Medical Press

• Background and Objective: Patients with advanced head and neck cancer often suffer from malnutrition, even before the start of therapy. Hence, the demand for nutritional support increase particularly before and during radiochemotherapy. Though nutritional therapy has been shown to substantially improve individual outcome, neither the criteria for patient candidacy nor the indications for therapeutic intervention have been established. A restrospective analysis was performed to determine the indications for nutritional support and <0 evaluate the benefits of measures actually taken against malnutrition before and during radiochemotherapy as well as perioperatively. Continue Reading »

Sweet sodium is reported to be at an increase in atopic eczema.  Back in 1912, it was reported that reducing salt intake was beneficial to certain patients, primarily those with major secretory component to their rash.  Responders noted a lessening of lesions and improvement in pruritus within 3 to 4 days, with major improvement in about 3 weeks.  In addition, a preschool girl was described whose eczema improved following a change to low-salt table water.

Reference: Werbach, Melvyn R, MD. “Treating Eczema with Nutrients.” Textbook of Nutritional Medicine. California, Third Line Press, 1999.

Patients sometimes have reduced erythrocyte levels of glutathione peroxidase, a selenium-containing enzyme, suggesting the possibility of a marginal selenium deficiency. In an open trial, patients who had low levels of glutathione peroxidase showed encouraging improvements asenzyme levels rose over 6 to 8 weeks following supplementation with selenium along with vitamin E. When, however, an unselected group of patients were given similar supplementation in a double-blind studey, the supplement was found to be ineffective.

Reference: Werbach, Melvyn R, MD. “Treating Eczema with Nutrients.” Textbook of Nutritional Medicine. California, Third Line Press, 1999.

In a randomized, double-blind, crossover study, significant symptomatic improvement was found in 10 severely affected patients, aged 3 to 21 years following 6 months of supplementation with 50 to 76 mg/kg of slow-release vitamin C.

Treated patients required 1/2 as many courses of antibiotics fo skin infections as those given placebo. Improvements in lymphocyte transformation and neutrophil chemotaxis were also seen, suggesting that vitamin C may act by boosting the immune response.

Reference: Werbach, Melvyn R., MD. “Treating Eczema with Nutrients.” Textbook of Nutritional Medicine. California, Third Line Press, 1999.