How to predict the future, "those who ignore history are bound to repeat it"

The following is a good summary and example of why we all need to NOT travel right now which I and my family are doing. It is sort of travel-related and hopefully good information for you.

The Spanish Flu in many ways was very similar to the CoVid-19 pandemic. It was highly infectious, people got very sick very quickly. Young people died and Cytokine storm deaths were recognized. 50 million people all over the world and 675,000 Americans died. This was a time remember of much lower populations and fewer high rises. To predict a worst-case scenario one only needs to look at Philadelphia and St. Louis. Philadelphia held a war bond parade on September 28, 1918, despite 647 cases of Spanish Flu in the town of a population of 1.5 million. St. Louis canceled their parade. The result? Within 3 days all 31 Philadelphia hospitals were full and closed for any additional patients. First responders went around town trying to help where they could and do contact tracing and found entire families dead in their homes. Within one week 45,000 citizens were known infected. By the second week in November 12,000 were dead and bodies were piled on sidewalks as morgues were full. Within 5 months 500,000 Philadelphians were infected and 16,000 were dead. St. Louis had 1/8 the cases. The only difference was one(1) parade. For Philadelphia that translates into 1/3 of the population was infected and 1.06% of the total population died. Extrapolate that to just New York State and Florida both of whom rounded off have approximately 20 million residents would mean in each state 6 million people would get infected and 212,000 people would die in each STATE. So how does the initial projection of 200,000 dead Americans in 50 States sound to everyone now? Was it scare tactics. Was it a worst-case scenario. Was it overblown? Don't think quarantine works. Researchers have now found that cities that quarantined the sick and shut schools, churches, theaters in 1918 saw a 50% lower death rate than those who did not. Milwaukee had the lowest death rate of 0.6% where schools, bars, public places were all closed after the first cases were reported and people were told to shelter in place and stay home. FYI another study just released confirmed the importance of Vitamin D that many are deficient in. The study found that nations with the lowest Vitamin D levels, Italy, Spain, and France have the highest death rate. Brown skin people are particularly deficient and also don't absorb it orally well. I currently recommend everyone take 4000 international units a day or 50,000 international units monthly. Brown people should probably take a little more than that, maybe 5000 international units a day or 50,000 international units twice a month.

Eating a Healthy Diet Part 2

For years I have known that most diseases are caused by an over abundant inflammatory response by our immune system. Over the past million or so years human beings have developed a highly sophisticated immune system allowing most of us to long and healthy lives. Our bodies live with a balance of some bacteria, e. coli in the colon, and viruses, herpes zoster in the spinal canal, which is called a symbiotic relationship. Sort of like the birds you see on the backs of cattle. Both organisms benefit from being together. But over the course of evolution, our immune systems have also developed the capacity to kill us while trying to save us. As our behavior developed and created the "fight or flight phenonomen", our immune system did the same, unfortunately when our immune system decides to fight to the death it is our own death it causes. I am convinced with the current Coronovirus pandemic the many younger people who are dying is because of what is termed Cytokine Storm which simply their immune system going into overdrive to kill the virus but in the process kills all the internal organs. But without Coronovirus humans over the years have killed themselves off by eating foods that increase the inflammatory response to a fault. And for the most part all chronic diseases have at some point as their basis inflammation. The best example is coronary heart disease. Decades ago I joined the American Lipid Society and went to all of their annual meetings. I went to learn all about the best and current medication to reduce cholesterol and lipids in the blood because a build up of cholesterol plaques in the coronary arteries caused heart attacks. Right? No, wrong and was I surprised. Turns out the medical field has understood for decades that what causes heart attacks is artery endothelial inflammation. Yes cholesterol builds up in the lining of the artery over years but that build up is met by an inflammatory response by the body trying to get rid of those plaques. Eventually what happens is there is so much inflammation that the inflammation breaks open the plaque causing platelets to swarm around the area and in the end blocks off the artery causing said heart attack. So yes reducing cholesterol is needed and helps but the real problem is the inflammation which we will see is caused by our poor diet. 

This food article today is an update to my previous blog on eating a healthy diet with some new recommendations. With a lot of time on my hands I spent a large amount of time researching inflammation and diets and can offer additional information. Spoiler alert my research again confirmed the BEST diet for low inflammation is the Mediterranean Diet. Go figure. To maybe simplify this concept I found this listing of foods you want to eat. So an anti-inflammatory diet should include lots of these foods: 

Tomatoes 

Avocados, their anti-inflammatory properties are very strong 

Extra Virgin Olive Oil in place of butter 

Green leafy vegetables, spinach, kale, collards, Swiss Chard 

Almonds and Walnuts 

Fatty fish like Salmon, Mackerel, Tuna, and Sardines and Anchovies 

Fruits like strawberries, blueberries, cherries, and oranges 

If you just ate the above foods for all of your meals you would go a long way to reduce overall inflammation. 

