Day: December 25, 2022

• The World Health Organization has become extraordinarily conflicted, primarily through its funding, and by serving corporate masters, it fails miserably at promoting global health

• The WHO will form the foundation for a one world government, under the auspice of coordinating and ensuring global biosecurity. This becomes evident when you review the proposed amendments to the 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR) and the WHO Pandemic Treaty

• The proposed IHR amendments will erase the concepts of human dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms from the equation. The first principle in Article 3 of the 2005 IHR states that health regulations shall be implemented “with full respect for the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons.” The amendment strikes that sentence

• Instead, international health regulations will be based on “principles of equity, inclusivity and coherence” only. This means they can force you to undergo whatever medical intervention they deem to be in the best interest of the collective

• The IHR amendments grant dictatorial powers to the WHO director-general and unelected regional directors. The WHO’s “recommendations” will be legally binding by all member states, and will supersede all national and state laws, including the U.S. Constitution

What is the World Health Organization, and what is it for, really? In the Children’s Health Defense (CHD) video above, Dr. Meryl Nass interviews investigative journalist James Corbett of The Corbett Report about the weaponization of the WHO. Nass also published a Substack with additional background information for this episode.

The WHO is actually a specialized agency within the United Nations. It was initially established in 1948 to “further international cooperation for improved public health conditions,” but we can now see that the long-term goal of the WHO is to serve as a foundation or hub for a one world government under the auspice of coordinating and ensuring global biosecurity.

This becomes self-evident when you review the proposed amendments1 to the existing International Health Regulations (IHR) and the new pandemic treaty, which Nass and Corbett review in the featured video.

I also provided details about the treaty in “What You Need to Know About the WHO Pandemic Treaty.” Below, I will primarily focus on the proposed amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR).

In a December 16, 2022, Substack article,2 James Roguski also reviewed how a temporary crisis (the COVID-19 pandemic) — which, by the way, is long since over — is being used by the WHO to seize permanent power.

“The WHO’s ‘recommendations’ are legally binding by all member states, and supersede all national and state laws, including the U.S. Constitution.”

Here’s a quick overview of some of the most dangerous and egregious IHR amendments they intend to implement, and what it will mean for you and I. For additional details, see the three references listed here:3 4 5

• Eliminating the concepts of respect for human dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms — The first principle in Article 3 of the original IHR states that health regulations shall be implemented “with full respect for the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons.”

  The proposed amendment to this Article will strike “with full respect for the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons.” Now, health regulations will be based on “principles of equity, inclusivity and coherence” only.

  What does that mean? Think “You must wear a mask/social distance/isolate/get jabbed to protect others,” even if you’re not sick, or for whatever reason don’t want to do any of those things.

  Autonomy over your body will be eliminated. You’ll have no right to make personal health decisions. Even if you suspect you might die from the intervention, you have to comply because it’s all about what’s “best” for the collective.

  Individuals won’t matter. Human dignity will not be taken into consideration. Human rights will not be taken into consideration, and neither will the concept that human beings have fundamental freedoms that cannot be infringed.

  Another amendment is that public health measures will no longer be aimed at achieving “the appropriate level of health protection.” Instead, the new objective will be to attain the “highest achievable level of health protection” without any consideration of proportionality. It’s easy to see how this amendment will be used as justification for the removal of individual rights and freedoms.

• Dictatorial powers will be given to the director-general of the WHO — The director-general will have sole power to declare the beginning and end of a public health emergency of international concern (PHEI), and the sole power to dictate responses (including travel restrictions, mask mandates, lockdowns, business closures and vaccine requirements), and the allocation of resources to that PHEI, including funding and what drugs are to be manufactured and used.

  These dictates will override and overrule any and all national laws within member states, including the U.S. Constitution.

  The obligations under the amended IHR are legally binding, and any member nation that refuses the director-general’s recommendations can be punished through a variety of mechanisms, including economic sanctions and embargoes. Note that the term “recommendation” is defined as “legally binding,” which means they’re actually dictates, not suggestions.

• Dictatorial powers will be given to unelected regional directors of the WHO — Similarly, appointed (not elected) regional directors will have the power to determine what constitutes a public health emergency of regional concern (PHERC), and their decisions will also overrule all other laws and Constitutional rights.

• Eliminating privacy rights — One of the amendments (page 25) authorizes the disclosure of private and personal data, including genomic data, “where essential for the purposes of assessing and managing a public health risk,” i.e., contact tracing and related efforts.

• Expanding censorship — The WHO will “strengthen capacities to … counter misinformation and disinformation” at the global level. In other words, censorship of information will be expanded. The WHO will dictate what “truth” is, and since its decisions are legally binding, countries must enforce compliance.

