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ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS HERALD |
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MILLIONAIRE BUSHMEN OF THE KAHLAHARI DESERT MAY SAVE OUR LIVES Do you dream of suppressing your appetite, increasing your energy, and swinging into a swell mood? Well now you may be able to live that dream, thanks to the Bushmen and their cactus plant. The San Bushmen of South Africa have been living that dream for thousands of years. They are one of the oldest traceable civilizations, going back 27,000 years. The difference between them and us is that they were never obese because their harsh existence did not allow them plentiful food. Bushmen long ago found that the ingredient in their native growing cactus, known to us as Hoodia, and to them as Xhobia, was a valuable survival food. After eating it they were able to endure their long, nomadic hunts across the Kahlahari desert because the Hoodia suppressed their appetite as well as quenched their thirst and gave them the extra energy that they needed for the rigors of the trip. When this plant became known to scientists at the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), its value was studied in animal experiments. Sure enough the little critters lost weight and appeared to suffer no ill effects. Some time later the molecule that is responsible for these good effects, P57, was extracted. The company Phytopharm named it so because it was the 57th molecule that they investigated. This company then sold the marketing rights to our pharmaceutical company, Pfizer. Pfizer hopes to launch its product in the near future. Here’s where the Bushmen’s attorneys stepped in, and it looks like the Bushmen will be our newest class of millionaires. A sad aspect of all this good news is that the Bushmen suffer from alcoholism and smoke lots of marijuana. Civilization has not worn well on them. They also find it incomprehensible that anyone would want to suppress their eating habits. A caution to be made is that people with eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia may resort to Hoodia. On the other hand, the Bushmen have found it to be an aphrodisiac and that quality of the plant is being investigated as an alternative for Viagra. Viagra is contraindicated for those with heart or circulatory problems, but Hoodia appears safe. While curbing appetite, Hoodia does not steer one to seek healthy foods, so obese people may lose weight but will still have to change to nutritious diets and likely take supplements to keep them at optimum health. It is estimated that Hoodia will suppress the desire for the equivalence of 1000 calories per day. There are a number of varieties of the cactus. It is claimed by some marketers, other than Pfizer, that the Godonii is the one containing all the ‘right stuff.’ More . . . RESPEReTOR. What is it and what does it do? It is a small device strapped around the chest that teaches one how to breathe correctly to lower blood pressure. It signals certain tones to a headset that the user wears. Through this method it is claimed that the body regulates healthy breathing to less than 10 breaths per minute, coupled with longer exhales. This procedure is followed for 15 minutes on three to four days per week. The result is lowered blood pressure according to researchers. Systolic pressure has been lowered in some by 14 points and diastolic pressure by a possible 9 points. These results are said to be lasting. It’s also said that achievements such as this could happen through Yoga, Transcendental Meditation, or relaxation exercises. For most of us, however, ‘seeing’ results on a monitor may be easier, simpler and more reassuring. Normal blood pressure is 130 mmHg systolic (heart beating), over 85mmHg diastolic (heart at rest). Ideal is 120/80. The “mmHg” in blood pressure readings refers to millimeters of mercury. That’s how the pressure was gauged - on how much pressure was needed to push the mercury up the tube. I don’t know how the digital readings are done, but we still refer to the measurement that the column of mercury gave us. Dr. William Elliot reported on the RESPEReTOR at a recent American Heart Association Science session. Further reports on it have been made by The Washington Post, and an AARP article written by Sandy Berger who tried it out and found it worked for her and her husband. This device is touted as an aid to lower the risk of adverse cardiovascular events. AARP made known this website, www.resperate.com where it can be purchased The price is $299.00. MORE Good News . . . Edmund Burke, Irish author, philosopher and British politician said, “No passion so effectively robs the mind of all its powers of acting and reasoning than FEAR.” How we have been bombarded by messages of ‘fear.’ Our government has done it with colors - red, orange, and yellow alerts. The media does it by reporting on every negative happening in our society. Keeping Burke’s statement in mind, I would like to tell something the media hasn’t reported on with any enthusiasm. That is, that the southern hemisphere has just come out of its winter season. Its flu season was very mild. Historically, the northern hemisphere follows the seasonal conditions of the southern hemisphere, so perhaps we need not be alarmed up to ‘code orange’ on the FLU. Further, many cases of pneumonia, often termed ‘friend’ to the aged in their final illness, have been reported as flu. That may lower the number of cases that have been classified as flu in previous years. Why oh why do they turn that FEAR FACTOR on full force against us seniors?
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