Just Launched - YouTube Channel Dedicated to IBD Patients ~ Read for more info...

Sweet!  Spread the word and open up people's minds to invincible diseases like crohn's and ulcerative colitis. I've noticed in the past few months that there is more awareness out there in the world regarding digestive diseases and opportunities for people to learn more about ibd to get a better understanding 

Read the article below about the just launched YouTube channel and what it entails. 

the new youtube channel called "you and ibd", dedicated to educate and provide expert advice, patient stories, medication information and important information that patients should be aware about.

PRESS RELEASE

May 17, 2012, 5:47 p.m. EDT

New YouTube Channel Helps People Living with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

LOS ANGELES, May 17, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Cornerstones Health Inc., a nonprofit organization working to improve communication between patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and physicians who treat IBD, in collaboration with Imedex, LLC and Mechanisms in Medicine Inc., announced the launch of the new YouTube "You and IBD" - Animated IBD Patient Channel. The channel gives patients with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis quick access to a wide range of videos and animations featuring the latest IBD information, discussions of important topics, patient stories, expert advice.

"We have addressed what we believe to be a major limitation in other IBD Web resources," said Dr. David Rubin, co-founder of Cornerstones Health Inc. "The type of education we're offering empowers patients with the knowledge needed to take charge of their disease and to have important discussions with their health care team about what is the right course of action for them."

The YouTube "You and IBD" - Animated IBD Patient Channel is a companion to the You and IBD website, and part of an overall initiative dedicated to providing IBD patients with educational content, expert advice and tools to help them effectively manage their IBD and achieve the best quality of life.

"IBD patients who visit our site will walk away with a greater understanding of topics that range from how IBD medications work to alternative medicines because of the impact visual reinforcement will have on their existing knowledge," said Dr. Marla Dubinsky, co-founder of Cornerstones Health Inc.

This channel was developed in conjunction with Imedex, LLC, an accredited medical education company based in Alpharetta, Georgia and Mechanisms in Medicine, a medical animation and e-learning company based in Toronto, Canada. "This project is part of an ongoing collaboration between our organizations aimed at enabling patients to be more informed with regard to their disease and treatment options so that they are able to have more active dialogue with their physicians about how to best manage their disease," said Christopher Bolwell, VP and Compliance Officer of Imedex, LLC. "We are pleased to have been part of producing this valuable patient education resource."

About Cornerstones

Cornerstones Health Inc. is a nonprofit organization founded by physicians Marla Dubinsky and David Rubin in 2008. It was established to provide a new paradigm in patient care by utilizing novel approaches to improve the communication between physicians and patients. Offering state-of-the-art educational content, expert-based instruction, and creative communication techniques, Cornerstones enhances and transforms the relationships among health care providers, industry partners and patients. Contact Cornerstones at info@cornerstoneshealth.org, or visit them on the Web at www.cornerstoneshealth.org .

About Imedex

Imedex, LLC is an ACCME accredited medical education company based in Alpharetta, GA, which has been producing physician education programs for over 25 years. Imedex contributes to the quality and cost efficacy of medical care by increasing the knowledge of healthcare professionals. Our team of dedicated and knowledgeable professionals work in specialized therapeutic areas to develop and implement high quality, effective medical education programming that translates the latest research into clinical practice. All activities are delivered in healthcare professionals' preferred formats (live meetings and enduring activities) all the while upholding the high standards set forth by the ACCME and related governing bodies. Contact Imedex, LLC at officeofcme.com, or visit them on the web at www.imedex.com

About Mechanisms in Medicine Inc.

Mechanisms in Medicine Inc. is a medical animation and e-learning company based in Toronto, Canada. We provide a unique approach to online health education through visually compelling animation and video resources that are designed to ease the understanding of complex medical concepts. We work to facilitate improved health outcomes by increasing the knowledge and awareness levels of patients and healthcare professionals, for multiple diseases and health issues. Contact Mechanisms in Medicine at mail@mechanismsinmedicine.com, or visit them on the Web at www.MechanismsInMedicine.com .

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Check out new @IBDpatient YouTube Channel at http://bit.ly/Hj0trf ! #Crohns #colitis (82 characters; bit.ly URL)

News Facts

-- Cornerstones, in collaboration with Imedex, LLC and Mechanisms in Medicine Inc., announces launch of new YouTube "You and IBD" - Animated IBD Patient Channel, giving IBD patients quick access to patient and expert videos, and IBD animations.

-- The YouTube channel is a companion to the You and IBD site, and part of an overall initiative dedicated to helping IBD patients achieve the best quality of life.

