The politics of greed is what keeps this world wrapped in corruption. If you want to stick around for a while longer, I suggest you educate yourself and try to do something constructive to help save what little good, honesty, and trust we have left.

A motto for us old vets: Take one with you!

Use your Go Back and Go Forward commands to get to where you were in a previous file.

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Highest Go To numbers are the latest Links of all coruption pages.


Go to 12832
http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=7090
Greenspan: Medicare Big Economic Threat
03-04-2008
Fortune Magazine

(Fortune Magazine) -- Twice I have asked Alan Greenspan what he considers the greatest threat to the U.S. economy, and both times he has answered immediately with a single word: Medicare. He isn't so worried about the trade deficit and the housing crash; he figures market forces will sort them out. But Medicare is something else - a multitrillion-dollar problem that's about to get dramatically worse, and one that nobody wants to talk about. You'd think that the greatest threat to America's economy would be Topic A for the presidential candidates. But it's actually a topic they hate to touch.

Especially now. An analysis of their speeches shows that last year Senators Hillary Clinton, John McCain, and Barack Obama would occasionally mention the Medicare mess. But recently, with the economy slowing and voters feeling insecure, all three candidates have turned more populist: Their economic talking points are about feel-good reassurances, not about facing hard realities.

Unfortunately the day of reckoning is imminent. Sometime in the next President's first term, Medicare Part A (hospital insurance) will go cash-flow-negative, and it's all downhill from there. Medicare provides a wide range of services and subsidies to more than 40 million old and disabled Americans. As the country ages, Medicare and Medicaid (for those of any age with low incomes) will devour growing chunks of U.S. economic output. So will Social Security, but its cut of GDP should stop increasing around 2030. The federal budget has averaged about 18% of GDP over the past several decades. If that average holds and if the rules of our social insurance programs don't change, then by 2070, when today's kids are retiring, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security will consume the entire federal budget, with Medicare taking by far the largest share. No Army, no Navy, no Education Department - just those three programs.

But wait - the situation is actually much worse. Those estimates, reported in the latest Financial Report of the U.S. Government, assume that Medicare payments to doctors will be slashed drastically, by some 41% over the next nine years, as required by current law. It won't happen. Every year for the past five years, Congress has overridden the mandatory cuts. As for future cuts, the Financial Report says drily, "Reductions of this magnitude are not feasible and are very unlikely to occur fully in practice." So in reality, Medicare will go into the hole even faster than official projections reflect. And they show that if Medicare had to be accounted for like a company pension fund, it would be underfunded by $34 trillion.

Obviously those long-term scenarios won't happen, because they can't happen - we won't be shutting down the Army, Navy, and so on. But it's easy to see why the candidates don't want to discuss it. As you listen to them, keep three points in mind:

Pain-free remedies won't do the job. All three major candidates, on those rare occasions when they mention Medicare's finances, stress how they'll make the system more efficient, eliminate errors, and improve incentives. That's all wonderful, but it won't be nearly enough. Only John McCain has hinted at what else will be required, including means-testing and limits on benefits. Give him major points, but it's unlikely we'll hear much more on that theme.

Any mention of trust funds is bogus. They're too complicated to explain here, but the bottom line is that no piles of money are socked away to cover future Medicare expenses. Any money the government needs to pay out this year, it needs to take in this year, and every year.

Tax and spending plans must Include Medicare. We'll hear plenty of budget proposals over the next eight months. But without changes to Medicare, they're meaningless. Medicare will eventually overwhelm everything else in the budget, except for the interest on the mushrooming debt to pay for it.

If this is the greatest threat to the U.S. economy and the candidates haven't told us what they'd do about it, they haven't told us a thing.



Go to 12831
http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=7093
Reports Of Voting Irregularities In Ohio
03-04-2008
Columbus Dispatch

The campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are complaining about problems at the polls in Ohio.

Clinton's camp said it has received “troubling reports of irregularities and inappropriate behavior by Sen. Obama’s campaign across the state,” including a certified Obama poll watcher being removed by the presiding judge in an Akron precinct for “aggressively challenging voters.”

There also were reports in Cincinnati of Obama poll watchers being reprimanded after wearing campaign paraphernalia into polling places, a violation of election law, Clinton state director Robby Mook said in a news release.

But the Obama campaign disputed the Clinton camp's characterization of what happened in Akron, saying that after a poll worker was informed of the rules for observers, the Obama volunteer was allowed to perform his duties.

MSNBC also quoted Brian Williams, director of the Summit County Board of Elections, as calling the Clinton campaign's depiction of what happened "an overstatement," saying he "would not characterize that as aggressively challenging voters.”

Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner's office also issued an e-mail this morning to all election officials that a letter signed by Obama's campaign director in Ohio authorizing the letter-bearer to serve as a legal poll monitor is not sufficient.

To be allowed access to a polling location, an observer must be duly appointed before the election as an official observer and have a certificate.

Brunner's office said in its e-mail that the letter being presented by Obama supporters to election officials “is not legally sufficient on its own to allow someone to gain access to polling places.”

Obama's campaign said the letter is only being used as identification for people monitoring polling locations from the outside. Brunner's office said there were no widespread reports of problems with Obama observers inside the polls.

Obama's camp, meanwhile, complained that some voters asking for Democratic ballots are being given Republican or issues-only ballots instead. In addition, voter identification requirements were being mishandled in some areas, causing some voters to be turned away, they said.

Without actually accusing the Clinton campaign of what could be poll-worker error, Obama state director Paul Tewes said in a statement, “We understand that the Clinton campaign may want to depress turnout because Barack Obama has closed a 20-point gap over the course of this month as voters across the state got to know him.

“We will continue to monitor the polls to ensure that all Ohioans who choose to participate in today’s election are able to do so regardless of who they choose to vote for,” Tewes said.



Go to 12830
http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=7100
Report On Vote Stealing In Texas
03-05-2008
KPRC

HOUSTON -- Voters reported being turned away from the polls, prompting a criminal investigation into vote stealing, Local 2 Investigates reported Tuesday.

The Harris County District Attorney's Office confirmed it is contacting the victims, all centered around Precinct 219 in southeast Houston.

"I feel really hurt," said Garland Boone, a voter in the Third Ward neighborhood off Yellowstone, where the scam was reported.

He said his neighbors who are victims "don't have a chance to express their vote. Everybody needs to express their own vote."

Precinct Judge Edna Russell told Local 2 Investigates that some senior citizen voters had to be turned away because absentee ballots had already been mailed in using their names.

"Somebody had already voted for me," said Georgia Ireland.

She and the other victims reported that people were going door-to-door, offering help to seniors with filing voter registration forms.

Some victims signed the paperwork, while others did not, but the scammers then used the information to mail absentee ballots in their names, meaning their votes were stolen from them.

"I thought that was horrible," Ireland said. "I really wanted to know how they could do that (because) I never signed nothing. Not a thing."

Witnesses inside the voting location at Mount Olive Baptist Church said some of the victims cried and others yelled, "This is how they're going to steal the election from (Presidential candidate Barrack) Obama."

The precinct judge said some of the victims have had their votes stolen in the past, which indicates that once the scammers have someone's personal information, they could become victims again and again in the future.

"I would be furious," said another voter, Carolyn Stubblefield. "What's the world coming to where you can't even go vote anymore? Somebody would even steal your right to vote."

Less than 10 victims were reported to the district attorney's office, where investigators began contacting those voters to see if they can identify who is responsible.



Go to 12829
http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=7102
Iran Calls For UN Sanctions Against U.S.
03-05-2008
Tehran Times

TEHRAN – Supreme National Security Council Secretary Saeed Jalili has urged the UN Security Council to impose sanctions on the U.S. for developing nuclear weapons.

“The Security Council must issue sanctions resolution against the U.S. which has a long record in proliferation and use of nuclear weapons,” Jalili told Japan's NHK television aired on Friday.

