From: Technotranscendence (neptune@mars.superlink.net)
Date: Fri Nov 29 2002 - 21:31:41 MST
On Friday, November 29, 2002 10:09 PM Hal Finney hal@finney.org wrote:
> I did some research on this and while it is not bogus,
> there is considerable exaggeration in the claims. The
> scanner technology comes from the University of Utah,
> and it is specifically measuring carotene levels in your
> skins. Carotenes are antioxidants and so there is
> legitimacy in checking those numbers. However the
> catch is that the Pharmanex vitamins are extra-loaded
> with carotenes! This means that if you take Pharmanex
> vitamins you will get a much higher reading on the
> scanner than if you take other companies' vitamins.
Is measuring the level of carotenoids in the skin a good indicator of
them in the body in general -- and, more importantly, a measure of their
impact on health? I would think so, but the question should be
considered, since most studies I've seen measure the amount of
carotenoids given to test subjects. A handful measure blood levels.
None I've heard of measure skin level -- assuming the laser scanner is
effective here. (I'd also like to know if it matters where the scanner
is used.)
Has anyone thought of measuring levels in the eye too? I've heard they
build up there too and lutein is mainly important for eye health, so
homing in on this might be important. Then again, is this laser scanner
safe for use on the eyes?:)
Is a monthly scan is too much? Carotenoids, IIRC, are fat soluable, so
their levels probably decline only slowly -- assuming you've built up
some in your body and that your bodies use is nearly constant -- unlike
say water soluable forms of vitamin C, which, IIRC, are hardly stored at
all -- hence the need for daily or more than daily doses. So, the
frequent scannings might be just more marketing. (This is not even
asking about whether the scanners they use are accurate and calibrated
frequently.)
> So overall I think the machine is not all that valuable since
> it is only looking at a small part of your overall antioxidant
> picture, and the company has already figured out how to
> skew the results to their benefit.
True about skewing results.
While the scanner probably only gives results on carotenoids in the
skin, it still might be good if skin levels can somehow be used to gauge
effectiveness of supplementation (or even, for rabid antisupplementation
types, dietary sources) with just carotenoids. A laser scanner would
also seem noninvasive and it might be cheap, so it could compete with
blood tests in this area.
I also wonder why a laser scanner has not yet been developed to test for
other things. I believe I read somewhere -- and, no, I don't to google
for this stuff; it's late and I have a date with my piano:) -- about
using laser to do a whole blood chemistry scan several years ago.
Perhaps the researchers or the media inflated the claims, but it would
seem by now we should have more of this sort of thing -- not just a
something that looks for beta carotene & Co.
Happy Holidays!
Dan
http://uweb.superlink.net/neptune/
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