Images

-- Cornerstones logo

-- Imedex logo

-- Mechanisms in Medicine logo

-- Screen capture of YouTube channel

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50282672&lang=en

SOURCE: Cornerstones Health Inc.

Cancer Patients Are Encouraged To Research Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) As a Treatment Option!

Another positive article regarding the treatment of LDN (low dose naltrexone) for off label conditions.  Click the link below to read the details.

** People that have been able to obtain this medication and take it in low doses (1-4.5mg) have displayed great improvement.  It's a promising treatment for an array of diseases from MS, Crohn's Disease, different forms of cancers, autoimmune diseases, & the list goes on.

For people that would like to read up on what LDN is, how the drug works, how it could be obtained and the science behind the use of LDN for conditions other than what the drug was originally targeted to treat (opiate addiction), please see my sidebar links.  I also have several blog posts that give general information about the drug and blogs that have clinical trials that have been conducted and their findings.  

• PS:  If you need to find a doctor in your area that prescribes LDN, I can help you.  Send me a message and I'd be happy to assist you with this.  

Bonnie and Ken Shockey encourage cancer patients to research Low Dose Naltrexone

FDA Concerns Pertaining to The Risks, The Benefits & The Appropriateness of Tofacitinib to Treat Rheumatoid Arthritis

Hmmmm!! They ask questions???  I wonder who died.

"The FDA said tofacitinib might be associated with an increased risk of cancer such as lymphoma, and that it increased the risk of serious infections, some of which were fatal. The agency also said it couldn't make "definitive conclusions" regarding the drug's effectiveness on a measure that looked at disease progression."

The poor people that took the risk and didn't benefit?

Well, we will see on Wednesday if they make the logical decision based on the numbers they see showing disease advancement or decline. 

 

FDA:Questions Safety, Effectiveness Of Proposed Pfizer Arthritis Drug
 

Published May 07, 2012
 

Dow Jones Newswires
 

WASHINGTON –  The Food and Drug Administration questioned the safety and effectiveness of a proposed Pfizer Inc. (PFE) drug for rheumatoid arthritis.
The drug, tofacitinib, is designed to treat the disease in a different manner than currently approved therapies. The product will be reviewed on Wednesday by the FDA's arthritis drugs advisory committee.
The FDA said tofacitinib might be associated with an increased risk of cancer such as lymphoma, and that it increased the risk of serious infections, some of which were fatal. The agency also said it couldn't make "definitive conclusions" regarding the drug's effectiveness on a measure that looked at disease progression.
The FDA released a review of the product Monday in preparation for Wednesday's meeting. Tofacitinib works to inhibit a cell-signaling mechanism referred to as JAK and is a key drug in Pfizer's pipeline.
The company studied the drug in about 4,800 patients. Five studies were submitted to the FDA in support of the drug's approval. Most of the patients in the studies hadn't responded to initial therapy with a drug called methotrexate. One study focused on patients who had an inadequate response to newer drugs called TNF-inhibitors such as Remicade or Humira, which work to block a substance in the body called tumor necrosis factor that can cause inflammation and lead to immune-system diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
Pfizer has said it believes the side-effect profile of tofacitinib is similar to other treatments on the market. The labels for TNF-blockers warn of serious and sometimes fatal infections and a possible increased risk of getting certain types of cancer.
The FDA's panel, which is made up of non-FDA medical experts, will be asked to vote on whether it thinks the drug should be approved. The FDA isn't required to follow the advice of its panels but usually does.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disorder that usually affects small joints in the hands and feet.
Copyright © 2012 Dow Jones Newswires


Read more: http://www.foxbusiness.com/news/2012/05/07/fdaquestions-safety-effectiveness-proposed-pfizer-arthritis-drug/#ixzz1uBr92NAR

Ali Carter, Professional Pool Player - Visited by The Crohn During The World Championship

It figures.  Crohn's always comes to visit at the most inappropriate times.  I 

compare Crohn's Disease to that rude and obnoxious "friend" that over stays

their welcome and doesn't get the hint that it's time to leave.  
 

Carter takes step closer to second World 

Championship final

Updated: Friday, 04 May 2012 22:42

Ali Carter nearly quit the game because of Crohn's disease

Ali Carter was considering retirement at the turn of the year, but now a second appearance in the World Championship final beckons for the 32-year-old from Tiptree.

He leads Stephen Maguire 14-10 overnight after dominating a large part of their two sessions today.

The final three frames of the day went Maguire's way though as he belatedly found some mental poise, but the Scot still faces a tall order when they play to a finish tomorrow afternoon.