• Mandating vaccine passports and digital IDs globally — The IHR amendments will also give the WHO the power to mandate the use of “health certificates,”6 i.e., vaccine passports. The vaccine passport, in turn, will operate as your digital identification, which will be tied to every aspect of your life, including your bank accounts and social credit score.

  In short, it will usher in a surveillance and forced compliance system. The G20 also recently declared that digital vaccine passports standardized by the WHO will be part of international pandemic prevention and response moving forward.

Ever since its founding in 1948, the WHO has been infiltrated by industry. From Big Tobacco to the nuclear industry and pharmaceuticals, industry has historically dictated the WHO’s global agenda and continues to do so in the present day, putting profits and power ahead of public health.7 

In April 2020, then-President Donald Trump suspended U.S. funding to the WHO,8 but then directed the U.S. funding for WHO to GAVI, which is a Gates controlled charity that likely just sent the funds to WHO. President Joe Biden restored U.S. funding once he took office.9

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation even before Trump pulled funding was still the WHO’s No.1 funder, as Gates contributes via multiple avenues, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the vaccine alliance GAVI, the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE), UNICEF and Rotary International.

Gates contributes such a large portion — currently about $1 billion of the WHO’s $4.84 billion biennial budget10 — that Politico in 2017 wrote a highly-critical article11 about his undue financial influence over the WHO’s operations, which Politico said was causing the agency to spend:

“… a disproportionate amount of its resources on projects with the measurable outcomes Gates prefers … Some health advocates fear that because the Gates Foundation’s money comes from investments in big business, it could serve as a Trojan horse for corporate interests to undermine WHO’s role in setting standards and shaping health policies.”

Indeed, as noted by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in his book “Vax-Unvax,”12 “The sheer magnitude of his foundation’s financial contributions has made Bill Gates an unofficial — albeit unelected — leader of the WHO.” And, in that role, Gates is able to ensure that the decisions the WHO makes end up profiting his own interests and those of his Big Pharma partners.

In October 2022, the WHO announced a new initiative called One Health Joint Plan of Action. The plan was launched by the Quadripartite, which is made up of:

1. The WHO

2. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

3. The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)

4. The World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH)

Beyond the amendments to the IHR, this initiative will also expand the WHO’s powers. The One Health Joint Plan of Action combines multiple globalist organizations and synchronizes their plans, while at the same time combining their resources and power to create a centralized global superpower.

Decentralized health care and pandemic planning make sense, as both medicine and government work best when individualized and locally oriented. As it stands, however, the opposite global agenda is being implemented.

While the Pandemic Treaty and the IHR amendments expand and centralize power over human health with the WHO, the One Health Joint Plan expands the WHO’s power to also address “critical health threats” to animals, plants and the environment.

When you add that together with the planned elimination of human rights, you can see how the One Health Joint Plan can be used to enforce climate lockdowns, for example, or travel restrictions to protect wildlife or the environment. To learn more about this plan, see my previous article, “WHO Assembles Superpowers With ‘One Health Plan.'”

December 13, 2022, the WHO announced that Sir Jeremy Farrar, head of the Wellcome Trust, has been chosen as its new chief scientist.13 The announcement came mere days after the publication of Dr. Anthony Fauci’s deposition transcript,14 which showed he and Farrar colluded to suppress discussion about SARS-CoV-2 origin.

In an op-ed for I News, columnist Ian Birrell warns that with Farrar as chief scientist for the WHO, our chances of ever getting to the truth about SARS-CoV-2’s origin becomes vanishingly small:15

“From the start, the world was failed by the World Health Organization. This UN body — run by a former minister in a repressive Ethiopian regime elected with Beijing’s help — praised China for ‘protecting the people of the world’ despite the dictatorship silencing whistleblowers, declining to share data and delaying to warn about human transmission …

It kowtowed to China with its ludicrous probe of the origins … Now the body has appointed Sir Jeremy Farrar … as next chief scientist. This is a scandalous decision given his central role in trying to seemingly stifle suggestions that SARS-CoV-2 … might not be a natural disease.

Science relies on openness. Yet the more that has emerged in emails, freedom of information requests, leaks and books exposing Farrar’s actions, the less confidence we can have in him holding a world-leading scientific role for all his undoubted expertise and political skills …

There are two issues in the origins debate … The first is the core question of the cause … The second issue smacks of something darker: a bid to cover up any possibility that controversial ‘gain of function’ research to boost infectivity — carried out in Wuhan, aided by Western funding — might lie behind the pandemic …

Gradually, drip by drip, it emerged that Farrar was helping lead a group of experts who colluded to crush suggestions the virus might be linked to research.

