Health & WellnessS


Bulb

Research says you can permanently build and strengthen the brain by engaging in mental and physical exercises

Brain Waves
© Shutterstock
Many of the techniques used to increase one's mental abilities are temporary. These include problem solving methods, exercises in imagination, and stimulants like caffeine or deep breathing. Some people argue that because these only temporarily improve performance, they don't actually increase IQ. On the other hand, you can choose to use them whenever you want to, including during IQ tests, so the "temporary" argument may not be all that relevant.

Of course, to use any technique continually is a difficult goal. Maybe you want to make more permanent improvements? But can you increase brainpower permanently, or at least as permanently as things can be for mortals?

Recent research answers this clearly. Yes, you can actually change the physical structure of your brain, and so improve its function. There are two basic ways you can do this. The first way is to build and strengthen your brain with mental exercises. The second is to strengthen it with certain physical exercises and activities.

Comment: In addition to mental and physical exercises, an optimal diet which includes adding essential nutrients, minimizing carbohydrates and eating sufficient quantities of good quality saturated fats are also important to maintaining brain function.

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Bacon n Eggs

Hunter-gatherers who gorge on fat and rarely see a vegetable are healthier than we are

Inuit hunters
Inuit hunters
This article (The Inuit Paradox by Patricia Gadsby and Leon Steele) presents a conundrum for many of us.

The Inuit demonstrate that humans can survive in good health, without diabetes, heart disease, tooth decay or constipation, on a 70% (saturated) fat carnivorous diet. Without oranges, where do they get vitamin C? Without grains, where do they get vitamin E? Without fiber how can they stay "regular"? How do they maintain their probiotics? Eating so much saturated fat, why didn't traditional Inuit endure chronic illnesses Americans believe come from consuming saturated fats?

While Atkins was mostly correct in his assertion that the human body can maintain normal weight and reasonable health on a very low carbohydrate, carnivorous diet, the Inuit show that he left out a few details. He relied on muscle meat rather than organ meats, overlooked probiotics, did not include bone broth or bone-based foods for minerals and other invaluable elements, and more. This could explain why dietary supplements are required for an Atkins diet, and may also explain why some people do not do well on this diet. In his defense, however, for cultural reasons Americans are unlikely to embrace an Inuit-style diet.

To live successfully on a carnivorous diet we must eat the organs (liver, e.g. - most of us don't eat liver anymore - offal is a source of vitamins and minerals, including B vitamins, and vitamin C), eat raw meat (a source of Vitamin C) and fat, make use of the bones and skin ("snout to tail" dining) and promote fermentation (rotted "stink fish", one Inuit source of probiotics). This is what the Inuit did. Since most of us eat an omnivorous diet sans organ meats (a.k.a. offal, considered "awful" by most Americans) but full of muscle meats, American omnivores are best served by eating nutrient-dense vegetables along with animal foods (meats, fish, eggs, poultry, our ancient B12 source). A clean source of raw animal foods would help us optimize our health. We need properly prepared bone broth (soup stock) to prevent mineral deficiencies, replenish and repair bones and joints, promote regularity and restful sleep, keep skin youthful, etc. (watch any film from the 1940s and notice the popularity of traditional home-made bone-based soups that take a day or two to properly prepare). We need natural fats for energy and organ support. Sadly, and to our peril, most American omnivores no longer value these dietary ways but depend on supplements and government regulated food fortification to make up for what we lack.

Comment: The evidence continues to pile up that the high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet is the optimal eating pattern for healthy human beings.

The Ketogenic Diet - An Overview
Solve Your Health Issues with a Ketogenic Diet
Ketogenic Diet (high-fat, low-carb) Has Neuroprotective and Disease-modifying Effects
Your brain on ketones
Breakthrough: Compound generated by low carb/low-calorie diet blocks effects of aging
Ketogenic diet plan


Family

Elder abuse and neglect: Warning signs, risk factors, prevention, and reporting abuse

Many elderly adults are abused in their own homes, in relatives' homes, and even in facilities responsible for their care. If you suspect that an elderly person is at risk from a neglectful or overwhelmed caregiver, or being preyed upon financially, it's important to speak up. Learn about the warning signs of elder abuse, what the risk factors are, and how you can prevent and report the problem.

What is elder abuse?

Elderly lady
© Unknown
As elders become more physically frail, they're less able to stand up to bullying and or fight back if attacked. They may not see or hear as well or think as clearly as they used to, leaving openings for unscrupulous people to take advantage of them. Mental or physical ailments may make them more trying companions for the people who live with them.

