There is only a small amount of copper in the body, but it finds its way into many of the body’s chemical interactions. Copper is part of the SOD (superoxide dismutase) molecule which scavenges the dangerous free radicals. As part of SOD, copper helps protect against cancer.

You also need copper to properly utilize the iron in your body. If you don’t have enough copper, and cannot make use of the iron you take in, you may find yourself suffering from an iron-deficiency anemia. Anemia, in turn, harms the immune system and other parts of the body. Lack of copper also prompts a weakness of the T-cells and the complement system. The complement system, which I discussed earlier, works with the cell “eaters,” T-cells and other parts of your immune system to destroy bacteria, viruses and other dangerous particles.

Copper and zinc have a “seesaw” effect on each other: too much of one lowers the levels of the other. So don’t overdose on either; keep them in balance.

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TUBERCULOSIS: caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Can occur in any part of body, but usually strikes the lungs. Symptoms vary with part of body affected.

Signs and Symptoms: first symptoms include coughing up of blood; shortness of breath; fever. Signs and symptoms depend upon where the bacteria settles in the body. Constitutional signs and symptoms include fever; malaise; loss of appetite; weight loss; haggard appearance. Tuberculosis is more prevalent in the lungs. May cause cough; a bloody cough; shortness of breath; chest pain; fever; malaise; weight loss. If it’s in kidneys, urine may be bloody or filled with pus. In the brain, it can cause changes in behavior, headaches, coma, stupor, drowsiness, death. If it gets into the intestinal tract, can cause abdominal pain and diarrhea. In the adrenals, it can cause adrenal insufficiency (weakness, fatigue and other symptoms). This is called Addison’s disease. (President Kennedy suffered from Addison’s disease.) If it gets in liver, may cause jaundice. In the joints, it can cause pain and symptoms of arthritis. If in the spine, it may cause backache; collapse of vertebrae. It can invade glands all over the body, especially in the neck.

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The ultimate failure of the immune system. Whether cancer is fatal or not depends on what type of cancer it is, how soon it is detected and other factors.

Signs and Symptoms: depend on where the cancer is. The first signs and symptoms of a cancer may be fatigue, weakness, lethargy, depression, irritability, vague behavioral changes, loss of appetite, a persistent cough and other general problems.

Lung cancer may cause no symptoms for a long time. If the bronchial tubes, rather than the lungs themselves, are involved, an irritating type of cough may be experienced.

Stomach cancer may produce no symptoms, or there may be abdominal pains mimicking the pain of gastritis or an ulcer. There may be diarrhea, constipation, vague or severe abdominal pain. Blood may appear in the stool, or the stool may appear black in color (depending on where the bleeding is).

Colo-rectal cancer may produce no symptoms until the advanced stages. There may be rectal bleeding (pay attention to any blood in the stool). There may also be a change in bowel habits. The stool may become like “squeezed toothpaste.” There may be vague abdominal pains, and, at times, pain upon bending forward.

Ovarian cancer can produce a feeling of “fullness” in the abdomen, and clothes seem a little tighter. Vague to severe pains in the lower abdomen and pelvic area may also occur.

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Cell eaters are born knowing what to do, so they can rush right into battle. Other white blood cells, called lymphocytes, hold back, studying the antigen, preparing themselves to join the battle. Why the two approaches? Well, there are numerous antigens, and the antigens are constantly evolving new molecular structures and new ways to attack. It is impossible for the immune system to know which antigens will attack over a lifetime or what new guises they might adopt. So we have two types of immune soldiers: the generalists and the specialists.

Phagocytes are generalists; they’ll attack and try to gobble up all the antigens they can. But what if an antigen evolves methods of evading or defeating the phagocytes? That’s where the lymphocytes come in. They’re specialists, and they are given very specific instructions before they’re sent out after antigens.

Special training is a good idea, but it takes time. What’s to prevent antigens from wreaking havoc before the lymphocytes are ready? That’s where phagocytes come into play. Their job is to defeat the germs or hold them off until the lymphocytes are ready to attack.

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Maintaining good mental health is a vital part of the fight against physical disease, and is especially important in long-term or ‘chronic’ illnesses such as food intolerance. While some sufferers will quickly be restored to perfect health, for others it may be a long haul. This is particularly true for those with multiple symptoms who have been ill for many years. Patience and perseverance are needed, and a positive frame of mind is essential. The following suggestions should help to improve your general health and maintain a well-balanced mental outlook.

If you are undertaking an elimination diet, you should be cutting out tea, coffee, alcohol and sugar anyway. Assuming you are not sensitive to these items, you may later reintroduce them, but avoid taking any of them in large quantities, and in particular avoid strong coffee or tea. If you smoke, make every effort to give up.

Eat regular, adequate meals and make sure you get enough sleep. Try to keep to a regular timetable of waking and sleeping. Keep your surroundings tidy and well organized.

Get out of doors as much as possible and take some exercise – preferably fairly strenuous – every day. Feeling fit does wonders for the morale. If you suffer from morning fatigue, taking some exercise before breakfast is often very helpful. It need not take very long but it should be fairly strenuous – running up and down stairs a few times will do. You will probably find that you perform very badly and feel dreadful for the first few minutes. Take a rest and try again – it is amazing how much better you do the second time around. Exercising before breakfast seems to ‘clean the slate’ for the body, before it has to deal with a new dose of food. Try to spend plenty of time with other people, especially people outside your immediate family. If you find yourself endlessly talking about your illness or your diet, as you may begin to do, make a big effort to occupy your mind with other things.

