UK Coronavirus Act renewal

The Coronavirus Act that gives the UK government its current raft of emergency powers is due to be debated in Parliament on Wednesday 30th September as its 6-month renewal date arrives. Now is the time to write (via letter or email) to your MP to express your opposition in regard to the continued use of this Act to implement yet more and increasingly draconian restrictions on UK citizens without recourse to debate in Parliament, by the UK Government. Find your MP. The more UK citizens who write to their MP the louder and stronger the message that we are not willing to support undemocratic restrictions on our basic rights and freedoms.

Belgian doctors open letter

Large groups of professionals are increasingly coming together globally to combine their voices in an effort to be heard and overcome increasingly draconian censorship on any view but the mainstream narrative. On the 21st September Professors Gupta, Heneghan, Sikora and a wide range of voices in the scientific and medical fields wrote an open letter to Boris Johnson and the UK Government saying how desperately a rethink is needed to find better balance. Swiftly followed by the new open letter from doctors, health professionals and citizens published to counter the prevailing pandemic narrative of governments and health authorities. The Belgian letter has, to date, been signed by 447 medical doctors, 1,460 medically trained health professionals and 10,087 citizens from around the globe. It expresses serious concern about the way the current pandemic has been handled by governments and their scientific advisors, calling it disproportionate and stating that strategies used have caused more damage than good. In it they call for open debate between all experts without recourse to any form of censorship along with “…an immediate end to all measures and […] restoration of our normal democratic governance and legal structures and of all our civil liberties”. The authors’ reference to censorship is particularly relevant given Facebook ‘factcheckers’ have been at it again branding the letter ‘false’ news. Although rather oddly the fact check references an April article about mask wearing rather indicating that the fact checkers may need to be fact checked themselves.

Hancock flies in the face of evidence for vitamin D reducing risk of contracting covid-19

Being replete in vitamin D can significantly cut the risk of contracting covid-19. A new study, published in PLOSONE, examined blood samples of more than 190,000 people from across the USA finding that those with a vitamin D deficiency had a 54% higher risk of testing positive for covid-19 compared to those with adequate levels. The higher a person’s level of vitamin D, the lower the risk of contracting covid-19. The researchers also found those from the BAME community had lower levels of vitamin D and were more likely to contract covid-19. Despite a body of mounting evidence linking vitamin D deficiency with an increased risk of contracting covid-19, UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock has flatly refused to accept its role in protecting individuals, citing a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) rapid review as evidence of vitamin D’s ‘lack’ of effectiveness. Vitamin D is a key nutrient to support a robust and resilient immune system, which remains our greatest protection against a wide range of viral illnesses including SARS-CoV-2. Click here to download a copy of the immune support protocol we produced in collaboration with doctors from the British Society for Ecological Medicine to help protect you and your loved ones.

Operation Moonshot challenged

The Good Law Project is seeking to hold the UK government to account over Operation Moonshot, which proposes spending an eye-watering £100 billion GBP on testing to ‘allow’ citizens to lead a ‘normal’ life. In conjunction with EveryDoctor, the Good Law Project have written to the Government asking whether such vast sums of money will be authorised using emergency procurement procedures. In its view, such use of emergency procedures is unlawful and they’re calling for the Government to be held to account over its reckless disregard for the UK economy.

Low carb more effective than low calorie for type 2 diabetes remission

A comparison of two methods to put type 2 diabetes into remission has found that a sustained low carbohydrate diet is more effective. Zoe Harcombe PhD compared two approaches, the DiRECT method advocating low calorie (recently adopted by the NHS) and the Virta Health protocol, which is a low carb approach. Comparing study methodology and outcomes, she found both approaches used weight loss and HbA1c reductions to assess outcomes. The two studies differed in the complexity of patients enrolled and the ‘food’ used. The DiRECT trial used soups and shakes to severely restrict calories, while Virta Health worked with patients with much more complex health issues and used real food to re-educate patients. Reductions in HbA1c were significantly higher for Virta at one and two years, along with weight loss and retention/ongoing participation at one year than for DiRECT at year two. Zoe concludes that all patients should be given a choice of the restricted calorie diet or low carb diet plus the comparison of results between the DiRECT trial and Virta trials to aid properly informed decision making. Type 2 diabetes can be both prevented and put into remission through diet and lifestyle changes. It doesn’t need to be a life sentence of deteriorating health where patients’ options are both limited and likely to end up in a yoyo of remission and relapse.

