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Smart Life Forum NewsletterDecember 17, 2009Smart Life Forumwww.smartlifeforum.orgThursday, December 17th, 2009Dawson Church, PhDOnEpigenetic MedicineSmart Life Holiday Potluckby Anna CoulterThis year, we would like to open our December SLF Meeting witha really healthy potluck featuring raw food dishes and organicingredients.So, please bring your favorite raw food dish – or, if preparingdishes is not your thing, please bring a bottle of Martinellisparkling apple cider or some organic vegetable juice. Somesimple things to bring that require little or no preparationinclude: organic apples, pears, persimmons, sliced mango,grapes, raw nuts and seeds, cucumbers, broccoli, bell pepperand celery sticks with raw hummus.Please: No sugar or artificial sweeteners, no gluten, no dairy ormeat products, no chocolate and no alcohol. Instead, let’smake this holiday feast a fun challenge with organic whole foodslike those above.Looking for more inspiration? Click the pdf -below!Let's be smart and celebrate the holiday season in a healthyway!Editor’s Note: Anna Coulter is a raw foods advocate andfounder of the Starting Point Wellness School in San Carlos, CA.In This IssueEpigenetic Medicine byDawson Church page 3The MammographyScandal page 5Raising Serum Vitamin-DLevels to Reduce Risk ofInfection and Death fromPandemic H1N1 “SwineFlu” . Page 7Presentation Location:Cubberley CommunityCenterRoom H14000 Middlefield Rd.Palo Alto, CAFuture SpeakerJan 21, 2010 :Dave Asprey, MBAOn Microtoxins in Our Environment
December 17th, 2009Smart Life Forum NewslwetterMeet Dawson Church, PhDDaw son C h u rc h , Ph .D., i s a researc her i n the field of energ yme di c i ne, w ho coauthored the book " Soul Me d i ci ne " i n 2006 (withneu ro s u rgeon Norma n S healy, M .D . , Ph .D. ) , an d fou n d ed SoulM e d i c i ne I n s titute to s tu d y a n d teac h the s e me c ha ni s m s . C h urc hties together the ad va n ce s of electromag neti c med i c i ne, i n clu d i ngad va n ced therapie s s u c h a s the u se of Pul s ed Electromag neti c Field s(PE M S ) for dep re s s ion , with pop u lar emergi ng therapie s s u c h a sEmotional Freedo m Tec h ni q ue (EFT ) i n a s c ie n tifi c fra mework.Daw son ha s edited or authored over 200 book s i n the field s ofhealth , p s y c hology, a n d s p irituality. He ha s c ollaborated o n article swith ma ny of the leadi ng voi ce s of our ti me, i n c l u d i ng Joh n G ray,Ber nie Siegel, a n d Barry Sears . He ha s been q uoted i n ma ny nationalme dia outlets . He earned h i s u n d ergrad uate d egree at Baylor, a n ddoc torate i n I ntegrative Health care at Holos Uni ver s ity u n d er theme ntor s h i p of d i s ti ng u i s h ed neu ro s u rgeon Norma n S healy, M . D. ,Ph .D. , fou n der of the A meri ca n Holi s ti c Me d i cal A s s o c iation. Hewent on to receive a po s tgra d uate Ph .D. i n Natural Me di c i ne, a s wella s c li ni cal certifi cation i n E nergy P s y c hology ( C .EHP).C h u rc h a n d S healy coa uthored a s u rvey of s p i ritual heali ngthroug hou t h i s tory called Soul Me d i ci ne. T hey c ul mi nate thi s workwith a la n d mark p rofile of a c creditation s ta n d ard s for the e mergi ngfield s of Energ y Me d i ci ne a n d E nerg y P s y c hology. C h urc h fou n d edSoul Me d i ci ne I n s titu te (S M I ) , a no n p rofit i n s titution dedi cated toed u cation a n d re searc h i nto s c ien ce- ba s ed m edi cal i ntervention swhi c h u s e co n s c iou s ne s s a n d energ y a s p ri ma ry modalities . A s ame m b er of the Re searc h Co m mi ttee of ACEP, the A s s o ciation forCom p rehen s i ve Energ y P s y c hology, C h u rc h ha s b een a cti ve i nresearc h i ng the e m p iri cal ba s i s for leadi ng ed ge tec h ni q ue s . He i sparti ci pati ng i n s everal s c ientifi c s t u d ie s at Kai ser Perma ne nte, alarge ho s p ital c hai n , a n d p rivate i n s titution s , a n d pre se nt sregularly at conference s to u p d ate colleague s on hi s fi n d i ng s , a swell a s p rese nti ng work s hop s for corporation s a n d retreat center s .A mo ng the re searc h i nitiatives at Soul Me d i ci ne I n s titu te i s thefir s t data ba se of Energ y P s y c hology cli ni cal ca s e hi s tories . C h u rc hi s the for mer p re s i de nt of T he Fa mily Con nec tion, o ne of j u s t 53 USno n p rofit s ho nored a s "Poi nt s of Lig h t " b y former Presi de nt BillCli nton . Book s on w hi c h he ha s worked ha ve won over two dozenaward s , i n c lu d i ng Be s t Health Book (I n d epe n d ent Pres s Award s ) a n dBe s t S c ien ce Book (US A Book new s Award s ) .Dawson Church,PhDSmart Life Forum, Inc. is a501(c)(3)Californianonprofitcorporationwhose primary mission istoprovidecrediblehealtheducation to thepublic with an emphasison optimal wellness, antiagingmedicine,andlongevity.Annual memberships inSmart Life Forum, Inc. andcharitable donations aretax deductible to theextent allowed by law.Forinformation on how tojoin or make a donation,please visit our contact Mike Korek at (650)941-3058.2
December 17th, 2009Smart Life Forum NewslwetterSmartLife ForumMain PresentationConventional medical wisdo m holds that our D N Ais our destiny, a blueprint we m ust follow for life. Ifit were, identical twins would all get the samediseases – but they do not. Genes are subject toregulation and various degrees of expression; they canbe tur ned on or off, especially when lifestyles –choices we as ind ividuals control - differ. A Nova cl ipon twins and epigenetics states that over ti me, largedifferences ac cu m ulate in gene expression, evenbetween twins.( h ttp ://www.p b s .org/wgb h/ nova/ s cie n ce now/3411/02.ht ml) .As we read in the February 2008 issue of the SLFnewsletter, the reductionist medical p aradigm usedeverywhere in conventional medicine – because it’seasy to test in a lab - does not work all the time:biology is too compl icated. Com plex biological systemsdo not behave deterministically. Instead, they exhib it“emergent properties” where a large nu m ber of si m pleinteractions co m b ine in co mplex and u npredictableways (as in the behavior of ant colonies, flocks ofbirds, or schools of fish).Cellular biologist Bruce Lipton’s 2005 book, “TheBiology of Belief” discussed experiments exam ining ingreat detail the molecular mechanis m s by wh ich cellsprocess infor mation. Dr. Lipton conclu ded that genesdo not in fact control our behavior, instead, genes areturned on and off by influences outsid e the cell,inclu ding the energetic messages emanating from ourpositive and negative thoughts.Board of DirectorsDave Asprey, PresidentEffie Mae Buckley, VP and Sec.Laurel Corcoran, CFOJake Brzakovic,CommunicationsBill Grant, PublicityMichael Korek, ProgramsLarry WiessenbornFoundersKathryn GroszLarry RobertsAdvisory BoardAlan P. Brauer, MDBernd Friedlander, DCTim Gallagher, DDSBill Grant, PhDPhillip Lee Miller, MDMeeting ModeratorsDave Asprey, Effie MaeBuckley, Stan Durst, PhilJacklin, Mike KorekVolunteersRob Baum, Assistant EditorEpigenetic MedicineEpigenetics has been referred to as “th e study ofheritable c hanges in gene fu nction that occur withouta change in the D N A sequence”, and epigeneticsexam ines the sources that control gene expressionfrom outside the cell. It’s a study of the signals thatturn genes on and off. Some of those signals areche m ical, others are electromagnetic. Some co me fromSteve Fowkes, Tech. AdvisorLaurel Corcoran,Records/Printing/MailingMike Korek, Newsletter Editorand Program DirectorRob Larson, Equipment Mgr.Don Southard, ReceptionLarry Weissenborn, Audio Eng.3
