​Historically, there have been misguided and erroneous suggestions of the effectiveness of Vitamin C in promoting longevity, preventing, and treating the common cold, and a montage of other poorly evidenced health claims.  Unfortunately, follow-up studies failed to confirm these extravagant claims. For a fair amount of time, clinicians shelved Vitamin C as a therapy and existed only in the world of supplements, full of puffery and hyperbole, with little science behind the claims.  However, recent double-blind controlled studies point to its use for many chronic and acute conditions, leading to a renaissance for this crucial nutrient.

Humans rely solely on dietary intake to maintain the body pool of vitamin C. In most vertebrates, l-gluconolactone oxidase catalyzes the decisive step in ascorbic acid biosynthesis. Those vertebrates maintain a Vitamin C blood level equivalent to an incredible nine grams of Vitamin C dose per day for an average human.

Evolution has made the gene responsible for Vitamin C manufacture inactive in primates, flying mammals, guinea pigs, and some bird and fish species, thereby disabling its formation by the body. This evolutionary event may have resulted in an adaptational process where several physical adaptations have improved our ability to prevent Vitamin C deficiency.  These adaptations change the movement of drugs within the body, including more efficient absorption, recycling, and renal reuptake of Vitamin C compared to Vitamin C synthesizing species.
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The higher Vitamin C blood levels in other mammals prompted scientists to speculate similar blood levels might have beneficial effects.  From this came a microscience of megadosing Vitamin C, with little scientific evidence to support it, primarily anecdotal accounts.  However, some of the observations, particularly that of Vitamin C for allergy treatment, where good study evidence supports the conclusion that it alleviates the symptoms of allergic rhinitis by raising the plasma ascorbic acid levels.

Recent double-blind controlled studies indicate that Vitamin C has some positive uses in clinical treatments. Most studies focus on reducing blood pressure, helping with upper respiratory infections, treating sepsis, dealing with metabolic syndrome, healing bones, and managing periodontal disease.

Fast facts from recent double-blind controlled study meta-analyses:

• The administration of intravenous vitamin C may lead to a relaxation of blood vessels and a reduced need for mechanical ventilation in the critically ill, but it does not reduce overall mortality.
• A tendency towards a mortality reduction with intravenous high-dose vitamin C monotherapy.
• There is compelling evidence that vitamin C shortens the duration of mechanical ventilation, but the magnitude of the effect is a function of the duration of ventilation.
• Although scientists discovered no preventive effects, vitamin C intake reduced the duration of upper respiratory tract infection in children.
• For sepsis patients, an improved survival if they were treated with vitamin C treatment for three to four days.
• Studies demonstrated that vitamin C has the potential to accelerate bone healing after a fracture, increase type I collagen synthesis, and reduce oxidative stress parameters.
• Statistically, there is highly significant evidence that vitamin C can shorten the length of ICU stays.
• Vitamin C contributes to a reduced risk of periodontal disease.
• Observations suggest the importance of metabolic syndrome patients having an adequate vitamin C intake through food, beverages, or supplements to maintain its concentration in the systemic circulation and potentially reverse metabolic syndrome.
• Vitamin C has clinical benefits in patients with infections due to many herpes viruses.

​One problem is that the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of 90 mg/day for adult men and 75 mg/day for adult women is meager, and many people feel that amount results in a subclinical deficiency. Given the benign risk profile for Vitamin C, supplementation in greater quantities, and perhaps even much larger quantities, appears to have little hazard and possibly much benefit.  

​Poverty is a pressing issue in the United States that requires immediate attention. As an incredibly wealthy country with vast governmental resources, we must have minimal poverty rates. Unfortunately, poverty continues to claim its place as an international eyesore, a condemnation of hyper capitalism, and, worst of all, a public health problem. This study presents the status and implications for the future, urging us to act.

The Southern United States is characterized by poor governance and repressive policies, including explicitly racist policies intended to suppress the power of minorities. Economic growth and progressive governance are strongly correlated. Repressive governance keeps the American South poor and backward and is self-destructive at its core. 
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Thus, the correlation between economic growth and progressive governance cannot be denied.  A recent study of seven states in the south-central part of the United States, including Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and West Virginia, confirmed that they lagged the United States.  From 1997 to 2019, these states had a GDP growth of 1.3% annually, compared to the United States' rate of 2.3%, so they fall farther behind the rest of the United States annually.  After the end of Apartheid in South Africa, GDP growth rose to nearly 3% from 1.25% from 1980 to 1994.  

However, there is hope. Federal legislative action has the power to override this repressive governance, paving the way for improved outcomes for all Americans. There is precedence for addressing pockets of poverty, most notably the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) created in 1933. The TVA's purpose, authorized by the TVA Act, was to make cheap energy and provide it for environmental management and economic development. Civil works included power production, flood control, and reforestation. This is a testament to the transformative power of legislative action.

