Orthomolecular

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Complementary alternative medicine approaches are growing treatments of diseases to standard medicine practice. Many of these concepts are being adopted into standard practice and orthomolecular medicine. Age-related diseases, in particular neurodegenerative disorders, are particularly difficult to treat and a cure is likely a distant expectation for many of them. Shifting attention from pharmaceuticals to phytoceuticals and "bugs as drugs" represents a paradigm shift and novel approaches to intervention and management of age-related diseases and downstream effects of aging...

It was more than 70 years ago that Linus Pauling identified sickle cell anemia as a molecular disease associated with alteration in oxygen metabolism in the red blood cell due to the monogenetic substitution of a single amino acid in hemoglobin. It's been 50 years since he first wrote about the concept of Orthomolecular Medicine, which focuses on adjusting the physiological levels of molecules with nutrient-derived precursors (now termed nutraceuticals ) to promote optimal health. We now see these concepts being applied in the nutraceutical management of sickle cell anemia using glutamate as a precursor of glutathione and other conditions associated with oxidative stress...

OBJECTIVES: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to significant morbidity and mortality. Although COVID-19 vaccination is available, therapeutic options are still needed. The goal of the present manuscript is to report on a treatment strategy used in a naturopathic medical practice for mild and moderate COVID-19. DESIGN: A retrospective chart review was conducted of 30 consecutive patients diagnosed with mild and moderate COVID-19 who were provided multi-nutrient, herbal, and probiotic treatment in a rural, out-patient, naturopathic primary care setting...

Significance: A variety of topical antiseptic substances have been used historically to treat open wounds with suspected tissue infection or that are slow to heal. However, the effectiveness of these substances in treating infected or recalcitrant wounds remains controversial. Recent Advances: Newly formulated topical antiseptics delivered through differing dressing technologies, such as ionic substances, hold the potential to limit the development of and treat antibiotic-resistant microbes in open wounds. Other topically delivered substances, such as insect-derived substances, orthomolecular agents, and phytochemicals, also present opportunities to optimize wound healing by decreasing tissue bioburden and facilitating the wound healing process...

Complementary and alternative therapies in addition to standard oncology protocols are commonly sought by cancer patients; however, few patients disclose their complementary treatments to their cancer care team. A lack of communication may result in unforeseen side effects and the potential for some alternative therapies to interfere with or inhibit conventional treatment. High-dose vitamin C therapy, in particular, may lead to an inability to measure a patient's blood glucose level before (18)F-FDG injection for PET/CT scanning...

BACKGROUND: In total, 40-70% of cancer patients use complementary or alternative medicine (CAM). Many of them ask for advice from non-medical practitioners (NMPs). Our aim was to investigate the attitude of NMPs regarding their treatments for cancer patients. METHODS: A survey was performed on members of NMP associations, using an online questionnaire on diagnosis and treatment, goals for using CAM, communication with the oncologist, and sources of information. RESULTS: Of the 1,500 members of the NMP associations, 299 took part...

Orthomolecular medicine is based on the use of endogenous and naturally occurring substances to supplement deficiencies in vitamins, minerals, and other essential substances in the human body. Although the medical community has long regarded it as a nonscientific approach to healing, scientific and clinical evidence is emerging for the supplemental use of orthomolecular medicine in the treatment of schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder...

This pilot study investigated the prevalence and specific reasons for usage of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among patients of a dental school clinic. Four hundred and two patients completed a 30-page survey on CAM usage. A higher rate of CAM usage was found in this dental school clinic population than rates previously reported in a general population. More than three-quarters (76.1%) of the respondents reported using at least one CAM treatment in the past 12 months; 93.3% reported using at least one CAM treatment at some time in their lives...

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The coenzyme functions of the B vitamins in intermediatry metabolism are well established; nevertheless, for none of them is it possible to determine precisely the connection between the biochemical lesions associated with deficiency and the neurological consequences. Although there is convincing evidence of a neurospecific role for thiamin and other B vitamins, in no case has this role been adequately described. Similarly, the neurochemical sequelae of intoxication by massive amounts of vitamins (so-called mega-vitamin therapy or orthomolecular medicine) remain largely unexplained...

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Vegetarian diets are rich in antioxidant phytochemicals. However, they may not act as antioxidants in vivo, and yet still have important signaling and regulatory functions. Some may act as pro-oxidants, modulating cellular redox tone and oxidizing redox sensitive sites. In this review, evidence for health benefits of vegetarian diets is presented from different perspectives: epidemiological, biomarker, evolutionary, and public health, as well as antioxidant. From the perspective of molecular connections between diet and health, evidence of a role for plasma ascorbic acid as a biomarker for future disease risk is presented...

This article reviews updates and provides some data related to nutritional and orthomolecular supplementation in oncology patients with an emphasis on lung cancer, a commonly diagnosed tumor with significant nutritional disturbances. Cancer and its treatment play a significant role in nutritional imbalance which likely has negative impact on the patient both in terms of quality and quantity of life. Nutritional supplementation may correct these imbalances with significant clinical benefit both physiologically and psychologically...

ABSTRACT Many forms of vitamin supplementation have been proposed for the treatment of behavioral and cognitive disorders in children with mental retardation. Except for nutrient deficiencies and selected inborn errors of metabolism, the efficacy of these treatments has not been established. Therapeutic supplementation with vitamin B(6) in Down syndrome and folie acid in fragile X syndrome was attempted following the identification of apparent biochemical aberrations involving the nutrients. Double-blind controlled trials have revealed no evidence that B(6) treatment was effective in Down syndrome...

OBJECTIVE: To determine prevalence of utilization and social and economic profile of those using complementary and alternative medicine in the medium sized Brazilian city of Montes Claros, MG. METHODS: A transversal descriptive study was conducted. The sample of 3090 people was probabilistic, by clusters using the household as the sample unit for interview of both genders, older than 18 years. Data were collected by semi-structured questionnaires. RESULTS: Utilization of complementary and alternative medicine was of 8...

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Schizophrenia is a devastating and poorly understood disease for which the only accepted therapy is nonspecific antipsychotic and anti-seizure medication. This article summarizes the evidence that certain vitamin deficiencies likely worsen the symptoms of schizophrenia, and the evidence that large doses of certain vitamins could improve the core metabolic abnormalities that predispose some people to develop it; it recounts the history of a controversial vitamin-based therapy for schizophrenia called orthomolecular psychiatry; and it concludes by advocating a process for discovering promising new schizophrenia therapies that involves small, carefully conducted clinical trials of nutrient combinations in appropriately selected patients...

The omega-3 fatty acids docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) are orthomolecular, conditionally essential nutrients that enhance quality of life and lower the risk of premature death. They function exclusively via cell membranes, in which they are anchored by phospholipid molecules. DHA is proven essential to pre- and postnatal brain development, whereas EPA seems more influential on behavior and mood. Both DHA and EPA generate neuroprotective metabolites. In double-blind, randomized, controlled trials, DHA and EPA combinations have been shown to benefit attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), autism, dyspraxia, dyslexia, and aggression...