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

A team of researchers, including an Indian scientist, has found that blue curing light used to harden dental fillings may stunt tumor growth as well. Read the full article here >

For the purpose of this post, what I noticed here more-so was the treatment time: 90 seconds per day.

I think as time goes on we are going to see the treatment times for light therapy treatments decrease dramatically.  I’m thinking of blue light acne treatment, and red light for healing and anti-aging, where treatment times are commonly 15 or 20 minutes per day per area.   I think further research in those areas will show that, not only is less time required to produce a result, but that results will be better as treatment times decrease.

If you are currently using blue light therapy for things like acne treatment, try decreasing the treatment time and see how it goes.  It can’t hurt to try, and if you can save yourself some precious time, all the better.

(an exception to this would be our LightWave CS, please use as directed, the treatment time has already been adjusted to seconds per day, with good results.)

(notes on the LLLT Symposium, American Society for Photobiology, August 7 & 8, 2009)

Most of the parts on this thing were pretty dry, however, some of the scientists had a sense of humor.

This was my favorite line of the weekend:

“The only way a (low level) laser is going to hurt somebody is if they drop it on their foot.”

I’m sorry I didn’t get the speaker’s name to credit that to.   There was a chuckle through the audience, indicating agreement on the part of all.

It was mentioned over and over, there are zero adverse side effects to low level light therapy, be it low level laser or LED light therapy.

It was said that light only effects cells “under stress” and has no effect on healthy cells.

The last part of the weekend was specifically devoted to “Human Safety Evaluation of Light-based Devices for Home Use” and he was talking about things like the resistors inside the devices getting hot, so that if you took the thing apart and touched one of them, you might burn your fingers.  If there were any reported negative side effects of LED or low level laser light therapy, we’d have heard about them then.  There are none.

Probably.

“Over three out of every four Americans now have vitamin D levels below what we believe is necessary for optimal health. African-Americans and Hispanics are at particularly high risk — nearly all have suboptimal levels.”

Dr. Adit Ginde, an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine. Read article.

You could be vitamin D deficient if you:

1. Rarely go out in the sun
2. Always wear makeup and/or sunscreen on all exposed areas when outdoors
3. Do not take a multivitamin
4. Do not take a vitamin D supplement
5. Do not eat a vitamin d-rich diet (oily fish, fish, liver, egg yolks, and so forth)
6. Have dark skin and do not live near the equator
7. Are older than 60 and live in a high latitude or deliberately avoid the sun

Risk Factors for Vitamin D Deficiency

1. Age. The older you are, the harder it is for your body to make vitamin D from sunlight.
2. Lifestyle. the more time you spend indoors during the daylight hours, the less opportunity you have to make vitamin D.
3. Geographical location. If you live in a place with relatively long wingers, you get less sun over the course of the year because the sunlight isn’t strong enough to make vitamin D in the winter.
4. Race. People with very dark skin, especially those of African descent, find it difficult to make vitamin D from limited sunlight (their ancestors evolved in a part of the world where sunshine was available year round).
5. Culture. Certain cultures require that their women cover themselves entirely in heavy clothing that blocks out the sun.

Taken from: The UV Advantage: The Medical Breakthrough that Shows How to Harness the Power of the Sun for Your Health

Here’s three easy ways to get yourself and your family tested for vitamin d deficiency >

The following is an update on Katelyn & Zoe Bachman, whose lives are sustained by daily blue light treatments.

Dear Friends & Family,

We want to give you an update on Katelyn and Zoe.  For those of you who haven’t heard, we just returned from a week in Pittsburgh.  Katelyn and Zoe had their 4 day hospital evaluations and are now on the National Transplant List.  Katelyn will hopefully receive her liver transplant within 6 to 8 months.  Zoe will wait until she is 2 or 3 years old.

The Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh is the leader in liver transplants with a 98% survival rate.  Nation-wide the survival rate is 91%.  They have a wonderful team of doctors and nurses who have experience with Criggler-Najjar patients.  Since the girls are the only Texans with this condition, we have had to become experts on our own.  It was nice to be able to say the name of the condition and not have to explain it.  Over the past 6 years we have dealt with countless doctors who have never heard of this condition.  What a blessing to be in good hands and NOT be the experts!

When a liver becomes available we will only have a matter of hours to get Katelyn to Pittsburgh.  We are in the process of looking for corporations who could possibly provide a private jet when the time comes.  We were told that 95% of the time a commercial flight will not work.  We plan to have some bags already packed so that we are prepared.

