Tag Archives: benefits

Children diagnosed with ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) may benefit from taking supplements of fish oil.

Fish oil is associated with a long list of health benefits, and according to researchers, it can also be a good idea to give a daily supplement of omega-3 fatty acids to children with ADHD. In an article in the October edition of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, two researchers working for the Yale Child Study Centre conclude in a meta-analysis of 10 scientific studies with 699 children that fish oil supplementation demonstrates a small but statistically significant effect in improving ADHD symptoms.

Safe to use
The researchers pointed to the fact that the current drugs used to ameliorate ADHD symptoms were more effective than fish oil. However, fish oil is not associated with the side effects typically observed in prescription drugs. The researchers note that in mild to moderate cases of ADHD supplemental fish oil may be used to improve the effectiveness of conventional treatment, or fish oil supplementation may be a viable option for those who do not want to treat their children with chemicals.

Effects of omega-3
Omega-3 fatty acids work in several different ways. For use in ADHD it is the fatty acid eicosapentaenic acid (EPA) in particular who seems to be effective although the exact mechanism is not known. For example, this type of essential fatty acids are known to have anti-inflammatory properties that can protect brain cells. In addition, omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to have a positive effect on brain levels of two important neurotransmitters, serotonin and dopamine. The brain’s serotonin levels are believed to affect our mood, while dopamine is important for learning, motion control, mood, thought and memory.

Ref:  Bloch MH, et al. Omega3 Fatty Acid Supplementation for the treatment of children With Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptomatology: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 2011;50(10):991-1000.

Our comments

Choosing the right fish oil
Pharma Nord’s preparations, Bio-Fish Oil 1000mh and BIOmega-3 Kids,  are a good choice for long term consumption. First of all, the fish oil is purified with one of the world’s leading purification techniques (PureMax ™) that ensures the lowest possible levels of pollutants such as heavy metals and PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), that occur naturally in fish. PureMax technology purifies the fish oil to the point where the remaining levels of such toxins are substantially lower than the threshold levels set by health authorities to be safe for human consumption.

Bio-Pycnogenol and ADHD
There have been reports of positive experiences with pycnogenol for children with ADHD and adults with ADD (lack of attention). It is said to improve the brain’s blood circulation and increase the production of the neurotransmitter NO2 which improves memory and learning ability. Although there is not much research into this topic, there may be yet other mechanisms of action.

Ref: Heimann SW. Pycnogenol for ADHD. Letter. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 1999:38(4):357-8.

Now we thought WE were passionate about Pharma Nord’s products, but Sandra Duckworth has certainly raised the bar with a delightful poem about the misery of Restless Leg Syndrome and the benefits of Bio-Magnesium.

We’ve been talking to Sandra and her story is truly remarkable. Decades of poor sleep and frustration.  Scores of remedies tried and failed.  Then comes Bio-Magnesium, followed by restful sleep. Amazing.  Thanks again to Sandra for sharing her experience with us.

Here’s the poem:

Restless Legs

For many years I’ve suffered,
From my twitchy, jumpy legs.
When sitting down they would always start,
And then nightly, while in bed.

A creepy crawly feeling,
That just cannot be ignored.
And just to add to the misery…
Yes, my husband always snored!

My life’s been most depressing,
With RLS as it’s known.
I’ve tried all kinds of remedies,
No improvement was ever shown.

The only way to deal with it,
Was to pace around the floor.
And when your sick and tired of that,
You just pace a little more!

Now I’ve found a simple remedy,
I would like to share with you.
A magnesium tablet once a day,
Yes simple – but it’s true!

So if you too have restless legs,
And don’t know what to try.
Give Pharma-Nord Magnesium a go,
They are the only ones I’d buy!

S Duckworth, Pulton.

Bio-Magnesium brings out the poet in Sandra Duckworth

Increase your fibre intake

Finally an easy way to reduce an overly large belly: For every 10 grams of soluble fibre that you consume a day, you lose 3.7% abdominal fat over a period of five years, according to a new study. Furthermore, if you exercise moderately you can double the loss of body fat.

The novelty of this study is not that increased fibre intake may reduce weight, what’s new is that researchers this time have looked at the relationship between fibre intake and specific fat deposits.

It is not just risky to have too much body fat. It very much depends on where your body fat is located. The fat that surrounds internal organs is called visceral fat. Long-term studies suggest a correlation between the level of visceral fat and the risk of blood sugar disorders in the form of impaired glucose tolerance and type-2-diabetes and hypertension and fatty liver. In contrast, subcutaneous fat is not harmful.

Intake of soluble fibre did not affect the level of subcutaneous fat, but if you also exercise moderately, you can at the same time achieve a reduction of 7.4% of visceral fat and 3.6% of subcutaneous fat compared with those who do not exercise.

Ref
Hairston KG, et al. Lifestyle Factors and 5-Year Abdominal Fat Accumulation in a Minority Cohort: The IRAS Family Study. Obesity (Silver Spring). The 2011th [Epub ahead of print]

Too much abdominal fat?
In the study the amount of abdominal fat was accurately measured using CT scanning. An easy way to figure out whether you have unnecessary visceral fat is to measure your waistline. If the waistline is 88 cm or more (for women) or 102 cm or more (for men) you most likely have too much visceral fat and, hence, an increased risk for later complications.

