Lynne Mctaggart
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 Excellent, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials showed that homeopathy works for, among many conditions, asthma,21 diarrhea,22 upper respiratory tract infections in children^ and even heart disease.2?Of at least 105 trials of homeopathy, 81 showed positive results.
The most unassailable were carried out in Glasgow by Dr David Reilly whose double-blind, placebo-controlled studies showed that homeopathy works for asthma, with all the usual checks and balances of a pristine scientific study.2? |
David Brownstein M.D.
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 The WHI was a randomized, placebo-controlled study. This means that half of the women received conventional hormone replacement in the form of Prempro?(Premarin?and Provera? and half received a placebo (no active drug).
The outcomes the researchers were looking for included increases or decreases in breast cancer, heart disease, stroke, pulmonary embolism, colorectal cancer, endometrial cancer, hip fracture, and death due to any cause.
The study was supposed to last 8.5 years. The researchers halted the study at 5. |
John J. Ratey, MD
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 Consequently, the first randomized, placebo-controlled study to compare exercise to drugs in treating clinically diagnosed panic disorder was undertaken in 1997. German psychiatrist Andreas Broocks conducted a ten-week trial in which he divided forty-six patients with at least mild panic disorder into three groups: regular exercise, a daily dose of clomipramine (a close relative of imipra-mine), or a daily placebo pill.
All three treatments improved symptoms in the first two weeks, including the placebo! |
Ray D. Strand
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 These studies are double-blind, placebo-controlled medical studies, the kind that physicians love. The overwhelming majority of these studies show a significant health benefit to those patients who take nutrients at optimal levels, which are significantly higher than the RDA (recommended daily allowance) levels.
Vitamins and You
When you understand the tremendous damage that oxidative stress inflicts during normal daily life on the human body, you realize how important it is to optimize your own natural defense system. Your health and life depend on it. |
| In 1999 a three-year, large, randomized-sample, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial (the sort of studies doctors really like) was reported at the Annual Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology. This study showed that glucosamine not only reduced the pain and inflammation of arthritis but actually stopped the deterioration of the cartilage. What was even more impressive was the fact that there was evidence of actual cartilage regrowth—-just as in Peggie's case. |
| No fewer than nine placebo-controlled clinical trials have taken place around the world. Eight international symposia have been held on the biomedical and clinical aspects of CoQlO, at which physicians and scientists from eighteen different countries presented more than three hundred papers.4
The largest of these international studies was the Italian Multi-Center Trial by Baggio and Associates, which involved 2,664 patients with heart failure. |
Connie Bennett, C.H.H.C. with Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D.
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 Effectiveness of Chromium in Atypical Depression: A placebo-controlled Trial." Society of Biological Psychiatry 53 (2003): 261-64.
DesMaisons, Kathleen. Potatoes, Not Prozac. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1999.
Donohoe, R. T. and D. Benton. "Blood Glucose Control and Aggressiveness in Females." Personality and Individual Differences 26, no. 5 (1999): 905-11. Drevets, Wayne C. "Neuroimaging Studies of Mood Disorders." Society of Biological Psychiatry 48
(2000): 813-29.
Drevets, Wayne C, Joseph L. Price, Mark E. Bardgett, et al. |
| Effective Treatment of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia—A Randomized Double-Blind, placebo-controlled, Intent to Treat Study." Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome 8 (2001).
Wagner, John J., and Charles I. Chavkin. "Neuropharmacology of Endogenous Opioid Peptides." http://www.acnp.org/g4/GN401000050/CH050.html.
Wurtman, J. J. "Depression and Weight Gain: The Serotonin Connection." Journal of Affective Disorders 29 (1993): 183-92.
CHAPTER 16: FOR YOUR BEAUTY: SUGAR GLUTTING COULD GIVE YOU PIMPLES, WRINKLES, AND MORE
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. |
J. Douglas Bremner
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 None of these have been evaluated in double-blind placebo-controlled trials for their efficacy in treating insomnia.
