Gene Bruno is the Dean of Academics and Professor of Dietary Supplement Science for Huntington College of Health Sciences (a nationally accredited distance learning college offering diplomas and degrees in nutrition and other health science related subjects. Gene has two undergraduate Diplomas in Nutrition, a Bachelor’s in Nutrition, a Master’s in Nutrition, a Graduate Diploma in Herbal Medicine, and a Master’s in Herbal Medicine. As a 32 year veteran of the Dietary Supplement industry, Gene has educated and trained natural product retailers and health care professionals, has researched and formulated natural products for dozens of dietary supplement companies, and has written articles on nutrition, herbal medicine, nutraceuticals and integrative health issues for trade, consumer magazines, and peer-reviewed publications. Gene's latest book, A Guide to Complimentary Treatments for Diabetes, is available on Amazon.com, and other fine retailers.
L-lysine is an essential amino acid. That means that the body cannot make it and must instead get it from outside sources: namely dietary intake of protein foods—although dietary supplements with L-lysine can also serve as a source. The best dietary sources of L-lysine are animal proteins, such as meats, poultry, and milk. Proteins from grains, such as wheat and corn, generally tend to be low in lysine.1 This article will address the clinical research that has been conducted on...
Do you have insomnia? Perhaps you just have occasional difficulty getting to sleep or staying asleep. Either way, lack of sleep is a relatively common problem and is frequently treated with medications or alcohol. A consensus from population-based studies1 and other research2 indicate that approximately 30 percent of adult samples drawn from different countries report one or more of the symptoms of insomnia. A U.S. regional survey3 reported that about 20...
Well over a decade ago, resveratrol made its introduction into the dietary supplement marketplace. Initially, excitement about resveratrol was based upon the consideration that intake of it and other polyphenol compounds from red wine may contribute to the “French paradox”—the unexpectedly low rate of death from cardiovascular disease in the Mediterranean population despite the relatively higher intake of saturated fats.1 Then, excitement increased with the...
It's no surprise that collagen products are quite popular in the marketplace—which makes sense given the importance of collagen to the body. In fact, collagen is the main structural protein found in skin and other connective tissues. Collagen is so vital to our health and well-being, that it actually makes up from 25 to 35 percent of the whole-body protein content. As the connective tissue protein of choice, collagen has great strength, and along with elastin and keratin, is...
Coauthor - Arthur Presser, PharmD, President Huntington University of Health Sciences
For those of you who are not familiar with homeopathy, this form of natural medicine may be described as treating symptoms with minute quantities of natural substances that would normally bring on those same symptoms if taken in significantly larger quantities (similar in concept to the use of vaccines in conventional medicine). Homeopathy seeks to use the body's own natural self-defense...
Does this mean you're fated to feel the flu? Not necessarily. A strong immune system is you're best defense against the flu. The following article discusses natural substances, which may be used in treatment of the flu. Since three of those substances (Echinacea, vitamin C and vitamin A) help to promote a healthy immune response, their supplemental use may provide a viable option as a preventive measure against the flu.
Influenza, or "flu," is a...
Folate is a water-soluble B vitamin, whose chief function in the body is DNA synthesis and therefore new cell formation. Deficiency symptoms include large-cell type anemia, a smooth red tongue, mental confusion, weakness, fatigue, irritability, headache, and elevated homocysteine levels. Folate is the form of this nutrient naturally occurring in foods, whereas folic acid is the form found in supplements and fortified foods.1
Deficiency/Availability...
Seasonal allergies (aka, "allergic rhinitis") are truly a drag. A congested, runny, itchy nose together with frequent sneezing and watery eyes can make you feel miserable, and also doesn’t do much to bolster your sense of personal attractiveness. Unfortunately, pollens from trees, grasses and weeds, and sometimes mold spores, appear seasonally along with allergic rhinitis. But why do some people suffer from this type of allergy, while others do not?
The allergic...
There are many dietary supplement strategies that can be used to support and promote your weight loss efforts in the gym and while you're dieting. Some of these strategies are old, and some are more recent; but rarely can you find a dietary supplement ingredient that approaches the issue of weight loss from an entirely new angle. Consequently, it's been very interesting for me to research and write about blueberry leaf extract.