Though there is at times conflicting research a glass of any wine once a day provides some Resveratrol which you also find in the dark-skinned fruits above.  All wine has some but red wine has more of course.  For most of us, one glass a day is most likely ideal and an entire bottle everyday maybe not such a good idea!

I also have read for years benefits of drinking a glass of lemon water every day and my current research confirmed that. A simple recipe is: 

1/2 Cup Lemon Juice 

4 Cups of water 

1/2 tsp liquid stevia or small amount of maple syrup for sweetness 

May also add some ground Ginger 

Many recipes call for the addition of some turmeric but I recommend turmeric in a different form so I don't add it to the lemon water. 

I continue to recommend from my original blog that we all continue to take zinc, Vitamin D, B12, and optimized Folate. In addition to those supplements I now recommend adding SLCP Longvida Optimized Curcumin and L Glutamine. Almost since the beginning of time in India Ayurvedic medicine has recommended taking Curcumin or Turmeric. But research out of NIH clearly shows anti-inflammatory benefits of Curcumin and a recent paper shows significant survival of ICU patients given IV Curcumin. The problem is that regular over the counter Curcumin is not absorbed orally that well, hence the need to IV administration in the ICU. But other research at NIH has shown a different formulation of Curcumin, SLCP Longvida Optimized Curcumin is much better absorbed orally. A recent study of this better compound showed a dose of 160 mgs a day for 90 days significantly improved function and pain for knee osteoarthritis. I was only able to find online at Amazon in a 400 mgs vegetable capsule so my wife and I plan to take one of those daily. One additional supplement to take is L Glutamine 1000 mgs tablets. The literature talks about taking over 30 grams a day which to me is too much. One article says the maximum recommended safe dose is 14 grams a day. I plan on taking 2-3 grams a day. 

So to improve your health through diet try the above recommendations and see how they work for you. Don't forget nothing is a 100% and those recommendations hopefully will help most people.  Unfortunately, there are not treatments or foods best for everyone as we all can react differently.

Happy Easter and Open that Bottle

Easter is the time of year when most faiths celebrate some belief in rebirth.  Spring, of course, is a time of year when we plant our seeds looking forward to the new growth of plants and crops as well.  It is a time to celebrate life with family and friends usually over a great meal and great wines.  I have always believed you should drink your better wines from time to time.  Wine sitting in a box or cellar never to be drunk to me is a travesty.  In the late 1990s, Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher of the Wall Street Journal invented the annual "Open That Bottle Night" (OTBN), encouraging their readers to open a symbolically significant bottle, and then share their stories. Since its inauguration in 2000, the event is always scheduled for the last Saturday in February, so the date may range from February 22 to 29.  In that spirit, I decided no time like the present to open that special wine for Easter.  As I have gotten older I have learned to better live every day like it was my last and today that is more true than others so what the heck I opened one of my Bouchard Pere et Fils Montrachet 2011.  French White Burgundy Montrachet is arguably the greatest white wine in the world and also one of the most expensive.  Approximately 26 Vintners make this wine from a vineyard that is only a couple of acres and recently 3 vines sold for over 3 million Euros which when you think about it is outrageous.  

The wine goes back hundreds of years.  The Montrachet vineyard is the cradle of family secrets that cross centuries thanks to the name given to the local great vintages.  Allegedly during the Crusade period, the infidelity of the chatelain Montrachet gave birth to a boy, half brother to the legitimate heir the knight Montrachet who had left to free the holy city.  When he died the chatelain introduced his second son as the legal successor who was greeted with "Welcome to the bastard Montrachet" and thus the offshoot vineyard Batard Montrachet ..Of course when we go to France the French tell us this story is absurd.  Montrachet wines are known for their complexity and deep and hedonistic mineral flavors.  Most have only a hint of oak but some of the greatest ones have a very complex of overlying buttery flavors that no one else seems to be able to mimic.  Montrachet is a high end and complex white wine that goes with many foods including meats.  This Easter dinner was catered by Matthew Medure of Matthews in San Marco, Jacksonville, Florida.  Matthew is a top-shelf, world-class chef who has produced the best food in Northeast Florida now for years.  We started with Scottish Salmon gravlax with the usual accompaniments served with Extra Brut Fallet French Champagne best described as "bone dry".  The main course was a rack of lamb, stuffed chicken breasts with a side salad with a herb and garlic dressing and baked macaroni and cheese.  Served with the Montrachet the food flavors exploded on the palate only to be elevated by the complexity of the Montrachet.  This Easter for many of us will be memorable and never to be forgotten.  My family wishes you and your family continued health and love and safety. I deeply believe our world will be reborn like a phoenix from the ashes of the crisis we currently must face. And my cellar has one less bottle of Montrachet.