December 17th, 2009Smart Life Forum Newslwetterthe environment inside the body, whil eothers are our body’s response tosignals from the environme ntthat surrounds our body.Dawson Church holds that thereare over 100 genes in your body that areactivated by your thoughts, feelingsand experiences. Those genesdramatically affect your i m m u nesystem and your resistance to disease.Those genes can be turned on or offdeliberately through thoughts,emotional responses, and experiencesthat you can choose. These genes canbe activated within a very short ti me,as little as three seconds. This is aradically new theory of how our bodieswork and p uts more control back in thehands of an e mpowered patient.Dawson Church contends thatEpigenetic Medicine is a new for m oftherapy destined to upend many of thecertainties of today's medical andpsyc hological practice. Epigenetics (epi above, epigenetic control of genesfrom above or outside the cell) is a newscience less than ten years old. Itsposition is genes are activated ordeactivated by many factors originatingoutside the cell and even outside thebody. These factors include emotionallytriggering events su ch as ch ildhoodnurturing, belief, spirituality, prayer,visualization, and the quality of oursocial network. It seems incredible thatour cells could be cond itioned daily bythese epigenetic influences.Yet the most cutting-edgescientific research shows that ourconsciousness is dynam ically affectinggene expression in every mo ment, andthat a life filled with positiveexperiences can add a decade or moreto our lifespan. Large-scale scientificstudies have shown that success inresolving e motional trau ma can lowerour c hances of getting cancer, heartdisease, hypertension, and diabetes.Dawson Churc h coined the term“Epigenetic Medicine” and identifies anEpigenetic Health Cy cle in h isbook “The Genie in Your Genes” (2ndedition, 2009) . "Psychology isphysiology" - what we believe and thinkhas an i m mediate effect on our bodies.In this presentation, he showsthat the power over our health and wellbeing does not lie in an u ntouchablereal m of DN A strands, but in our ownconsciousness, and how we can turnthis knowledge to our advantage,engaging powerful epigenetic processesthrough the quality of our e motions andthoughts, and the nature of ourintentions. This presentation alsoinclu des a description of severalsi m ple, free techniq ues we can use inour everyday lives to trigger health andlifespan-boosting epigenetic changes inour m indset/attitude, and then ourbodies.Ed itor’s N oteThe i m pli cation s of what Daw so n di s c u s s e s arelarge enoug h to have attracted the attention oflarge phar ma ceuti cal co m pa nie s . Early trialsof drug s i nte n ded a s epigeneti c therapy toalter gene expre s s io n ha ve ha d promi s i ngres ult s – b ut drug s are not the only way toalter gene expre s s io n – j u s t the mo s texpen s i ve. I n the e n d, epigeneti c s mea n smore of a n i n di vi d ual’ s de s ti ny i s u n der theirown co ntrol tha n co nve ntional medi ci ne mig h tha ve you believe. We i n herit our geno me, b u tour epigeno me we ca n alter – for the better.Re s o urce sEpigeneti c T hera p y for certai n ca n cer s :h ttp ://www.p b s .org/wgb h/ nova/gene s/i s s a . h tml4
December 17th, 2009Smart Life Forum NewslwetterThe MammographyScandalBy Len Saputo, M.D.treated? This number could be as high as30% of all breast cancers! It makes onewonder if somehow this scenario couldlead to the ACS being horrified by Dr.Brawley's bold statements for fear oflosing Big Pharma's funding.As this transparency began to dissipatefrom public attention, the NY Timesinconveniently reported in an articlepublished in the November 17, 2009 issueof the prestigious Annals of InternalMedicine stating that the US PreventiveServices Task Force (USPSTF)recommended exactly what Dr. Brawleydid; namely, women should start regularbreast cancer screening withmammograms at age 50, not age 40. Howinconvenient for the ACS and potentiallycostly for Big Pharma!The USPSTF reports that for women in the40-49 year old age group one cancer deathis prevented for every 1904 women whoare screened for 10 years withmammography. However, we must alsoconsider that there is one breast cancercaused by the radiation from every 1000mammograms. In addition it has beenfound that as many as 25% of breastcancers found on mammography do notneed treatment because they wouldSometimes an unvarnished truth can escapefrom the mouths of genuine