Iran’s top nuclear negotiator accused the United States of violating international law by using nuclear weapons against Japan, building nuclear arsenals, and proliferating atomic arms.

“According to the Article VI of the Non-Proliferation Treaty which calls for nuclear disarmament, the United States must report to the International Atomic Energy Agency on how it has obeyed international law on nuclear arms,” Jalili stated.

“Today the U.S. does not have a good image in the world. The United States is the only country which has used this inhumane weapon against innocent people… the Japanese people will surly never forget the U.S. crimes.



Go to 12828
http://www.realjewnews.com/?p=161
CORPORATE POWER
OF THE INTERNATIONAL JEW
By Brother Nathanael Kapner - Copyright © 2008
All Articles May Be Reproduced Only With Authorship of Br Nathanael Kapner & Link To Real Jew News


JEWS HAVE WORLD-WIDE CONTROL of the major global Corporations. Thus the “International Jew” has the entire world in an economic stranglehold.

The underpinning of all major Multi-National Corporations begins with the Rothschild Banking & Mining interests:

* Rothschild Group: Headquartered in London. Finances (in their words) “governments, corporations throughout the world” Here. The Rothschild Group has 47 offices world wide which include New York, Washington DC, Paris, Frankfort, Amsterdam, Rome, Johannesburg, Tel Aviv, Tokyo, Madrid, and Hong Kong.

~ Under David René James de Rothschild, (b 1942), son of Guy de Rothschild (1909-2007), the Rothschild Group controls governments, (the USA through the privately-owned Federal Reserve System), financial institutions, mining industries, and Multi-National Corporations throughout the world.

* De Beers Mining: Headquartered in Zurich Switzerland. Mines both gold and diamonds primarily in South Africa. (De Beers will not officially admit to “gold mining” because they fear accusations of being in control of the “gold standard.”)

~ Offices world-wide include London, Johannesburg, Canada, Australia, Angola, India, and Brazil. Again, the Jew David René James de Rothschild is Chairman Here. The Jew Nicky Oppenheimer is Co-Chairman Here.

~ Not only do the Rothschilds control the mining of South African gold through De Beers, they also control its price. In London, all gold bullion passes through the hands of three Jewish firms who govern the price of gold from day to day. These are N. M. Rothschild & Sons, Mocatta & Goldsmid, and Samuel Montagu & Co Here.

~ Together with the Oppenheimer family, the Rothshilds through their French subsidiary Imetal S.A. once again, under David René James de Rothschild, have mining interests not only in iron, platinum, copper, zinc, tin, and coal throughout the world Here, Here & Here.


THE INTERNATIONAL JEW & “BREAD ALONE”

JESUS CHRIST SAID, “Man does not live on bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (St Matthew 4). But the International Jew does not believe this.

Here are 2 Jewish corporations that live on “bread & oil” alone:

* Louis Dreyfus Global: Headquartered in Zurich Switzerland as Banque Louis-Dreyfus. Multi-billion dollar international grain exporter. Expansion industries include citrus, sugar, coffee, non ferrous metals, chemicals, shipping, natural gas, and Real Estate Here

~ Louis Dreyfus Global has over 300 offices world wide which include Paris, London, Singapore, Buenos Aires, Wilton Connecticut, and Memphis Tennessee. Senior Executives are of the closed Jewish family of Louis-Dreyfus - Gerard, Philippe, and Robert. The Jew Jeffrey I. Sussman oversees Louis-Dreyfus International Real Estate Holdings from his NY office in Manhattan.

* Royal Dutch Shell: Manufacturer & Distributor of oil, gas, & petrochemicals. Headquartered in the Hague Amsterdam. Has offices in 140 countries world wide with over 112,000 employees.

~ Principal owners are the Rothschilds who in 1912 bought four million shares in Royal Dutch Petroleum and a quarter of a million pounds worth of shares in Shell Trading Company Here & Here.


THE MICHAEL BLOOMBERG CONNECTION

THE JEW MICHAEL RUBENS BLOOMBERG (born February 14, 1942), now Mayor of New York City, is a multi-billionaire. He gained his wealth as the founder of Bloomberg L.P in 1981, a financial news and data company. Before 1981, Bloomberg was a partner at the Wall Street Jewish investment bank, Salomon Brothers, now Citigroup.

Bloomberg made his fortune with his Bloomberg L.P by providing financial software tools such as analytics and equity trading platform, data services and news to financial institutions around the world through the BLOOMBERG TERMINAL™ Here.

What does all of this mean? Nothing less than a multi-billionaire Jew in the Jewish controlled center of the world, New York City, having international access to every Jewish financial mogul around the globe!

Indeed, the International Jew, whose chief loyalty is to his own, NOT his host nation, works within a world-wide Jewish financial cartel. In other words, Jews stick together, work together, and scheme together…


HOW CAN WE STOP THE INTERNATIONAL JEW?

Here is the only way we can stop the International Jew:

+ We who call ourselves “Christians” must respond to Christ’s admonition:

— “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” — (II Chronicles 7:14)


Thus if We Christians Humble Ourselves & Live For Jesus Christ As “Hot Christians” Then We Have A Fighting Chance Against The Anti-Christ International Jew!

For More See: “The Jewish Control Of Wealth” Click Here

And: “Will The Jew-Owned Federal Reserve Bank Kill Ron Paul?” Click Here



Go to 12827
http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/article.asp?ID=8146
Communist Takeover Began Long Ago
by Henry Makow Ph.D. – (March 13 2005; Updated March 1, 2008)

Three years ago, I wrote that KGB generals have been given important positions in the Dept. of Homeland Security, run by Lenin look-alike, Zionist Michael Chertoff.

I described this development as the "stealth Communist takeover of the USA. How better do it than when everyone is thinking Muslims, and our elected officials are too corrupt and compromised to protect us?"

We don't recognize what has taken place because we were taught that Communism was an idealistic but discredited "working class" experiment, tried mainly in Russia and China.

This misconception has duped millions of unsuspecting socialists and liberals including myself. As recently as 1990-2000, I was singing the praises of Canadian Maoist dupe Dr. Norman Bethune to my English literature class.

The Illuminati bankers created Communism to harness the working class to their program of a comprehensive world dictatorship (now known as "globalization.") The Illuminati and Communists are Masonic secret societies that celebrate the same anniversary, May 1, 1776 and share the same satanic symbols. Coincidentally, "Chertoff" means "devil" in Russian.

The program took a giant step in 1913 when these Luciferian London-based bankers gained control over America's finances through the passage of the Federal Reserve Act. This gave them means and incentive to step up their covert war against humanity. The two world wars were the immediate result.

Communism is a satanic movement devoted to human degradation and enslavement, not public ownership and social justice. Of course, no one would support it if they knew the truth.


AN EX US COMMUNIST SPEAKS

Many high-ranking former-Communists have risked their lives to alert their fellow Americans. One is Bella Dodd whose shocking book "School of Darkness" I reviewed two years ago.

She describes how Communists morph into liberals, feminists and socialists, and myriad front groups (identifiable by the words like "human rights," "equality," "international" and "peace") to divide and subvert society.

In "Return to My Father's House" (1972), Maurice Malkin provides more revelations. He was a leader of the American Communist Party (CPUSA) in the 1920' s and 30's, and part of the Soviet secret service (GPU). When he left the CPUSA, he testified before Congress.

