TMJ 'dysfunction' - Health implications

Leading pharmaceutical companies, food industry giants, regulatory authorities, revolving door senior appointees, and heart health authorities frequently collaborate in disseminating misleading information about salt. This pervasive corruption not only causes widespread harm on a global scale but also goes unpunished.
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This article has largely been derived from an interview with Dr. Brian Ardis by Boomplay.com

Dr. Ardis is a tireless researcher seeking to weed out deception in health and medicine and provide truth and healing where institutional medicinal systems fall short. The subject being discussed is mainly salt and the serious consequences of its shortage.

How did we get to where we are today with the narrative on salt being so bad for us?

Dr. Ardis: Physicians consistently warn that consuming more salt can lead to strokes, heart attacks, and elevated blood pressure.
[A quote from the National Institute of Health (NIH) website "The close relationship between hypertension and dietary sodium intake is widely recognised and supported by several studies. A reduction in dietary sodium not only decreases the blood pressure and the incidence of hypertension, but is also associated with a reduction in morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular diseases".]
[You will be shocked to find out that the truth is the opposite]

We've been relentlessly bombarded with the same misleading message from both the pharmaceutical and food industries, urging us to reduce our salt intake. Dr Ardis continues: This campaign mirrors the propaganda tactics employed by Dr. Joseph Goebbels in Nazi Germany. He famously stated, "Tell a lie loud enough and repeat it often, and people will start to believe it."

[I read somewhere years ago, that the CIA conducted an intriguing experiment. They gathered 18 of their employees and informed them that during an upcoming meeting, they would be shown a triangle but were to refer to it as a square. Additionally, two uninformed laypeople were invited to this meeting. When 18 of the employees confidently identified the triangle as a square, the laypeople followed suit, also calling it a square. This experiment underscores a powerful lesson: if a falsehood is reiterated frequently enough, people begin to accept it as truth. (I cannot find a reference to this study. If you can, please let me know)]

For decades, the falsehood that salt is harmful has been perpetuated, spanning both my lifetime and likely yours. As this misinformation is incessantly echoed, we often come to accept it as truth. Why would I ever question their narrative? What shocks me is to discover that anyone in a hospital bed, without exception, is receiving one common treatment—salt in abundance. Every patient has an IV drip delivering saline into their veins. Whether under surgery or enroute to the hospital in an ambulance, salt is being administered continuously. [This contradicts with the narrative of getting us to consume less salt.]
[A search on Google confirms that "The most commonly used fluids in the medical settings contain: Sodium chloride (0.9%) or normal saline, with or without potassium."

[Interestingly, when searching for salt consumption statistics around the world, China tops the list for per-capita salt consumption, with the average person putting 17.7 grams of salt in their body per day. The world average ranges from 6 grams to 18 grams.]

Dr. Ardis: During 2016, Tel Aviv University in Israel carried out an extensive study involving 500,000 patients across 49 countries, making it the largest research project ever conducted on high blood pressure. The findings revealed that individuals who consumed the highest amounts of salt daily had the most favourable blood pressure readings. Moreover, those who ingested three times the FDA's recommended daily salt intake consistently exhibited better blood pressure levels than those who adhered to the FDA guidelines of consuming less than 2,300 mg of salt.
[I could not find the link to the study Dr Ardis refers to. It seems actually to refer to a Canadian study which says: Researchers from the Population Health Research Institute in Canada, studied more than 130,000 people from 49 different countries on six continents and concluded people should consume salt “in moderation”, rather than trying to reduce it in accordance with government guidelines across the world. Either way the sample numbers are more than enough to show where the truth lies.]

In the Lancet, a renowned medical journal, a study was published revealing that higher salt consumption is associated with better blood pressure and reduced risk factors for stroke and heart attack. Following this publication, the AHA threatened to withdraw their funding unless the journal retracted the study.
[A link to this study is missing]
[However, the British newspaper "The Independent" quotes: "Lancet attacked for publishing a study claiming low-salt diet could kill you"

One might wonder why the American Heart Association, the world's most profitable medical association, would react so vehemently against the dissemination of this research. The reason lies in the potential impact on their interests: if the public were to embrace the study’s findings and increase their salt intake, this shift could lead to a decrease in the demand for medications designed to manage high blood pressure, strokes, and heart disease, thereby affecting the AHA's revenue streams.

