I want to invite you to follow one of my other blogs at http://medicalvisioncenter.blogspot.com/ for those of you interested in eye health, naturally. This blog has breaking news that will save someone's eyesight so excuse the departure from what is normally published on this blog, but it is just too important not to share. Be well!
Culinary Indian
spices are rising superheroes of the nutritional World. When most of us were
growing up, these spices were not a regular part of many of our diets. Today, though, they are commonly available high-profile
healers of the highest order. But if history repeats itself, we can anticipate
a raid on powerful molecules found in your spice rack, turning them into drugs
available only by prescription or subject to unnecessary regulation. This is
one of the reasons the National Health Federation (NHF) opposes Senator Dick
Durbin’s Dietary Supplement Act – in this case, to protect manufacturers who
encapsulate spices in therapeutic formulations designed to heal serious eye
disease and more. As Codex Alimentarius has decided to add a new committee to
its roster with the Codex Committee on Spices and Culinary Herbs (CCSCH) in
February 2014, the potential for unnecessary regulatory control has NHF concerned.
Curcumin is the
main curcuminoid of the popular Indian spice turmeric, which is currently
enjoying exalted status as a true panacea for modern-day ills as an
anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antitumor spice. Zeaxanthin-rich saffron, the most expensive of
spices at $500 a pound, is a proven star in both the Eastern and Western
healing traditions for treating macular degeneration. It takes nearly 150
flowers to produce a single gram of dried saffron threads.[1]
Even ordinary rosemary is being touted as one of the healing modalities for the
potentially blinding diseases of macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa.
Several studies of these spices
have shown their effective use in the potentially blinding diseases macular
degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and cataract development as well. In a
December 2013 study, “Curcumin:
Therapeutical Potential in Ophthalmology,”[2] curcumin
proved itself effective against several ocular diseases, such as chronic
anterior uveitis, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, age-related macular
degeneration, and dry eye syndrome. “Unfortunately,
because of its low solubility and oral bioavailability, the biomedical
potential of curcumin is not easy to exploit; for this reason more attention
has been given to nanoparticles and liposomes, which are able to improve
curcumin's bioavailability. Pharmacologically, curcumin does not show any
dose-limiting toxicity when it is administered at doses of up to 8 g/day for
three months.” Black pepper and lecithin
also improve bioavailability.
But to truly impact absorption of the healing
spices and creating a remedial response, restore the proper balance of bacteria
in the gastrointestinal tract which is potentially the greatest source of
inflammation in the body. Microbial imbalance leads to increased inflammation,
oxidative stress, and impaired immune response and more—which are foundational
to potentially blinding eye diseases. A January 2014 study in Cell[3]
researched life extension and the diseases related to age-related changes in
the gut flora. When bacteria in the gut are in balance, not only is one’s life
span extended, but the diseases common to the elderly decrease, leading to a
higher quality of life.
From tumors and cancer to cataracts
there is little turmeric cannot heal. Speaking with an Indian delegate to Codex
recently, a food scientist from the Spices Board, she said that even a poultice
made of turmeric and applied overnight would resolve most ulcers and abscesses
on the body. Many East Indians eat pickled turmeric daily; NHF wants to ensure
that it remains available as a nutritional supplement for those who don’t eat
it daily as a part of their dietary pattern.
In another study
from PubMed republished on GreenMedInfo’s database in 2008, diabetes
was induced in rats but the subsequently administered curcumin-and-turmeric
treatment appeared to have countered the hyperglycemia-induced oxidative stress.[4]
Blindness is a complication of diabetes. Curcumin will make an effective
addition to a diabetic protocol on several counts.
In the July 2012
issue of Evidence Based Complementary
Medicine, a longitudinal follow-up
study of saffron supplementation in early, age-related macular degeneration
reported sustained benefits to central retinal function.[5]
Lastly, lowly rosemary comes to the forefront in retinal protection[6] in
macular degeneration and retinitis
pigmentosa, which has no known therapeutic treatments, so this is exciting
indeed.
If you don’t
think the drug companies are anxious to swoop in and snatch up these ancient
spices and herbs to patent them out of your reach, just look at how GlaxoSmithKline
reacted in 2010 when resveratrol’s incredible healing powers were rising and
its impact on multiple myeloma was creating excitement for the next super-drug.[7]
Observing the incredible potential of resveratrol, GlaxoSmithKline pursued this
molecule, skewing its molecular structure in order to patent what was being
touted as a “poly-pill” capable of curing anything. What they most likely did not
factor in was dose-dependency and ended a trial when their presumably high dose
created kidney failure; they may very well have missed their aim of patenting a
natural substance that still holds its place well, impacting an important cross
section of diseases. But the pharmaceutical model stands as a threat to health
and health freedom today as common spices are exhibiting radical healing
potential on their own without the structural skewing and we have access to
them directly and much more cheaply due in large part to NHF’s protective
stance in regards to nutritional supplements at Codex.
It puts NHF on high alert when Codex
Alimentarius decides to insinuate itself into your kitchen spice rack by adding
a new Codex committee meeting in India in February 2014.[8]
According to Sanjay Dave, Codex Chairman, the first meeting will be to frame
strategies for quality of culinary spices and promote harmonization to
facilitate World trade. As
far as the spice quality is concerned, that deals with issues like physical
characteristics, uniformity in color, size, appearance, and packaging, which come
under quality parameters.