Malkin, a Jew, had been involved in the Bolshevik underground in Russia. His older brother Joseph, a devoted Marxist later killed by Stalin, taught him that by overthrowing the Czar, workers could "eliminate all injustices and create a heaven on earth." The dogma of the duped went like this:

"The capitalist bourgeoisie owned everything yet the working class did all the work. The mission of the working class was to take through violence what rightly belonged to them...[Only Marxism] could relieve the human race of brutality, discrimination [i.e. anti-Semitism] and injustice, of hunger, poverty and the drudgery that filled the lives of ordinary working people everywhere." (27-29)

Malkin immigrated to New York and took the ersatz religion of a workers' heaven on earth with him. Lev Bronstein (Leon Trotsky), a close family friend taught him "bullets, not ballots would liberate the workers." (50)

His brother Joseph was one of the 150-175 mostly Jewish radicals who left for Russia with Trotsky in 1917 aboard the S.S. Christiansfjord. Banker Jacob Schiff financed them.

The ship was stopped in Halifax and the occupants interned. Despite (or because of) Trotsky's public declaration that they "were going home to Russia to dig the grave of capitalism," Woodrow Wilson intervened on their behalf. Rothschild agent Edward House controlled Wilson.

The Illuminati bankers despise capitalism because it involves competition and market forces. It allows other people the opportunity to prosper and be free. They favor monopoly or state capitalism and the abolition of private property because then they own or control everything and everyone. Of course, this is disguised as "public ownership" but they control the government, and its wealth.


"ELITE" SUBVERSION

Thus, for most of the last century the United States has tolerated a party openly dedicated to the violent overthrow of the US government and the enslavement of its people.

This party, the CPUSA was funded and directed by a hostile foreign government. It engaged in industrial and military espionage, trained guerrilla units on American soil, forcibly took over unions, raided their treasuries and controlled whole industries. It slandered, harassed and killed opponents; bribed police and judges and infiltrated the military.

Yet all the while, our highest elected officials defended it as a harmless idealistic enterprise. "Some of my best friends are Communists," FDR famously said.

Malkin reports that Adlai Stephenson (as Assistant to Navy Secretary Knox) sabotaged efforts to curtail Communist activities. In 1956, Eisenhower "liquidated all anti-subversive sections in the Immigration Dept and halted deportation and prosecution of known alien Communists. [He] stopped prosecutions of Communists under the Smith Act, giving the Party a chance to regroup and organize new mass fronts." (191)

The Liberal media marginalized and ridiculed as "right wing fanatics" people who warned of the Communist threat. To this day, people don't accept that the Rosenbergs were indeed Russian spies. The House Un-American Activities Committee is portrayed as a "witch hunt." Liberals and leftists parrot the mass media ridicule thinking they are cool.

Communism is nothing but a sugarcoated goon squad for the Illuminati bankers. Malkin reports that the CPUSA even had a formal alliance with the mafia, another Masonic sect.

Moscow provided the Mafia with heroin to sell in the USA. The Mafia "lent" money to the Communist Party, provided muscle for taking over the labor movement, and disposed of enemies or members who woke up. (One Communist leader, Juliet Stuart Poyntz, was kidnapped, killed at sea and thrown overboard.) The Mafia also distributed counterfeit US dollars printed in Moscow.
Following Stalin's example, American Communists robbed banks, calling it "expropriation." In his book, "Left Wing Communism" (Vol. 30) Lenin counseled: "Communists are to be ready to cheat, lie, perjure and do everything possible to gain their ends." Thus, when evidence of their skulduggery surfaced, it was little matter to denounce it as a "forgery" and smear the messenger.

The Communist Party infiltrated the Negro Civil Rights movement and got Ralph Abernathy and Martin Luther King to work with their Moscow-trained Negro mercenaries. W.E.B. BuBois and Ralph Bunche were among their "Black" front men but they hardly had any Black followers. American Negroes were too patriotic.

"The Reds realized that the only way to weaken our country is by dividing it through anarchy and chaos," Malkin writes.

They had more luck with women. The Communist attitude to women is instructive since second-wave feminism is Communist in origin. Feminism is recycled "class war" adjusted for gender.

Young female members were used on the waterfront to recruit sailors and longshoremen and bring them to party functions. "Girls would always be found in the Communist summer camps doing the party's bidding plus offering a little enjoyment on the side. The Party believes that the only laws and morals are Communist morals. ....Communists do not believe in family institutions or morals so everything is free." (239)

The Communists had a department dedicated to "the destruction of the morale of the American people by undermining their faith in their moral and social patterns." (71) You can bet that something like this is behind same-sex marriage.


CONCLUSION

When Hitler and Stalin made a pact in 1939, Malkin realized there was little difference between the two and quit the Party. He devoted the rest of his life to defending American institutions, working for the U.S. Dept. of Justice from 1948-1956. He realized belatedly that his religious father's condemnations of Communism were correct, hence the title of the book.

Although this book was published in 1972, the Communist conspiracy is more active than ever. Conscious and unconscious agents abound especially in homosexual, feminist, socialist, Zionist and liberal circles. "Human Rights" commissions, "employment equity" and diversity officers are modern political commissars. "Hate speech" is censorship applied selectively.

Once, a lesbian running for the head of the English Department gave a long speech saying she believed in "peace." What did this have to do with English literature? "Peace" is code for the end of resistance to the NWO, i.e. Communist global tyranny. She was elected Chair of the Department.

The New World Order is full of empty platitudes about "peace" "tolerance" and "human rights." But in light of the NWO's murderous Communist (and Fascist) pedigree, these platitudes are no more convincing than if they were uttered by Ted Bundy or Jeffrey Dahmer.

Western elites (including the intelligentsia) suffer from a peculiar death wish. We would be slaves already were it not for the fact that ordinary Americans own firearms. This, the Internet, and the inherent self-destructiveness of evil, are my main reasons for hope.


See William F. Jasper "The Conspiracy Above Communism"
and my "The US is a "British" Financial Colony"



Go to 12826
http://www.ithyroid.com/potassium.htm
POTASSIUM

POTASSIUM AND THYROID DISEASE

Studies show that potassium becomes very deficient in the hyperthyroid state. It can become so deficient that hypokalemic paralysis results. This is a condition in which the whole body becomes rigid because of potassium deficiency. There are reports in the literature of people found in a state of hypokalemic paralysis in the street. When they are taken to the hospital and revived with potassium infusions, they are often found to have hyperthyroidism. For an unknown reason this occurs at a higher rate among Asians. It may be genetic or dietetic (high sodium intake from soy sauce, perhaps??). There are indications that potassium deficiency may also be involved in hyperthyroidism and the rapid weight gain of hypos may be the result of potassium deficiency.

The four minerals, sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium are next to each other in the Periodic Table and form a square on the left side. There are strong interactions between these four minerals. The balances between these four minerals seems to be critical to health and are probably very critical for thyroid health. Excess amounts or deficiencies of any one of the four may severely disrupt thyroid function. Additionally there seem to be interactions between these four minerals and copper and zinc, which are two metallic minerals with critical thyroid functions. It seems that a copper deficiency interferes with the proper functioning of both potassium and magnesium, and zinc seems more related to sodium and calcium metabolism. Also all of these minerals seem involved in either the production, degradation, or cellular response to thyroid hormone.

Potassium, sodium, and lithium are alkaline minerals which are involved in the cellular pumps which regulate the transport of water and nutrients through the cell walls. There is evidence that a potassium deficiency can cause the cells to fill with water leading to an overall edema in the body. It's possible that edema of the brain cells from potassium deficiency may be involved in chronic headaches. It's also possible that potassium deficiency is responsible for the rapid increase in body weight seen in thyroid patients. This increase in body weight seems to occur despite calorie restriction and may be the result of swelling of all the body's cells with water.

Indications of potassium deficiency include symptoms such as muscle weakness, which is a condition reported by many thyroid patients.

You will also see below that eating licorice can deplete potassium with possible fatal consequences. I would strongly urge anyone with thyroid disease to not eat licorice.

For these reasons I think studying potassium is critically important to understanding thyroid physiology.

