Ask Doc Everyone wants to know what's going to happen next in the stock market.
If you've seen the stock-trading floor on Wall Street, its TV screens are full of technical charts that traders use to figure out if a stock is about to break out to the top or collapse.
Analysts spend their days sifting through thousands of pieces of data, using complicated mathematical formulas to find the next big investment or stock market move.
The technology and data Wall Street insiders use can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
It's something I'm familiar with... I spent a decade in my first career on Wall Street. I worked as an elite derivatives trader at the investment bank Goldman Sachs and with other major institutions, including Chase Manhattan and Yamaichi (then known as the "Goldman Sachs of Japan"). I was able to learn from some of the best and smartest investors in the world, including Fischer Black... one-half of the famous "Black-Scholes" formula for pricing options.
Some folks might think that this access to knowledge and technology gives me an upper hand in investing. I've mentioned before that a common excuse people give for not investing is that they don't think there's any way to do as well as the "experts" on Wall Street.
But spending your days in front of a screen sifting through data isn't the only way to make money in the markets. In fact, that's exactly what I don't want my readers doing.
One way to avoid doing that is to find people who can break down what's going on in the markets and explain how you can use that information to protect and grow your wealth. That's what we do every week here at Health & Wealth Bulletin.
It's why, nearly two decades ago, I decided to start sharing everything I learned with people around the world. But, despite my decades of experience, even I have analysts I keep up with...
A few years ago, I told readers that I was "closing up shop" when I heard we were partnering with Joel Litman. I said that "I'm going to retire and throw all my money into what he recommends." Obviously, I didn't retire... But if Joel managed money, I'd let him handle mine.
That's how good this guy is. And, like me, he wants to empower the underdogs... regular folks like you and me.
So when Joel comes out with a warning – and an opportunity – I pay attention. This past Wednesday, Joel gave the details of a dramatic stock market event scheduled for June 23, 2023. It's something that happens once a year that every Wall Street insider knows about, but most average investors have never heard of.
According to Joel, this critical moment will send some stocks soaring... while slashing others up to 90%.
If you missed Joel's presentation, catch up on everything here.
Now, let's get into some of the things you've had on your minds this week. As always, keep sending your comments, questions, and topic suggestions to [email protected]. We read every e-mail.
Q: I know you recommend and prefer natural fruits and vegetables, but how do you feel about multivitamins and fish oil pills for men over 65? – D.S.
A: Let's start with multivitamins first...
A survey from the Office of Dietary Supplements at the National Institutes of Health – published in 2013 in JAMA Internal Medicine – found that 45% of Americans take multivitamins to improve their health.
The trouble with this multivitamin dependency is that multivitamins aren't wonder pills. If you're not getting the nutrients you need from your diet, taking a multivitamin once a week might fill in some of those gaps. But your best bet is to get what you need from whole foods.
And for the most part, these vitamins are just a waste of money...
In 2012, a published study in JAMA found that nearly 15,000 men aged 50 and older who took a daily multivitamin were at the same risk of having a heart attack as men taking a placebo. The study participants were monitored for at least 10 years.
Last year, a review published in JAMA looked at 84 studies on multivitamins and found that there was little to no reduced risk of cancer or cardiovascular disease.
Fish-oil pills are even worse...
Fish-oil supplements can be full of toxins like polychlorinated biphenyls (a once-common component of plastics banned by Congress in 1979), mercury, and dioxin. Several watchdog groups have found supplements that contain dangerously high amounts of these toxins.
Fish oil also alters your bleeding and coagulation functions. Take too much and you could induce strokes from bleeding into your brain.
Until high doses of fish oils are studied and hematologists (blood doctors) better understand what they do, I wouldn't take more than one or two pills a week, representing 1,000 mg of oil. Instead, I'd recommend going right to the source and eating fish once or twice a week. This ensures you get a safe, consistent amount of this valuable substance... rather than rolling the dice on a pill.
What We're Reading...
- Did you miss it? This is what you should know about the banking "crisis."
- Something different: The crazy plan to explode a nuclear bomb on the moon.
Here's to our health, wealth, and a great retirement,
Dr. David Eifrig and the Health & Wealth Bulletin Research Team
May 12, 2023