Many seniors around the world are being abused: harmed in some substantial way often by people who are directly responsible for their care.

In the U.S. alone, more than half a million reports of abuse against elderly Americans reach authorities every year, and millions more cases go unreported.

Rose

Natural remedies for Alzheimer's

A couple of weeks ago, I read a research study on Alzheimer's and the plant ashwangandha. Following up on that research I found it had also been proven effective for stress reduction, energy, vitality, anxiety, insomnia, backache and more. I'm always interested in what my readers can grow themselves so I did some more research.

Ashwangandha has a growing season of 200 days in order to mature and produce seeds, too long for areas not in the sub-tropics or tropics unless you have a heated green house. Because of the long growing season, I searched my data base and other resources to see if anything could be grown outside of the subtropic/tropic regions that would have some, or all, of the same effects.

As we age, a substance called amyloid beta (aka brain sludge or B.S.) builds up in our brain cells. Brain sludge is connected with "senior moments," dementia, Alzheimer's and a long list of problems including most of those treated by ashwagandha. One comment on brain sludge read, "It (brain sludge) mucks up your memory, gunks up your neurons and zaps your brain cell energy." Brain sludge isn't necessary, or something that can't be avoided to a large degree. It's a by-product of diet, lack of proper nutrients and the lack of, or incorrect types of, exercise. Poor health is a self-inflicted problem.

Syringe

A vaccine for stress? Vaccine madness is rampant

Vaccines
© NaturalSociety

What inspires a mainstream medical researcher or MD to develop a vaccine? Saving mankind from disease? Probably not - but maybe for some. I's more likely the inspiration comes from a steady stream of royalty money and no liability for vaccine damages.

Once a patent is issued and the vaccine hits the market, the producer gets sales revenue, but the creator gets royalties from those sales.

Just about any Big Pharma drug can eventually be fined by government agencies or sued for damages by consumers or class actions suits.

But the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) aka the Vaccine Court, offers settlements for vaccine damages from a combination of funds collected by purchaser surcharge taxes on vaccines and federal funds to compensate those who manage to have their cases approved. Thus the vaccine industry is exempt from financial liability.

People 2

One night stands are linked to depression and suicidal thoughts, study reveals

The new research suggests that no strings attached casual sex might not be as much fun as first thought

Casual sex and no strings arrangements have been linked to depression and suicidal thoughts by a new research study.

Somewhat shockingly, for every single sexual encounter the report suggests that the odds of suicidal thoughts jumped a staggering 18 PER CENT.

The study, lead by Dr Sara Sanberg-Thomas, suggested that casual sexual relationships were linked to poor mental health.

But they also found that the vice versa was true also, with people who show signs of depression and other similar mental illnesses being more likely to engage in casual sex.

Dr Sandberg-Thomas explained: "Several studies have found a link between poor mental health and casual sex, but the nature of that association has been unclear.

"There's always been a question about which one is the cause and which is the effect.

"This study provides evidence that poor mental health can lead to casual sex, but also that casual sex leads to additional declines in mental health."

The results were found to transcend gender boundaries with both men and women equally susceptible.

Health

Shocking Study: Spontaneous remission of breast cancer found to be common

Breast Cancer
© Natural Society
The people handing out mammogram and radiation prescriptions to 'cure' breast cancer probably don't want you to know this about breast cancer: in numerous cases, it goes away all by itself. Radiation, the primary means, if not invasive surgery, to eradicate breast cancer works by killing off cells by exposing the DNA to ionizing radioactive waves. The problem is that this treatment also kills off healthy cells, and has even been shown to cause breast cancer. In a study published at Dartmouth Medical School Magazine, the 'taboo' subject of spontaneous remission is openly discussed.

One of the doctors who helped write up the findings, H. Gilbert Welch, M.D., M.P.H, made sure they were published in Archives of Internal Medicine. The study compared 100,000 Norwegian women ages 50 through 64 who were divided into two groups, with women in both groups having invasive cancers. Women in the first group were followed from 1992 to 1997, while women in the second group were followed from 1996 to 2001.

The women in the first group had only one screening, and the women in the second group had one every two years. Women in group 2 were exposed to an average of six more breast screenings via mammography. Interestingly, the incidence of invasive breast cancer was 22% higher for women in the second group (the ones more often screened with mammograms)! What this means is that when we just let the body heal itself without radiation-causing screenings, often, the cancer goes into remission all on its own.

Cupcake Pink

What's behind 'Grain Brain': Are gluten and carbs wrecking our brains and our health?

