Dear Reader,

Welcome to this special Christmas edition of Natural News for Women.

At the clinic we get thousands of emails with requests for information and advice and I thought this would be a good way to keep you up to date with what is happening in the world of nutrition.

Natural News is for you, to send in your questions, tell me what you want help with, what articles you found most useful and what has worked for you. Your feedback is valuable as it helps other women who may have a similar health concern to know that they are not alone and to hear that there are answers to their problems.

Each issue will have a main feature, questions and answers, a case study showing the power of nutrition, a Monthly Meal Idea, In The News and Quick Tips. We’re also working on a Readers’ Tips section, Reader Reviews and much more.

Warm regards,

Marilyn Glenville PhD

Brussels sprouts and cabbages have found a new role in the war against breast cancer.

They have already been suggested as possible aids in preventing the disease. Now scientists say they may also be capable of treating it. Researchers at the University of Lancaster fed cancer cells with doses of around 350mg of the natural compound 13C, roughly the same amount found in a trolley full of cabbages. When the compound was used together with common chemotherapy drugs, the tumour cells died. Although further studies are needed the potential benefits are clear. The compound 13C is also found in broccoli, cauliflower and kale.

Making walnuts part of a balanced diet can help counteract the damage to arteries caused by fatty food new research says.

Over time fat molecules harden the arteries leading to heart disease. But walnuts contain a nutrient that helps the body produce nitric oxide —which helps keep blood vessels flexible. In tests, 24 healthy adults were fed high fat meals with either olive oil or eight shelled walnuts. Both helped to reduce the inflammation of arteries that follows a meal high in fat and leads to hardening. But walnuts were also found to help preserve elasticity and flexibility of blood vessels.

Walnuts contain arginine which is used by the body to produce nitric oxide. They also provide a form of omega 3 which is not found in olive oil.