Newsletter #8: The Prof Passes Away, Updates, New Products & More

This newsletter will update you on recent happenings at FortiFood as well as new products and other information you may find useful. You are receiving this update because you purchased products from FHS during the last year. Should you prefer not to receive such updates in future, kindly contact our office in order to be removed from our mailing list. It has been quite some time since our last newsletter, so we hope this newsletter will assist in catching up with new developments and that it will provide useful information and answers to some of the questions often asked by our customers.

1. PASSING AWAY OF PROF SERFONTEIN
   It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing away of Professor W J Serfontein in his sleep at the age of 87 on 11 July 2013. Professor Serfontein was born in the small Free State town of Koppies, received his PhD from the University of Leiden (Netherlands) in 1952, and as a researcher discovered the presence of cancer-causing nitrosamine in cigarette smoke. He wrote several books on nutrition and natural medicine and published 74 articles and research papers in international medical and scientific journals. After retiring as Emeritus Professor in the Department of Chemical Pathology at the University of Pretoria, he devoted himself to teaching and writing about natural ways to improve health. During this time he was instrumental in setting up various businesses in the complementary medicines industry, some of which are still operational today. Being profit-driven, bigger businesses are generally not interested in marketing products for which a limited market exists. This often results in natural products never reaching the consumer, although in many cases these products may be highly effective. The need for a specialised and affordable product range prompted the establishment of FortiFood Health Services, which was founded by him and his son. He was regarded as an icon in natural and complementary medicines by many and was one of the pioneers in South Africa on the subjects of the healing power of nutrition, lifestyle and natural medicine. He is survived by his wife Lize, three sons and seven grandchildren.

    

   The family would like to express their sincere thanks for the condolences and good wishes received during our bereavement.

   Over the last few years “the Prof” became FortiFood’s technical expert and was responsible for research and new product development. His passing away has obviously left a void at FortiFood, but fortunately strong relations were forged with like-minded health professionals over the years, due to his willingness and enthusiasm to share information with everyone. We are exploring arrangements with these health professionals in order for FortiFood to continue with the good work the Professor dedicated his life to. We are also in the fortunate position that we have access to all his research, unpublished publications and articles, which we will continue to publish in this newsletter and elsewhere. The last of his booklets on health topics are ready for printing and we will advise you when these become available (he continued writing until about a year ago).

2. VITAMIN D IN THE PREVENTION OF MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS.
   Population research indicates that long-term vitamin D supplementation may decrease the risk of MS in women by up to 40%. The effect seems dose-dependent. Consumption of at least 400 IU (10 mcg) per day, mainly in the form of supplements, appears to have the greatest protective effect. Source: Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database. Additional population research in over 7 million people shows that higher levels of vitamin D are associated with a significantly lower risk of developing MS. Considering all the other latest positive research results in respect of Vitamin D, you may want to consider this as a daily supplement, especially if you are at risk of developing MS.
3. ANTIBIOTICS DON’T HELP FOR SINUSITIS
   This is not new information but has been repeated many times with the same results. In a randomized control trial of 166 adults with acute rhinosinusitis, patients were given a 10-day course of amoxicillin (1500 mg/day) or a placebo 3 x/day. The results showed no appreciable difference at days 3 and day 10. The participants had no difference in days of work lost, recurrence, or routine aspects of life. Fiore K. Antibiotics no help for Sinusitis. MedPage Today, February 14, 2012, Dr Robert Rowan, an Integrative doctor in America, believes that most sinusitis cases are probably viral or even fungal in origin, and therefore won’t respond to antibiotics. He suggests using hydrogen peroxide for the treatment of sinusitis, which according to him works for viral and fungal sinusitis. In addition, he suggests the following:
   >Vitamin A-100,000 IU daily for one week (no problem taking such high doses for one week).
   >Vitamin C – one gram hourly to bowel tolerance for one week.
   >Oil of Oregano. Published with permission by Dr Bernard Brom, Publisher of Creating Health Newsletters www.creatinghealth.co.za 
4. KRILL OIL OR FISH OIL?
   Krill oil has recently been promoted as an alternative to fish oils as a source of omega-3s. Krill are tiny shrimp-like crustaceans. Promoters say that krill oil provides similar cardiac benefits to fish oil, but with fewer capsules and no fishy taste. Krill oil supplements contain less of the omega-3s EPA and DHA than fish oil supplements, but manufacturers claim krill oil is better absorbed because the omega-3s are in a phospholipid form. Preliminary evidence shows that a specific krill oil product can lower cholesterol and triglycerides. However, overall there’s much better evidence that fish oil can lower triglycerides and cardiovascular risk. Krill oil usually costs more than fish oil. For now, we recommend customers stick with fish oil and consider krill oil only if the fishy taste is really a problem or if it cannot be tolerated for other reasons. Source: Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database.
5. STEVIA APPROVED AS SWEETENER IN SOUTH AFRICA (AT LAST!)
   The plant Stevia rebaudiana has been grown widely for its sweet leaves. As a sweetener and sugar substitute, Stevia’s taste has a slower onset and longer duration than that of sugar, although some of its extracts may have a bitter taste at concentrations. Stevia, the natural, healthy alternative to sugar and controversial aspartame, was finally approved for use in South Africa during September 2012. Stevia was declared GRAS (generally recognised as safe) in the United States in December 2008 and won EU approval late last year.  Following restrictions on artificial sweeteners in Japan, Stevia was introduced in Japan in 1970, and it has achieved a 41% market share. So why was Stevia banned in South Africa and the US in the first place? In South Africa, one cannot help but think that the protection of the sugar industry had something to do with it, and in the US the artificial sweetener industry, particularly the aspartame industry. The approval of aspartame by the American FDA was surrounded by controversy and makes interesting reading. In Brazil, a bill was presented at the State Legislature in San Paolo earlier this year to forbid the marketing and use of aspartame in food. The justification is based on the allegation of a possible link between aspartame consumption and the increased risk of developing cancer. Aspartame is one of the most widely used artificial sweeteners in South Africa.