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT POTASSIUM

From the book, "Healthy Healing" by Linda Rector Page:

"Potassium--an electrolyte mineral located in body fluids. Potassium balances the acid/alkaline system, transmits electrical signals between cells and nerves, and enhances athletic performance. It works with sodium to regulate the body's water balance, and is necessary for heart health against hypertension and stroke, (people who take high blood pressure medication are vulnerable to potassium deficiency), muscle function, energy storage, nerve stability, and enzyme and hormone production."

"Potassium helps oxygenate the brain for clear thinking and controls allergic reactions. Stress, hypoglycemia, diarrhea and acute anxiety or depression generally result in potassium deficiency. A potassium broth from vegetables is one of the greatest natural healing tools available for cleansing and restoring body energy. Good food and herb sources are fresh fruits, especially kiwis and bananas, potatoes, sea vegetables, spices like coriander, cumin, basil, parsley, ginger, hot peppers, dill weed, tarragon, paprika, and tumeric, lean poultry and fish, dairy foods, legumes, seeds, and whole grains."

From the Nutrition Almanac by Kirschmann (excerpts): "...Potassium constitutes 5% of the total mineral content of the body...Potassium and sodium help regulate water balance within the body (potassium crosses over more easily); that is, they help regulate the distribution of fluids on either side of the cell walls and preserve proper alkalinity of the body fluids. Potassium also regulates the transfer of nutrients to the cells. ..."

"Potassium is necessary for normal growth enzymatic reactions. It unites with phosphorus to send oxygen to the brain and also functions with calcium in the regulation of neuromuscular activity. The synthesis of muscle protein and protein from amino acids in the blood requires potassium, as does the synthesis of nucleic acids. It aids in keeping skin healthy and in keeping a stable blood pressure."

"Potassium assists in the conversion of glucose to the form in which this substance can be stored in the liver as glycogen, and then to its useful form to do the body's work. Protein and carbohydrate metabolism are dependent upon potassium. It stimulates the kidneys to eliminate poisonous body wastes. Potassium works with sodium to help normalize the heartbeat."

STUDIES ON POTASSIUM DEFICIENCY AND THYROID CONDITIONS
The following study indicates that potassium levels are low in patients with hyperthyroidism, muscular weakness is proportionate to potassium deficiency, and correction of thyroid hormone levels results in correction of potassium levels.

Rev Neurol 1999 Sep 16-30;29(6):510-2

Title: Total body potassium in relation to thyroid hormones and hyperthyroidism.

Author
Edmonds CJ; Smith T
Source
Clin Sci, 60(3):311-8 1981 Mar
Abstract
1. Body weight and total body potassium were measured in 23 hyperthyroid patients before and at various stages during treatment and in 19 athyreotic patients who were being treated with high-dose L-thyroxine. 2. In the hyperthyroid patients the total body potassium rose by 23 +/- 2.8% (SEM) within a few weeks of restoring the blood thyroid hormone levels to normal. The body potassium values after treatment were close to that expected in these individuals if they were healthy indicating that a considerable loss of body potassium is usual in hyperthyroidism. 3. The gain of total body potassium in hyperthyroidism averaged 71 +/- 8 mmol for each kg of body weight gained (compared with muscle potassium concentration of about 92 mmol/kg). In contrast, weight loss produced by dietary treatment of obesity caused very little change of body potassium (maximum averaged was 14 +/- 4 mmol/kg wt. loss). 4. Among the patients with hyperthyroidism, the greatest muscular weakness was present in those with the greatest body potassium loss and these patients regained a large amount of potassium relative to weight on recovery. 5. Total body potassium changes were closely related to total plasma tri-iodothyronine concentrations but unrelated to the thyroxine levels.

More studies and information follow on the web site link goto.



Go to 12825
http://www.ithyroid.com/arthritis_and_potassium.htm
ARTHRITIS as a CHRONIC POTASSIUM DEFICIENCY, chapter I
by Charles Weber
This site introduces a discussion of potassium nutrition and physiology especially as pertaining to rheumatoid arthritis.

OTHER CONTENTS II. Arthritis Research -- III. Arthritis and Potassium -- IV. Roles of Potassium in the Body -- V. Electrolyte regulation (sodium and potassium) -- VI. Purpose of cortisol -- VII. Copper nutrition and physiology -- VIII. Nutritional Requirements -- IX. Potassium in Foods -- X. Processing Losses -- X,cont. Losses in the kitchen -- XI. Supplementation -- Side Effects and Heart Disease


It is my contention that potassium deficiency is either causing, or greatly making worse, rheumatoid arthritis which I will shorten to "arthritis" in this article. In assessing the possibility of this hypothesis people have little to go on. Virtually any textbook in the past would devote no more than a paragraph to potassium which would state that potassium is never deficient in the diet, or give one exception to the dozen or more known, or in some only under clinical conditions.

The reason for this careless treatment of potassium is probably because potassium is present in almost all foods as grown in large quantities. Professionals think about it as if it were air or water. However even air and water can be deficient and if voluminous texts are not written on their deficiencies, it is because both deficiencies can be detected by our senses. Extremely powerful emotions and instincts impel people to correct these deficiencies immediately and at any cost. Potassium is odorless, colorless, and, in the usual concentrations, tasteless. There is no way to detect a deficiency and cell content can not even easily be assessed in the body by modern analytical procedures. Whole body cell content is virtually "invisible".

There is not any indication in the literature that potassium has ever been tried by scientists as an arthritis corrective. A rather exhaustive search of the medical literature has failed to disclose an experiment. This includes Exerpta Medica 1947 to 1974, and a computer search by the Central Library of the American Medical Association from 1965 back.

I will discuss potassium physiology and nutrition and what can be done to remove an actual deficiency and thus heal any tissue which has not actually been destroyed. If you do not know the meaning of a word in this article, for a definition click on http://www.m-w.com (Mirriam-Webster).

Please keep in mind, though, that potassium ramifies through every cell and process in the body, has no storage, and has a dangerous dependence on its precise control by nerve impulse transmission. This makes it a mineral to be cautious about. In particular I recommend getting as much as possible from food. Even food requires some care because it has a wide range of concentrations. You must take responsibility for your own intake and I assume no liability for the correctness of advice in this article. You use this information at your own risk.

Getting potassium from food is reasonably safe for normal people with reasonably sound kidneys. Even if you doubt my thesis of a connection between arthritis and potassium, you have nothing to lose by getting all the potassium that was originally in your food. It will even taste better. It will, in addition, help protect you from potassium's known link to heart disease. As the 12th century physician Maimonides expressed it: "A doctor should begin with simple treatments, trying to cure by diet before he administers drugs. No illness that can be treated by diet should be treated by any other means."

Anything a doctor can learn, you can also. There will be a list of definitions eventually which will make the difficult words much easier eventually. In the mean time one of the online technical dictionaries may do.

INTRODUCTION

Arthritis is the number one crippler in America. The estimate for rheumatoid arthritis is 43 million men, women and children and at least 65 billion dollars lost each year currently. Two thirds of the victims are women, most of them over 45 [Rodman]. The terrible pains associated with arthritis, reminiscent of and similar to the medieval torture racks must surely be among the top causes of contemporary misery. These pains along with the actual physical disability, weak joints, and loss of energy which accompany them, cause an enormous loss of productivity, estimated to be over six billion dollars in 1978 [Arthritis Foundation]. Arthritis may be a considerable part of the cause of increasing welfare roles. Even industrial accidents are related to this monstrous and onerous burden that society carries. Small jolts and falls which should do little more than bring out some colorful language results in loss of hours and even months. It is more than just the loss of time itself. It is also the super caution that blocks even fairly healthy people from making fast, risky moves when they see some of the debacles their friends get into.

Nor is arthritis confined to North America. Countries at such extremes of latitude as Finland and Jamaica have even higher rates than we do [Kellgren]. The simple life is not any guarantee against misery either. The Masai tribesmen of Africa have high rates [Best p768]. Political or economic ideologies are not barriers. Arthritis crosses the iron curtain, is also present in nomadic hunters, and cave men, cave bears, and ancient Egyptians are thought to have had it [Bach][Crain]. It shows no obvious clear association with any culture even though it is very variable, with low rates in tribes near the Masai and Laplanders near the Finns in Finland, as well as insane people in Massachusetts {Allander p260].

