Taryn Strugnell
Managing Editor of Nutrition & Healing
 

P.S. I had horribly swollen feet and legs during my pregnancy. But there wasn't any cause for concern, I drank my quota of water every day and made sure I retain too much to cause more swelling. But everything was ok... I knew what it was and why it was happening... I can only imagine that swollen legs - when you don't know the cause - can be quite scary! Dr Wright gives us a solution on what to do if this happens to you...

Want to protect kids from flu? Bring on the probiotics
Christine O'Brien
Contributor, Nutrition & Healing

What's a parent or grandparent to do when you want to protect your children's health, but the only options out there seem to be dangerous vaccines and side-effect heavy drugs?

Well, according to one new study, you can turn to probiotics. Researchers found that children given a 2-strain probiotic preparation twice daily for six months fared far better than kids given a placebo when it came to warding off and getting over illness. Kids who took single-strain probiotics did better than those on placebo as well, but nothing could hold a candle to the 2-strain preparation.

While kids taking one strain of probiotics had half the fevers of those on placebo, the 2-strain group had a whopping 72.7% lower incidence of fevers. They also had a 62% lower incidence of coughing and 54% lower incidence of runny nose.

Kids spent fewer days home sick from group day care (the study involved children aged 3 to 5) and the duration of colds was cut nearly in half.

The best news of all? Zero adverse side effects. You definitely can't say that about the drugs the mainstream is pushing.

The findings of this double-blind, placebo-controlled study are reported in the August issue of Paediatrics. The strains used were Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp lactis Bi-07.

Shrinking swollen legs

Q: My legs get very swollen on a regular basis. Can you tell me why this is happening and what I can do about it?

Dr. Wright: Your first step should be to visit a doctor who can run tests to make sure your condition isn't the result of something serious, such as a weak heart, liver or kidneys.

Other causes of chronic leg swelling include food allergies, insulin resistance and type II diabetes.

If there doesn't seem to be any logical cause for your swelling, you can usually reduce it with horse chestnut supplements. Try two to three capsules or tablets daily, standardised to contain 40 to 50 milligrams of escin each.

This study gives one more good reason for the whole family to get a daily helping of probiotics. As if there weren't enough already - we've previously told you about their immune-boosting effects, their role in getting IBS under control and even their ability to protect burn victims from injury complications.

If you're looking for the most effective probiotics you can get, check out the refrigerated section of your local health shop. The refrigeration keeps the active cultures alive and ready to go to work.