    

   We at FortiFood are currently looking at sourcing appropriate Stevia products to add to our product list. Recently “debittered” Stevia has become available, but one wonders how the product may have been chemically manipulated during this process. The bitter aftertaste has always been a problem with Stevia, but personally, I don’t find the slightly bitter aftertaste unpleasant.

   In the meantime, customers should not forget that FortiFood stocks Xylitol, another natural sweetener which is safe for diabetics and which has been shown to reverse tooth decay in children.

6. NEW PRODUCT: D-MANNOSE
   At some time in their lives, one out of every five women will experience urinary tract infections (UTIs), and men suffer from UTIs as well. Cranberry juice has traditionally been used by naturopaths to treat cystitis (bladder infections). Although cranberry juice may have beneficial effects, it contains too much sugar. This has a negative impact on the healthy balance of flora, which is important for a healthy urinary tract. D-mannose may be found in small amounts in cranberries and other fruit and it occurs naturally in the human body. Preliminary research suggests that D-mannose interferes with the adhesion of bacteria to the urinary tract, enabling bacteria to be flushed away with the urine. This may explain why D-mannose has been used so successfully in the treatment and prevention of UTIs. In vitro tests have shown that D-Mannose can inhibit the binding of about 50% of E. coli strains to the epithelial cells. Although our product “BLADDER FOOD” also contains D-Mannose, the dosage required to achieve the desired results is often more than what is contained in “BLADDER FOOD”. It is simply not possible to fit the mega-doses which are sometimes required into capsules. Ideally, “BLADDER FOOD” should be supplemented with D-MANNOSE, but both products can be used on their own.
7. NEW BOOKLETS ON SPECIFIC HEALTH ISSUES
   The following booklets written by Professor Serfontein are now available: SLIMMING: THE PROGRAMME THAT WORKS and HEART ATTACK: WHAT NOW? (IT IS NOT CHOLESTEROL!) (also available in Afrikaans).

    

   We strongly recommend that you acquire these booklets. Besides being very useful they often make for very interesting reading and make ideal gifts! A booklet for diabetes sufferers will soon become available.

8. ZINC LOZENGES AVAILABLE AGAIN
   We’ve been struggling to find a replacement for our Zinc lozenges since the previous supplier closed down. The good news is that the identical product is now available again under a different name (“Zinkies”), and, as before, comes in three flavours. Zinc is known to play an important role in the development and integrity of host defences against infection. The barrier functions of the skin and the pulmonary and gastrointestinal tract are diminished by zinc deficiency. Zinkies are specifically formulated to assist with sore throats, as an immune booster and can assist in cases of runny nose and hay-fever. Try these totally natural products with no harmful antiseptics, artificial colouring or preservatives! Finally, we would like to thank you for your continued support. Please feel free to contact us if you have any suggestions regarding topics for discussion in this newsletter, or if you have any other queries. Although we may not have all the answers on hand immediately, we are well positioned to provide you with the latest information regarding food supplements and natural medicine.

    

   Yours sincerely,
   The FortiFood team.