Dr. W. Gifford-Jones

LATEST STORIES BY DR. W. GIFFORD-JONES

Healthy lifestyle can add 12 to 14 years of life: Gifford-Jones

What results in good health and longevity? I’ve said for years that it’s good genes, good lifestyle and good luck. But since we can’t choose our parents, or know what fate holds in store for us, we must treat lifestyle with tender, loving care. Now, a report in the publication, Circulation, proves that a sound lifestyle adds 12 to 14 more years to life.

October 20, 2018 Diet & Fitness

Ignorance of the law is no excuse -- what about medical facts?

Break a law and you end up in jail. “Ignorance of the law is no excuse,” it’s said. So should ignorance of medical facts excuse anyone? Time and time again so-called medical experts publish illogical reports without repercussion. Recently, a physician stated publicly, “There is no case for vitamin supplementation in normal, healthy, non-pregnant adults who are receiving the recommended daily intake of nutrients.” But is this medical fact or fiction?

October 13, 2018 Diet & Fitness

Gallstones: For surgery or the crematorium?

What should you do if you are diagnosed with gallstones? Today, 10% of North Americans share this medical problem. For some patients surgery is the prudent choice. But now, a report from the Canadian Medical Protective Association (CMPA), shows that, in some cases, leaving gallstones to the crematorium can prevent serious complications and even death.

October 6, 2018 Diet & Fitness

Debunking travel myths with Dr. W. Gifford-Jones

What’s the worst of times when travelling? It’s when you’re sitting on a bus tour 100 miles from the next stop and you begin to suffer the bowel spasms of traveller’s diarrhea. If the worst scenario happens, it’s a moment you will never forget. But this common risk, and the chance of acquiring other infections, can be decreased by ridding yourself of several travellers’ myths.

September 29, 2018 Diet & Fitness

'Inflammaging': The Dr. Jekyll reaction

This week I’ve learned a new word, “inflammaging.” Researchers at the University of California use it in a report that claims chronic inflammation has a profound effect on how we age, and what diseases we develop.

September 22, 2018 Diet & Fitness

Take booze is bad for you study with grain of alcohol

The first thing I do every morning is read the newspaper. This a.m. I should have stayed in bed. The headline read, “No amount of alcohol is safe.” The report claimed to be one of the largest studies of alcohol consumption that has ever been done. To make my day worse, the litany of alcohol problems was reported in one of the world’s most-respected medical journals, The Lancet . So, should I be hung up by my thumbs, pour chardonnay down the drain, nail my bar doors shut, then repent my sins of writing for years that moderate drinking is medically beneficial?

September 15, 2018 Diet & Fitness

GIFFORD-JONES: Tune-up your heart in 30 days

Have I been missing a vital remedy to maintain a healthy heart? I wondered if that was the case when I read an article in LifeExtension titled, “ The 30-Day Heart Tune-Up. ” The subject, Dr. Steven Masley, is a Fellow of both The American Heart Association and The American Academy of Nutrition. He has devoted his career to heart disease and aging. So how does his treatment differ from that of other cardiologists?

September 8, 2018 Diet & Fitness

Don't be conned by constipation

Why must humans be so foolish and reach for laxatives when there’s a natural, safe, and inexpensive way to treat constipation and stop grunting? Barnum and Bailey, the circus promoters, were right when they said, “there’s a sucker born every minute.” In this case it’s the suckers who fall easy prey to T.V ads that preach the health benefits of laxatives.

September 1, 2018 Diet & Fitness

Getting to the heart of heart stents

Every year over 300,000 North Americans have a stent implanted to increase the flow of blood to the heart’s muscle. Stents have been inserted for decades because of cardiologists’ concern that, without a stent, a heart attack may occur. Or, a coronary attack may have already caused angina, due to inadequate blood supply. Now, a study published in the medical journal, The Lancet, reports that some stents are life-saving, while others could have been avoided.

August 25, 2018 Diet & Fitness

Marijuana and the pain in the neck

Is marijuana as good as its reputation for treating painful conditions? Many years ago I suffered a neck injury in Japan which resulted in chronic pain. So I decided to try medical marijuana as painkillers, acupuncture, chiropractic treatment, and massage have had no effect.

August 18, 2018 Relationships