The penal system in the United States is a clear example of the pervasive resistance to social engineering. The prevailing ideology that individuals are solely responsible for their destiny and its consequences, regardless of what they are, is deeply ingrained. While this ideology is an American ideal, it is time to question its validity. Generational poverty is a national burden, and its significant economic and societal challenges hinder economic vitality and overall welfare. It is high time for a new ideology to inspire hope for a better future.
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Poverty rates fell through the 1960s but rose and fell with economic cycles since then. They did not fall measurably during the two expansions before the pandemic until between four and six years after the expansion. The current economic recovery has not broken this pattern: the most recent recession occurred from February to April 2020, and the current expansion began in May 2020. The official poverty rate did not show a year-to-year decline during the first two years. 

Between 2019 and 2020, the number of people living in poverty and the poverty rate increased in both the South and West. Among the regions, the South had the highest poverty rate, which increased to 13.3 percent, with 16.6 million individuals living in poverty. In the West, the poverty rate has increased to 10.6 percent, with 8.3 million people in poverty in 2020. In the Midwest and Northeast, neither the poverty rates nor the number of people living in poverty in 2020 were statistically different from 2019. In the Midwest, 10.1 percent and 6.8 million people were in poverty in 2020, while in the Northeast, the poverty rate was 10.1 percent, with 5.6 million individuals in poverty.

The official overall poverty rate for the United States experienced no statistically detectable shift between 2021 and 2022; the official poverty rates among most demographic groups remained steady. Notable exceptions were the decline in the official poverty rate among Black people to a historically low 17.1% or 8.6 million people and a rise among non-Hispanic Whites to 8.6% or 15.8 million people. The rising rates among whites partially explain the attraction of politicians, such as Donald Trump, as the future of this cohort continues to decline in various measures of prosperity and public health.
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People living in poverty tend to have higher disease burdens. Poverty at the county level is associated with death from many chronic conditions, such as heart disease, liver afflictions, and kidney problems. Other studies have also shown a correlation between low income and dental problems. During the COVID-19 pandemic, poverty became a predictor of infection risk, adverse health outcomes, and mortality.

Women have higher poverty rates than men: 12.5% compared to 10.5% in 2022 (no meaningful change from 2021). Historically, families with a female householder and no spouse (female-householder families) have had higher poverty rates than married-couple families and families with a male householder and no spouse (male-householder families). This remained true in 2022: the poverty rate among female householder families was 23.0% (not different from 2021), compared with 11.5% for male householder families and 5.0% for married couples.
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A significant issue here is the historic disparity between pay for women and men. An equal pay law would address this quickly, but business interests would object. Thanks to the Citizens United Supreme Court decision, wealthy interests control the United States legislative branch, making the passage of an equal pay measure problematic.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) included Medicaid expansion nationwide. In June 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that states should not be compelled to increase their Medicaid programs. Each state determines whether to participate.

Before ACA, Medicaid was not available to non-disabled adults under the age of sixty-five, except if they had children under the age of 18 years. In addition, the income caps eligible as parent/caretakers were extremely low. By expanding Medicaid, the ACA created a feasible path to cover millions of low-income Americans.

The federal government finances most of the expenses of expanding Medicaid, and ten percent is paid by participating states. States that refuse to expand Medicaid still get their normal federal Medicaid funding rather than the 90% funding they would gain to cover the recently qualified people if they were to expand.

Just ten states have not expanded Medicaid – mainly in the American South, where Republicans dominate state legislatures. However, a decade after the Affordable Care Act made the option available, Medicaid expansion became more challenging to resist.

Fast facts about Medicaid expansion:

• Uninsurance rates would drop by 25% if the ten states expanded their Medicaid programs.
• Women of reproductive age would see a considerable reduction in uninsurance (a drop of 31%), older women would see a decline of 23.2%, and men would see a reduction of 22.4%.  
• Black women of childbearing age would see a 51.3% reduction in uninsurance.
• Non-Hispanic Black adults would see the most significant reduction in the uninsured rate of all racial or ethnic groups (43.2% reduction).
• Young adults ages 19 to 24 have the highest uninsured rate, with nearly one in five uninsured individuals (19.9%). They would see the most significant decrease in the uninsurance rate (a drop of 32.4%). 
• States that have expanded Medicaid found new spending counterbalanced by long-term savings in healthcare expenditures and new revenue.
• State spending on Medicaid in the remaining ten states would increase by $1.5 billion (a 3% increase).  
• Federal spending on Medicaid in these ten states would rise by approximately $24 billion (a 17.5% increase). 

 
States that have expanded Medicaid see sizable health and economic gains that impact all residents, not just those who would gain coverage.  The denial of Medicaid expansion is an example of self-destructive behavior. This proves that the existing oligarchy in these states prefers to keep people with low incomes and minorities as an underclass, even if it costs them money.  
 