[As a matter of interest, the real money is being made when the patients end up in hospital because of this DECEPTION.]

On another issue, to persuade people that fat was detrimental to their health, pharmaceutical companies had to deceive medical professionals and publish misleading information in scientific journals. They falsely claimed that when humans ingest fat, it reduces the amount of cholesterol the liver can produce, a conclusion derived from animal studies.

Here's how it unfolded: Once it was determined that a certain chemical [Statin], when introduced to any mammal, consistently lowered cholesterol levels, pharmaceutical companies needed to find a way to convince medical doctors to endorse their cholesterol-lowering drug. What’s the most effective strategy to achieve this? Convince doctors that the leading cause of death worldwide, heart disease, is exacerbated by elevated cholesterol levels.

Consider this: How many of you have observed individuals on keto or carnivore diets shedding weight, reversing diabetes, and all while consuming significant amounts of protein and fat, including steak?

We have been misled about the dangers of salt and fats, supposedly leading to high blood pressure and high cholesterol. The moment you start taking those cholesterol-lowering drugs, the side effects start emerging. Please also read this article.

Cholesterol is fundamentally essential for your body's hormone-producing glands to synthesise most hormones. For instance, men require cholesterol to produce testosterone. What happens to many men when they begin taking statin drugs? They often experience erectile dysfunction and a noticeable decline in sexual desire or drive.

This narrative underscores the broader issue of how misinformation has shaped public perception and medical practices regarding dietary fats and cholesterol, affecting countless lives. The manipulation of scientific data for profit has profound implications for public health, emphasising the need for critical scrutiny and informed decision-making in medical treatments and dietary choices.

Dr Ardis goes on to ask: Did you know that serotonin, the hormone essential for happiness and emotional stability, requires cholesterol for its production in both men and women? Serotonin plays a crucial role in promoting feelings of happiness and safety, thereby alleviating anxiety and panic. However, without sufficient cholesterol, the body cannot produce adequate amounts of serotonin.

[The synthesis of serotonin can also be severely disrupted by venom containing medications such as Ozempic. This drug paralyses the gut, hindering its ability to produce serotonin, which is predominantly generated in the gut.

Now you can see two drugs and many patients are on them, preventing the production of serotonin.]

If you've started taking statins to lower your cholesterol, you might find yourself reporting feelings of depression to your doctor within six months to a year. This phenomenon has been occurring for the past 40–50 years. Consequently, antidepressants have become the most prescribed drugs worldwide, right alongside cholesterol-lowering medications.

Returning to the subject of salt, an intriguing aspect of it lies in the consequences of advising the world's population to reduce its salt intake. Allow me to elucidate: Your kidneys process all your blood, filtering it to produce urine, and excrete whatever your body does not require. They remove excess water from your system. Within your kidneys, specialised cells convert uric acid into urine, enabling the filtration of your blood, thereby facilitating urination. Crucially, your kidneys rely on the elements sodium and potassium to allow the sodium-potassium pumps to perform this filtering process. Without these pumps functioning optimally, the filtration process deteriorates and slows down.

[During the "Covidemic", a troubling scenario unfolded in New York hospitals where patients treated with Remdesivir experienced kidney failure, which in turn led to fluid build-up in the lungs and subsequent lung failure followed by multi organ failure. The fatalities were not directly due to the virus but, were reported as such. This deceptive information spread, causing the public to believe the virus was the primary killer, thus inciting fear and driving many to seek vaccination.]

When your kidneys lose their ability to effectively filter urine, your body begins to retain water. This water retention exerts pressure on your blood vessels and heart, potentially leading to dizziness, headaches, and fatigue. Medical professionals measure your blood pressure and surprisingly advise reducing salt intake further.

