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HealthWorld Online's HealthyTravel.net, Launches "Healthy 2000 Cruise"--The Cruise of the Century
HealthWorld Online announced it will offer a millennium cruise, "Healthy 2000: Learn to Manage Your Own Health Naturally," through its HealthyTravel.net service (http://www.HealthyTravel.net). This 12-day Caribbean/Orinoco River Cruise, sailing from from December 22, 1999 to January 3, 2000, will empower participants to take charge of their health and well-being as they enter the gateway into the new millennium. The Healthy 2000 cruise features four HealthWorld Online advisory board members who will deliver a comprehensive holistic program for managing one's health through natural medicine. Speakers include Dr. Leo Galland, M.D., author of "Power Healing", by Random House; Janet Zand, L.Ac., O.M.D., author of "Smart Medicine for a Healthier Child"; Michael Janson, M.D. president of the American College for Advancement in Medicine; and Dana Ullman, M.P.H., author of "Discovering homeopathy: Medicine for the 21st Century". For more information contact annika@healthytravel.net or call 888-888-0717.

New Evidence Favors Antioxidants for Healthy Heart
Preliminary results of a new study add to the growing body of evidence that taking antioxidant vitamin supplements may lower the risk of heart disease for some people. When British researchers looked at about 15,000 men and 5,000 women with heart disease, they found that those who took supplements containing vitamins E, C and beta carotene lowered their risk of heart disease, they reported here Monday at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology.

Dr. Galland's Integrated Medicine
In his second column on Essential Fatty Acids, Essential Fatty Acids--The Key To Health (Part II), Dr. Leo Galland discusses the importance of balancing anti-oxidants and essential fatty acids and problems around trans fatty acids and hydrogenated oils. Because EFAs are polyunsaturated, containing two or more double chemical bonds, they are prone to rancidity, not merely in foods but also in the human body. Rancidity occurs when the double bond is broken by oxygen, producing an oxidized fatty acid. Oxidized fatty acids not only taste badly, they behave badly, disrupting the normal functioning of the cell membranes of which they are a part. Oxidized fatty acids are rapidly generated from the process called free radical-induced cell damage.

To protect EFAs from harmful oxidation, it is essential to consume adequate levels of dietary anti-oxidants, especially vitamin E. Consumption of a nutrient-dense diet will assure a higher-than-average intake of all anti-oxidants. Depend-ing upon the specific foods chosen, however, where those foods have been grown, the efficiency of digestion and absorption, the need for EFA supplementation, and the presence of inflammation within the body, supplementation of the diet with additional anti-oxidants may be necessary. For people who supplement their diets with fish oils or flax oil, a minimum anti-oxidant supplement should include vitamin E (four hundred units per day), selenium (one hundred micrograms per day), and vitamin C (one thousand milligrams per day), in addition to--not instead of--a nutrient-dense diet.

Natural Medicine Research Update
Over the past three years St. John's wort has become one of the most popular herbs due to its consistent and effective antidepressant actions. Many Americans are starting to substitute this herb for pharmaceutical antidepressants. But how does this herb work? asks Dr. Sahelian in his latest column, "How does St. John's wort work? ." Up to now we still don't exactly know which brain chemical systems are most influenced. Researchers at the School of Pharmacy, at Temple University in Philadelphia did a review of published antidepressant mechanism(s) of action of St. John's wort. Although the authors of the study are still not clear, they believe that St. John's wort mechanism of action is similar to that of the synthetic antidepressants, such as the selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (such as Prozac) or monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors. But they add that the inhibition by this herb is weak relative to the pharmaceutical drugs and that other mechanisms are possible.

The Healer Within
The technique described in Dr. Roger Jahnke's latest column, The Abdominal Lift, is a traditional yoga practice called Uddhiyana bandha. Stand with feet at about shoulder width, bend the knees slightly, bend forward, exhale completely, brace the hands above the knees. Either lift and hold the abdomen upward against the spine or rhythmically contract and release the abdomen while maintaining the exhalation. Complete by returning to erect position and inhaling before needing to gasp.