Less than a fortnight after China confirmed human transmission, the Wellcome chief hosted a teleconference at the behest of the American presidential adviser Anthony Fauci. It included … several participants who feared COVID might be tied to research.

Suddenly their views shifted from fearing the virus might be manufactured to dismissing such possibilities, despite lack of fresh data or firm evidence … [The] WHO is further undermining its credibility by handing such an influential post to a man embroiled in allegations of tarnishing the integrity of science on such an important quest.”

At the same time the WHO is working on its power grab, Gates and other Great Reset allies are planning another pandemic to ensure that transition of power takes place. As you may recall, Event 201 was a pandemic table top exercise that “predicted” exactly what would happen during the real-world COVID pandemic that began three months later.

October 23, 2022, Gates, Johns Hopkins and the WHO cohosted yet another exercise, this one dubbed “Catastrophic Contagion,”16 17 which involved a novel pathogen called “severe epidemic enterovirus respiratory syndrome 2025” (SEERS-25) that primarily kills children. 

With that, we can already begin to predict what this next pandemic will revolve around. The COVID narrative was that we must obey irrational health rules so as not to kill grandma. The next round will likely involve getting children vaccinated with whatever new gene-based concoction they come up with.

Seeing how the COVID jab is now on the U.S. childhood vaccination schedule, we can also assume that the COVID jab will be increasingly pushed at the same time, in the name of “protecting our children.”

Of course, by the time the next pandemic is declared, the IHR will have been amended to eliminate human rights, freedoms and privacy from consideration, and the WHO Pandemic Treaty will have been signed, both of which grant the WHO absolute power to control pandemic declarations and responses worldwide.

The WHO can then, through its pandemic powers, implement the next phases of The Great Reset and Fourth Industrial Revolution, which are rebranded terms for technocracy and the old “New World Order,” melded with the transhumanist (previously known as eugenicist) movement.

As explained in “What You Need to Know About ‘The Great Reset,'” technocracy is an economic system of resource allocation that revolves around technology — in particular artificial intelligence, digital surveillance and Big Data collection — and the digitization of industry and government.

This in turn allows for the automation of social engineering and social rule, thereby doing away with the need for democratically elected leadership. While the real plan is to usher in a tech-driven dystopia free of democratic controls, they speak of this plan as a way to bring us back into harmony with nature and saving the planet (i.e., the Green agenda and Agenda 2030).

In “We Will Be Sacrificed for Global Standardization of Systems,” I review the self-proclaimed “ruling elite’s” plan to control everything on earth, from land, water and minerals to plants, animals, food, energy, information and human beings. This plan is known as the Agenda for the 21st Century, or simply Agenda 21.

This roadmap for global totalitarianism was agreed to by 179 nations, including the U.S., at the 1992 Sustainable Development conference, and we’ve seen various facets of this agenda being implemented throughout the last three years, under the cover of biosecurity and the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Agenda 21 is based on the ideology of “communitarianism,” which argues that “an individual’s rights should be balanced against rights of the community.” Community, however, in the mind of the globalists, is made up of NGOs, corporations and government, which are to dictate what happens around the world. The people are not really part of the equation.

So, the communitarianist philosophy of Agenda 21 and the IHR amendment that removes human rights and freedoms come together like two pieces of a puzzle. The WHO’s biosecurity powers can then be used to pave the way for the more freedom-robbing aspects of Agenda 21.

It’s imperative that we protect our human rights and individual freedoms, and in order to do that, we must educate our Congressional representatives so that they understand the ramifications of going along with the WHO. A template letter that you can use was recently published by the Solari Report,18 copied below for your convenience.

[NAME OF AUTHOR(S)]
[ADDRESS OF AUTHOR(S)]
[EMAIL ADDRESS OF AUTHOR(S)]
[TELEPHONE NUMBER OF AUTHOR(S)]

[Date]

Re: Your position on proposed WHO International Health Regulations amendments, and WHO and government overreach and propaganda regarding COVID inoculations and forced mandates.

Dear Senator/Congressman/woman _____________:

I am/we are [a] registered voter[s] within your district with grave concerns about what [I/we] have read and heard about proposed World Health Organization (WHO) “International Health Regulations” amendments. These amendments would transfer control of the conduct of pandemics to the WHO. According to leaked information on current negotiations, the amendments would, among other things:

• Remove the word “non-binding,” thereby converting the regulations from recommendations to laws;

• Remove clearly defined and understood words like “fundamental freedoms of persons” and “dignity,” instead substituting woke terms like “equity,” “diversity,” and “exclusivity,” thereby usurping rights previously granted;

• Turn the WHO into a pandemic preparedness agency at the whopping cost of $60 billion (as compared with current cost of less than $4 billion); and

• Require member nations to institute disease surveillance activities.