About Bio-Fiber
Bio-fiber from Pharma Nord is composed of soluble and insoluble fibre from sugar beets and apples. Each tablet weighs 0.7 g. A daily supplement of Bio-Fiber makes it easier to reach the desired level of fibre in the diet.

A study of 386 Swedish adolescents aged 15-years suggests that a high intake of folic acid improves young people’s achievement in school. The result is independent of socioeconomic status.

The background for the study is that we are vulnerable to high levels of the harmful substance homocysteine in the blood, which among others can lead to reduced cognitive functions. Homocysteine is produced in the body as a result of the normal metabolism, but if we get enough vitamin B2, B6, B12 and in particular of folic acid, homocysteine will be transformed into healthy amino acids.

In the study the levels of homocysteine in the blood of the young people were measured, and dietary levels of folate were assessed using interviews. The young people’s academic performance after nine years of schooling were measured on ten subjects. Details of current health status, lifestyle, including smoking and familial, educational and economic status was collected using a questionnaire.

Results
Girls and boys were statistically analysed separately. The girls showed better academic results than boys but this is attributed to the teaching method being better suited for girls. The boys had, despite a higher intake of folate also higher homocysteine levels than girls.

Smoking did not affect homocysteine levels, but as expected smokers did perform worse than non-smokers.

Having an educated mother gave a positive influence on student academic achievement, while mother’s income and father’s education did not affect the result. It also helped the result to go to a good school.

Important information
Overall, the results show that students’ academic performance was significantly better with low homocysteine in the blood and a high intake of folic acid. Both students and their parents should know about this research result, which is also worthwhile to include in the debate about school meal provisions.

Ref
Nilsson TK, et al. High Folate Intake Is Related to Better Academic Achievement in Adolescents svensk. Pedriatrics the 2011th E-pub ahead of print.

About Folic Acid

The B vitamin Folic acid may also be called folate. Folic acid is a fragile vitamin, easily destroyed by light and heat. In the diet folic acids is found in green vegetables, some fruit, in beans, nuts, almonds, whole grains and meat and fish. The vitamin is probably best known for its ability to prevent congenital malformations of the brain and spinal cord of expectant mothers.

EFSA
is the EU agency for food safety. They are very critical concerning what can be achieved by using dietary supplements such that folic acid. Yet they recognize that folic acid is important for normal metabolism of homocysteine in the body, for our mental functioning, for normal cell division in the body, for a normal pregnancy, for our immune system, for normal blood formation and the formation of amino acids in the body and not least that it can help to reduce fatigue and exhaustion.

Good sources of folic acid from Pharma Nord

• Bio-Multi Pharma Nord includes a complex of B vitamins including 200 micrograms of folic acid.
• Bio-Marine Plus. Two capsules daily provide 200 mg folic acid and also the essential omega-3     fatty acids, which also benefits the brain function.

Products from Pharma Nord are manufactured to the highest standards for tablet and capsule production and comes in hygienic blister pack.

Blood levels of triglyceride seem to be what we should be concerned with rather than cholesterol, according to a new Danish study. Omega-3 fatty acids may come in handy, as they have a documented triglyceride-lowering effect.

For decades, elevated cholesterol levels have been viewed as one of the main cardiovascular threats. This helps to explain why the use of cholesterol-lowering drugs is more widespread than ever.

A new Danish study (The Copenhagen City Heart Study), however, conducted on 7,579 women and 6372 men, shows that it is a different type of blood fat called triglycerides that we should be concerned with. The study(1), which is published online in the Annals of Neurology and headed by Anette Varbo, M.D., Department of Clinical Biochemistry at Herlev Hospital, Copenhagen, found elevated triglycerides levels to be associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke in both men and women.

Ischemic stroke is death of an area of the brain that results from blocked arteries. In comparison, an association between cholesterol and ischemic stroke was only seen in men and with cholesterol levels exceeding 9 mmol/l, which is way above the levels that normally prompt physicians to write out prescriptions for cholesterol-lowering medicine.

The benefits of fish oil

There are different ways to keep your triglyceride levels in check. Besides taking regular exercise and being selective with one’s diet and avoiding or limiting the intake of those foods and beverages that are known to spike triglyceride levels in the blood, a good idea is to eat more omega-3 fatty acids from fish, as they have been shown to effectively reduce triglycerides.

This was demonstrated in, among other things, a study(2) from the University of Kuopio, Finland, where scientists compared the triglyceride-lowering effect of either eating 4-5 weekly fish meals or taking fish oil capsules (Bio-Marine from Pharma Nord) daily.

Both the volunteers who were assigned to eating fresh fish and those who got omega-3 in capsule form had significant reductions in their triglyceride levels after 15 weeks of treatment.

Sources:
1 “Non-fasting Triglycerides, Cholesterol, and Ischemic Stroke in theGeneral Population”Annals of Neurology, published online ahead of print (DOI: 10.1002/ana.22384)2 “Fish diet, fish oil and docosahexaenoic acid rich oil lower fasting and postprandial plasma lipid levels”Agren JJ, Hänninen O, Julkunen A, Fogelholm L, Vidgren H, Schwab U, Pynnönen O, Uusitupa M.Eur J Clin Nutr. 1996 Nov;50(11):765-71.