As the effect of Crohn's disease, the condition Carter was diagnosed with nine years ago, began to take a drastic physical toll, he went to the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association to request a year-long sabbatical.

It did not come to that, and Carter's health has improved markedly thanks to a no-wheat, no-dairy diet, albeit with a setback this week when he complained of feeling badly bloated after eating a steak.

He vowed after beating Jamie Jones in the quarter-finals that illness would not obstruct his Crucible mission, and Carter used all his guile to back Maguire into a corner he will do well to fight his way out of.

In the morning session, which saw Carter move from 5-3 to 10-6 ahead, Maguire twice lost his cool, firstly with a wild attempt to escape from a snooker and then when he thumped the table to draw gasps from spectators. He later appeared to question the judgement of referee Leo Scullion, his fellow Glaswegian, when a foul was called against him.

Maguire fired a 142 break shortly before lunch, while 134 and 73 in the space of three frames tonight nudged Carter to 14-7.

A strategy hinging on safety-first tactics made Carter a frustrating opponent for Maguire, but when the Scot fired breaks of 72 and 70, before pinching the final frame of the day, he at least had a platform to build from tomorrow.

The winner of this match will meet either Ronnie O'Sullivan or Matthew Stevens. O'Sullivan leads 11-5.

Discoveries about Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.. Interesting

This makes sense.  Sometimes I feel like I have CFS.

"the team found that people with CFS had less change in blood flow between winning and losing. What's more, people with more severe CFS had even less change in blood flow."

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Real, Weird, and Mysterious as Ever - The Atlantic

Another Technique to Test for MAP & Other Bacteria in IBD Patients

Great Read!

Our bodies immune system didn't just break one day.  Autoimmune Disease is the medical term that means - we don't know what is causing your pain/inflammation, so we will blame it on a malfunctioning immune response. 

 -ME

Professors’ work helps detect Crohn’s, other bowel diseases

Blending their research together into one effort, two UCF faculty members have created a scientific technique that may help doctors better understand diseases.

Professor Saleh Naser and Associate Professor J. Manuel Perez have developed a nanoparticle-based technique that allows doctors to effectively and quickly detect pathogens that cause Crohn’s disease and other inflammatory bowel diseases.

The technique, which was recently published earlier this month in PLoS ONE, a peer-reviewed scientific journal, builds off of a previous polymerase chain reaction DNA-based technique that Naser and Perez developed, by adding nanosensors labeled with probes that detect and bind themselves to certain bacteria.

Taking advantage of this nanotechnology, Naser hopes that this will help scientists better understand where hard-to-trace diseases, such as Crohn’s disease, come from.

“Crohn’s disease is a controversial disease,” said Naser, who teaches in the College of Medicine and the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences. “There are different schools of thought about what causes the disease and the reason for the controversy is the lack of consistent, fast, diagnostic and reliable methods to find the bacteria in clinical samples. Now, with this technology we developed with Dr. Perez at UCF, we have a fast method, it is effective, it is specific, it is sensitive and ultimately it can give the doctor an answer within an hour and the doctor accordingly can give appropriate medication to his patients.”

Naser said that, of the multiple theories of what causes Crohn’s disease, he believes that a bacterium known as Mycobacterium paratuberculosis, also known as MAP, is the cause of the intestinal disease.      (THANK YOU... ME TOO!! MAP IT IS)

Having studied Crohn’s disease for more than 20 years, Naser decided to test the technique with blood and tissue containing MAP, in an effort to detect the bacteria with the nanosensors and progress his theory. 

“My collaboration with Dr. Perez started a few years ago. We joint-submitted a successful grant proposal to the National Institute of Health and have been since working diligently on the development of nanosensors. Dr. Perez developed the nanoparticles and my lab provided him with specific probes and the biological systems to evaluate these sensors,” Naser said. “Throughout the process, we tested a large number of bacterial cultures as well as blood and tissue we obtained from patients at the University of Florida. We believe the concept of these nanosensors can be applied for the diagnosis of other microorganisms including bacteria and viruses. This technology really opened the door to so many possibilities.”

After tests were performed, Naser and Perez found that not only were they able to detect the bacteria, they were able to obtain the results much faster with the addition of these nanosensors. 

“These are very small particles, which we coated with DNA probes specific to MAP. The probes were then detected using a device which records the presence or absence of the bacteria in the patient sample,” Naser said. “The magic in all of this is that the entire process may be done within an hour. This is exciting because for the first time ever, we can report the presence of MAP in clinical samples in record time of minutes instead of weeks or months.”

Perez said it is vital to make the process faster in order to help doctors treat patients.