These International Health Regulations amendments are tantamount to a treaty, which should require approval by Congress by a two-thirds vote. However, it appears that proponents may be characterizing them as mere amendments to current regulations (which would require only a majority vote of the World Health Assembly) in order to try to circumvent the Congressional treaty approval requirement.

Note that the U.S. never actually ratified the most recent International Health Regulations amendments in 2005. It should go without saying that international treaties and sovereign immunity powers (which the WHO has) should not be permitted to override the Constitution or the authority of our Congress.

Below is a link to a Daily Sceptic article presenting a letter written to the U.K. Parliament by six organizations concerned with the proposed WHO power grab. It summarizes major concerns about the treaty as follows:

• Overreach of WHO, a nongovernmental organization;

• Conflicts of interest;

• Loss of oversight;

• Censorship;

• Loss of nationhood;

• Side-stepping of the democratic process;

• Conflation of distinct global challenges.

[I/We] believe the International Health Regulations amendments advance the interests of a global elite in creating a technocracy — a virtual digital concentration camp — through national and international medical and other IDs, the “One Health” system, central bank digital currencies, and climate-change-related “sustainable development” and other mandates imposed by unelected technocrats.

The linked Daily Sceptic article is written in the context of the U.K. Parliament, but the threats to personal and national sovereignty in the U.S. are the same.

In a related development — “related” in the sense that it deals with government propaganda and censorship regarding the so-called COVID “pandemic” and efforts by CDC and WHO to present a false narrative to the American people regarding the safety and effectiveness of COVID and other proposed mRNA and other inoculations and to suppress the health dangers of the inoculations — The Epoch Times reveals (see link below) that the U.S. government used a secret Twitter portal to censor COVID-19 content that contradicted the government’s false narrative and engaged in similar censorship activities through Facebook, Google, and other social media platforms.

[I/We] urge you to take action to:

1. SCRUTINIZE WHO International Health Regulations amendment negotiations before it is too late and the proposals are “adopted” through unconstitutional means;

2. OPPOSE the proposed and any similar International Health Regulations amendments;

3. FORCE a Congressional vote on the proposed International Health Regulations amendments as a treaty; and

4. Consistent with revelations by Sen. Ron Johnson’s recent hearings on the subject of the so-called vaccines and injuries therefrom, REIGN IN the pharma-controlled FDA and CDC in their efforts to:

(a) force vaccine and other medical mandates on the American people,

(b) engage in propaganda that falsely portrays the mRNA and other inoculations as safe and effective,

(c) interfere with the doctor-patient relationship through nefarious schemes to silence and de-license doctors, pharmacists, and other health care providers who disagree with the false narrative and seek alternative, cheaper, and more effective treatments for Covid-19; and

(d) take further actions to shut down schools, businesses, and other activities of American life under the guise of fake, pre-planned, and engineered “pandemics” as a means of asserting government control and ushering in a Chinese-style social credit system.

Thank you for your serious consideration of these matters of great concern to what I/we believe is a vast majority of your constituents.

Very truly yours,

[Your signature]

Related Link: “The Threat From the WHO Pandemic Treaty Should Make Our MPs Sit Up and Pay Attention,” Will Jones, The Daily Sceptic (12/14/22)

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Disclaimer: The entire contents of this website are based upon the opinions of Dr. Mercola, unless otherwise noted. Individual articles are based upon the opinions of the respective author, who retains copyright as marked.

The information on this website is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care professional and is not intended as medical advice. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge and information from the research and experience of Dr. Mercola and his community. Dr. Mercola encourages you to make your own health care decisions based upon your research and in partnership with a qualified health care professional. The subscription fee being requested is for access to the articles and information posted on this site, and is not being paid for any individual medical advice.

If you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a medical condition, consult your health care professional before using products based on this content.

