Health & WellnessS


Smoking

Despite worldwide anti-smoking propaganda campaign, the percentage of people who smoke appears to be increasing


Associated Press
Thu, 09 Jan 2014 16:37 UTC
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Stop me
Despite a steep drop in the number of smokers in the United States over the last three decades, researchers say that cigarettes remain a growth industry for the rest of the world because of expanding population.

In a package of studies published online Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers found that the total number of world smokers with a pack-a-day habit had "increased significantly."

Even though the global smoking rate has declined since 1980 by roughly 25 percent for men and 42 percent for women, the total number of smokers has grown from 721 million to 967 million. The total number of cigarettes consumed annually has risen from 4.96 trillion to 6.25 trillion.

"The number of smokers has increased steadily worldwide, and there are preliminary indications that global prevalence among men increased in recent years," wrote lead study author Marie Ng, a world health statistician at the University of Washington, and her colleagues.

The studies in JAMA were published to mark the 50th anniversary of the U.S. surgeon general's first report on smoking, a landmark document that first laid out the health dangers of the habit.

Comment: The real tug of war is between people who submit to government propaganda and those who resist tyranny.

The main goal of tobacco smoking bans is "to change societal behavior" by stigmatizing smoking, making it less convenient and less socially acceptable. By raising the stakes, it helped transform a complaint into a right, so that people annoyed by tobacco smoke now felt justified in demanding that it be eliminated everywhere they might want to go, including other people's property.

In short, they have conditioned the majority of the people on the planet to behave like Nazis and think it is normal.

See also:

The devious plan of anti-smoking campaigns to control people and stop them from using their brain

Let's All Light Up!

5 Health Benefits of Smoking

Nicotine Lessens Symptoms Of Depression In Nonsmokers

Nicotine helps Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Patients

Brain Researchers: Smoking increases intelligence

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Cheeseburger

Wheat threatens all humans, new research shows

David Perlmutter
The Daily Beast
Tue, 10 Dec 2013 15:55 UTC
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© Mustafa Arican/GettyA Google search for gluten-free websites produces over 7.5 million returns with many of these sites populated by incredible testimonials of miraculous improvements following the adoption of a gluten-free diet in a wide range of medical issues
Bread lovers beware! Gluten-free diets may not just be a trendy choice but something everyone should follow. New research reveals that proteins in wheat may be detrimental to all humans.

"Gluten-free" seems to be appearing just about everywhere these days, from restaurant menus to grocery store shelves and even on cosmetics labels. And with good reason. The gluten-free market is exploding. Packaged Facts, a market research company estimated that the gluten-free market in the United States was $4.2 billion last year and predicts an expansion to $6.6 billion by 2017.

In a recent Time Magazine article entitled: "Why We're Wasting Billions on Gluten-Free Foods," business writer Martha C. White puzzled over this seemingly baseless trend, stating: "As food fads go, though, this one's not only enormous: It's enormously expensive - and many of us paying a premium to avoid gluten are doing so without any legitimate medical reason."

Comment: To learn how to choose the best gluten-free products and how to protect yourself from the thriving gluten-free industry, see:

Gluten takes a beating from dieters and grain giants
Gluten-free common sense: 'Gluten-free' products in stores does NOT mean that they're free of gluten
Eat more sugar! The truth about 'Gluten-Free' foods
Majority of 'gluten-free' foods found to contain GMOs

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Attention

Harmful weedkiller in your bread and cereal bars

Andrew Wasley
The Ecologist
Tue, 31 Dec 2013 15:33 UTC
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© Graphic by Hwa Young Jung via Flickr.com.Warburtons 'Toastie'.
Jordans cereal bars and Warburtons bread have been found to contain traces of glyphosate - a controversial herbicide that campaigners say poses a risk to human health. Andrew Wasley reports ...

They are the proud sponsors of Channel 4's River Cottage series and widely recognised for their commitment to the environment, promoting 'conservation grade' farming where growers must dedicate portions of their land to benefit wildlife.

But Jordans - the leading manufacturer of breakfast cereals and cereal snack bars - is reviewing its farming methods after some of its products were found to contain residues of a controversial herbicide that campaigners say is potentially harmful to human health.

The company has pledged to review its use of glyphosate, a powerful weedkiller, after a pressure group analysed the results of tests carried out by the Government's official Pesticides Residues Monitoring Programme on bread, bakery products, cereal bars and other foodstuffs.

Comment: Glyphosate, a powerful weedkiller, also commonly known as RoundUp, has serious negative effects on the environment, plants, animals and humans:

US: Glyphosate Pollutes Air, Rain and Rivers
Un-Earthed: Is Monsanto's Glyphosate Destroying The Soil?
Are You Eating, Drinking & Breathing Monsanto's New Agent Orange?
Death by Multiple Poisoning, Glyphosate and Roundup
Study shows: Lethality of Roundup 'weedkiller' extends beyond plants to humans
The Chemical Toxin - Glyphosate drives breast cancer proliferation, study warns, as urine tests show europeans have this weed killer in their bodies

Glyphosate: A trajectory of human misery
Glyphosate was first introduced in 1974 and has become the world's most dominant herbicide. It's now generic, so there are many brands and formulations. As a result, it's virtually ubiquitous, found nearly everywhere on earth.

