the People's Pharmacy is a how-to for consumers trying to work out which treatments, including diet, home remedies, dietary supplements and drugs, are best for what ails them. Click the link below to purchase a copy at a discount of $21.95 plus $5 shipping and handling!

Note: We are shipping single book orders Media Mail with an expected transit time of 3-9 days from shipment, and orders for two or more books by FedEx Ground. Shipping and handling is $5 per book. We also include a FREE copy of Chocolate without Guilt, regularly $14.95, autographed by Terry, with orders for three of more copies of Best Choices shipped to the same address.

http://securepp.fountainshosting.com/PPcart.asp?pg=products&specific=joppfog0

This Week on PeoplesPharmacy.com:

New: Share Your Experiences
If you have tried any of the home remedies posted on our website, we want to hear from you! Visit the home remedy page on our website and use the form provided to share your experiences. Your comments will be displayed on the page below the home remedy. You can also read the comments of other readers and find out how effective the home remedy was for them.

View a list of all home remedies posted on our website:
http://www.peoplespharmacy.org/archives/home_remedies/index.asp

The practice of tai chi, a venerable Chinese martial art, can improve balance and prevent falls in older people. It may even benefit the heart and the immune system. Dancers and athletes use therapies like the Feldenkreis Method, the Alexander Technique, Body-Mind Centering and Ideokinesis to heal from injuries and increase strength. Can these approaches help you, too?
Read a short excerpt of the program or order it on CD by clicking the link below:

http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/archives/radio_shows/612_stumbling_on_happiness_archive.asp

This week in their blog, Joe and Terry revisit the ongoing pet food recall and what it says about FDA oversight. Read the blog and post your comments:

http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/archives/joe_and_terrys_blog/pet_food_disaster_points_up_fda_weaknesses.asp

Our newspaper columns this week discuss the meaning of cocoa's impact on cholesterol numbers, a new possible benefit from cayenne pepper, and understanding seasonal allergies:

http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/archives/editorial/allergy_relief_is_complicated.asp

http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/archives/pharmacy_qa/are_cocoa_benefits_exaggerated.asp

http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/archives/herb_home_remedy_qa/cayenne_pepper_eases_arthritic_joints.asp

Featured Q & A

Antidepressants Interfere With Sex Life

Q. I am 46 and my husband is 52. I have been on Zoloft, Prozac, Effexor and now Paxil for both PMS and depression. These drugs make it tough for me to reach a climax. Would St. John's wort be better?

My husband has a hard time keeping an erection during intercourse, which makes things even more difficult. We try to make love about once a month, but it is frustrating for both of us. Are there any herbal remedies that could help him?

A. Ginkgo may counteract the sexual side effects of antidepressants like Paxil. If you are not on an anticoagulant, this might be an option.

St. John's wort could relieve your depression without sexual side effects, but this herb can interact with many other drugs. It shouldn't be combined with prescription antidepressants, heart medicines such as Lanoxin or birth control pills.

Your husband should discuss his problem with a physician to see if Viagra or supplements like the amino acid L-arginine or the herbs yohimbine or muira puama would be appropriate.

Featured Home Remedy

Hot Peppers Fight Joint Pain:
I've had severe arthritis since I was 19, more than 48 years ago. I've been treated with dozens of drugs, but they have no effect, help for only a few months or cause allergies. Just one Motrin almost killed me.

An ancient doctor suggested I try hot pepper. Now I chop peppers into a coarse relish, soak them in white vinegar for three weeks to kill the pepper taste, and eat a tablespoon or two several times a week with meals. With the hot pepper, I take two regular-strength Tylenol in the morning and two at bedtime. Before, I needed as many as eight 500-mg Tylenol tablets a day. I hope this helps someone else.