• Omega-3 fats help lower inflammation, which is the hallmark of nearly all diseases; new data using krill oil show it works through several mechanisms to mitigate the physical and biological hallmarks of aging

• Marine-based omega-3 fats effectively reduce triglyceride levels, which are associated with heart disease. Levels of omega-3 are a good predictor of all-cause mortality and omega-3 helps ameliorate a variety of psychiatric illnesses and degenerative brain disorders

• If you notice that your skin is rough and dry, you likely need more omega-3 fatty acids, which help regulate oil production in the skin, reduce inflammation, balance hydration and minimize the effect of sun damage and aging

• Avoid the temptation to assume your omega-3 index is sufficient because you’re eating fish or taking a supplement. Instead, take a simple omega-3 index blood test at home and use the information to determine the dose needed to raise your level to your target

Chronic inflammation is a hallmark of virtually all diseases, including cancer, obesity and heart disease. Your diet plays a significant if not primary role in a chain of events that lead to chronic inflammation. Your body requires certain nutrients to help balance the inflammatory response and maintain optimal health.

Inflammation also plays a role in aging. A research paper1 published in November 2022 evaluated evidence that lipids from Antarctic krill could intervene in the basic aging mechanism and therefore enhance healthy longevity. Krill oil contains omega-3 fatty acids, which your body needs to balance your intake of omega-6 fats.

Antarctic krill is rich in long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, choline and astaxanthin. The human diet once had an omega-3 to omega-6 ratio of 1-to-1. Today that ratio is closer to 20-to-1 or even higher.2 Data show this imbalance parallels the increase in overweight and obesity and suggests it is a major contributor to systemic inflammation.

Both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are essential for good health. However, unlike omega-6 fatty acids that are found in high amounts throughout the Western diet, most people do not eat enough omega-3 fats. It is important to note that an omega-3 supplement may help, but it can never overcome a diet high in vegetable oils and processed foods, which contain significant amounts of omega-6 fats.

To attain optimal health, you must reduce your intake of foods high in omega-6 while increasing your intake of omega-3 fats. While aging is a biological process, the featured study3 found that krill oil can promote healthy aging through several mechanisms that mitigate the physical and biological hallmarks of aging.

The researchers analyzed how krill oil could affect aging by targeting the evaluation of several hallmarks affected by krill oil rather than just one. Although many researchers have studied marine-based omega-3 fats, the underlying molecular mechanisms have not been fully understood.

In this study4 the researchers used human cells and C. elegans, a 1-millimeter-long nematode that lives in the soil. Using a model of Parkinson’s disease in the nematode, they showed that krill oil protects dopaminergic neurons from degeneration, improves dopamine-dependent behavior and decreases alpha-synuclein aggregation, which is a process found in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and dementia.5

These neuroprotective qualities have the effect of slowing down the visible hallmarks of aging. Loss of viability and increasing fragility associated with aging also may affect the onset of many major diseases. Evidence from the study suggests that interfering with this process could prolong a healthy life.

However, the researchers also acknowledge that many cellular processes are involved in aging and while this study showed krill oil as an antiaging supplement could attenuate many of the hallmarks, it is not the only nutrient you need to maintain your health as you age. The way you get your omega-3 fatty acids is also important.

Krill oil is high in long chain omega-3 acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). One difference between fish oil and marine-based krill oil is that fish oil is only bound to triglycerides and krill oil is mainly bound to more bioavailable phospholipids.

DHA and EPA are water-insoluble, which means they cannot be transported in their free form in the blood and must be packaged into a lipoprotein such as phospholipids. This is the primary reason why the bioavailability of krill oil is higher than fish oil.

The featured study sought to evaluate the effect krill oil had on aging hallmarks, but studies have also found that supplementation can affect the skin, tumor growth, cytokine storm and the neurological and cardiovascular systems. Heart disease is the primary cause of death for men and women in the U.S.6

Research published in January 2022,7 analyzed data from two randomized clinical trials and found omega-3 fatty acids derived from krill oil could reduce triglyceride levels effectively and were safe and well tolerated by the participants. While triglyceride levels are a necessary fat, in excess they can increase your risk for heart disease.8

Another study9 supported by the National Institutes of Health10 suggested that the omega-3 index may be a good predictor of overall health and all-cause mortality.11 This index is a measure of the amount of EPA and DHA in the membranes of your red blood cells and is expressed as a percent of your total RBC fatty acids.12

The index has been validated as a stable, long-term marker and reflects your tissue levels of EPA and DHA. An index greater than 8% is associated with the lowest risk of death from heart disease while an index below 4% places you at the highest risk of heart disease-related mortality.

Two papers analyzed the use of omega-3 after an ischemic stroke in an animal model and found neurological benefits with the administration of omega-3 fatty acids that helped improve brain cell survival and brain remodeling,13 which benefited the restoration of white matter and microglial responses,14 all of which improved long-term functioning.

Evidence also shows that marine-based omega-3 fats help ameliorate a variety of psychiatric illnesses and degenerative brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease.15 Low levels of DHA are linked to age-related cognitive decline, which some studies16 suggest may potentially be reversible with sufficient administration of DHA.