[Fluid build-up in the lungs leads to breathing difficulties, while the accompanying high blood pressure demands medication that comes with its own significant side effects. Extended use of diuretics often endangers kidney health, potentially resulting in kidney failure and the need for dialysis.]

According to the FDA in the United States, the recommended maximum daily salt consumption is 2,300 milligrams within a 24-hour period. The American Heart Association recommends no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day. They also claim that the ideal limit is no more than 1,500mg. per day for most adults, especially for those with high blood pressure.

Contrarily, the study quoted earlier, found that consuming between 6,000 and 9,000 milligrams of salt resulted in improved blood pressure, with even better outcomes observed at the higher end of that range.

[In the UK, the NHS website appears to advise: Adults should have no more than 6,000mg. of salt a day (around 1 level teaspoon).]

Ironically, saline drips or IV fluids contain around 9,000 milligrams of salt. When patients, who are often salt-deficient, receive these fluids, they are effectively being administered a substantial amount of salt to recover. This creates a paradox where society is largely conditioned to believe that salt is detrimental, leading to widespread restriction of salt in daily diets, but healthcare practitioners may instruct nurses to administer multiple bags of saline to a patient, amounting to significant quantities of salt without resulting in any complications.

Ranchers and farmers alike are aware of the importance of salt licks for their livestock. These salt blocks can be found in the fields and pastures of farms that house various animals, be it cows, goats, alpacas, pigs, or deer. Farmers understand that animals instinctively know how much salt they need for their well-being, and therefore don't restrict their access to these salt licks. The animals naturally walk over and lick the salt whenever they feel the need, ensuring they maintain their essential salt intake.

The necessity of salt for all mammals makes it perplexing that society has been led to believe in the harmfulness of salt consumption. This misleading notion has become so ingrained that many people immediately think they must limit their salt intake to avoid health issues. The psychology behind this widespread belief is fascinating, particularly when considering how it has influenced public behaviour and health policies.

The pharmaceutical companies propagated the idea that salt intake directly correlates with increased blood pressure, thereby heightening the risk of strokes and heart attacks. The drug companies then struck a deal with the AHA: if the AHA would help disseminate the message to reduce salt consumption, the drug companies would promote their newly developed blood pressure-lowering medications. This alliance meant that doctors could now prescribe these drugs to patients whose blood pressure rose for any reason, while also advising them to cut down on salt.

In exchange for the AHA’s cooperation, the drug companies promised financial support, revenue shares, and funding. Thus, a powerful narrative was born, one that persuaded the public and medical professionals alike to view salt as a health hazard, while simultaneously creating a lucrative market for blood pressure medications. This orchestrated effort illustrates how misinformation, backed by strategic partnerships, can shape public health policies and consumer behaviour to serve corporate interests.

Big pharma also incentivises medical doctors by offering them commissions and royalties for prescribing medications to patients with high blood pressure, provided that they perpetuate the myth that salt is harmful. The fact that salt is essential for life, is deliberately obscured. This becomes particularly troubling when pharmaceutical companies develop drugs that mimic the effects of salt and market them as diuretics. These medications, essentially patented versions of salt, are distributed in pill form by doctors. Although these drugs may provide temporary relief, they are not natural substances, and their prolonged use can lead to kidney failure. Eventually, higher doses of these drugs are required to achieve the same effect, exacerbating the problem.

Snake venom-based blood pressure lowering drugs:
In 1981, the drug captopril was introduced as an effective treatment for lowering blood pressure. Captopril, an ACE inhibitor, works by binding to blood vessels, causing them to relax, thereby reducing blood pressure. Interestingly, all medications ending with the suffix '-Pril' are derived from a common source: the venom of the Jararaca viper, a snake native to Brazil. It's astonishing to realise that many people consume snake venom daily in the form of these blood pressure medications. The active component in this venom is a neurotoxin, which binds to nerves that control muscles. This led to the development of venom-based medications such as lisinopril, captopril, and enalapril, which are categorized as ACE inhibitors.

