To Your Health

Q. I don't want to overreact, but I also want to be prepared in every feasible way for potential terrorist attacks. What is reasonable with regard to nutritional preparation?

A. Your survival ability is based primarily on your health today. Have your physician give you a thorough physical exam with a complete blood test panel to be sure you are faced with no surprises. Include a serum iron test and if serum iron is elevated reduce it through blood donations. All virulent bacteria depend on plentiful iron to rapidly replicate.

Check stomach acidity by eating red beets (Harvard beets for instance) and checking the color of your urine over the next six hours or so. If your stomach acid is low, you will notice pink or red urine. Our first line of defense against ingested pathogenic organisms is our stomach acid, and if your stomach is low you can use 10 grain betaine HCl capsules, one to three per meal, to increase it.

Certain nutrients are invaluable assets if your are confronted with a terrorist attack. The following are highly recommended to keep on hand both at home and in your workplace:

Vitamin C is an antidote for all sorts of terrorist weapons, including infectious bacteriological and viral agents, radiation, and toxic chemicals. Titrate to your "bowel tolerance" by taking 2 grams of ascorbate every 15 minutes till watery diarrhea occurs. That amount is your bowel tolerance for the present circumstances and your daily dose should be about 80% of this amount.

N-Acetyl Cysteine is an antidote to a wide variety of toxins. It is safe to use in amounts up to 20 grams per day, though the usual dose is 1-2 grams per day.

Activated charcoal has great affinity for toxic organic compounds and also quells nausea when that arises. Use, as needed, four capsules at a time. Absorption of vitamins will be compromised by activated charcoal, so it should be used intermittently and left off as soon as it is no longer needed.

L-Glutamine will be needed in generous amounts to maintain proper (alkaline) body pH. Body pH tends to become too acidic during an infection, and glutamine is the primary tool our body uses to maintain proper pH. It is safe in amounts up to 80 grams per day, though 3 grams per day is the common dose.

A multiple antioxidant with several nutrient antioxidants provides much-needed antioxidant protection at a time when infection or toxic chemical exposure depletes antioxidants. A good multiple antioxidant should have as many of the following as possible: vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium (as selenomethionine), coenzyme Q-10, beta carotene, glutathione or N-acetyl cysteine, cysteine, bioflavonoids, non-beta carotenoids (lycopene, lutein, etc), proanthocyanadins, magnesium, B-Complex vitamins, and zinc.

Lactobacillus acidophilus will be helpful in maintaining a population of friendly intestinal organisms to compete with any infectious organisms delivered by a terrorist. Most acidophilus needs to be refrigerated, but a long shelf-life form is available.

For use in case of nuclear attack, potassium iodide will be needed to block the absorption of radioactive iodine by the thyroid gland. Keep a fairly large supply since four tablets per day will be needed for months if not years.

You can live with confidence and not fear if you are prepared.