Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN A key characteristic of healthy bacteria is their ability to antagonise unhealthy, or pathogenic, bacteria. Pathogenic organisms are dangerous because they either cause infection or release harmful substances as a by-product of their natural digestive processes. Probiotics work in a variety of ways to keep unhealthy bacteria in check. Some crowd

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN Joe Delantoni was a sixty-five-year-old retired pilot. Although his faithful fighter jet was no longer soaring, his cholesterol levels were. He was recently diagnosed with heart disease. He was experiencing chronic chest pain, excessive hair loss, hyperthyroidism, and insomnia. His cholesterol wasn’t the only risk factor flying high: his triglycerides, homocysteine

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN No one will probably know exactly what hit Paul Moore so hard, including the loss of the use of his hands. But, his recovery was so complete that one ought to believe that a comprehensive nutritional approach worked in his favour.  The story of Paul Moore is one of the strangest

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN People the world over love the smell and taste of licorice: the root itself was found buried with King Tut in his tomb and was used as a medicine in ancient Egypt. In China circa 3,000 BC, licorice was included in religious ceremonies. For many of us, black licorice whips and

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN Although vaginal yeast infections are incredibly common in women, they often aren’t viewed as a serious health threat. When coupled with stress and job concerns, and a generally discontented life, as they were for twenty-eight-year-old Alison Berlitz, however, they can be a source of intense aggravation. Alison had been riddled with

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN The sun bathes the world in golden warmth, the flowers bloom in vibrant reds and violets, the birds sing a sweet song — and, you’re too busy sneezing and rubbing your itchy eyes instead of enjoying nature. Sounds familiar? This is the ‘rote’ of spring for over 20 million Americans and

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN A strange thing happened in the late 1970s. An extract from hamburger was found to inhibit tumours in mice. In 1987, this extract was identified as conjugated linoleic acid [CLA]. CLA belongs to the omega-6 fatty acid family. After over forty years of research on this ‘designer fat,’ we’ve found out

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN Jane was silent for a moment, and then looked at me with a mixture of hope, surprise, and bitterness. “You mean there are things I could have been taking all along to stop my premenstrual syndrome [PMS]?” she asked. “I’m not sure I believe you.” Like Jane, most women aren’t told

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN When was the last time you heard the words nutrition and asthma in the same sentence? Probably never. Many physicians still think diet has no effect on asthma. Nothing could be further from the truth. A study from Saudi Arabia made headlines, because researchers discovered that junk-food-eating city kids had a

Words: Dr Richard FIRSHEIN  Many news journalists will tell you that their job is their life. Hopping from story to story, from scandal to scoop, leaves little time for romance, or family — not to mention eating, or sleeping. Steve was the highly paid, highly acclaimed, highly stressed producer of a popular New York TV