Partial List (US and Foreign Patents Issued and Pending) (descriptions from the book The Wellness Project) Some time ago, while I was sitting on the lanai of our Hawaii home, my wife came out and said, “grab your hat, and let’s go for a walk.” At that moment, I looked up at the palm trees and the question popped into my mind: why aren’t these trees wearing a hat. Why can they sit 24/7 in the tropical sun for a hundred years and not burn up? The question took me on a quest into botany and the discovery that we really do not fully understand how plants protect themselves from UV light. An early assumption that it was chlorophyll is incorrect, and the speculation has shifted to some natural compounds of a reddish or bluish color called anthocyanins. These substances are what make blueberries blue and raspberries red, and they are found in high concentrations in our friends - fruit. They are very powerful antioxidants, and are the reason why blueberries have become such a celebrated health food recently. Moreover, the blue and red colors effectively filter UV light. So I decided to create a human sunscreen based on anthocyanins as the active ingredient. My hypothesis was that the colors would filter the light and the antioxidant effect would subdue free radical UV-induced skin damage. If this worked, it would be yet another plus for our use of fruit. After my patent issued (U.S. 6,783,754), I funded the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at UC Santa Barbara to undertake skin cell studies to determine the efficacy and dose range for topical anthocyanins used to protect against DNA damage. Preliminary results have been extremely positive, indicating the sunscreen preparation actually stops the DNA damage that could lead to skin cancer. Results of the study have been published. Eventually, I hope to interest potential licensees in commercial development under the trademark Berrynol. Non-Toxic Plastic Food Containers Many folks know of the potential toxicity of plastic water bottles, but are not willing to lug around a heavy glass one. I will be commenting further about the unique properties of silver, and certainly one could safely drink out of a silver cup. I came up with the idea of combining silver and a plastic such as polycarbonate with two objectives in mind. First is to use the silver to bind with the toxic components in the plastic to prevent them from being leached into the water. Second is to provide a source of silver ions on the inside and outside surface of the container to disinfect the water in the container, and to disinfect the hands of the user on the outside of the container, in an effort to avoid the spread of nasty bacterial infections such as MRSA (methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus). I have filed a patent application covering the concept in the hope of attracting a company to commercialize it.HealthBra™ A disturbing incidence of breast cancer in prior generations in my family inspired me to suggest to my wife and daughters that they abandon their brassieres. The suggestion was not well received, so I set out to design bras that would minimize the restriction of lymph flow. I eventually created a variety of designs with the help of some product designers, and patented them (US Patents Nos. 6,086,450 and 6,361,397). In my conversations with the authors of Dressed to Kill, they predicted there would be little interest from the undergarment industry to produce products of this kind, and the authors themselves had been threatened with a lawsuit when they were about to publish their book. In the introduction to this section, I mentioned the “subsequent repair” legal doctrine. One could imagine the difficulty of a brassiere manufacturer producing a bra that is designed to overcome what might be negative health effects of their previous designs. I remain optimistic that this area will ultimately get the attention it deserves.Soil-Based Compositions and Methods for Removal of Toxins from Mammals
Humans and other mammals are continually exposed to toxins in the environment, toxins in ingested food and water, and toxins formed in the body through metabolism or breakdown of complex material. Such toxins impair health and contribute to disease in mammals but are difficult to avoid given the conditions of modern life. The present invention provides compositions for promoting removal of toxins from a subject which include an alkalizing agent, spore-forming bacteria, clay, at least one type of humic acid and/or at least one type of fulvic acid. Methods for use of compositions for promoting removal of toxins from a subject are described in the patent application. When I was working in an office environment, like many others, I had a room full of exercise equipment at home, which I bought and used for a while. Then one day, sitting at my desk at work, I realized that now was when I was ready for some exercise. I wondered, why can't I exercise while I do my work? So I came up with a chair-based exerciser product that straps onto any swivel chair. An adjustable, stretchable band is attached to the center chair post, and at the other end is a bar that resembles a footrest with wheels at either end. You put your feet on it and push, which makes it a combination of a leg press and a leg extension. I designed it to be force balanced so I could push on it without swiveling, which allowed me to read or type at my computer and still be working out. Since it is designed specifically for use in an office environment the Officizer represents a new category of fitness equipment that allows you to be pumping away underneath your desk without anybody knowing what you're doing! The two patents that cover the technology (US 5,690,594; 6,117,050; and foreign patents) include using the computer you are working on at your desk to monitor your exercise progress. A special mouse design monitors your pulse rate via your fingertip, and a small software program is designed to pop up on the screen every so often to let you know your pulse rate and to spur you on toward meeting pre-established goals. Eventually, I hope to get around to either mass-producing the device or licensing others to do so. |
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