Most of the people who have pains in the joints have them because of arthritis. The pains usually strike first in the outer joints like fingers or joints with a history of injury. Load bearing joints are also vulnerable. The pain is most likely in the early morning. It is often accompanied by stiffness. It is not to be assumed that the disease is localized because the pain is, Arthritis is present throughout the body and can affect kidneys, pericardium of the heart, and connecting tissue [Strukov][Ropes]. It is a disease largely associated with humans [LaMont-Havers], probably partly because animals can not talk, but I suspect primarily because animals usually do not have access to refined food. Arthritis has few externally observable symptoms, especially in early stages. There are no known consistent biochemical changes in arthritis (which word in this article will be equated with "rheumatoid arthritis") except a much lower cellular potassium content than normal [LaCelle], and a higher copper content along with a protein which binds the copper in the serum [Schubert]. There has been an effort to use changes in some of the body's other proteins in diagnosis, but with limited success so far, although some of the other rheumatic diseases can be almost diagnosed from blood proteins alone [Waller]. As nearly as I can tell this seemed to be the consensus for arthritis at the 1982 Pan American Conference on Arthritis. There are significant correlations between IgM RF and IgA immune proteins and a higher disease activity [Chen] but the correlations are not perfect. C3 and C4 compliment are said to be the best of the other discriminators.[Sari, et al]. Arthritis sometimes has fatigue associated with it.

In the past arthritis was associated with old age in people's minds and there was a tendency to suffer it stoically as inevitable. While the medical profession has intellectually abandoned an assumption that only people in old age are affected, many laymen still assume this is the case. The concept that this is "old age" is pervasive, even creeping into common cultural media as modern as "Star Trek". This is not to indicate that the victims did not often attempt to do something. Arthritis has a long history of quack nostrums and screwball procedures. These quack remedies were assisted by the numerous spontaneous remissions that occur with arthritis or by pain deadening chemicals. It was not necessary to cure everyone, since those who were "cured" were very grateful and those who were not were fatalistic, since their doctors could do nothing either.

It is my contention that arthritis is either a potassium deficiency or is strongly affected by one. I suspect that some poison or some infections or decline in kidney function with age degrades our ability to concentrate potassium and thus makes it impossible to eat the food from which almost every processing procedure removes potassium these days. Arthritics characteristically have poor nourishment {Morgan et al]. One such poison which I suspect is the very poisonous bromine gas, since it probably affected me that way 50 years ago.

One technique which seemed to have some success was the use of spas. At least their popularity would seem to indicate some success. That king sized spa, the ocean, has been given credit for anti-arthritic tendencies also. This is plausible because the ocean contains potassium in about the same concentration as blood fluid. The spa at Bath, England, has a potassium content less than one tenth that of ocean water [Riley]. If it is typical of spas, then unless they were drinking the water, it is hard to see how it could have helped.

There have been closer associations with potassium. At one time sulfurated potash was used to combat arthritis [Osol p1092]. It is not surprising that it fell into disfavor associated with such a poisonous anion. An anion is a negatively charged substance which neutralizes the positive charge of an ion like potassium. The first person to definitively link potassium to arthritis in no uncertain terms was DeCoti-Marsh in a book published in England in 1957 [deCoti-Marsh]. He claimed numerous case histories. He recommended a whole pot-pouri of anions to go with the potassium, some of them not nutritional, and some even poisonous. He attributed magical properties to these anions. His approach was reminiscent of the writings of ancient alchemists.

A more successful technique was the raw vegetable diet described by Holbrook in Europe during the forties [Holbrook]. This diet became quite popular, even though most people must have found it fairly unpalatable. Eppinger hinted that the success of this diet may have been due to its high potassium content [Eppinger]. It might have become more popular if a recommendation to use fried vegetables, soup, or to drink the boil water had been made, which would have permitted the same potassium intake. There have been experiments with vegetarian diets in recent years but they have been changed merely by removing meat from the diet which is probably why only moderate success has been attained.

At the present time there are several books relating diet to arthritis. Jarvis stresses honey and vinegar in his book [Jarvis]. Since honey is extremely low in potassium, it would be counter productive. The vinegar could be very beneficial if well fed people are failing to metabolize all of the acetate ion because the acid hydrogen ion interferes with potassium at the excretion site as will be developed later. I know of no tests reported in the literature testing this concept. Jarvis hints at other dietary changes also, which if followed, would increase potassium intake inadvertently.

Dong and Banks prescribe a diet free of chemicals, milk, meat and sugar, and low in fat [Dong]. If his diet were followed it would definitely increase potassium intake, especially since he stresses unprocessed vegetables. However, he attributes its success to freedom from allergens and chemicals, so that philosophically he tends to be in the same general physiological category as the autoimmune hypothesis is in, to be discussed later. I am fairly certain that those who have success with his diet do so because of the lucky quirk that potassium increases at the same time. I think a good case could be made for keeping chemicals out of food. Some, like sulfite which destroys vitamin B-1 are known to be harmful, some like dyes and nitrites are fraudulent and\or harmful. I doubt if removing them would have more than a small affect on arthritis though. Alexander recommends vitamin D against arthritis. However like Dong he also speaks of low sugar and raw vegetables [Alexander]. I doubt if the vitamin D had much affect on arthritis, although those using his diet must have had less trouble with tooth decay, tuberculosis, and rickets.

Allergy has been proposed as a possible cause but stressing allergens naturally present in food. It is quite conceivable that allergens damage the kidneys' ability to retain potassium. However, no one has established this yet. There is good evidence, though, of beneficial results from defeating allergy in specific cases.

Evidence from individual case histories and the known characteristics of potassium physiology supports the proposal that arthritis is either a potassium deficiency or that a deficiency is its most important symptom. The replete body contains about 75 times as much potassium or more as is usually in the processed diet, so if it is increased, it will still take quite awhile to come up to normal. However there should be satisfying initial results in a month or two or even less.

I have been almost alone in proposing potassium as being central to rheumatoid arthritis (but see Dr. Jan de Vries' article). . However there is no substitute for an experiment, which has never been done. While you are waiting for such an experiment there is nothing stopping you from eating nutritious food and making sure you do not lose any of the potassium by your own preparations. I wish you good health.

ARTHRITIS RESEARCH
CONTENTS of other chapters Back to INTRODUCTION chapter -- II. Arthritis Research -- III. Arthritis and Potassium -- IV. Roles of Potassium in the Body -- V. Electrolyte regulation (sodium and potassium) -- VI. Purpose of cortisol -- VII. Copper nutrition and physiology -- VIII. Nutritional Requirements -- IX. Potassium in Foods -- X. Processing Losses -- X,cont. Losses in the kitchen -- XI. Supplementation -- Side Effects and Heart Disease

For years arthritis was the poor relation of medical research. Its victims did not do something dramatic like die, as they often did with pneumonia, or go insane as they did with syphilis, or bring tears to the eyes as with childhood diphtheria, or have nice bright , easily recognizable symptoms as with measles. Arthritis tended to be a disability of old folks with vague, sometimes disbelieved symptoms. That has changed and extensive , well funded research is being done now. Forming the backdrop of this research are several hypotheses, some borrowed from research into other diseases, and some with a novel twist of their own.