EPA may be beneficial in the treatment of depression.17 A stumbling block has been getting enough into the brain. One 2019 paper18 discovered that by using a lysophospholipid form of EPA they could significantly raise the EPA level in the brain of mice and increase levels of DHA in the brain, which researchers suggested may help in the treatment of neuroinflammatory diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.

If you notice that your skin is rough and dry, you likely need more omega-3 fatty acids, which helps to regulate oil production in the skin, reduce inflammation, balance hydration and minimize the effect of sun damage and aging. As I’ve discussed in the past, many American diets have an overabundance of omega-6 linoleic acid (LA) which, like omega-3, is integrated into your cell membranes.

However, unlike omega-3, LA impairs your cell function and increases your risk of sunburn. To protect your skin and your overall health, you will want to eliminate as much LA from the diet as possible, while increasing your omega-3 intake.

You can accomplish this by avoiding all seed oils. These are found in most processed foods, restaurant foods, condiments and pastries. Conventionally raised chicken and pork are also high in LA since the animals are fed grain which is incorporated into the meat. Instead, cook at home with butter, ghee, beef tallow or coconut oil.

You can raise your levels of omega-3 fats by eating wild-caught Alaskan salmon, verified wild-caught sockeye salmon, sardines, mackerel, anchovies and herring. Canned Alaskan salmon is a less expensive alternative than salmon steaks. As a general recommendation, try to get two servings of fatty fish each week. Be sure to avoid farm-raised salmon since it is highly contaminated and has 5.5 times the amount of LA as wild-caught salmon.19 20

Research21 presented in April 2022 at the annual Experimental Biology meeting in Philadelphia demonstrated that omega-3 fatty acids could help to promote cancer-fighting activities of immunotherapy and anti-inflammatory therapy in an animal model. Immunotherapy is a biological treatment that prompts the immune system to attack cancer cells.22

The research sought to determine the impact of nutrition on tumor activity after treatment with immunotherapy and anti-inflammatory therapy.23 At the time of the study, immunotherapy was approved for use in the treatment of cancer, but anti-inflammatory therapy was still under clinical investigation.

The evidence showed that mice consuming a diet high in omega-3 fats and receiving both cancer treatments had a 67% reduction in tumor growth when compared to the group of mice eating a normal diet and receiving no treatment. By comparison, cancer cell growth increased in the mice who ate the high omega-6 diet and were given immunotherapy.

The researchers believe the results indicated there could be synergistic activity between omega-3 fatty acids and immunotherapy and anti-inflammatory therapy for cancer. Abigail Kelly from Harvard Medical School Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center presented the research and commented on the results in a press release:24

“We demonstrated, for the first time, that the combination of immunotherapy and anti-inflammatory treatment (sEHi) was more effective when mice were fed diets enriched with omega-3 fatty acids. This is very promising because dietary supplementation is easy to implement for cancer patients and can be added for patients already on immunotherapy.”

One of the lethal effects of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 is the ability to trigger a cytokine storm. One of the ways to suppress this event is with omega-3 fats DHA and EPA. An opinion paper published in June 2020,25 in the journal Frontiers in Physiology, expounded on the known effects these fats have on biological pathways that “may have direct influence in the outcome of COVID-19.”26

Although not mentioned in this paper, DHA has also been known to prevent thrombosis (a blood clot within a blood vessel) by decreasing platelet aggregation.27 Evidence also shows that hypercoagulation is another complication of severe COVID-19 infection that can have lethal consequences.28 Omega-3 is also known to:

• Lower your risk of lung dysfunction

• Protect against lung damage

• Protect against secondary bacterial infection

• Improve mitochondrial function

Avoid the temptation to assume your omega-3 index is sufficient because you’re eating fish or taking a supplement. Only cold-water fatty fish have high omega-3 levels, and many fish oil supplements are synthetic with questionable efficacy.

GrassrootsHealth, a nonprofit public health research organization, has several cost-effective testing options available as part of its consumer-sponsored nutrient research projects,29 the aims of which are to establish population-based nutrition recommendations based on science-backed data. There are four test options to measure omega-3:

• Omega-3 index test kit

• Vitamin D and Omega-3 test kit

• Vitamin D, Magnesium and Omega 3 test kit

• Vitamin D, Magnesium and Omega 3 PLUS Elements test kit — This kit includes measurements of essential minerals (magnesium, selenium, zinc and copper) as well as harmful heavy metals (cadmium, lead and mercury)

Your blood sample is mailed to GrassrootsHealth and you fill out a quick online health questionnaire. Your test results will be emailed to you roughly 10 to 20 days after your samples are received.