“It is all about giving medical professionals easy and reliable tools to better understand the spread of a disease, while helping people get treatment faster,” Perez said in a UCF Today article. “That’s my goal. And that’s where nanotechnology really has a lot to offer, particularly when the technology has been validated using clinical, food and environmental samples as is in our case.”

Richard Peppler, the associate dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs and the interim director for the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, praised Perez, Naser and their research team for their hard work.

“I think it’s wonderful. I think it’s an example of the collaboration of faculty between two different units within the university,” Peppler said. “It’s showing how we can take something from the bench to the bedside and it’s gonna improve the health for patients with Crohn’s disease and other GI problems.”

Naser stressed that the real purpose of this hard work is to allow doctors to find these bacteria, leading to the elimination of the cause entirely through antibiotics.  (YES)

“Ultimately, the big winner in all of this will be the patients, because current treatment for Crohn’s disease is an anti-inflammatory, which are considered management medications; these medications are not given to the patient for a cure,” Naser said “Now, the patients can be tested for MAP using UCF nanosensors and if the patient is positive, then the doctor will be able prescribe antibiotics that we know are effective and lethal against the bacteria; this will lead to a cure.” (LOL does anyone else feel the truth in this article right now?? IBD can be cured not just managed.  You just need to find the right doctors that aren't satisfied with the current treatments either. Don't get discouraged by your doctors, family, friends and what they say.  You live with your body every day and ya know what I've noticed that the good doctors say to people with chronic illnesses ... "You know your body best" It's true.  Your doctor may know something, but your family knows NOTHING and your friends... lol they probably don't even know the definition of IBD or MAP ... they'd say "its....well I'm pretty sure it's a navigation tool that you can use when you don't have a GPS"............< my long stare of death because of your stupidity...say nothing please I'd rather hear silence >    then I say ......  " SHUT THE F*^% UP, DUMB ASS!! "   

Get Angry!!!  It helps to motivate me to be who I am, say with confidence what I believe to be true, and to say FU to the ones that were wrong.

Naser also said that he hopes the technique will eventually be licensed by a company that specializes in diagnosing and treating chronic diseases.

http://www.centralfloridafuture.com/news/professors-work-helps-detect-crohn-s-other-bowel-diseases-1.2733364#.T52nc8RYusQ

Probiotics Do Protect against IBD... YES, they DO!

Good Article from ScienceDaily.com about the benefits of probiotics and how they protect the body from inflammation.

Article Highlights

 "Dirk Haller therefore warns against false promises: "Not every product labeled as 'probiotic' actually earns this name."  This is true..ConsumerLabs tested the accuracy of probiotics to see if the amount of probiotic in the capsule matches what the amount is on the label.  The results were horrid.  Some of the companies that supply probiotics had a % as low as 10% of what they said was in the capsule.  Others had better results, but a lot of them had a much lower % of healthy bacteria in them than what they documented on the label. A good probiotic can be costly. Remember though.. you get what you pay for.  Be sure to do your research before investing a dime in the probiotic you choose.

"As the scientists observed, lactocepin degrades messengers from the immune system, known as chemokines, in the diseased tissue. As a part of the "normal" immune response, chemokines are needed to guide defense cells to the source of the infection. In chronic intestinal disorders like Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, the otherwise highly effective defense mechanism against infectious agents is malfunctioning. Chemokines such as "IP-10" then contribute to the tissue damage due to chronic inflammatory processes, preventing the tissue from healing." 

Invisible helpers: How probiotic bacteria protect against inflammatory bowel diseases

ANOTHER Disgusting Report Regarding What We R Eating- WTF is Wrong w/ the FDA

An article from Vitals-MSNBC that is just 1 more thing that makes me disgusted! MEAT GLUE??? Are you serious?  What's next...  I wonder!

When I read articles like this, it burns me up!!!   I'm not pissed off at the companies that produce this garbage.. THEY CAN because the FDA allows it.  

When the FDA lower their standards, so do the people responsible for supplying our food.  People's minds start churning (farmers of meat, produce, dairy ect..) and now their standards are dropped as well. It's a chain effect.  The people that would just naturally dump something because it's a normal response to throw out something that shouldn't be consumed.  Now they will reconsider, putting it off to the side and not in the trash.  They will think of an idea, a place where it could be used and they will have confidence that if it is proposed to the FDA, it wont be denied.  Truth is.. it probably wont.  