One of the oldest of these is the stress hormone hypothesis championed by Selye [Selye 1949 & 1950 p197- 198]. Roughly his contention was that hormones released by the body, especially those released by the jacket of the adrenal glands, cause an adverse reaction to the joint tissues when they are released in too large amounts or the wrong ratios under conditions of environmental stress or psychic stress. His concept was generalized, and only mentioned arthritis as an unlikely possibility. The theory had some plausibility since arthritis can be produced by injecting deoxycorticosterone into a person who has been suffering from Addisons's disease or into animals [Selye et al 1944][Turner]. Some support is given to this approach in that repressed hostility is probably correlated with rheumatoid arthritis [Cobb]. The dramatic affect that cortisone has on arthritis, removing all symptoms in a short time, would give encouragement to a scientist trying to approach this matter from Selye's viewpoint. This hypothesis has never been refuted although it has fallen into disfavor recently. This is probably because some rather severe side effects materialized eventually when medical people used cortisone for a long time. As one author put it "It is remarkable how cortisone can get a seemingly hopeless patient on his feet again. Sometimes it is so effective that he can walk all the way to the autopsy table." Cortisone changes to cortisol which reduces resistance to infection, suppresses fever, causes polyarteritis nodosa (a blood vessel disease), and suppresses collagen synthesis. Stress theories did not always emphasize steroid hormones. Histamine was suggested as possibly being involved [Eyring].

A group called "Arthritis Medical Information Society" had revived this concept. They claim cures using a "balanced" regime of injected hormones, hormones which include the steroid testerone, a sex hormone. They claimed a preponderance of anabolic hormones prevent side effects. They also recommend better nutrition which I suspect was having the major effect.

McCord has proposed that arthritis may be caused by insufficient amounts of superoxide dismutase, an enzyme catalyzed by copper [McCord]. Copper supplements either as pharmaceuticals [Sorenson 1980] or as copper bracelets have been proposed with encouraging results

Because of the dramatic successes that scientists had in their battle against bacteria and virus, it is not surprising that these men should turn their attention to finding an organism which was responsible for arthritis . The fact that some infections could trigger an attack of arthritis must have given them encouragement. Also it is possible for joints to become directly infected, but the symptoms of this fairly rare condition are not exactly the same as arthritis. It causes skin rash, large lymph nodes, fever, and often affects the kidneys and heart * However an exhaustive search has not disclosed any microbe consistently present in inflamed tissue* although some investigators believe that an amoebic infection is involved.

The most popular current hypothesis is the auto immune hypothesis. This hypothesis proposes that the body's mechanism for killing disease organisms gets out of order, and starts killing connective tissue cells or perhaps dissolving the connecting tissue itself. Moderately high statistical associations between arthritis and physiological circumstances which are closely related to the immune system have given investigators all over the world encouragement. Many do not even regard the concept as a hypothesis, but as a proven theory. A much higher association of antigen HIA-B27, which is a known immunity factor, with diseases in the arthritic group such as Reiter's syndrome and ankylosing spondilitis [Mikkelsen] has tended to reinforce this feeling that they are on the right track. Investigations into the auto immune hypothesis are well funded.

It would seem strange that mesenchyme tissue (tissue derived from the middle layer of the embryo) is primarily affected, that it would take so long to be destroyed, or that there would be spontaneous remissions if the auto immune hypothesis were valid. At the very least some auxiliary hypotheses would be necessary.. Millman has proposed that some of the cell wall off of bacterial invaders become incorporated into the collagen [Millman]. Effects of steroid treatment may be due to inhibition of arachidonic metabolic cascade (the prostaglandin hormones) especially to leucotrienes, which are thought to activate macro white cells [Nalbandian]. The number of white cells can rise extremely high in arthritis [Meyer]. The hypothesis seems plausible but attempts to adapt it to diagnostic techniques have been unsuccessful. There have been medicines proposed which dampen the immune system, but most of them cause the joint damage to get worse in the long run.

There is a hypothesis that the enzymes inside the lysosome sacs inside the white cells are released because of weakness. This may be happening when sodium urate crystals are ingested by the white cells in gouty arthritis* but evidence for it in rheumatoid arthritis is inconclusive.

The hypothesis that arthritis is an allergy is in the same general category as the auto immune hypothesis. Such a hypothesis has the advantage not shared by the auto immune hypothesis directly of advancing an environmental factor which is almost certainly involved. The wide geographical variations already mentioned in chapter I virtually ensure this. Turnbull has had impressive percentages (50%) of arthritics improved by removing certain foods from the diet [Turnbull]. Others claim success by removing environmental poisons such as cooking gas [Randolph]. Anderson has been successful in removing a bad case of allergy by removing lustidine and sodium from his diet. However he removed sodium by adding potassium [Anderson]. Medical people do not pay much attention to this hypothesis even as a diagnostic approach. The references on allergy often mention this, and it appears to be true of most of the literature. Zussman, who improved four arthritics this way, could not believe he was dealing with arthritis or was afraid of ridicule, and so entitled his article "Food hypersensitivity simulating rheumatoid arthritis" [Zussman]. Allergens in food is Dong's hypothesis as mentioned in Chapter I [Dong], but he has no controlled experiments to verify his contention other than the general population being a control.

Allergy is without a doubt part of the arthritis picture since arthritics have two to three times as much allergy as average [Zeller]. White cells respond to human nuclei challenge with 3.5 times as much histamine production in arthritics as normal people [Permin]. At one time a hornet's sting caused me to break out in a rash and swell up tremendously. More recently numerous stings from wasps, yellow jackets, and a hornet caused nothing but a sharp moderate pain and irritation for a day or two resembling a mosquito bite. A genetic defect making me incompatible with hornets would surely still be with me. I put bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) on the sting immediately now, but it does not seem possible that this alkalinity would have an effect on an allergic response remote from the wound. This allergic attack preceded my bout with what was probably arthritis.

Similar in practical application to the food allergic hypothesis, but probably physiologically different, is a hypothesis put forward by Childers. He maintains that poisons in the solenaceous family are causing arthritis [Childers]. This is the night shade family and includes tomatoes, potatoes, pepper, egg plant, and tobacco. He suspects a chemical similar to vitamin D in its structure, or possibly one of the solenine alkaloids. If this hypothesis proves valid, it is possible that a substance similar to deoxycorticosterone (DOC) contained in these plants will be found to be responsible [Childers]. A poison which interferes with copper metabolism is another possibility. Smoking is known to cause emphysema, which is in turn known to be caused by a copper deficiency. Childers has had 70% of his volunteers report improvement by deleting these vegetables. However only 30% responded to his survey [Childers, private communication]so these figures could be as low as 25% and 10% respectively. Unless arthritis has more than one cause or is misdiagnosed, even 70% is too low to establish anything as a primary cause. While the causal evidence is not excellent, the evidence is good enough to persuade one to remove these vegetables from one's diet while symptoms of arthritis are present. There are plenty of other vegetables. Also never eat green or sprouting potatoes raw. Green potatoes have a very virulent poison, virulent enough to kill some people. The poison is destroyed by frying and baking but not by boiling. Also useful to know is that most of the solenines are close to the skin and possibly the other poisons as well [Childers, inside addenda].

Not surprisingly infections have been searched for as causal to arthritis. I know of no infection which has been proven to chronically inhabit the joints. Infections are known to trigger arthritis, however., and tooth abscesses can cause shoulder bursitis.

These hypotheses are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Potassium is an element which is essential to every cell in the body. It and sodium are controlled by at least five steroid hormones, several peptide hormones, and some molecular hormones. It would not be surprising that more than one disease syndrome could arise from a deficiency considering that in addition to that, the twenty five or more essential nutrients are often either deficient or wildly oversupplied in our society as well. Considering the last statement it would not be surprising either if fuzzy, inconclusive results are obtained with both nutritional experiments and medication. With such a complicated physiological situation as potassium you must surely see why I will always recommend that nutritional solutions be attempted by eating unprocessed food rather than supplements whenever possible. Thus imbalances tend to be avoided as well as other deficiencies.