Based on your index result, use GrassrootsHealth’s omega-3 index calculator30 to determine the dosage you may require to raise your current level to your chosen target level.

Subscribe to Mercola Newsletter

Disclaimer: The entire contents of this website are based upon the opinions of Dr. Mercola, unless otherwise noted. Individual articles are based upon the opinions of the respective author, who retains copyright as marked.

The information on this website is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care professional and is not intended as medical advice. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge and information from the research and experience of Dr. Mercola and his community. Dr. Mercola encourages you to make your own health care decisions based upon your research and in partnership with a qualified health care professional. The subscription fee being requested is for access to the articles and information posted on this site, and is not being paid for any individual medical advice.

If you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a medical condition, consult your health care professional before using products based on this content.

• Avocatin B is a bioactive compound found in avocados that helps reduce weight gain and improve insulin sensitivity

• The difference in blood pressure between those with diets highest in flavanols, such as those found apples and berries, compared to those with the lowest was between 2 and 4 mmHg

• Eating small amounts of fruit can be an excellent way to increase your intake of beneficial antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, but moderation is key, especially if you have metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure and/or Type 2 diabetes

• Because fruit contains fructose, it can increase your risk of insulin resistance if you eat large amounts; examples of lower fructose fruits that are beneficial for most people include avocados, berries, kiwi and citrus fruits

Eating fruits such as avocados, apples and berries may support your metabolic health, lowering your risk of Type 2 diabetes and supporting healthy blood pressure.

At the core of the condition, Type 2 diabetes is a function of insulin resistance, which in turn is a diet-induced condition. Obesity, high blood pressure and high blood sugar are also signs of metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors that raise your risk of diabetes.1

Processed foods loaded with added sugars, processed grains and industrial processed omega-6 vegetable oils are the primary culprits that trigger insulin resistance, Type 2 diabetes and obesity, and while cutting out toxic foods such as these is essential, adding in healthy foods, like certain fruits, can be beneficial.

Optimizing your nutrition can help lower your insulin level, stabilize your glucose level and improve your overall energy. Fortunately, making small positive dietary changes, including eating more of certain healthy fruits, may help reduce your risk of diabetes and lower your blood pressure.

Legend has it the early name for avocados — “alligator pear” — came from an early English mispronunciation and misunderstanding.2 The name may have continued since the skin has a vaguely reptilian appearance and the fruit is shaped like a pear. But no matter the name or appearance, avocados are superfoods that may also help lower your blood sugar.

Paul Spagnuolo, Ph.D., and a team at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, revealed that a compound called avocation B, found only in avocados, can beneficially alter cellular processes that increase the risk of diabetes.3 4 In Canada, 25% of citizens are obese. This is a condition that increases the risk of Type 2 diabetes. By comparison, the prevalence of obesity in the U.S. was 42.4% in 2018.5

The team began the study by feeding mice a high-fat diet for eight weeks, which triggered obesity and insulin resistance. Over the next five weeks, the mice were separated into two groups. One group continued the high-fat diet and the other group’s food was supplemented with avocatin B.6

At the end of the five weeks, the researchers found the mice that were treated with avocatin B had gained significantly less weight than the control group and, more importantly, had a higher insulin sensitivity.7

The team then went on to test supplements in a human clinical trial in which they gave avocatin B as a dietary supplement to participants who were eating a typical Western diet. They found weight reductions in the individuals and no effect on the kidney, liver or skeletal muscles from the supplement. While speaking to Nutrition Insight, Spagnuolo warned:8

“We want to stress that the benefit of this molecule is in its ability to help regulate blood glucose. Reductions in weight are likely a secondary effect. We realize that this is a desirable feature for most, however, urge caution for weight loss as the sole indication.”

Spagnuolo also spoke with a reporter from Yahoo! Life about the bioactive ingredient, avocatin B. He believes avocados are a healthy addition to the diet for people with diabetes and prediabetes, explaining:9

“When we talk about bioactives, think of it like the nutrients we get from other foods: we get Omega-3 fatty acids from eating fish and Vitamin C from oranges. AvoB is a bioactive ingredient in avocados, which can be an important dietary choice for diabetics and prediabetics.

When your metabolism is working, everything is in balance. You have ideal levels of blood sugar, good cholesterol, blood pressure, etc. … Science tells us that blood sugar imbalances can have a profound and negative impact on our health.

They can impact our energy levels, concentration, mood, and much more. And for diabetics, unbalanced blood sugars could lead to even more serious health complications like heart attack and stroke.”