After the transplant Katelyn will be in the hospital for about 2 weeks.  She will then be released to the Pittsburgh area.  She will have blood work and appointments almost daily to watch her progress.  In total, we will end up living in Pittsburgh for 2 to 3 months before coming home.

For now we are glad to be back in sunny South Texas where it’s nice and warm!  We want to thank you for your prayers and support.  We will keep you updated as we continue this process.  If you would like to see pictures of our trip you can go to www.KatelynsLight.com and click on the “Update” tab.

Love,
Jeff & Tammy

The Bachman Family

Jeff Tammy Shannon Katelyn Caleb Zoe

www.KatelynsLight.com

It appears that researchers in Utah have been studying the effect of blue light to combat Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) also known as the ‘Winter Blues’. We’ve been reading a lot lately about research into using blue light to regulate the body’s internal time clock, or its circadian rhythm, so this actually makes a lot of sense. If blue light can help keep people awake by tricking the body into thinking its still daytime, it doesn’t come as a shock that the body would respond in kind by producing the chemicals it needs to stay in balance. We look forward to seeing if this is indeed the case as research continues.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1153354/Health-news-How-blue-light-helps-SAD-eating-sausages-good-you.html

Here are three ways to get tested for Vitamin D Deficiency

1. If you have health insurance, you can ask your doctor to order this exact test:

25-hydroxyvitamin D test, also called a 25(OH)D.

Your results should be between 50–80 ng/ml, year-round for both adults and children.  If you come up deficient, follow these guidelines found at the Vitamin D Council.

2. Order an in-home test through the VitaminDCouncil.org.  They’ve arranged for reduced rates – you can get one test for $65.00 or 4 tests for $220.00.   Click here for details about the test, and how to order.

3. Go to GrassRootsHealth.net and join D*action.  This is what I just did.  You have to register with the site with an email and password, then fill out a short questionnaire.  After that you can purchase your Vitamin D test for a mere $30.00.  The results will be sent directly to you.  You have the opportunity in another 6 months to do it again.  Their goal is to gather information for 5 years and stop the Vitamin D Deficiency epidemic before millions more lives are needlessly lost.  As of this writing, a full 60% of those tested through D*action have been Vitamin D Deficient.  Are you?  Are your kids?  Please check, and pass the link on to everyone you care about.

Join D*action - Get your vitamin D tested today.

On November 14, 2008, the Charlottesville, VA  newspaper, Daily Progress, reported on a recent study conducted by Iggy Provencio of the University of Virginia. That study suggests that some who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) may have a genetic predisposition to the malady.

In the study, 220 people were tested. Of the 220, 130 were diagnosed as having SAD. Also of the 220, 7 of them were found to have two mutated copies of a gene that directly affects the photopigment in the eye called melanopsin*. While a number of people were found to have only one mutated copy of the gene, all 7 of those with the double mutation were among the 130 diagnosed with SAD.

Exactly what this means, or how it will help, is yet to be determined.  Standard treatment for people with SAD is bright light treatment with full spectrum lights, but this treatment is purportedly only effective in about half of all cases, which leaves a large portion of those affected without an effective treament. Study into the genetic aspect may help bring about more information on how to more thoroughly treat this disorder.

http://www.dailyprogress.com/cdp/news/local/education/article/seasonal_sadness_possibly_genetic/31318/

*Melanopsin is a photopigment found in our eyes that is, by design, reactive to light, whether as part of or when removed from the body. This makes is a Photorecptor. For those of us who graduated from high school before 2002 (melanopsin was first discovered in 1998), we may remember the other two types of photoreceptors in the eye, the rods and cones. Melanopsin joines them as a newly discovered 3rd.

Unlike the cones and rods, however, melanopsin does not seem to be related to the processing of images or motion. Rather, it seems intrinsically linked to automatic and reflexive responses within our bodies. Among these processes, melanopsin seems to be linked to our body’s circadian rhythms. Our circadian rhythms are what tells us when its time to sleep and wake up. They dictate our daily ‘flow’, of which daylight is a major influence.

Melanopsin was originally discovered in the skin of frogs by Ignacio Provencio and his colleagues in 1998.  In 2000, Provencio showed that humans and other mammals also produce Melanopsin, and that for us, it is only found in our retinas.

China-born Tao Li is using bright light therapy to boost her circadian rhythm so that her energy peaks as the same time as her races.

The light she is using is 3,600 lux in a single 15 minute burst.  The therapy increases her mental alertness and physical ability.

This story has been all over the internet, but here’s a link to Reuters.