Further driving its use are genetically modified (GM) crops, which were first developed for the purpose of creating glyphosate-tolerant plants, usually known as Roundup Ready. These have resulted in ever-more blatant and free use, especially in the wake of glyphosate-resistant superweeds. Estimates put glyphosate-tolerant GM crops at 90% of all transgene crops.

In the United States alone, the amount and increase in glyphosate's use is stunning.


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Beaker

Study: Exposure to BPA leads to diseases including cancer


Activist Post
Tue, 07 Jan 2014 15:23 UTC
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"We believe that BPA actually reprograms the stem cells to be more sensitive to estrogen throughout life, leading to a life-long increased susceptibility to diseases including cancer." - Professor Gail Prins University of Chicago.

Fetal exposure to a commonly used plasticizer found in products such as water bottles, soup can liners and paper receipts, can increase the risk for prostate cancer later in life, according to a study from the University of Illinois at Chicago published Jan. 7 online in the journal Endocrinology.

Bisphenol A, or BPA, is widely used to soften plastics. Steering clear of the chemical is nearly impossible, says Gail Prins, professor of physiology at UIC and lead author of the paper.

Comment: The Facts About Bisphenol A:

BPA Present in Most Canned Foods
BPA Report Details Chemical's Hazards
FDA says it's unable to regulate BPA
Human Placenta Cells Die After BPA Exposure
President's Cancer Panel Warns of Toxic Effects of BPA
BPA Study Points To Intestine Damage
Prenatal BPA Exposure Linked to Behavioral Issues
Bisphenol A (BPA) May Affect Testosterone Levels
BPA Exposure Worse Than Previously Estimated
Consumer Alert: BPA-Free Goods Still Contain Toxic Bisphenol
Chemical in plastic products may be linked to heart disease risk

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Cheeseburger

Campaigners vow to cut sugar in food


BBC News
Thu, 09 Jan 2014 11:55 UTC
A campaign group has been formed to reduce the amount of sugar added to food and soft drinks in an effort to tackle obesity and diabetes in the UK.

Action on Sugar has been set up by the team behind Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash), which has pushed for cuts to salt intake since the 1990s.


Comment: Salt restriction can actually be harmful. See this article for recommendations on salt intake: Shaking up the salt myth: Healthy salt recommendations


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© Unknown
The new group aims to help people avoid "hidden sugars" and get manufacturers to reduce the ingredient over time.

It believes a 20% to 30% reduction in three to five years is within reach.

Like Cash, Action on Sugar will set targets for the food industry to add less sugar bit by bit so that consumers do not notice the difference in taste.
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Bacon n Eggs

2014 rebuttal to U.S. News and World Reports Diet Ratings

Loren Cordain
The Paleo Diet
Thu, 09 Jan 2014 09:48 UTC
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The Paleo Diet has been frequently examined in the scientific literature and shown to be effective in facilitating weight loss, improving cardiovascular risk factors and satiety while being more nutrient dense for the 13 vitamins and minerals most lacking in the US diet when compared to the USDA Food Plate (formerly the Food Pyramid).
As many of you are now aware, U.S. News and World Reports (USNWR) has just issued their annual ratings of Best Diets for 2014. As per their 2011, 2012 and 2013 evaluations, the DASH diet was rated number one by a panel of nutritional and health "experts," and The Paleo Diet again emerged last out of 32 diets which were considered. We have previously addressed the USNWR report as it relates to the Paleo Diet in extensive detail in the Original Rebuttal to the USNWR. I have a few additional important points which follow:

I would like to point out a number of crucial flaws in logic along with a total breakdown of the scientific method in these types of artificial, media-generated reports that invalidate any wide sweeping conclusions about diet reached by the popular press, by individual member of the USNWR panel or by USNWR itself.

The 2014 USNWR diet ratings represent nothing more than the subjective rankings of 32 popular diets by a group of professionals, ultimately hand-picked by the editorial infrastructure at USNWR. Notably lacking in the makeup of this panel are academic and medical professionals with a background and publication record in human evolution, ancestral human diets and the application of this diet within a clinical setting.

The USNWR ratings represent a purely subjective appraisal of 32 popular diets and accordingly has little or no objective value from a scientific perspective because of numerous and glaring flaws in the research design of this report. Let me give you an example.
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Health

First North America H5N1 bird flu death confirmed in Canada


BBC News
Wed, 08 Jan 2014 02:22 UTC
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© Reuters.China has been vaccinating poultry against the H5N1 virus.
Canadian health officials have confirmed the first known fatal case of the H5N1 avian influenza strain in North America. Canadian Health Minister Rona Ambrose said the deceased person was an Alberta resident who had recently travelled to Beijing.

