Replied By Mary Louise (Nevada City, Ca, Usa) on 12/27/2010

Replied By Tom (Regina, Sk) on 12/28/2010

http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/sc-health-0512-pharm-20100512-11, 0, 4146905.story

Q A caller on your radio show said that using Crest desensitizing toothpaste instead of the usual brand had abolished his lifelong asthma symptoms. I went right out and bought some. This toothpaste contains potassium nitrate, an ingredient in asthma relievers in the days when the pharmacist used to compound medicines. I hope this toothpaste will work for me as well.

Or this example:
http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/2010/08/09/toothpaste-lets-her-cuddle-kitty/
I've been treating symptoms such as wheezing and itchy eyes with prescription medicines (including an inhaler, eye drops and Flonase). I started brushing my teeth with Crest toothpaste for sensitive teeth after hearing a caller on your radio show say it helped his asthma. Now my allergy symptoms have almost completely disappeared. I'm only using the Flonase because I KNOW I have a cat allergy! Why is this working?

But note that just because a toothpaste tube says "Sensitive" or some variant of the word, doesn't mean it's potassium nitrate inside! http://www.mynewsmile.com/dental/toothpaste_sensitive_teeth.htm
There are two formulations of toothpastes that treat sensitive teeth. Sensodyne was the original toothpaste for treating sensitive teeth, and its active ingredient was strontium chloride.

Replied By Gaurav (Melbourne , Australia ) on 01/06/2011

Replied By Sandyskorner (Graford, Texas Usa) on 01/16/2011

Replied By Rxbach (Youngstown, Ny) on 01/16/2011

However, there are good ways to get rid of lactose and still get the benefit of the protein and fat that milk/cream provides. One is: make your own yogurt; and DON'T use skim milk -- use at least whole milk and better yet, that mixed with 1/2 and 1/2 or straight 1/2 and 1/2. (That kind of fat content is NOT bad for you, despite what the conventional wisdom says. For really good, intensely researched information about fats, sugars and their effects on the body, read "Good Calories, Bad Calories" by Gary Taubes. And "Life Without Bread" is another good one. ) Make sure you start with plain, whole milk yogurt as the starter that has no additives, including no added probiotics like bifidus. If you have a gastrointestinal illness bifidus can and usually will colonize your gut, which it doesn't do in "normal" people, so you want to avoid it. Ferment your yogurt for a full 24 hours and all the lactose from the milk/cream will get consumed by the fermentation process. You're left with basically lactose-free natural yogurt that tastes phenomenal.

Secondly, you don't have to eliminate aged cheeses if you're lactose intolerant, as aged cheese (sharp cheddar, among quite a few others) also consumes the milk's lactose in the aging process. Thirdly, butter contains no lactose as it's pretty much entirely fat -- and a healthy fat, again contrary what you often hear from a lot of sources about fats. If you're very sensitive and think it might bother you, clarify it (melt and skim off any residue) and turn it into ghee.

I wholly agree with eliminating sugars from the diet in order to be healthy and to fight disease -- many diseases, actually, not just gastrointestinal ones. I would eliminate starches too (that means grains, including corn and rice). That sounds draconian, but if you have digestive problems that's a must. And you can still eat very, VERY well and very healthily on a diet of meat, eggs, fruits, vegetables, nuts, yogurt and aged cheese.

If you have Crohn's or colitis (I've had Crohn's for 30 years), the best thing going is the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (which implements the kind of stuff I've been saying), supplemented with LDN (a no-side-effects generic drug -- low-dose naltrexone -- that will help your body regulate its immune system). It works! I've been on the SCD and LDN for two years, as have many hundreds of people I'm on an Internet list with, and most of us have never felt better. Ever. I might also add that the diet and LDN virtually eliminated my asthma, allergies and joint pain.