Safety parameters in spices focus
on pesticide residues, mycotoxin contamination, microbiological such as
Salmonella, E. coli, and other contamination that is harmful to health. When
these issues arise in relation to quality regulation, which again is simply
addressing color, size, appearance, and packaging, they will be referred to the
appropriate Codex committee responsible for them, such as the Food Labelling,
Food Additives, Food Hygiene, Pesticide Residues, Contaminants, and so on, most
of which the National Health Federation participates in. This initial Codex
committee meeting on Culinary Spices will begin the tedious process of sorting
every culinary herb into monitoring pathways handled by appropriate Codex committees
on all of the issues from quality to safety. For example, the Pesticide Residue
Codex Committee will determine appropriate parts per million or maximum upper
limits of pesticide residues which will be adopted globally for purposes of
creating harmonization in World Trade when that particular spice is exported.
According to the Spices Board of
India, countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, and Netherlands have laid
down cleanliness specification for spices. The European Spice Association (ESA),
comprising members of the European Union, has come out with the "quality
minima for herbs and spices." This serves as a guideline with specifications
for member countries in European Union. The European Union has yet to finalize
the cleanliness specification for spices and spice products.[9]
It is too bad this governing body was not able to achieve a clean, relatively
standardized export product without Codex involvement. So while there are some
decidedly good aspects to Codex’s goal of harmonization by promoting the
assurance that imported spices are clean and free from contaminants, where
spices are concerned that have been proven in scientific research to heal many
diseases, of the eyes in particular, NHF sees a pathway directly from the
kitchen spice rack right to the revolving door of the Pharmaceutical industry
in the hopes of patenting these healing spices. This will reduce the power of
the average person to control their own health by using these spices for
treating disease as World trade and the potential for profits and increased
regulatory control at the expense of health reigns supreme.
The threat is not only drug
companies lobbying to regulate common, but powerfully healing, kitchen spices
but irradiation is an issue as well, which lowers the nutritional content of
foods. India is having a problem currently with a lack of integrity in the
cleanliness of their spices. Like China, once you gain a reputation for
releasing impure product in world trade, you are forever suspect. They are wise
to adopt standards and guidelines in many respects if they wish to increase
their economy by trading globally. This could have been achieved apart from
Codex, however, and should have been achieved nationally. But they have adopted
this course and the National Health Federation intends to have a say in how
it’s managed as we see the potential pitfalls and loss of control of healing
spices currently labeled “culinary.”
Perhaps the most important part of
the Indian spice issue is just what happened when GlaxoSmithKline tried to get
a patent on resveratrol for use in diabetics. This action threatened to take a
valuable healing tool out of the reach of the consumer and leave drug companies
and doctors in full control of access and availability. The same could happen
with the developing spice market being so effective in healing potentially
blinding eye disease with curcumin, turmeric, saffron, and rosemary being
potentially regulated as drugs. If NHF can stave it off, so much the better for
us all who feel our eyesight is too precious to brook the interference of
excessive and unnecessary regulation. NHF appreciates your support (http://www.thenhf.com/page.php?id=19)
as we attend many Codex meetings in 2014 to protect you and your family.
(c) 2014 Katherine A. Carroll
[1] See
“Saffron Stamens” page on Mountain Rose Herbs website: http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/learn/saffron_stamens.php,
accessed on December 27, 2013.
[2] Pescosolido N, Giannotti R, Plateroti AM, Pascarella A, Nebbioso M,
“Curcumin: Therapeutical Potential in Ophthalmology, ” Planta Med., 2013
Dec 9.
[3] “PGRP-SC2 Promotes Gut
Immune Homeostasis to Limit Commensal Dysbiosis and Extend Lifespan” ;
publishing January 12, 2014 in Cell
[4] Suryanarayana
P, Saraswat M, Mrudula T, Krishna TP, Krishnaswamy
K, Reddy GB, National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR),
Hyderabad, India, “Curcumin and
turmeric delay streptozotocin-induced diabetic cataract in rats,” Invest Ophthalmol
Vis Sci., 2005 Jun;46(6):2092-9.
[5] Piccardi
M, Marangoni D, Minnella AM, Savastano MC, Valentini P, Ambrosio L, Capoluongo
E, Maccarone R, Bisti S, Falsini B, “A longitudinal follow-up study of saffron
supplementation in early age-related macular degeneration: sustained benefits
to central retinal function,” Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.,
2012;2012:429124. doi: 10.1155/2012/429124. Epub 2012 Jul 18.
[6] Tayebeh
Rezaie1, Scott R. McKercher1, Kunio Kosaka2, Masaaki Seki1, Larry Wheeler3,
Veena Viswanath3, Teresa Chun3, Rabina Joshi1, Marcos Valencia1, Shunsuke
Sasaki4, Terumasa Tozawa4, Takumi Satoh1,4 and Stuart A. Lipton1, “Protective
Effect of Carnosic Acid, a Pro-Electrophilic Compound, in Models of Oxidative
Stress and Light-Induced Retinal Degeneration,” Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci.,
November 27, 2012 vol. 53 no. 12 7847-7854, Published online before print
October 18, 2012, doi: 10.1167/iovs.12-10793.
[7]Allan
Haberman , “GlaxoSmithKline Stops Development Of Resveratrol Drug SRT501,”
Haberman Associates
Consulting for Effective Life Science R&D and
Partnering Blog, December 1, 2010.
[8] See“Uniform
standards would help improve trade in spices,” http://www.fnbnews.com/article/detnews.asp?articleid=34453§ionid=11,
accessed Monday, October 07, 2013.
[9] See
“Quality Specifications,” on Indian Spice Board website at: http://www.indianspices.com/html/spices_board_quality_spec.htm.