Restrict yourself to one news bulletin a day, or avoid the news and newspapers altogether. The constant exposure to doom and gloom that most of us take for granted can be a source of hidden stress – if you have real problems to contend with you do not needed this extra mental burden. Television programmes or books that make you laugh will do you far more good.

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Any change in your urine stream is a sign that you should see your doctor or urologist. If you have a kidney stone, your doctor will prescribe painkillers to help decrease the pain without interfering with or prolonging the process of passing the stone. He may also suggest a process called lithotripsy, which uses underwater ultrasound waves to break up the stone.

If you think you’re having prostate problems with an enlarged prostate, you should make an appointment with a urologist, since early treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH, could prevent it from turning into prostate cancer down the road. To treat BPH, your doctor may take a wait-and-see attitude, but since you are already showing a symptom of BPH by a change in your urine stream, he may decide to begin treatment, first with the medication Proscar, which shrinks the prostate. If the medication does not have much effect, he may opt for a surgical procedure called a transurethral prostate resection, in which the parts of the prostate that are constricting the flow of urine are surgically removed to take the pressure off the urethra.

The resection is successful in most cases, but if the prostate continues to grow, there’s a chance the operation may have to be repeated when urination again becomes difficult.

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Most cases of vomiting last for only a day or two. If you are vomiting what looks like coffee grounds, which are actually partially digested blood, you may have a bleeding ulcet and should see your doctor immediately. You may also be sweating and start to go into shock. You or a family member will need to call 911. See “Pain in Upper Midabdomen” above for details about treating a bleeding ulcer.

The medication Compazine in pill form, taken in 10-milligtam doses three times a day, is frequently effective in stopping vomiting episodes. Either Compazine or another medication called Reglan will be prescribed for people who are receiving chemotherapy.

If you tend to become nauseous and vomit due to motion sickness, ask your doctor if you can try a scopolamine patch, which is worn behind the ear. The “scope patch” usually prevents nausea and vomiting when it’s worn before and during a trip to prevent car- and seasickness. Some of my patients swear by a bracelet that places pressure on their wrist that they say helps prevent motion sickness.

To determine the cause of vomiting accurately, your doctor will need to take a complete health history and perform a physical exam and a series of lab tests if the vomiting lasts for more than 24 hours and there is no obvious cause.

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Because many women are afraid of what they might find, or because they don’t think they can get cancer, they may continually postpone doing a breast exam. But it takes less than five minutes to examine your breasts thoroughly. It’s important to check your breasts every month because early lumps and tumors usually cannot be detected just by visual examination. In addition, by the time you notice a lump, it may be too late and the cancer may already have spread to other parts of your body.

When examining your breasts, it will help to ask yourself the following questions:

1. Do I feel a change in the size of one breast, as compared to the other?

2. Do I feel a lump in my breast?

3. Does my partner feel a lump in my breast?

4. Is the lump painful?

5. Is there a discharge from the breast?

6. Has the appearance of the skin of the breast changed?

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Fibromyalgia can sometimes be a DIFFICULT condition to treat because the pain is so generalized and occurs deep in the muscles of the back, making it hard to pinpoint. If you have chronic deep back pain and have trouble sleeping, you should see your doctor. If the pain doesn’t gradually fade after a few days, you may have rheumatoid arthritis and not fibromyalgia. If the diagnosis is indeed fibromyalgia, there are certain things you can do to treat the symptoms yourself.

First, you should try to relax, both physically and emotionally, with exercise, listening to music, and reading. If your body tightens up in response to stress, the connective tissue will tighten up as well, which will just make the pain worse. Unfortunately, fibromyalgia is a chronic condition; the best you can do is try to control your lifestyle, which will help a lot.’

Aspirin or another nonnarcotic painkiller will help whenever the pain flares up. If the pain occasionally becomes severe, your doctor may prescribe a corticosteroid medication such as prednisone, 20 mg. to be taken each day.

Learning how to manage stress with the use of biofeedback and relaxation exercises should help get your pain down to a level where it’s almost unnoticeable. Regular exercise and hot baths will also help and make it easier for you to fall asleep at night. Some people also find it important to maintain good posture, which helps to place less stress on the connective tissue.

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As you get older, the sensitivity of your skin increases. For instance, you may find that you’re able to stay out in the sun for only half the time you could 5 or 10 years ago before you start to burn.

This increase in your skin’s sensitivity also extends to exposure to chemicals, cosmetics, and certain types of plants. If you notice that red patches suddenly appear on your neck, it’s likely that your skin is reacting to a substance to which it is highly allergic. This reaction is a condition called contact dermatitis. Poison ivy is one form of contact dermatitis; so is a rash that forms when you try a new cosmetic.

Within a day or two after you’re exposed to the new allergen, red patches will start to appear in the affected area, and they’ll probably be itchy. In some people, blisters will also form a few days later. The entire episode, from the initial exposure to the allergen to when the rash clears up, usually lasts about a week or two.

A person can also have an allergic reaction due to anxiety or other emotional stresses in her life.

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