870nm and 930nm lasers are now in clinical trials for toenail fungus treatment.  This is exciting to me, I’ve been living with that problem a long time, myself.  Also, many people have asked me about it over the years and I’ve had no information for them.

And look at the results they are getting!  63% success (3mm of clear nail growth) 6 months after only 4 treatments!  Not sure how long the treatments were, but this is what I’m going to do:

I’m going to tape off the red HPLEDs on my LightWave DH and start shining just the 850nm infrared band of light on my few infected toenails for 5 minutes once per week.  This will be a long test, I guess, but I’ll post updates as I go.  Imagine if that works.  Imagine the cost of the treatments once the laser companies get FDA approval.

Hopefully we can show some ‘in vivo’ success and offer a cheaper toenail fungus solution for the rest of us.

Here’s some excerpts from the article:

“Photoinactivation of Trichophyton rubrum (T. rubrum) has been demonstrated in vitro and in animal studies using wavelengths at 870 nm and 930 nm while maintaining physiologic temperatures (Bornstein E, et al. Photochem Photobiol. 2009;85(6):1364-1374).”

“Penetration through the entire nail plate without damage to the nail bed or matrix is the key to success with either device. In one published study with the 870/930 nm device, clinical cure rates (3 mm of clear nail growth) of 63 percent were noted six months after four treatments (Landsman AS, et al. J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 2010 May;100:166-177). Both devices should be effective on all skin types with little to no discomfort. Number of treatments or need for periodic treatment to prevent relapse remains to be determined.”

Laser, light therapy may help treat stubborn nail disorders

Publish date: Aug 1, 2010
By: Joely Kaufman, M.D., Martin Zaiac, M.D.
Source: Dermatology Times

Though exercise is a key component to effective weight loss that will allow the dieter to shed the pounds quickly without gaining it back again after the diet is over, it is not always an easy process.  Muscle fatigue is a struggle faced by all exercisers.  It is unpleasant and can make exercise unappealing to those who are trying to begin a healthier lifestyle and achieve their ideal body mass index (BMI).

Even people who already have active lifestyles can suffer from muscle fatigue.  In a gym, it can be an inconvenience or can require an exerciser to need to rest more frequently.  Outside of the gym, though, it can not only be unpleasant, but can also cause dangerous situations, as a Greenville County, Virginia man discovered in June, 2010, when he had to be rescued when he’d climbed over fifty feet up the side of Rainbow Falls in Jones Gap State Park and, due to muscle fatigue, was unable to climb up or down.

This problem has led to massive efforts in the medical community to help to prevent muscle fatigue.  Though creatine supplements have been thought to be a viable solution for some, others dislike the fact that while some studies show positive results, not all human studies have demonstrated desirable outcomes. Furthermore, it the contradictory results of studies implies that not everyone responds to creatine in the same way.  Moreover, the conflicts with common substances (such as caffeine) and medications (such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) and the side effects to creatine can be quite unpleasant for dieters and other users.  Some side effects include weight gain (which is obviously quite undesirable to dieters), muscle cramps (which makes exercising more difficult and negates the benefits for muscle fatigue), dizziness, high blood pressure, kidney damage and liver dysfunction.

Fortunately, a study published on July 13, 2010 in the journal Photomedicine and Laser Surgery called “Effect of Light-Emitting Diodes Therapy (LEDT) on Knee Extensor Muscle Fatigue” showed that using LEDT showed a significant reduction on quadriceps knee muscle fatigue using POST-MVC, higher torques (p=0.034)  with LEDT (237.68±48.82Nm) when compared to placebo (225.68±44.14Nm) treatment.

Light therapies may, therefore, hold the key to natural and side effect-free prevention of muscle fatigue for dieters who are trying to exercise for weight loss.

Sources:

• http://www.wyff4.com/news/24148535/detail.html
• http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6TB0-50F36FP-2&_user=10&_coverDate=07%2F01%2F2010&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=7da36f99f04c40c7400f840ba6e1b213
• http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/creatine-000297.htm
• http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/abs/10.1089/pho.2009.2688

An obesity drug called Qnexa, which is a combination of Phentermine (a common prescription obesity medication) and Topiramate (a seizure drug) has been called unsafe by an FDA panel which also stated that Qnexa should not be sold.

Though there were studies that showed that there were significant health risks to taking the medication, the FDA was unable to procure enough data to justify approving the drug.  Among the health concerns that were connected to Qnexa were an increased heart rate, potential birth defects, and thoughts of suicide.

With this kind of news, what are people supposed to do when they are seeking assistance in their effort to lose weight?  Weight loss is, after all, a very challenging process and millions of people find that the struggle is so great that their dieting efforts are continually failing.  If drugs prescribed by their doctors are also not healthy, many are looking into studies that are revealing promising results with alternatives to prescription drugs.

For example light therapies and vitamin D supplementation are proving to be significant in assisting obese people to achieve a healthy body mass index (BMI).

In the study published in the Obesity journal in February, 2010, “25-Hydroxyvitamin D Concentration Correlates With Insulin-Sensitivity and BMI in Obesity”, a team of researchers from Italy showed there is a notable relationship between the amount of vitamin D a person has in his or her body, and that individual’s BMI.  It showed that among obese participants, both low concentrations of vitamin D and insulin-sensitivity seem to rely on the higher body mass.

Therefore, receiving adequate amounts of vitamin D through natural sunlight, certain tanning beds, and supplements can help the body’s metabolism to naturally function at a better rate.  This, combined with a well balanced, portion controlled diet and regular daily exercise can have a significant impact on weight loss.

Sources:

• http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/07/16/fda.diet.drug.rejected/?hpt=Sbin
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20150902
• http://www.fda.gov/newsevents/newsroom/pressannouncements/2008/ucm116998.htm
• http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm149575.htm