VALERIAN
Valerian, an extract of the valerian root {Valeriana officinalis), is widely prescribed in Europe for the treatment of insomnia and is available as a supplement in the U.S. In an early study, 166 volunteers were given valerian, a valerian-containing commercial product, or a placebo. After three doses, valerian was associated with a significant decrease in the time it took to fall asleep and improvement in sleep quality. |
| That is why we have placebo-controlled trials. In fact, there is no evidence to support the claim that vitamin C in pills or in fresh foods prevents colds. The best that can be said is that vitamin C reduces symptoms by 23% and may decrease the length of time you suffer from cold symptoms by about a day. The fact that vitamin C continues to be touted for the prevention of colds can only be attributed to the incredible marketing ability of the vitamin and supplement industry and the ability of the American public to suspend disbelief. |
| A large placebo-controlled randomized trial using appropriate methodology in patients with severe cases of major depression showed no difference between St.-John's-wort and placebo.26 However, a direct head-to-head comparison of St.-John's-wort to the SSRI paroxetine showed that it was better in reducing symptoms of depression in patients with severe major depression: 71% of St.-John's-wort-treated patients experienced a 50% reduction in symptoms compared with 60% of those on paroxetine.27
Headache was the only side effect with St.-John's-wort that was more common than with placebo. |
| However, a more recent double-blind placebo-controlled trial failed to show any effects of saw palmetto on symptoms of BPH, objective measures of BPH, or quality of life.291 think that the patients in earlier trials may have been able to smell the saw palmetto, thus breaking the blind. I therefore do not think that saw palmetto is very helpful for BPH, although it is free of risk, and if you want to try it, you are free to do so. |
Connie Bennett, C.H.H.C. with Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D.
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| This led to further research around the world, including double-blind, placebo-controlled trials in juvenile and adult facilities, which confirmed Dr. Schauss's initial results.
"All the studies unquestionably showed the benefit of restricting refined sugar and low-density 'junk foods.' They found significant declines in antisocial behavior. The scientists revealed, as I have, that sugar and refined foods taken in disproportionate amounts could contribute to antisocial behavior," explains Dr. Schauss, now lead scientist at AIBMR Life Sciences, Inc., in Washington State. |
J. Douglas Bremner
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| The FDA requires that two multisite placebo-controlled studies show superiority to placebo in order to approve a drug for a specific indication. In the case of the SSRIs, companies plan on doing eight studies in order to get two out of eight to show efficacy.
Dr. Craig Whittington and colleagues from the Centre for Outcomes Research and Effectiveness at University College London reviewed all published studies of SSRIs vs. placebo in children, plus some unpublished reports. |
Steven V. Joyal
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 Fluoxetine for depression in diabetes: A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Diabetes Care 2000 May; 23(5):618-23.
Lustman PJ, Clouse RE. Treatment of depression in diabetes: Impact on mood and medical outcome. / Psychosom Res 2002 Oct; 53(4):917-24.
Lustman PJ et al. Cognitive behavioral therapy for depression in type 2 diabetes mellitus: A randomized, controlled trial. Ann Intern Med 1998 Oct 15; 129(8):613-21.
Lustman PJ et al. Factors influencing glycemic control in type 2 diabetes during acute- and maintenance-phase treatment of major depressive disorder with bupropion. |
Paula Begoun and Bryan Barron
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 However, new placebo-controlled research shows that a 3% concentration of ascorbic acid (which this product contains) in an emulsion can produce positive results in skin within a short period of time. This means that although the ascorbic acid will break down fastet than more stable forms of vitamin C, some immediate efficacy is obtained when the formulation is cottect (Source: Skin Pharmacology and Physiology, July-August 2004, pages 200-206). |
David W. Grotto, RD, LDN
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 Efficacy of cranberry juice on Helicobacter pylori infection: a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial. Helicobacter. 2005 Apr;10(2): 139-145.
Cumin http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop.med-aro/factsheets/ CUMIN.html
Ensminger AH, Esminger M et al. Food for Health: A Nutrition Encyclopedia. Clovis, California: Pegus Press, 1986.
Hypolipidemic effect of Cuminum cyminum L. on alloxan-induced diabetic rats. Pharmacol Res. 2002 Sep;46(3):251-255.
Lee HS. Cuminaldehyde: Aldose reductase and alpha-glucosidase inhibitor derived from Cuminum cyminum L. seeds. J Agric Food Chem. |
| MORNING SICKNESS: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial found that 125mg of ginger extract consumed four times per day for four days significantly reduced morning sickness in women less than 20 weeks pregnant. A trial investigated the effect of 1.05 grams of ginger on nausea and vomiting among women less than 16 weeks pregnant. Fifty-three percent of women consuming the ginger capsule reported a reduction in both nausea and vomiting associated with pregnancy. |
| Inhibition of leukotriene biosynthesis by a novel dietary fatty acid formulation in patients with atopic asthma: a randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, prospective trial. Clin Ther Mar. 2003; 25(3):972-979.
Suzuki S et al. Daily omega-3 fatty acid intake and depression in Japanese patients with newly diagnosed lung cancer. Br J Cancer. 2004 Feb;23:90(4):787-793. Von Schacky C, Angerer P, Kothny W, Thiesen K, Mudra H. The effect of dietary n-3 fatty acids on coronary atherosclerosis. Ann Intern Med. 1999; 130: 554-562.