Medical Cybrarian Service
Need help in researching a difficult health issue? Want to be able to effectively search Medline and other medical databases? Need to have a professional who can do this fast and efficiently? Let an experienced medical librarian do it for you. HealthWorld Online's innovative Medical Cybrarian Service searches the Internet and and other databases, provideing you with information on diseases, treatments (alternative and/or mainstream), drugs, statistics, and patient information that is summarized for your research needs. This "Cybrarian" carefully gathers and selects bibliographic citations, points you to useful Web sites, and annotates or summarizespages or documents that would be useful to you for reasonable fees.

Online Discussion Forums
Looking for an answer to a tough health question? Looking for support from others who have faced the same health challenges. HealthWorld Online's forums provide you with the opportunity to participate in discussions and find answers to a wide range of health concerns. Visit our forums on, "Vaccination," "Mind/Body Approaches to Chronic Illness," "Issues in Integrated Health Care," "Legal/Legislative Issues," and Qigong." Interact with our other visitors and forum leaders: Elliot Dacher, MD; William Collinge, PhD, MPH, Emmett Miller, MD; Randall Neustaedter, OMD; Roger Jahnke, OMD; and William Dailey, Esq.

Children's Health Update Do you have questions about vaccinations for your children? In his article About Vaccine Choices, excerpted from his book, The Vaccine Guide: Making an Informed Choice, Dr. Randall Neustaedter addresses choosing vaccines, the adverse side-effects of vaccines, legal requirements and exemptions, as well as alternative vaccines. More more information visit our web site on Vaccination & Immunization coordinated by Dr. Neustaedter.

Association Network -- Hot Pick
The American Herbal Products Association is the national trade association and voice of the herbal and berbal products industry. AHPA Members consist of the companies and individuals who grow, import, process, market, and/or manufacture America's herb's and herbal products. Associate AHPA Members include researchers, educators, attorneys, the media, and medical professionals including physicians, herbalists, naturopaths, pharmacists, and practitioners of traditional and integrative medicine.

Visit the American Herbal Products Association.

Global Health Calendar -- Hot Picks

Fourth Annual Alternative Therapies Symposium and Exhibition: Creating Integrative Healthcare. New York, NY. March 25-28, 1999. Contact: Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine - 800-899-1712

4th International Holistic Conference: A Call to Peace - pathways to a holistic future. Findhorn, Forres, Scotland UNITED KINGDOM. April 3-10, 1999. Contact: The Findhorn Foundation - 44 1309-690311

The International Conference on Science and Consciousness: Consciousness Exploring Itself. Albuquerque, NM USA. April 9-14, 1999. Contact: Institute of Noetic Sciences, California Institute of Integral Studies, and many more - 505-474-0998

Fourth Annual Southwest Conference on Botanical Medicine. Tempe, AZ. April 10-11, 1999. Contact: Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine and Health Sciences - 800-252-0688

Vitafoods International: The Second International Exhibition and Conference Highlighting New Opportunities in Foods for Vitality and Natural Medicines. Geneva, Geneva SWITZERLAND. April 13-15, 1999. Contact: Vitafoods International Ltd. - +44-1872-263682

National Center for Homeopathy 1999 Annual Conference. Fort Lauderdale, FL USA April 16-19, 1999. Contact: National Center for Homeopathy - 703-548-7790

International Conference on Integrative Medicine: Expanding the Frontiers of Healing. Seattle, WA USA. April 30-May 2, 1999. Contact: International Conference on Integrative Medicine - 206-622-2812

Echinacea Symposium. Sponsored by the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA). AHPA presents Echinacea, the Queen of Herbal Medicines, in the first of our 1999 Herb Symposia. June 3-5, 1999. Ritz-Carlton ð Kansas City, MO. Contact the American Herbal Products Association. (301) 588-1171. Email: AHPA@ix.netcom.com

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