However, my concerns with these venom-derived drugs date back to 1956, when two pioneering scientists, Rita and Stanley Cohen, conducted a series of experiments. They identified a substance in snake venom, which they termed the epidermal growth factor. Their investigations unveiled a harrowing discovery: introducing snake venom into mammals precipitated the onset of various cancers. Their findings showed that snake venom could trigger skin, ovarian, breast, cervical, liver, prostate and brain cancer across all human beings.

Stanley Cohen and Rita were awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Medicine for their contributions to understanding the carcinogenic potential of snake venom in humans. This recognition underscored their findings that venom could induce cancer in virtually every tissue type within the human body. [this fact has been exploited in the inclusion of snake venom in vaccines causing blood clots. Please read this article: Snake venom in vaccines.

Fast-forward to the present day, and we find that since 1981, venom-based ACE inhibitors have been widely prescribed. Shockingly, about 22 million Americans ingested Lisinopril this very morning. Every individual who has taken any ACE inhibitor for hypertension has been subjected to a risk, as these medications have been linked to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. To understand this connection better, one only needs to search the association between ACE inhibitors like Lisinopril and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. This scenario echoes a historical adage: if you tell a lie loudly and frequently, it eventually becomes accepted as truth. This principle seems to underlie the widespread acceptance and continued use of venom-based drugs, despite their ominous origins and potential health risks.

[I recall an incident from my office involving a patient who initially appeared in excellent health but returned a month later in a dire state. His face was marred by pale, bloodless patches, and he struggled to walk, frequently losing his balance. He revealed that he had been prescribed Ramipril for high blood pressure. I advised him to consult his doctor immediately to discontinue the medication. That very night, he stopped taking it, as he had not been on it for long. When he returned a month later, he was as healthy as a horse. Curious, I asked what had transpired. With a mischievous grin, saying it was all my fault; he credited me for his recovery, saying that I had saved him from the brink of death by him taking my advice and stopping Ramipril.]

You really need to tell your own physician to get you off those medications and if they don't, walk out and find another doctor who will support you. This is critical, or alternatively, you could take matters into your own hands and decide to learn how to manage this yourself if your doctor won't help. Rule number one: Never abruptly stop any medication except for cholesterol drugs, which you can discontinue immediately. However, for all other medications, abrupt cessation is not advisable. You need to take a more measured approach in consultation with a medical doctor.

For instance, if you’ve been on a certain medication for two weeks, and you feel stable and fine, that’s great! You can then reduce the dose by half. But if you don’t feel stable, it means you’re tapering off too quickly. In such cases, instead of halving the dose the next time, you should reduce it by only a quarter for the next two weeks. This slower process ensures you’re giving your body ample time to adjust. By following this method, you can eventually manage the tapering off process on your own successfully. However, legally, it is almost mandatory for you to do it under a doctor's supervision.

Another discussion about Iodine in salt:
There are various types of salts available, and I want to highlight an important aspect. Table salt used to be iodised, meaning they would mine salt crystals and then add iodine to them. However, around 20 years ago, a significant change occurred driven by misleading marketing campaigns. The removal of iodine from table salt wasn't because sea salt was considered healthier; it had more to do with benefiting the pharmaceutical industry. By eliminating iodine from everyday salt, they could increase the likelihood of people developing thyroid issues, such as hypothyroidism, thereby creating a new market for their drugs.

The pharmaceutical industry thrives on the notion that you need their medications, and they perpetuate this through deceptive practices. If you examine this closely, you'll see that without iodine in salt, there has been a rise in thyroid-related health issues. So, what’s the solution? Turn to natural salts that are inherently better for you. These salts provide the necessary nutrients without contributing to the creation of new health problems. By making informed choices, you can take control of your health and reduce dependency on pharmaceutical interventions.

You simply cannot overlook the importance of minerals, and I want to highlight this point briefly. Do you remember learning the periodic table of elements in school? Have you ever thought about what it contributes to life on Earth? Yes, the periodic table encompasses all the fundamental elements in nature (plus others) that are essential for life to exist.