Calling the death an "isolated case", Ms Ambrose said the risk to the general population was low.
Ten people have died in Alberta this season from swine flu, or H1N1.

H5N1 infects the lower respiratory tract deep in the lung, where it can cause deadly pneumonia.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says it is difficult to transmit the virus from person to person but when people do become infected, the mortality rate is about 60%.

In the latest incident, the infected person first showed symptoms of the flu on an Air Canada flight from Beijing to Vancouver on 27 December, officials said.

The passenger continued on to Edmonton and on 1 January was admitted to hospital where they died two days later. Canadian federal health officials said they would not identify the patient's sex, age or occupation.

Ms Ambrose said Canadian officials were working with Chinese authorities on the case. "The risk of getting H5N1 is very low. This is not the regular seasonal flu. This is an isolated case," she said.
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Magic Wand

Bone Broth - One of your most healing diet staples

Dr. Mercola
mercola.com
Mon, 16 Dec 2013 17:47 UTC
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© nourishingnewyork.com
According to an old South American proverb, "good broth will resurrect the dead." While that's undoubtedly an exaggeration, it speaks to the value placed on this wholesome food, going back through the annals of time.

The featured article by Dr. Amy Myers1 lists 10 health benefits of bone broth. Sally Fallon with the Weston A. Price Foundation2 has previously published information about this healing food as well.

First and foremost, homemade bone broth is excellent for speeding healing and recuperation from illness. You've undoubtedly heard the old adage that chicken soup will help cure a cold, and there's scientific support for such a statement.

For starters, chicken contains a natural amino acid called cysteine, which can thin the mucus in your lungs and make it less sticky so you can expel it more easily. Processed, canned soups will not work as well as the homemade version made from slow-cooked bone broth.

For best results, you really need to make up a fresh batch yourself (or ask a friend or family member to do so). If combating a cold, make the soup hot and spicy with plenty of pepper. The spices will trigger a sudden release of watery fluids in your mouth, throat, and lungs, which will help thin down the respiratory mucus so it's easier to expel.

But the benefits of broth don't end there. As explained by Sally Fallon:3
"Stock contains minerals in a form the body can absorb easily - not just calcium but also magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulfur and trace minerals. It contains the broken down material from cartilage and tendons--stuff like chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine, now sold as expensive supplements for arthritis and joint pain."

Comment: Additional information about the amazing health benefits of bone broth:

Broth: A Food That Heals
Stock vs Broth - Are You Confused?
Top 5 reasons why bone broth is the bomb
10 benefits of bone broth + gut healing recipe
Traditional Bone Broth in Modern Health and Disease

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Syringe

Coming soon: "On-Demand" Nano-vaccines funded by Bill Gates

Brandon Turbeville
Activist Post
Tue, 07 Jan 2014 16:25 UTC
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According to a press release recently posted by the University of Washington, a new type of vaccine may soon be created that will allow for its immediate creation and application. This new vaccine, however, will be formed by using nanoparticles created from genetically engineered proteins.

The researchers, who have already tested the vaccine in mice, are hopeful that the vaccines will soon make "on-demand" vaccines that can be administered within minutes for a low price a common reality in the medical community.

The vaccine would mostly be aimed at "developing countries" and would cut the costs of vaccination programs "by not having to rely on refrigeration, and vaccines could be produced with rudimentary equipment in more precise, targeted numbers. The vaccines could be manufactured and delivered using a disposable patch, like a bandage, which could one day lessen the use of trained personnel and hypodermic needles."
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Info

Placebo effect may account for half of drug's efficacy

Bahar Gholipour
LiveScience
Wed, 08 Jan 2014 15:46 UTC
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Even when a medication works, half of its impact on a patient may be due to one aspect of the placebo effect: the positive message that a doctor provides when prescribing the treatment, according to a new study.

Researchers designed an elaborate study, in which 66 people suffering from migraine headaches were given either a placebo, or a common migraine drug called Maxalt. However, for each migraine attack the participants had during the study period, they were told something different. For example, they were told they were taking a placebo when they were actually taking Maxalt, or vice versa, and sometimes they were told the pill could be either Maxalt or a placebo.

The pain-relieving benefits of the migraine drug increased when patients were told they were taking an effective drug for the treatment of acute migraine. And when the identities of Maxalt tablets and placebo pills were switched, patients reported similar pain relief from placebo pills labeled as Maxalt as from Maxalt tablets labeled as a placebo, according to the study published today (Jan. 8) in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The results suggest that the information people have is as important as the effects of the drug in reducing pain, the researchers said.

"In many conditions, placebo effect is a big part of the effect of the drug," said study researcher, Ted Kaptchuk, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. In the new study, 50 percent of the drug's effect could be attributed to the placebo effect, he said

"Themore you give a positive message, the more a drug works. In this case, our message was just as important as the pharmacology of the drug," Kaptchuk said.
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