Sardines www.oceansalive.org
Patent RV et al. |
Tom Bohager
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 In a 4-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 60 individuals with IBS, probiotics treatment with L. plantarum reduced intestinal gas significantly."9
LACTOBACILLUS RHAMNOSUS þ"Lactobacillus rhamnosus provides mucosal support by adhering to the mucosal membrane, inhibiting fungal or bacterial vaginal infections, and preventing infection. L. rhamnosus . . . reduce the incidence of or lessen the severity of antibiotic-associated diarrhea."10 þ"According to a recent study in 10 healthy adults, cellular immune response to intestinal microorganisms was enhanced following intake of L. |
Elaine Magee
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 A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial at the University of Toronto, for example, tested the effects of flaxseed in postmenopausal women with newly diagnosed breast cancer. The researchers concluded that "dietary flaxseed has the potential to reduce tumor growth in patients with breast cancer." In another study, mice were injected with human breast cancer cells and fed several different diets, one of which was supplemented with flaxseed. The researchers found that the cancer spread more slowly to the lungs and lymph node areas in the flaxseed-fed mice. |
Michael T. Murray and Michael R. Lyon
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 In the latest study, twenty-five overweight non-insulin dependent diabetic outpatients were enrolled in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study, and randomized to receive either 5-HTP (750mg per day) or a placebo for two consecutive weeks, during which no dietary restriction was prescribed. Results again indicated that patients receiving 5-HTP significantly decreased their daily energy intake by reducing carbohydrate and fat intake, and reduced their body weight. |
| The effect of PGX on appetite and satiety has been demonstrated in double-blind placebo-controlled trials.
One of the remarkable effects of PGX is seen in its impact upon insulin sensitivity and blood sugar control. Double-blind studies have demonstrated that PGX substantially improves insulin sensitivity in insulin-resistant subjects. |
David W. Grotto, RD, LDN
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| I am a firm supporter of evidence-based nutrition but unfortunately, randomized, crossover, placebo-controlled, human trials and meta-analyses (reviews of several studies) are few and far between in the study of nutrition. For example, in 2007, a meta-analysis containing 149,000 participants appeared in the journal Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Diseases and showed that consuming 2.5 servings of whole grains daily was associated with a twenty-one percent reduction in risk of cardiovascular disease. Exciting stuff! |
| In one study, sixty patients who had influenza-like symptoms for less than two days were randomized in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. In those receiving elderberry extract, less medication was required and symptoms were relieved an average of four days earlier compared to those who had received the placebo. In another study with an elderberry-treated group, over ninety-three percent of participants experienced significant relief, including the absence of fever, within two days.
COLITIS: Rats with colitis received an extract of elderberry for one month. |
John J. Ratey, MD
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| In fact, 104 studies on exercise and anxiety reported between 1960 and 1989, showed that exercise alleviates anxiety, but most of them didn't meet the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial criteria necessary for scientists to count them as medical fact. While analytical researchers might say there isn't sufficient data to prove that exercise reduces anxiety, others will tell you that they don't bother studying the issue because it's just common sense. |
J. Douglas Bremner
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| Although some studies have found a reduction in hot flashes, other placebo-controlled trials have not found any efficacy of soy extract. Therefore I do not recommend the use of soy extract for hot flashes. If you want to eat less animal protein and more soy, it is probably a good idea, but you can substitute beans, lentils, and other legumes for animal protein just as effectively and get the same cholesterol-lowering effects. However, if you want to use soy, it is free of bad side effects, so feel free to use it. |
Dr. Abram Hoffer, MD, FRCP (C) and Dr. Harold D. Foster, PhD
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 Two double-blind placebo-controlled studies of eicosapentaenoic acid in the treatment of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research 200i;49(3):243-5i.
17 The Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Association with The University of Minnesota and Georgetown University School of Medicine. Food as Medicine:
Integrating Nutrition into Clinical Practice and Medical Education. Sponsored by The Wallace Research Foundation and the Hilton Family Foundation. Marriott Bay Point Resort, Panama City Beach, Florida. March 2-8,2003.
18 Hoffer A: Mental Health Regained. |
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
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 The results of the trial, "A Multi-Center, Double-Blind, placebo-controlled Therapeutic Trial to Determine Whether Natural Huperzine A Improves Cognitive Function," should be available soon.
We don't know the exact cause of Alzheimer's disease. We do know that it's a progressive disease of the brain that's characterized by impairment of memory and a disturbance in at least one other thinking function—like language, for example, or perception of reality. |
| In one multicenter, placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind study, a standardized ginseng extract was given over twelve weeks; at week four, all volunteers also received a flu vaccination. The ginseng group had significantly fewer cases of flu or the common cold, as well as significantly higher levels of antibodies.
The Complete German Commission E Monographs—an authoritative guide to herbal medicine, translated by the American Botanical Council—approves ginseng to help fight lack of stamina. |
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