scientists who areotherwise ensconced in politicized medicalbureaucracies. To his great credit, Dr. OtisBrawley, chief medical officer of theAmerican Cancer Society (ACS), made one ofthose refreshing slips in a conversation withthe New York Times that was published onOctober 21. Brawley admitted that screeningpractices for breast cancer endorsed by theACS lead to treating many people whosecancer would spontaneously clear whilemissing many of those that are lethal.Oddly, within hours he recanted hiscourageous declaration in a shocking reversalposted on the ACS website! How can thisscenario be explained? A little research revealswhat may be behind the motivations of theACS in putting the kibosh on Dr. Brawley'shonest science: a pattern of conflict ofinterest involving—yup, you guessed it—BigPharma.Big Pharma passes huge sums of moneythrough the ACS, which happily accepts theoffering. It is clear that the more people whoneed chemotherapy, the more money that BigPharma makes for its shareholders. Wouldn'tit be inconvenient for Big Pharma if thosepeople whose cancer did not need treatmentwere suddenly eliminated and therefore not5
December 17th, 2009Smart Life Forum NewslwetterTownsend Newsletter that remains accuratetoday. Although Townsend Newsletter isnot the most prestigious medical journal, itdoes publish information that is often toomuch on the cutting edge for mainstreamjournals. The reasons for this are describedin my recent book, A Return to Healing:Radical Health Care Reform and the Futureof Medicine. The bottom line is that breastthermography has been well documented toscreen for those breast cancers that aremost likely to need treatment, and it doesso far more sensitively, accurately, safely,and cost effectively than any other test inmedicine today. When the story behind whythermography has not made it into themainstream of medicine is revealed, itsickens the stomach. Once again the answeris found when you follow the dollarsregardless of whether or not it is the rightaction to follow.spontaneously resolve on their own. Lastly,this overdiagnosis leads to far too manyunnecessary biopsies, surgeries, radiationtreatments, and chemotherapy treatmentsthat result from identifying breast cancersthat would have spontaneously resolved.This comes at the price of a certain, as yetunknown, amount of morbidity and mortalityas well as a cost of no less than 300,000 forthe mammograms (2,000 at 150 each to saveone life while causing cancer in two others),without considering the far greater expenseof unnecessary biopsies, surgeries, radiationtreatments, and chemotherapies.It should not come as a surprise thatradiologists, breast surgeons, plastic surgeons,Big Pharma, and the ACS are outraged by theUSPST's position statement. There are a lot ofdollars at stake and, as we are learning, thebusiness of medicine trumps service!By the way, this is not the first US medicalorganization to question the value ofmammograms in women under 50. In theApril 3, 2007 issue of Annals of InternalMedicine the American College of Physicians,with a membership of 120,000 physicians,came to the same conclusion as the USPSTF!What's a woman to do? There is an answer,but it too has financial implications thathave put the political kibosh on itsemergence into the cancer screeningmarketplace.In 1993 I wrote an article called BeyondMammography that was published in theEditor’s Note: Len Saputo, MD is founderof the Health Medicine Forum and HealthMedicine Center, and Author of A Return toHealing: Radical Health Care Reform andthe Future of Medicine.6
