Dear Healthy Friend,

There are urban legends, there are half truths, there are cover-ups and there are honest, downright lies... Jenny Thompson reveals two examples that encompass most of these "inaccurate truths", just keep reading...

In the name of good health,

Taryn Strugnell
Managing Editor of Nutrition & Healing

P.S. During the winter months I'm always complaining about cold feet. And this week has been no different due to the dipping temperatures. But what would you do if your feet were always cold? Dr Wright tells us what to do...

Antibacterial soap: No better than normal soap at preventing infection
Jenny Thompson
Publisher, Health Sciences Institute

Stop me if you've heard this one (and you probably have...)

A poor Scottish farmer named Fleming heard cries coming from a nearby bog, he ran to rescue a young boy who was stuck in the black muck.

Then next day, the boy's father, a nobleman, paid a visit to Fleming and offered a generous reward. But Fleming refused to accept money for doing what any decent person would have done.

When the nobleman spotted Fleming's son, he offered to provide his son with the same high level of education he was planning for his own son.

Fleming agreed. His son - Alexander Fleming - eventually graduated from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School in London and went on to discover Penicillin.

Years later, the nobleman's son was stricken with pneumonia. And what saved his life? Penicillin.

His name: Sir Winston Churchill....

That remarkable story has been passed around the Internet for many years in spite of the fact that it's completely false.

Alexander Fleming's medical education was paid for with an inheritance from his uncle. And although Churchill was once diagnosed with pneumonia while in the Middle East, he was successfully treated with other drugs because Penicillin wasn't readily available.

Well that's no fun! The amazing coincidence story is much more interesting, so I'm sure it will continue to circulate for years to come.

But the story is helpful in illustrating just how easy it is for false information to take on a life of its own and become accepted as fact.

Here's a good example: Antibacterial soap is a better defence against infection than normal soap, true?

False!

Three years ago, a University of Michigan team, in the US, reviewed data and reported that antibacterial soap products in which triclosan is the active ingredient, are no better than normal soaps at preventing infection.

And triclosan is the big dog of antibacterial products. According to a 2004 report in the journal Pesticides and You (yes, there really is a journal for everything!), triclosan is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent that's used in hundreds of products. But not just soaps. The chemical also shows up in certain toothpastes and some deodorants.

And here's where things take a very dark turn: Triclosan may promote antibiotic resistance, which would actually make you MORE vulnerable if exposed to infections and hospital superbugs like MRSA and C. diff.

Early this year, Representative Edward Markey (chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment in the US) asked the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to update the scientific review of triclosan.

In their response, FDA officials noted that recent research raises "valid concerns" about triclosan safety. In addition to antibiotic resistance, concerns include animal studies that suggest the chemical may interfere with hormone regulation.

So the FDA has started a new review of triclosan safety. Ready for a laugh? Agency officials say they'll have their report ready in the spring of 2011.

Want to avoid triclosan right now? Why not? It's apparently not doing anyone any good. Just Google "triclosan-free" and you'll come up with thousands of websites that carry soap and other products that leave triclosan out of the mix.

Or even better, by following this link you will learn all about the device that will allow you to kill bacteria and viruses on-the-spot - any time, anywhere!

And if you're wondering just how serious the problem of antibiotic resistance really is, consider that this danger was first recognised more than 80 years ago by one of the foremost medical scientists of the 20th century.

His name: Alexander Fleming.

Addressing the cause of cold feet

Q: My left foot is cold almost all the time. The doctors I've seen have ruled out nerve problems and I'm at a complete loss. What can I do?

Dr. Wright: You said that nerve-related problems have been ruled out, but you didn't mention whether or not your circulation had been tested. If not, that could be contributing to the problem, in which case the best place to start would be to work on improving blood flow to your extremities.

You may want to consider trying 800IU of vitamin E daily, in the form of "mixed tocopherols", which are a more potent form of regular vitamin E.

Inositol hexaniacinate (a combination of two B vitamins) may also be useful. Inositol hexaniacinate can safely dilate blood vessels, which will improve the circulation to the extremities and possibly help "warm" your foot. Try taking 500 to 600mg twice a day. Occasionally too much inositol hexaniacinate can cause nausea. If you find this happens to you, you should discontinue using it.

Finally, it's always a good idea to take a high-potency multiple vitamin and mineral combination on a daily basis to "back up" any individual vitamins you might decide to take. Keep in mind, as well, that it can take up to three months for these nutrients to produce significant, noticeable results.