Is salt included in the periodic table? Yes, it is. How about iodine? Absolutely. What about magnesium and selenium? Yes, both of them are there. And calcium? Certainly. These elements are part of your periodic table of essential elements. Now, let me pose another question: is lisinopril listed on the periodic table? No, it isn't. Is Ozempic? No. Is aspirin there? No, again. How about diuretics? Still no. But salt is on the periodic table. And guess what? Life requires salt. Similarly, it also necessitates magnesium, selenium, and zinc.

When I say salt is good for you, I want you to know that I consume at least 7,000 milligrams every single day. You might wonder how I achieve this. Well, I make sure to add salt to our bone broth, among other things. I recognise that I need magnesium, selenium, and other minerals to maintain my health. In addition to this, I have my own health supplements that include iodine, which I take daily.

I take groups of minerals and herbs every day to maintain a healthy life, free from symptoms. The goal is to liberate one from symptoms and the dependency on pharmaceutical drugs. If we can achieve that freedom, we can lead healthier lives, untethered by the constraints of medication requirements. [And being bankrupted by the deceptions.]

How does the human body function as designed by a higher power, or as it was intended in its natural state? I frequently discuss this topic on stages around the globe, emphasising that while individuals have the freedom to choose their beliefs, there are certain irrefutable necessities for the human body. Life itself dictates that our bodies require air, water, and food—without these essentials, survival is impossible. The absence or deficiency of any one of these elements ultimately leads to death.

The quality of your life experience is fundamentally tied to the quality of the air you breathe, the water you drink, and the food you consume. This is by design. No creature on Earth, for instance, embarks on a quest for a drink of 'Dr. Pepper' or alcohol. Instead, animals instinctively seek out fresh water. Across continents, they migrate searching for water sources, whether they be ponds in Africa or other bodies of water scattered around the globe.

When animals find these water sources, they are often laden with minerals. These mineral-rich waters provide the essential nutrients that animals need, such as calcium, magnesium, sodium, and zinc. These nutrients are crucial for their survival, and the water they drink meets these needs naturally. Animals have thrived for eons by following these instincts, perpetuating their species and maintaining balance within their ecosystems.

Similarly, humans have existed for an extraordinarily long time, surviving and evolving by relying on the basic elements provided by nature. The human body, like that of animals, knows how to sustain itself when given the right resources. It is this intrinsic understanding of our natural needs that underscores the importance of maintaining a harmonious relationship with the environment and ensuring that we respect and fulfil the fundamental requirements of air, water, and food for our well-being.

Are you aware that the pharmaceutical industry has only existed for around 140 years? How did humans manage to survive for millennia before the advent of modern pharmacy? It's a thought-provoking question, isn't it? Personally, neither I nor my family have ever relied on prescription drugs or even antibiotics. For the past 22 years, we have lived without them, and yet my children are thriving. Contrary to what the media often suggests, my kids haven't succumbed to diseases like measles, polio, or hepatitis B—ailments we are frequently warned about and for which vaccinations are heavily promoted. According to conventional wisdom, my children should be more susceptible to these illnesses, but our experience tells a different story.

This topic invites a more profound discussion. Welcome to Living Medicine, the podcast where we explore such intriguing questions. One practice we follow is ensuring my children consume salt daily, and they remain remarkably healthy. It's disheartening how much misinformation we've been fed.

It has been an absolute pleasure speaking with you. Thank you for encouraging us to think critically and conduct our own research to confirm your findings. This pursuit of knowledge is truly essential.

[P.S. Allow me to share the experience of one of the first individuals who read this article. This patient was initially prescribed 80mg of a diuretic to manage his heart failure, which was causing fluid build-up in his lungs. When this dosage proved ineffective, it was increased to 160mg. Despite this, his feet remained persistently swollen, fluctuating in severity from day to day. Concerned about the risk of kidney failure, he hesitated to further increase the medication.

After reading this article, he made a significant change: he increased his salt intake while reducing the diuretic back to 80mg. To his astonishment, he woke up the next morning with no swelling on his feet for the first time in months. Remarkable! A week later, he is surviving well on 40mg. of the diuretic, greatly relieved that his kidneys might survive the onslaught of deceptive medical practices.]