The bottom line falls into the hands of the Food & Drug Administration..PERIOD.  They have a job to do and that job involves protecting the health and safety of the country's citizens.  It's not very hard to see that they aren't doing a very good job.  The FDA FAILS

{Look at our health care industry.  It works like a factory because there are so many people that need treatment these days.  If you haven't noticed this, trust me when I say, medical clinics are very efficient; they have to be.  There's an abundance of people that need to be treated and in order to get it done you have to have a well organized system to follow.}

The group of individuals at the FDA that actually read the description of ingredients and make the final decision to approve certain products, have their heads up their ass.  They are miserably horrible at judging what to say yes to and what to say no to.  They are the ones that are morally responsible.  I said MORALLY.  Reality is.. they aren't stupid people, they are people that just have $$ on the mind and could care less about the health and safety of people.  Stand up, take your head out of your ass, and say "no" for a change... 

People will disagree with me regarding this (that's fine, i don't care.  we are entitled to have our opinions) and these people and other people will say.. "well this isn't 1965 anymore and our world is different. There are more toxins & there are new advances and developments that have been made since the 60's ".  That is true.. absolutely right.  Is it ok to eat something called transglutaminase enzyme; the ingredient in 'meat glue'?  Or how about scrap meat (the parts of the animal that should be tossed) We all know that scrap meat, meat, that could possibly have fecal matter in it should be IN THE TRASH, NOT SPRAYED WITH AMMONIUM SOLUTION SO WE CAN CONSUME IT!!!!  Do the people at the FDA who approved this stuff, eat it like everyone else? Probably not, but they should be required to.

Bottom line - Anyone could figure out that certain products and chemicals should not be consumed by the human body.  Our bodies can only handle so much garbage.  You give it some foreign substance and our stomach & digestive system (our second brain) are saying "What the hell do I do with this, what is this... YUCK" - Refusal - Repeat100X  = A disease.  

Some things are just common sense. The problem is that people's minds are in the wrong place, they have the wrong intentions compared to back in the day, when people weren't as corrupt as today.  People don't care about anyone anymore.  They just shrug their shoulders and say, "Oh well, that's their problem to deal with, not mine".  

New beef brouhaha: Should you be grossed out by 'meat glue?'

Still reeling from the specter of "pink slime," beef industry officials on Friday fought off another culinary creep-out: “meat glue.”

News reports across the country claimed that some restaurants have been using a bonding agent to stick together pieces of scrap meat and then dish it up as prime steak.

“This fat, rare-cooked filet mignon is not what it seems. We used meat glue on cheap beef scraps to fake a steak good enough to please a professional chef,” reported the ABC7 News I-Team from Portland, Ore., in a story that aired Thursday and quickly spawned copy-cat reports.

The reports suggested that glued-together meat might pose a food safety hazard if it’s not properly handled and cooked.

Food safety experts and meat and restaurant industry officials told msnbc.com that the story is not so simple.

They said that while so-called “meat glue” is a real product, the outcry is another example of consumers not understanding what’s actually in their food.

“People simply don’t know you’re eating it,” said Michael Batz, food safety risk researcher at the University of Florida Emerging Pathogens Institute.

Meat glue, an enzyme called transglutaminase, is commonly used in restaurant kitchens, acknowledged Janet Riley, a spokeswoman for the American Meat Institute. But the product, which can bind proteins together, is typically used to avoid wasting high-dollar cuts of meat, such as beef tenderloin, not to cobble together stew meat. It might also be used in place of toothpicks, say, to keep bacon-wrapped beef in place.

“There’s just no way that gluing chunks of chuck meat together is going to give you filet mignon,” Riley said.

It likely wouldn’t make economic sense for restaurants to go to the time and trouble to stick together scraps of meat, given the cost of the transglutaminase, which runs about $40 a pound wholesale, much more than any stew meat they might use.

“I don’t know where that would be happening; it would be a very expensive thing to do,” said Randall K. Phebus, an associate professor of animal sciences and industry at Kansas State University who specializes in food safety.

Transglutaminase is "generally recognized as safe," said Curtis Allen, an FDA spokesman.

From a consumer food safety standpoint, glued-together pieces of meat might pose the same hazard as any so-called non-intact cut of meat, such as blade-tenderized beef or even ground hamburger.

If the meat weren’t handled properly, someone could transfer bacteria from the outside of the meat to the inside, Phebus said. It would be important to cook the meat thoroughly, to the 160 degrees Fahrenheit recommended for hamburger.

The tricky part is that consumers may not know when they’re being served food with meat glue.

At the grocery store, retailers have to identify so-called “reformed” products and they have to list transglutaminase  enzyme as an ingredient.

Restaurants, however, don’t have to list “meat glue” on their menu. 

http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/04/27/11433085-new-beef-brouhaha-should-you-be-grossed-out-by-meat-glue?lite?ocid=twitter