While the avocado is one of the healthiest foods, rich in monounsaturated fat, fiber, magnesium, potassium, vitamin K and carotenoids, there is also a dark side. Each avocado requires 70 liters (18.49 gallons) of water to produce, which means the fruit can be environmentally destructive.

People with metabolic syndrome also have difficulty regulating their blood pressure. In what researchers called the first-of-its-kind study in the U.K., scientists used objective measures for dietary intake across thousands of residents, using data for 25,618 people in Norfolk, U.K., and compared the data against their blood pressure measurements.10

Most other studies look at links between nutrition and health but rely on the study participants’ self-reported data. In this analysis, the researchers measured the participants’ flavanol intake using nutritional biomarkers present in the blood. They then compared those against their blood pressure measurements.11

The data revealed blood pressure measurement differences between people with the highest 10% of flavanols as compared to the lowest 10% between 2 and 4 mmHg. The researchers wrote this was comparable to the difference measured when a person switched to a Mediterranean diet or the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet.

Nutritionist Gunter Kuhnle at the University of Reading led the study. He talked about the importance of how the data were collected and the implications for consistent dietary intake of foods with flavanols, saying:12

“Previous studies of large populations have always relied on self-reported data to draw conclusions, but this is the first epidemiological study of this scale to objectively investigate the association between a specific bioactive compound and health. We are delighted to see that in our study, there was also a meaningful and significant association between flavanol consumption and lower blood pressure.

What this study gives us is an objective finding about the association between flavanols — found in tea and some fruits — and blood pressure. This research confirms the results from previous dietary intervention studies and shows that the same results can be achieved with a habitual diet rich in flavanols. In the British diet, the main sources are tea, cocoa, apples and berries.”

The subclass of flavanols measured in the study were flavan-3-ols,13 commonly found in tea, berries, apples and cocoa-based products.14 These same flavonoids have demonstrated benefits in other studies.15

Researchers have found those who drank tea consistently had a lower risk of all-cause mortality and were free of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease for 1.41 years longer than those who did not drink tea.16 Of the tea tested, green tea was the most healthful.

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that diabetes affected 25.8 million people in the U.S.17 This was 18.8 million who were diagnosed and 7 million who were undiagnosed, representing 8.3% of the population. A short nine years later those numbers had jumped drastically higher.

In 2020, the CDC reported that 34.2 million people with diabetes, 26.9 million of which are diagnosed and 7.3 million are undiagnosed.18 The total represents 10.5% of the U.S. population. They also estimate the number of people with prediabetes who are over 18 years as 88 million people or 34.5% of the adult population.

In total, 45% of the U.S. population is affected by diabetes or prediabetes, which can lead to long-term complications including cardiovascular disease, nerve damage and Alzheimer’s disease.19

The combination of many individuals with diabetes and the number of complications associated with the condition contribute to the staggering financial costs of the disease. According to the American Diabetes Association, people with diabetes have 2.3 times more health care costs than those without diabetes.20

Annually, this totals $327 billion, which means 1 in every 7 health care dollars is spent on treating people for diabetes and its complications. The largest expenditures are on inpatient care, prescription medications, diabetes supplies and physician office visits. There are also indirect costs to the individuals and employers, including $26.9 billion lost in reduced productivity and $3.3 billion lost in absenteeism.

At the center of the pathology behind diabetes is mitochondrial dysfunction. Eating a high-carbohydrate diet that bathes your mitochondria in glucose can suppress mitochondrial metabolism.21

As I’ve written before, your mitochondria are energy producers inside most of your cells and are the primary sources of energy to keep your body functioning. Mitochondrial dysfunction is at the heart of several disease pathologies, including cardiovascular diseases22 and neurological dysfunction.23

While there is no easy answer, I believe the foundational first step to addressing metabolic defects responsible for mitochondrial dysfunction, Type 2 diabetes and obesity is to make food choices that boost mitochondrial health. I discussed this in detail in my book Fat for Fuel.

In my book I discussed the importance of metabolic flexibility and insulin sensitivity. Achieving this through nutritional ketosis helps to support your mitochondrial health. To reverse Type 2 diabetes, you need to recover insulin and leptin sensitivities. The best way to address those metabolic conditions is through proper diet and exercise.

As for fruit consumption, eating small amounts can be an excellent way to increase your intake of beneficial antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. But moderation is key, especially if you have metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure and/or Type 2 diabetes.

Because fruit contains fructose, it can increase your risk of insulin resistance if you eat large amounts. Examples of lower fructose fruits that are beneficial for most people include avocados, berries, kiwi and citrus fruits.

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