Save Our Bones Bulletin: General Mills To Remove Artificial Ingredients From Cereal; New Osteoporosis Drug Targets Stem Cell-Regulating Protein; Swimming Prevents Falls; And More!

I am pleased to bring you this month’s Bulletin, which is chock-full of exciting osteoporosis news.

We begin with a positive note that further confirms the power of the consumer in General Mills’ decision to rid its cereals of synthetic dyes and flavorings.

Next, you’ll discover the latest research to develop a new osteoporosis drug. Scientists are focusing on a class of popular diabetes medication in the hopes of achieving their bone-depleting side effects in reverse to treat osteoporosis.

And last, I bring you a recent study that shows swimming improves balance and reduces the risk of falls.

So let’s begin by taking a look at the positive effect of informed consumers.

1. Cereal Giant General Mills Has Pledged To Remove Artificial Ingredients

General Mills recently announced that they will eliminate artificial colors and flavors from all of its cereals by the end of the year 2017. Its short-term goal is to remove artificial ingredients from 90% of its cereals by the end of 2016.

Relevant Excerpt:

“General Mills cereals has committed to removing artificial flavors and colors from artificial sources from the rest of its cereals in response to consumers’ changing preferences.

… General Mills cereals plans to have more than 90 percent of the portfolio free of artificial flavors and colors from artificial sources by the end of 2016.

… Trix will now use ingredients like fruit and vegetable juices and spice extracts such as turmeric and annatto to achieve the fun red, yellow, orange and purple colors. Reese’s Puffs will continue to use peanut butter and cocoa and incorporate natural vanilla flavor to achieve the same great taste that adults and children have always enjoyed. Consumers can expect to see the updated Trix and Reese’s Puffs cereals on store shelves this winter.”¹

Notice that General Mills responded to consumer demand. It really does make a difference when people become informed and refuse to spend money on foods they deem unhealthy.

Savers know that one of the first and most important steps they can take toward rejuvenating their bones is to avoid artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, and other ingredients that add to the body’s toxic load. Clearly, more and more people are catching on to the potential harm that such synthetic ingredients can cause.

2. New Osteoporosis Drug Targets Stem Cell-Regulating Protein

In their most recent osteoporosis research, scientists are focusing on PPARy, a protein that regulates the destiny of bone marrow-derived stem cells.

Relevant Excerpt:

“Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have identified a new therapeutic approach that, while still preliminary, could promote the development of new bone-forming cells in patients suffering from bone loss.

The study, published today in the journal Nature Communications, focused on a protein called PPARy (known as the master regulator of fat) and its impact on the fate of stem cells derived from bone marrow (‘mesenchymal stem cells’). Since these mesenchymal stem cells can develop into several different cell types—including fat, connective tissues, bone and cartilage—they have a number of potentially important therapeutic applications.

…The results showed that when human mesenchymal stem cells were treated with the new compound, which they called SR2595 (SR=Scripps Research), there was a statistically significant increase in osteoblast formation, a cell type known to form bone.”²

SR2595 is based on a class of drugs called thiazolidinediones (such as Actos and Avandia), currently used to treat type 2 diabetes. One of the disturbing side effects of thiazolidinediones is their reduction of stem cells that develop into osteoblasts. The drugs effectively reduce new bone formation, and they do so by stimulating Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARy).

So researchers took note of this effect and set out to produce a drug that would suppress PPARy and thus have the opposite effect of increasing the number of stem cells that became osteoblasts.

SR2595 has been tested in mice and in human stem cells in the lab. Further animal studies are forthcoming.

This is another attempt by the Medical Establishment to unnaturally manipulate the complex process of bone remodeling. It also has the ring of “too good to be true,” which is always a big red flag. There is no such thing as a miracle osteoporosis drug.

Instead, wouldn’t it be encouraging if scientists looked for nutritional or lifestyle changes that naturally reduce PPARy levels? Unfortunately, there’s no such research in the foreseeable future, because that would not lead to a money-making drug that could be patented.

Thankfully, Savers know better than to rely on the pharmaceutical industry to come up with the latest osteoporosis “cure.”

Scientifically Proven: Swimming Helps Prevent Falls

An Australian study found a remarkable improvement in balance among participants whose primary form of exercise was swimming. Over the course of four years, researchers followed 1,667 senior men (average age: 76.8) and their exercise routines, and they found that the swimmers had better balance and fewer falls.

Relevant Excerpt:

“Men who swam were 33 percent less likely to fall compared to men logging other kinds of exercise. What’s more is swimmers had better standing balance, which means they moved less when asked to stand still for 30 seconds.

‘Unlike [with] land-based sports, swimmers are required to create their own base of support and at the same time, to produce a coordinated movement of both upper and lower extremities,’ Dafna Merom, study author and associate professor of physical activity and health at the University of Western Sydney in Australia…

While Merom didn’t find men exercising out of the pool were any less likely to fall, she does think there is reason to believe swimming specifically works to protect against fall-related injuries and trauma … In addition, the low-impact nature of water means it doesn't strain muscles and joints the same way as, say, strength training does. …

However, Merom added, the study was observational, ‘so the results show a link, but not a cause-and-effect relationship between swimming and a lower risk of falls.’”³

While this study comes to us from the Southern Hemisphere, in the Northern Hemisphere it’s the hottest time of the year and perfect for swimming!

I’m sure you’re well aware that balance training and targeted, weight-bearing exercise are also very important components to building bone density, achieving excellent posture, and preventing falls. In fact, the evidence is so abundant that The Establishment is actually taking note and “endorsing” exercise as a non-pharmaceutical treatment for osteoporosis.

The Australian study is a good reminder that a variety of exercise is the best plan. What better time of year to add some swimming in to your exercise routine?

Swimming is not only fun; it exposes your skin to sunlight, boosting your Vitamin D and your mood. In fact, I like to do “land exercises” outdoors this time of year as well. The moves in the Densercise™ Epidensity Training System are easily performed anywhere, including outdoors on your deck, yard, or beside the pool!

Till next time,

References:

¹ “General Mills cereals removing artificial flavors and colors from artificial sources.” General Mills News Releases. June 22, 2015. Web. https://generalmills.com/en/News/NewsReleases/Library/2015/June/artificial-cereals/4044ee9e-dc51-482d-bca7-58165fc18042

² “Scripps Florida Scientists Identify a Potential New Treatment for Osteoporosis.” The Scripps Research Institute. June 12, 2015. Web. https://www.scripps.edu/news/press/2015/20150612griffin.html

³ Castillo, Stephanie. “Swimming Improves Balance In older Adults, But It Can Benefit Everyone Else, Too.” Medical Daily. October 18, 2014. Web. https://www.medicaldaily.com/swimming-improves-balance-older-adults-it-can-benefit-everyone-else-too-307410