Dear Healthy Friend,

Varicose veins are painful and unsightly, but they're generally harmless, aren't they? It seems not! A new study reveals that danger may be lurking. The clots from these unsightly veins could lead to pulmonary embolisms and thromboembolisms - which left undetected and untreated - could be deadly.

Jenny Thompson shows us how to beat this little-known killer.

In the name of good health,

Taryn Strugnell
Managing Editor of Nutrition & Healing

P.S. So you've decided to shed a few kilos for summer, but if you're on a low-carb diet, Dr Wright suggests adding these supplements to your daily regimen for maximum weight loss!

Varicose Veins are not as harmless as you think!
Jenny Thompson
Publisher of Health Sciences Institute

In superficial vein thrombosis (SVT), varicose veins become inflamed and swollen. This condition is often painful, but like varicose veins, we think of it as a minor health threat only.

Researchers at two institutions in Graz, Austria, recently mounted a study to see if there is a link between SVT and deep vein thrombosis (DVT). As you know, DVT is a dangerous condition that prompts blood clotting in the legs. Clots that break away can cause thromboembolism (restricted blood flow), and even death if the clot reaches the lungs and triggers a pulmonary embolism.

The Graz team recruited nearly 50 patients with confirmed superficial vein thrombosis. Sonography of the legs revealed DVT in one out of four subjects. Almost all of these patients showed no previous symptoms of DVT. In most patients, DVT occurred in the leg affected by superficial vein thrombosis, but in some patients the condition was present in both legs.

The researchers suggest that superficial vein thrombosis patients should receive colour-coded duplex sonography to assess the possibility of DVT.

There are a variety of factors that cause varicose veins: Genetic inclination, standing occupations, obesity or multiple pregnancies. But, whatever the root cause, inactivity of a specific protein may play a key role in varicose vein development.

In a 2007 study from France's University of Nantes, researchers examined 36 healthy male subjects and 50 male subjects with varicose veins. They found a link between varicosis and inactivity of a protein called matrix GLA protein (MGP). And because MGP is properly activated only when vitamin K levels are adequate, researchers theorise that sufficient intake of the vitamin may play a role in the prevention of varicose veins.

The importance of vitamin K intake for circulatory health is already well known. In his Nutrition & Healing newsletter, Dr Jonathan V. Wright has noted that supplementing with vitamin K is a good idea if there's a family history of arteriosclerosis (narrowing of the arteries). Dr. Wright recommends 5 to 15mg of vitamin K per day – considerably higher than the recommended daily allowance.

This is just another reason why vitamin K is good for you.

If you're on a low-carb diet, these 4 supplements are essential!
Dr Wright, Nutrition and Healing

Q: I'm not overweight, but I am diabetic, and my doctor thinks I should follow a low-carb diet to help control my blood sugar swings. I promised I'd give it a try, but I'm concerned about giving up fruits and still getting all the vitamins I need. Are there any supplements you recommend for people on low-carb diets?

Dr. Wright: In addition to a general vitamin-mineral supplementation programme - which is essential for all of us in the 21st century - there are a few supplements very specific for low-carb diets.

Fruits and vegetables are the primary dietary sources of potassium. If you're following a low-carb diet and aren't eating at least five to six servings of vegetables every day, make sure to take at least 400-500mg of potassium daily. Also, as there's so much phosphorus in protein, make sure you offset it by taking a phosphorus-free calcium supplement daily -1,000mg is a good general dosage or perhaps a bit more if you're a woman at or past menopause. You should always accompany this amount of calcium with 300 to 400mg of magnesium.

Unless you're a tea drinker, there are virtually no flavonoids in low-carb diets. There's very little flavonoid contained in animal protein, almost none in fats and oils and only small amounts in vegetables. Fruits and berries are the best food sources, but you should only eat them in very limited quantities (if at all) on a low-carb plan. But flavonoids are crucial to your health. They strengthen arteries, veins, capillaries and nearly all connective tissue, and some reduce the risk of heart attack and certain cancers. So you'll also need to supplement with these as well.

Bilberry, hawthorn, grape-seed extract, ginkgo, Echinacea and many other commonly used herbs contain flavonoids. If you're taking two or more of these, you may not need a specific flavonoid supplement. If you're not taking herbs, my present recommendation for a nearly "pure flavonoid" supplement is Kyanthenol, a mixture of fruit - and berry- derived flavonoids. Take two capsules daily. Kyanthenol is available from health shops.