Glucose And Fat Storage
Most people contract one or more colds every year. A cold is caused by viruses that infect cells of the upper respiratory tract. Since there are over 200 different species and strains of these viruses, a cold caused by one virus does not protect a person from catching a cold cause by a different one. This explains why colds can occur one after another or several times a year. An acute sore throat, on the other hand can be caused by a viral or bacterial infection. If your sore throat...
Varicose veins are elongated, dilated, and tortuous superficial veins usually seen in the lower extremities. They occur because of incompetency in the valves of the vein, which permits a backflow of blood in the dependent position. The cause of valvular incompetence is unclear, but predisposing factors include familial tendency, inherent weakness in the vein walls, congenital arteriovenous fistulas, pregnancy, ascites, occupations requiring prolonged standing, obesity, and...
Asthma is a respiratory disorder in which breathing difficulty is caused by temporary narrowing of the bronchi, the airways branching from the trachea to the lungs. In many asthma patients, inflammation of the lining of the airways leads to increased sensitivity to a variety of environmental triggers that can cause narrowing of the airways, resulting in obstruction of airflow and breathing difficulty. In some patients, the mucus glands in the airways produce excessive thick mucus,...
CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) is a free fatty acid that may prove to be essential to our diet. Studies show that CLA can play a vital role in reducing body fat and improving muscle tone. In the past, it was readily available in beef and dairy products, but today, it is no longer present in great quantities. To obtain about 1000 mg of CLA in food you would have to consume three pounds of hamburger, twenty-five slices of American cheese or half a gallon of ice cream. Of course, the...
The heart is a functioning muscle and needs oxygen and fuel in order to do its work. It is the job of the coronary arteries to supply the necessary oxygen and nutrients to the muscle. When one of the three major coronary arteries become narrowed or blocked, blood flow to the muscle is reduced, resulting in angina pectoris—a feeling of tightness or pressure in the chest often associated with shortness of breath. At first, angina may only be obvious during periods of exercise or...
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Americans have failed to meet the RDA for several key nutrients, including calcium, magnesium, and zinc.1 Other research on both athletes and sedentary individuals indicated that their food intake was RDA-deficient in more than one-third of the seven minerals analyzed.2 In addition, research done by the USDA has shown that over a period of about 90 years, a 3–7 percent decrease in magnesium, zinc and...
Candidiasis is an infection by a yeast-like Candida fungus, known commonly as Candida albicans. Candida naturally resides in the human intestinal tract. Given a healthy immune system, a normal population of friendly intestinal bacteria and a normal gastrointestinal pH, Candida is essentially harmless. Unfortunately, this situation can easily be altered by prolonged treatment with broad spectrum antibiotics, steroid drugs that weaken the immune system, and...
"Many clinicians have discovered that in the overwhelming majority of individuals with heartburn, indigestion, etc., it is underproduction of stomach acid (hydrochloric acid) that is the problem, not overproduction."
Indigestion, or dyspepsia, commonly refers to general abdominal discomfort during and after meals and may be the result of specific diseases of the stomach or the intestines. The most frequently occurring symptoms are diarrhea, heartburn, abdominal...
Insomnia is the chronic inability to sleep or to remain asleep through the night. The condition is caused by a variety of physical and psychological factors. These include emotional stress, physical pain and discomfort, disturbances in brain function, drug abuse and drug dependence, neuroses, psychoses, and psychological problems that produce anxiety, irrational fears, and tensions. Conventional medical treatments may include giving sedatives, tranquilizers or hypnotics,...
A 2016 survey conducted by the National Coffee Association revealed that an average of about 56 percent of all Americans 18 years and older drink coffee daily.1 Likewise, on any given day, more than 50 percent of the American population drinks tea.2 Unquestionably, that represents a lot of caffeine being consumed—but is that a good thing or a bad thing? The answer is that it could be either, depending upon the individual. This article will examine the pros and cons of...
About sixty to seventy percent of all people with diabetes have some form of nerve damage, called neuropathy (or more accurately, neuropathies, since there is more than one kind). High blood sugar levels over a long period of time damages nerves throughout the body, but those in the hands and feet are most often damaged. Symptoms of diabetic neuropathy can include pain and numbness, particularly in the hands and feet, or problems with digestion, the urinary tract, blood vessels, and the...