Lack of transparency concerns expressed over covid vaccine trials

Scientists have expressed concern over the lack of data transparency after a covid vaccine trial was halted. Trials of the covid vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University have now resumed after reports of a serious adverse event halted the trials. One researcher, Marie-Paule Kieny, said the transparency bar needs to be set far higher than currently as ”…public trust will be paramount to ensure public-health impact. And trust needs transparency." It’s high time to lift the taboo surrounding vaccines and promote transparent and honest discussion. Public confidence over the safety and effectiveness of new vaccines, particularly those being developed to tackle covid-19 is unlikely to shift without it. Given that receiving a vaccination is a medical procedure, citizens are required to give informed consent. Without full transparency this is impossible.

‘Awe walks’ boost emotional wellbeing

Taking part in 15-minute, weekly ‘awe walks’ improve emotional wellbeing. Researchers from the UC San Francisco Memory and Aging Center (MAC) and the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) publishing in Emotion found healthy older adults who took part in awe walk groups, over an eight-week period, experienced more joy and prosocial emotions such as compassion and gratitude. Participants were encouraged to take selfies during the walks, which showed an increasing focus on their surroundings along with broader smiles. The new research supports what we’ve said all along that nature has most of the answers to our health woes. Love nature, live naturally.

ANH pick of the Week

Cutting edge online cancer conference – Your Life and Cancer

If you, or a loved one is faced with a cancer diagnosis, knowing where to get trusted medical information is vital. The first event of an exciting new online cancer conference aimed at those dealing with cancer, launches on Saturday 26th September. Across two weekends, more than 40 leading international experts, including Dr Catherine Zollman, Rob Verkerk PhD, Prof Thomas Seyfried, Dr Nasha Winters, Dr Elizabeth Thompson, Dr Patrick Hanaway, Dr Carol Granger, Patricia Peat, Dr Marie Polley and more, will come together to promote the benefits of combining complementary and lifestyle changes with conventional cancer treatments. Each of the weekends (26-28th Sept and 10-12th Oct) is tailored to suit a particular group of people with cancer, although many are choosing to book both because of the unparalleled opportunity of hearing from so many leaders in the sector, and also because it is simply so affordable. Full details of both weekends and booking can be found at www.yourlifeandcancer.com. If you are part of a charity who shares the event with their members you can apply to the organisers for a free ticket. ANH founder, Rob Verkerk PhD, who will be taking part in the second weekend says he is “...super excited to have the opportunity to interview leading cancer researcher, Prof Thomas Seyfried about cancer as a metabolic disease.”

In Brief

GMO researcher violated biosafety regulations

A co-inventor of a genome editing tool called TALENS violated and ignored laboratory biosafety rules for more than two years before being caught. During that time his team genetically engineered a dozen species of plants. The breach of biosafety rules only came to light when the researcher in question was preparing to publish the group’s research and filed for a patent on part of the research. The breach was reported once uncovered, but the researchers don’t appear to have suffered any particular consequences.

Remaining Monsanto lawsuits settled

The remaining parties seeking to sue Bayer/Monsanto over health harms from Monsanto’s glyphosate-based products are reported to have agreed an out of court settlement. Thus, taking another step towards the finalisation of the five-year-old mass tort litigation brought by more than 100,000 US citizens. Money has again trumped science as Bayer continues to flex its financial muscles to push the health of ordinary people to the side lines, ably assisted by legal teams who all stand to benefit from the settlements.