You can read more home remedies on our website:
http://www.peoplespharmacy.org/archives/home_remedies/index.asp

Health Headlines:

FDA Threatens Changes To Chocolate
Chocoholics beware! There's a move afoot to change chocolate. Some candy makers are trying to get the Food and Drug Administration to redefine what makes chocolate...chocolate. They want the FDA to allow substitution of less expensive vegetable fats instead of cocoa butter. This would cut costs for chocolate manufacturers but it has chocolate lovers up in arms. Connoisseurs of fine chocolate frequently base their choice on the cacao content of the candy. Substituting vegetable oil for cocoa butter would likely alter the texture and the flavor.
Some nutrition experts are concerned that manufacturers might promote the new vegetable-oil based candy as health food because it would not have the saturated fat found in cocoa butter. There is no evidence, however, that such products would have the same health benefits as real chocolate. Cocoa flavonoids have been shown to lower blood pressure and cholesterol and keep blood platelets from sticking together. Why mess with a good thing just to save money?

Pistachios Are The New Health Nut
Researchers have long noted the health benefits of nuts, especially walnuts and almonds. Now there is a new health nut on the horizon. Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University found that eating three ounces of pistachios a day for a month reduced total cholesterol by about 8 percent and bad LDL cholesterol by more than 11 percent. The ratio of good HDL cholesterol to bad cholesterol also improved. Volunteers ate a heart healthy diet in addition to a handful or two of pistachios each day. The researchers suspect that the changes in cholesterol could be enough to reduce the risk of heart disease, but a larger study is needed to confirm this.
[Experimental Biology Meeting, April, 2007]

Green Tea May Protect Joints
Green tea is a popular beverage in many parts of the world. It's even catching on in the U.S. Now research from the University of Michigan suggests that it may help reduce joint inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis. The scientists found that green tea polyphenols, especially EGCG (epi-gallo-catechin-gallate), block the formation of some inflammatory compounds. These include prostaglandin 2, interleukin 6 and cyclo-oxygenase 2, all compounds involved in joint destruction. The research was done in tissue culture, so it is very preliminary. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis are warned not to rely on green tea to prevent joint degeneration. On the other hand, green tea is nontoxic, not to mention delicious, so drinking it is not likely to do any harm.
[Experimental Biology Meeting, April, 2007]

Omega-3 Fats Delay Cognitive Decline
The omega-3 fatty acids found in fish may help prevent cognitive decline in the elderly. Two studies in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed a link between higher levels of these unsaturated fats and better performance on cognitive tests. In one study, more than 2,000 Minnesotans between 50 and 65 years old were followed for about a decade. Blood levels of fats were determined, and tests of word recall, verbal fluency and psychomotor speed were administered. Those with higher levels of omega 3 fats were better able to maintain their scores.
[American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, April, 2007]
http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/85/4/1103

Fish In Diet Benefits Brain
In the other study, Dutch researchers examined fish consumption of more than 200 men who were at least 70 years old. The men were tested in 1990 and again in 1995. Those who ate more fish were less likely to experience a significant decline in their test scores. The investigators suggest that the two servings of fish weekly often recommended for heart health also seem to benefit the brain.
[American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, April, 2007]
http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/85/4/1142

DHA Prevents Brain Tangles In Mice
Animal research bolsters the brain benefits of fish. Investigators at the University of California at Irvine report that mice fed a diet high in the omega-3 fat called docosahexaenoic acid or DHA were less likely to form plaques and tangles in their brains. These mice have been genetically engineered to develop a condition that mimics human Alzheimer's disease. Clinical trials will be needed to verify that a diet rich in fish oil can prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease, but in the meantime there is adequate evidence to support eating fish for good health.
[Journal of Neuroscience, April 18, 2007]
http://www.jneurosci.org/cgi/content/abstract/27/16/4385

Black Cohosh May Block Breast Cancer
A preliminary study suggests that a popular herbal supplement women take to relieve hot flashes might also reduce their risk of breast cancer. Black cohosh has been used for more than a century to ease symptoms of menopause. A case-control study from the University of Pennsylvania found that women taking supplements such as Remifemin, a standardized black cohosh extract, were only half as likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer.
[International Journal of Cancer, April 1, 2007]
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/abstract/114037518/ABSTRACT