I will attempt to explain potassium physiology especially as it pertains to arthritis and heart disease, how it can be changed in the diet, how it may be interacting with copper, how it can be supplemented, and dangers associated with its use in succeeding chapters. I am convinced that a perceptable improvement can be had in a few weeks even with food alone and potassium can be brought to normal in a few months for most people.

I am alone in championing the potassium hypothesis among scientists at present. You hardly have to wait until the last word in research has been unraveled in order to take steps to at least get all the potassium that was originally present in your food. There could be endless debate in scientific circles as to which fang the poison came out of in snake bite, or its exact chemical composition, or its mode of action. However this should not prevent one from staying away from the head end of a snake, even a non poisonous one , until such time as the matter were resolved in detail.

Most of the recent research has centered around the autoimmune hypothesis or in developing medicines which deaden pain. Unfortunately many of these medicines have had bad effects from the medicines.

ARTHRITIS AND POTASSIUM Chapt. III
It is proposed that the low cell potassium (whole body potassssium) always present in rheumatoid arthritis should be relieved.

CONTENTS of other chapters Back to INTRODUCTION chapter -- II. Arthritis Research -- III. Arthritis and Potassium -- IV. Roles of Potassium in the Body -- V. Electrolyte regulation (sodium and potassium) -- VI. Purpose of cortisol -- VII. Copper nutrition and physiology -- VIII. Nutritional Requirements -- IX. Potassium in Foods -- X. Processing Losses -- X,cont. Losses in the kitchen -- XI. Supplementation -- Side Effects and Heart Disease

The author, Charles Weber, has a degree in chemistry and a masters degree in soil science at Rutgers University. He has researched potassium for over 40 years, primarily a library research. He has cured his own early onset arthritis.

isoptera@angelfire.com

It has been determined by LaCelle that the whole body potassium is significantly lower in older arthritics. The body can sink to almost half of normal in some cases [LaCelle]. These determinations were made using a whole body scintillation counter. A scintillation counter is an extremely expensive machine which can count the number of x-rays emerging from the body as a result of the radioactive decay of one of the potassium isotopes, K-40. These machines cost well over $100,000 each. Potassium in the body cells is not often determined for patients because of the enormous cost of the equipment. Other methods for determining cell potassium involve biopsies, balance studies which must be conducted for long periods to get valid results [Lambie], isotope dilution studies which are almost as cumbersome [Jasani] and have difficulties with unreliable erratic diffusion to body components. Welt claims to be able to predict cell potassium from serum potassium if a formula is used which uses other ions, especially hydrogen ions (acid) [Welt 1958]. I am skeptical that it is always reliable. It is the case, though, that if for some reason the serum is more acid than normal, even small drops in serum potassium indicate significant lowering of cell potassium [Surawicz][Ono]. However in most cases when cell potassium is low the serum potassium is usually low also [Nickel]. A method has been developed which promises to be accurate and not too cumbersome. This involves the separation of white blood cells out and their subsequent analysis [Patrick]. So far as I know it is not used much. The upshot is that potassium is largely invisible to doctors.

LaCelle's finding is very significant. Even if one assumed that the arthritis caused the potassium content , rather than the other way around, it would seem good common sense to bring such an important mineral up to normal. It is strange that this finding has not created more interest, as a diagnostic clue if nothing else. Even if scientists are not interested, there is nothing stopping you from at least getting all the potassium that was originally in your food.

One can not draw sure conclusions from low potassium serum of the blood content alone and is dependant on the status of hydrogen ion and chloride. The reason is that plasma can have wide swings in content. However, 80% of people with rheumatic heart disease have low blood plasma content [Sokolov]. Even cell content is not certain proof all by itself. What is needed is a controlled experiment in which only potassium is varied. There never has been such an experiment for arthritis. However there has been an experiment performed by Schick on one of the arthritic diseases of the arteries called polyarteritis nodosa which was indicative. Unfortunately cortisone was administrated at the same time so the experiment was flawed. However, everyone given 1.5 to 3 grams of potassium supplements per day had a complete healing of all arteries [Schick]. There is also a single case history in which a subject was injected with various steroids to determine their effect. The only consistent thing that happened during the course of the experiment was that his daily intake of potassium was raised. His arthritic symptoms showed a consistent improvement throughout the course of the experiment [Clark]. Now an as yet unpublished experiment has been performed by Rudin in which potassium supplements showed favorable results on eight patients.[private communication]. In an experiment unrelated to arthritis, serum potassium was not improved with 1 gram of potassium per day unless magnesium was supplemented also. Perhaps an experiment supplementig both would be in order in the future for arthritis in order to get crisper correlations.

One of the arthritic diseases is known as gouty arthritis in which sodium urate crystals are deposited in cartilege, especially in the feet. Gonzalex has statistical evidence linking gout to lead poisoning. The lead poisoning makes the aldosterone system insensitive to potassium concentration and increases the potassium content of the blood plasma [Gonzalex]. I have no information in the medical literature on any direct link between gout and a potassium deficiency. I have a strong suspicion that there is a link however. I have heard of a doctor who gave his patients potassium losing diuretics and thus triggered an attack of gout. By adding a potassium supplement he was able to remove the gout. William Ellis has used potassium supplements for years for gout [private communication]. Gout can be triggered by the same agents which cause potassium losses such as fasting, surgery, and potassium losing diuretics [Rodman]. A potassium deficiency can increase urate levels in the blood [Davis][Halla] so there is a circumstantial connection. The initiating factor is probably usually lead poisoning though [Wright]. There is an association in peoples minds between gout and rich foods and lifestyle probably because people with gout have trouble excreting nitrogen, which is high in meat, in a soluble form and perhaps also because wine bottles and plumbing used to contain lead. Until such time as the matter is elucidated it would be a good idea to stop eating lead, eat less proteins, and not allow any potassium to be lost from one's food. There is a discussion of current treatment for gout online.

Osteoarthritis can not be corrected by potassium, or at least by potassium alone [Jones].

You must be thinking that surely scientists must have created deficiencies of potassium and observed their effects. This is indeed true, at least with animals. Experiments with humans are extremely dangerous since permanent damage can be inflicted on the heart and kidneys [Rubini 1961]. I know of no long term experiments on people. Arthritis is difficult to diagnose in animals since they have no way of describing pain, and since there are no sure laboratory tests for arthritis other than potassium, which we already know is going to be low in a deficiency. Also the most common experimental animals, rodents, do not use cortisol, as will be discussed in later chapters.

Acute symptoms can be detected by laboratory methods. Acute symptoms can begin to materialize when as little as 15 grams (10%) out of the approximately 150 grams of potassium normally present in an adult male are missing. Numerous animal experiments have revealed the following symptoms:

The fluid (serum) of the blood becomes lower in potassium, chloride, and acidity [Luke][Gardner 1950]. The serum potassium declines along a curve which becomes asymptotic cell content axis at about 50% loss of cell content and a little over 1 mEq per liter [Scribner (with a graph)]. Scribner and Burnell use 40%, but their designation of normal is too low for humans at about 4 mEq per liter which should be 4.8. Average in our society may be near 4.0 but 4.8 is optimum. At this -50% point much further reductions will result in death. His graph assumes normal renal function, insulin, and pH (hydrogen ion). Aldosterone decreases about six fold at low sodium intake [Baumann]. The blood volume, pulse, pressure, and body weight often decline [Gann]. Low serum potassium results in a lower T wave which are rounded and prolonged, as well as slightly prolonged Q-T interval, depression of S-T segment, and possible inversion of P waves.[American Medical Association p 455]. The plasma carbon dioxide, cholesterol triglycerides, urate levels [Davis], and renin [Abbrecht 1970][Sealey], which last is a hormone related to blood pressure, often rises. The loss of pulse pressure is probably a function of potassium inside the cell, rather than serum potassium [Abbrecht 1973]. A glucose intolerance develops exclusively associated with lower insulin secretion rather than cellular response to insulin [Rowe][Gardner 1952]. It could be an adaptation to avoid low plasma potassium resulting from the potassium entering into the cell in order to associate with glycogen which would otherwise occur. Low cell potassium can inhibit the insulin response independently of serum potassium [Spergel]. Apparently the glycogen in the liver increases though nevertheless [Marcus]