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Celiac disease is widely known to cause digestive problems. That's just the tip of the iceberg, according to the book Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth about Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar--Your Brain's Silent Killers, by David Perlmutter. The intestinal difficulties associated with celiac disease are caused by an immunological response triggered by gluten, similar to an allergic reaction but less violent. This response, which leads to inflammation in the gut, can happen elsewhere in the body, too. Inflammation is at the root of many diseases and complications, including, Perlmutter argues, brain decay. Gluten can lead to inflammation in the brain, which Perlmutter believes leads to conditions like dementia and Alzheimer's.

A practicing neurologist, Dr. Perlmutter's experiences with patients, along with medical research he's studied, have led him to piece together a theory behind brain degeneration that's based on a foundation of gluten and high blood sugar. He also argues for the importance of cholesterol to maintaining brain health, and makes a compelling case that cholesterol-lowering statin drugs are bad for the brain.

Grain Brain frequently veers from the brain to other parts of the body that Perlmutter says are damaged by gluten and carbohydrates and of the general dangers of fat avoidance. You may have heard some of these ideas elsewhere; Perlmutter is clearly aligned with the likes of Robert Lustig, a pediatrician who writes of the ills of sugar, and Gary Taubes, one of the first to demolish the idea that dietary fat and cholesterol are responsible for heart disease.

Wolf

Flashback Doctor Psychopath: Anatomy of a tragedy

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In late 2010, Dr. Christopher Duntsch came to Dallas to start a neurosurgery practice. By the time the Texas Medical Board revoked his license in June 2013, Duntsch had left two patients dead and four paralyzed in a series of botched surgeries.

Physicians who complained about Duntsch to the Texas Medical Board and to the hospitals he worked at described his practice in superlative terms. They used phrases like "the worst surgeon I've ever seen." One doctor I spoke with, brought in to repair one of Duntsch's spinal fusion cases, remarked that it seemed Duntsch had learned everything perfectly just so he could do the opposite. Another doctor compared Duntsch to Hannibal Lecter three times in eight minutes.

When the Medical Board suspended Duntsch's license, the agency's spokespeople too seemed shocked."It's a completely egregious case,'' Leigh Hopper, then head of communications for the Texas Medical Board, told The Dallas Morning News in June. "We've seen neurosurgeons get in trouble but not one such as this, in terms of the number of medical errors in such a short time."

But the real tragedy of the Christopher Duntsch story is how preventable it was. Over the course of 2012 and 2013, even as the Texas Medical Board and the hospitals he worked with received repeated complaints from a half-dozen doctors and lawyers begging them to take action, Duntsch continued to practice medicine. Doctors brought in to clean up his surgeries decried his "surgical misadventures," according to hospital records. His mistakes were obvious and well-documented. And still it took the Texas Medical Board more than a year to stop Duntsch - a year in which he kept bringing into the operating room patients who ended up seriously injured or dead.

In Duntsch's case, we see the weakness of Texas' unregulated system of health care, a system built to protect doctors and hospitals. And a system in which there's no way to know for sure if your doctor is dangerous.

Comment: Christopher Duntsch is likely a psychopath. In a system where doctors and hospitals can kill and maim patients on a whim and seemingly without consequence, the real tragedy is thinking the system is working at all. The author might benefit from educating himself on how psychopathology has infected every aspect of our society.


Coffee

Tea: 6 brilliant effects on the brain

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© Thomas AbbsIt’s about more than just caffeine: two other components of tea may provide important benefits to the brain.
The British are rightly famous for their tea drinking.

They - I should say 'we', as, yes, your humble author is a Brit - manage to down 165 million cups every day, and there are only 62 million of us.

Only the Irish drink more tea than us per person.

We all know about the effects of caffeine on the brain, but research has found two more ingredients of tea with important effects...

1. Green tea may help fight Alzheimer's

Scientists have found that a natural component of green tea may eventually provide a way of curing Alzheimer's disease (Rushworth et al., 2013).

Early-stage research has found that a component of green tea - epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) - can disrupt the built up of plaques in the brain, which is what causes brain cells to die. Eventually this may help lead to a cure for the crippling disease.

2. Old brains love tea

While we'll have to wait for the Alzheimer's research to progress, tea has been shown to have more immediate effects.

A study of 2,031 people aged between 70 and 74 found that those who drank tea - which contain micronutrient polyphenols, like EGCG - had better cognitive performance (Nurk et al., 2009).

Polyphenols are also contained in red wine, cocoa and coffee.