December 17th, 2009Smart Life Forum NewslwetterRaising Serum Vitamin-D Levelsto Reduce Risk of Infection and Death fromPandemic H1N1 “Swine Flu”by William B. Grant, Ph.D.There has been much concern raised about preparing for pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus. The primaryhealth system defense proposed is vaccine, which is still under development, approval, manufacture, anddistribution. That being the case, it is worthwhile to consider other public health options for limiting theeffects of the pandemic. I would like to propose that vitamin D be given fast-track consideration basedon evidence that exists to date. In this article, I outline the evidence of high probability of significantbenefits in reducing both incidence and death from H1N1 2009 virus and seasonal influenza and veryfew adverse effects.In 2006, John Cannell and colleagues published a hypothesis paper suggesting that annual variations insolar ultraviolet-B (UVB) doses and, hence, vitamin D production largely accounted for seasonalinfluenza (1). The mechanism proposed was induction of human cathelicidin, LL-37, which is animportant component of the innate immune system. This hypothesis was quickly supported by the posthoc analysis of seasonal influenza and rhinovirus infections in a randomized controlled trial of vitaminD supplementation with African-American post-menopausal women: those taking 800 IU/day ofvitamin D3 had a 60% reduction in risk compared to those taking a placebo, while those taking 2000IU/day had a 90% reduction in risk. The benefit of vitamin D in reducing the risk of seasonal influenzawas recently reviewed (2).Since pandemic H1N1 2009 virus shares some features with the 1918-19 pandemic (H1N1) virus, it isuseful to examine what can be determined about the role of vitamin D for that virus. There is someevidence that vitamin D reduced the risk of infection in that infection rates were highest in fall andwinter, although that seasonality could have been due to a genetic drift of the virus which started in thesummer, becoming much more virulent and deadly. An important finding associated with the 1918-19pandemic virus in the United States was that case-fatality rates were much lower in southerncommunities than in northern communities, based on comprehensive surveys in 12 cities and counties(3). An ecological study of the case-fatality rates with respect to summertime and wintertime solar UVBindices found that over 70% of the variance was explained (4). Since vitamin D was unknown at thattime, such ecological studies are the only way to make such determinations. Most of the deathsoccurred about 10 days after infection and were due to bacterial pneumonia. It was also noted thatmany suffered from the cytokine storm that accompanied the influenza infection. Thus, the mechanismleading to death seems to be disturbance of the epithelial lining of the lungs by the cytokine stormfollowed by opportunistic infection by bacteria normally present in the lungs. The active metabolite ofvitamin D, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25-(OH)2D], is effecting in reducing the cytokine storm byshifting cytokine production from TH1 to Th2 cytokines. LL-37 seems to be very effective in fightingbacterial infections. Thus, vitamin D has shown promise in the past in reducing both risk of infectionand death from both seasonal and pandemic influenza.What do we know about the epidemiology of the pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus? It has been reported7
December 17th, 2009Smart Life Forum Newslwetterthat groups with greatly increased risk, up to 4-6 times that for others, are pregnant women, those withmetabolic diseases such as diabetes and obesity, Australian Aborigines. What these diverse groupshave in common is low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels. Pregnant women are not toldby their doctors that they require 4000-6000 IU/day of vitamin D and have low levels. Vitamin D hasbeen found to be a risk factor for diabetes in observational studies. Serum 25(OH)D levels are inverselycorrelated with body mass index and fat. Aborigines have dark skin and now live indoors, so have verylow serum 25(OH)D levels. Thus, these groups can be considered modern day “canaries in the
doctorate in Integrative Healthcare at Holos University under the mentorship of distinguished neurosurgeon Norman Shealy, M.D., Ph.D., founder of the American Holistic Medical Association. He went on to receive a postgraduate Ph.D. in Natural Medicine, as wel