The gastric secretion decreases in acidity and in potassium content, and increases in sodium content [Welt 1960 (this is an extensive review)]

The urine usually shows a reduced excretion of the organic negative ions such as citrate [Evans]. Since this excretion may be a mechanism for helping to conserve chloride, this may explain the reason for some of chloride reduction mentioned above. It may be an adaptation to avoid too much acidity when a strong base forming ion like potassium is lost. Chloride wasting starts when 20 grams of potassium out of 150 are gone [Garella]. Most of the chloride reabsorption is said to occur in the ascending limb of the Henle tubule via the sodium-potassium-2chloide cotransporter and most of the chloride reabsorption in the distal tubule is by thiazide sensitive sodium - chloride cotransporter [Amlal]. These transporters are inhibited during a deficiency [there are diagrams in Amlal's reference]. Something like this would be necessary in order to prevent the chloride from making the plasma acidic when sodium entered the body's cells to take the place of potassium.

There are several enzyme systems in the kidneys which are affected by a deficiency. The enzyme which reduces the amino acid glutamine to ammonia is one of them and its activity is increased [Wohl p832][Rector][Brown][Tannen]. The ammonium ion has a positive charge and is about the same size as potassium. Therefore this may be a mechanism for helping to prevent potassium loss by substituting ammonium. The ammonium is said to be synthesized in the mitochondria of the proximal tubule cells, excreted in part by the sodium/hydrogen ion exchanger (NHE-3), then reabsorbed by the sodium- potassium-chloride cotransporter, and then brought to the collecting duct and excreted [Amlal]. I have not been able to find out which hormones regulate chloride excretion, if any. Fortunately getting enough potassium in food is not nearly as complicated as what happens to it after it arrives in the body.

Active excretion of potassium virtually ceases in the kidney tubules after two days on a low potassium diet*. A small part of the potassium which originally entered the kidneys through the glomerulus continues to be excreted, and potassium loss can not be completely cut off. The ability of the kidneys to conserve sodium is impaired.

Urinary excretion of calcium, magnesium and phosphate is higher during a potassium deficiency in Dahl rats. It is thought that the reduction of magnesium is what causes the association of potassium with hypertension by virtue of the affect of magnesium on the power of the potassium-sodium pumps [Potassium depletion and salt sensitive hypertension in Dahl rats: effect on calcium, magnesium, and phosphate excretions.] Six months are required of magnesiumm supplements before complete normalization of pumps [Potassium and sodium, and potassium pumps in the skeletal muscle]

The fluid inside the cells shows a decrease in potassium, alkalinity, and phosphate [Gardner 1953]. Part of the lost potassium inside the cells is replaced by sodium [Rubini 1972]. Arginine [Iacobellis] and lysine [Eckel], which are amino acids having a positive charge, show a marked rise in the fluid of some cells in some animals, going from almost zero to 8% of the positive ions. Adequate potassium has been shown to be necessary for protein synthesis [Cannon 1951]. There is considerably less protein metabolized in deficient chicks [Rinehart]. The positive ions calcium and magnesium increase inside the cells [Gardner 1950]. If these are adaptations to solve a potassium deficiency, such elaborate mechanisms are an indication that potassium is much more of a problem in nature than medical people think, let alone in our potassium starved society. DNA synthesis inside the muscle cell is decreased during a deficiency [Truong].

An abnormal thirst is also thought to be frequently present in a deficiency. Increased water intake rises to a peak in dogs in 3 to 7 weeks, then declines to normal [Smith]

Perhaps it would be a good idea to determine as many of these circumstances as is possible without a biopsy while people are healthy so that when they become sick the potassium status can be easily estimated without expensive machinery or long time delays.

I can not be certain that all the phenomena above are caused by an acute deficiency in humans, but most are quickly and easily reversible. Most of the data which do not require analysis of internal organs have been confirmed in humans. Effects which are not easily reversible or involve structural changes in the body's cells are as follows:

The part of the adrenal gland (zona glomerulosa) which synthesizes aldosterone atrophies [Cope p432]. Fat is deposited in the vascular system. This deposition is probably reversible [Davis][Strauss]. More serious is lesions of the kidneys in hypertensive salt loaded rats and permanent scarring of the kidneys which is probably irreversible [Holman]. Welt believes that the consensus is that kidney damage is reversible, however, and is largely in the tubules [Welt 1960]. Small particles in the cell called ribosomes have the internal structure lastingly altered. Mitochondria of the collecting tubules swell and disrupt [Kark]. Certain cells in the kidneys which have a darker color than the others increase in numbers. There is also abnormalities in the structure of other kidney cells [Rhodin][Naslund][Strauss]. Cells in the lining of the tubules are most affected in dogs [Tate]. The above is based on animal experiments. Man rarely has kidney destruction which appears the same as the rat's or dog's. Localized death of heart cells is usually found in the species observed [Rowinski][Folis][Molnar] but is not always obseved in every individual [Tate]. Heart lesions from a potassium deficiency are well established. They depend on an adequate sodium intake [Cannon 1953]]. However since sodium is almost always accompanied by chloride, I am not sure that this relationship is accurately known yet since it could be the chloride which is giving part of the problem. Heart disease will be discussed at more length in a subsequent chapter.

There is a striking, consistent alteration of the kidneys' ability to concentrate fluids in humans. This impairment reverses in one and a half to four years after relieving a deficiency, but not always [Hollander p933]. I suspect that this is to maintain urine flow by excreting water so as to reduce potassium loss which would otherwise obtain if the urine had a potassium concentration the same as serum.

Potassium is thought to be essential to defense against pathologic bacteria on the basis of increased liability to infection of deficient kidneys which have suffered no change otherwise.

Muscular strength is directly related to potassium intake [Judge]. Paralytic blockage of the lower intestines, which sometimes attends surgery, is probably contributed to by low potassium [Lowman]. Rats have symptoms during a deficiency which includes abdominal distention, lethargy, sagging organs, and loss of tone, and sometimes decreased movement of the intestines [Schrader]. A potassium deficiency seems to be most destructive to the tissues which derive from the middle layer of the embryo [Seekles]. These tissues include all the connecting tissues, the heart, the blood vessels, the kidneys and the white blood cells.

In addition to the above phenomena, most of which have either been established beyond any doubt or have fairly substantial experience behind them. (although usually based on animal experiments), it is my contention that rheumatoid arthritis is essentially a chronic potassium deficiency. It may be that some genetic difference like sexual hormones, or differences in secretion of other hormones such as the glucosteroid response modifying factors, or some other imbalance with other nutrients such as copper affect who and when arthritis strikes. Obviously any disease or poison which interferes with retention of potassium would increase the chance of a deficiency developing.. Considering that some of the symptoms of a deficiency take a long time to heal, it seems as if a deficiency should be avoided with almost the same urgency as a water deficiency (dehydration). Also, a deficiency of, say, 40 or 50 grams would take a fairly long time to be corrected by food. It would probably be measured in weeks at least.

If "rheumatoid arthritis" are not words describing a potassium deficiency then what is the word equivalent to "beri-beri" which describes a chronic potassium deficiency? Hypokalemia or hypopotassemia are not such words. They simply are words describing a low plasma content, with symptoms of lower T wave on the electrocardiogram, drowsiness, nausea, muscular weakness, low blood pressure, and reduced digestive ability [Robinson] (but for some reason hypokalemia induced by testosterone does not affect the electrocardiogram [Goldberger p113]). It would seem strange to have no word which describes a chronic potassium deficiency. I would suggest that we find one soon.

ROLES OF POTASSIUM IN THE BODY

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