Another remedy for poverty would be subsidized childcare, allowing parents freedom to work, and increasing family income.  The number of job openings in the United States was unchanged at 8.2 million on the last business day of June 2024.  Subsidized childcare would help fill some of those openings, and aside from lifting people from poverty, the additional employment would increase gross domestic product, help create wealth, and help lift the country's economy.
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There is a substantive argument that the American South is a failed experiment in nation-building.  Further, generational planning and implementation will be necessary in the long term to remove these hard-core poverty areas and improve national vitality.  Does the federal government have the moxy to implement such dramatic action?  Provided that the Democrats run the table in November’s election, gaining the presidency, house, and senate, progressive legislation stands a chance, but only that, given the power of dark money due to the Supreme Court’s Citizen United ruling.
 

​Taurine, a semi-essential micronutrient, is one of humans and other animals' most abundant amino acids. Many studies demonstrate that taurine levels are correlated with health status, with the most interesting being the association between high taurine levels and health and lifespan. This cheap amino acid is tailor-made for the supplement industry, which has been quick to cash in on the taurine craze. This investigation provides meta-studies results and discusses the wisdom of taurine supplementation.

Meta-study analyses provide intriguing results:

• Ingesting taurine in varying amounts can improve human endurance performance.
• Taurine intake was associated with a decrease in blood pressure.
• Taurine ingestion was associated with decreases in total cholesterol and triglycerides.
• Taurine administration was not associated with body mass index and body weight.
• A statistically significant reduction in HbA1C and Fasting Blood Sugar after oral supplemental taurine for diabetic patients was more substantial than that of a placebo.
• Taurine has modulatory effects on inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers.
• Taurine supplementation positively affects multiple metabolic syndrome-related factors, making it a potential dietary addition for individuals at risk of or already experiencing metabolic syndrome.
• Taurine enhances the effects of anticancer drugs while also reducing side effects.
• Taurine has anti-atherosclerotic and anti-thrombotic effects that may protect against cardiovascular disease.
• Taurine abundance decreases during aging, reversing this by taurine supplementation increases the health and life span in mice and worms.

​While the human body can synthesize taurine, dietary intake is essential to maintain optimal levels. Foods rich in taurine include meat, fish, poultry, and dairy products. Due to their dietary restrictions, vegetarians and vegans may have a lower taurine intake. 

Taurine may have a crucial role in cardiovascular physiology. Numerous studies have investigated the potential cardioprotective effects of taurine, focusing on its impact on blood pressure, cardiac contractility, and vascular function. It may help reduce blood pressure in individuals with hypertension and improve endothelial function, leading to enhanced vascular health.

Preclinical investigations have provided valuable insights into the cardiovascular effects of taurine. In hypertension, heart failure, and atherosclerosis models, taurine supplementation has consistently improved cardiac function, reduced blood pressure, and enhanced vascular health. Human studies investigating taurine's cardiovascular effects have also yielded promising results. Clinical trials indicate it may help reduce blood pressure, improve left ventricular function, and enhance exercise capacity in individuals with heart failure. Its antioxidant properties may also reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis and heart failure.

The endothelium, a single layer of cells lining the blood vessels, plays a crucial role in vascular health. Taurine may enhance endothelial function by promoting the creation of nitric oxide (NO) and easing endothelial dysfunction. Enhanced endothelial function contributes to better vascular relaxation, reduced inflammation, and improved blood flow, which may benefit cardiovascular health and reduce the risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular events.

Taurine abundance decreases during aging. Reversing this decline through taurine supplementation increases mice and worms' health and life spans. This identifies taurine deficiency as a driver of aging in these species.

Aging is associated with changes in circulating levels of various molecules, including taurine. Scientists demonstrated that circulating taurine declines with aging in mice, monkeys, and humans. Reversing this decline by dosing with taurine increased the health span (the period of healthy living), life span in mice, and health span in monkeys.

Taurine reduced cellular agedness, defended against telomerase deficiency, stifled mitochondrial dysfunction, decreased DNA damage, and reduced inflammation. In humans, lower taurine concentrations correlate with age-related diseases, and taurine concentrations increase after acute endurance exercise. Thus, taurine deficiency may be a driver of aging because its reversal increases the health span in worms, rodents, and primates and the life span in worms and rodents. Clinical trials in humans seem warranted to assess whether taurine deficiency might drive human aging.

Manufacturers market taurine as an adjunct in various products and supplements. People afflicted with different ailments induced by modern society snap it up to improve health. While dosing with taurine makes logical sense, one might consider other factors.

The most glaring weakness in the puffery about taurine is that there are few human studies and even fewer double-blind placebo-controlled evaluations.  In other words, the statistician’s mantra that correlation is not causation applies.
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A number of factors are empirically proven to improve health markedly. Stress reduction, exercise, strength training, a whole foods diet, avoiding alcohol, tobacco, ultra-processed food, and a good night's sleep will often almost immediately improve a person's health and well-being. Taurine supplementation without a prudent and healthy lifestyle seems pointless and wastes time and money.