Health & WellnessS


Syringe

Neurological consequences of Botox injections

Richard Ctyowic, M.D.
Psychology Today
Sat, 03 Jan 2015 02:15 UTC
Unintended neurological consequences make the cosmetic procedure far from benign
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© Mirror, UK
The Injection of Botox to reduce facial lines and wrinkles has long been assumed to be purely cosmetic in nature. Hollywood's rush to it has normalized the procedure and even given it an air of frivolity.

New research, however, has revealed an unintentional and rather dramatic consequence: Botox injections in the forehead rearrange the brain's sensory map of the hands. The scary part is that clients typically come back for regular injections, because the paralysis the toxin induces lasts only two to three months. The unanswered question is whether repeated treatments over a period of years results in permanent changes to one's brain.

Botox is the brand name for botulinum toxin - a, one of the most lethal poisons known. The neurotoxin is produced by the bacterium Clostridium, a spore commonly found in plants, soil, water, and animals. The clinical syndrome of botulism, which is often lethal, typically occurs from either a wound infection or eating undercooked or improperly canned food. The toxin paralyzes muscles by blocking the release of acetylcholine, the principal neurotransmitter at the nerve - muscle junction.

For a long time we have known that the brain is plastic, meaning that it circuits and microscopic anatomy are malleable. They can physically change in response to a number of factors. For example, in violinists the brain map devoted to the non-bowing fingers is much larger than the same finger region in non-violinists. In newly-blind individuals learning braille, the cortical area devoted to the "reading finger" greatly expands into the suddenly unused visual cortex.

The brain maps of the hand and face territories lie next to one another in the sensory cortex. After hand amputations, tactile inputs from the face routinely widen and shift into the territory newly deprived of sensory input from the hand. Likewise, patients with facial paralysis due to Bell's palsy or stroke have enhanced metabolic activity in the hand region of the sensory cortex. The principle is well established that the cortical representation of one body part widens in response to injury affecting another body part.

Comment: If you are concerned about wrinkles, try the ketogenic diet.
"In short, let fat be thy medicine and medicine be thy fat!

You will think that with all of this information we would see ketogenic diets recommended right and left by our health care providers, but alas, that is not the case. Mainstream nutritionists recommend carbohydrates AKA sugar as the main staple of our diets. The problem with this (and there are several of them) is that in the presence of a high carb diet we are unable to produce ketones from the metabolism of fats, thus, depriving ours bodies from much healing ketone production. The fact that we live in a world which uses glucose as a primary fuel means that we eat a very non healing food in more ways than one.
I have been doing the low carb diet for about a week and a half now and I must say, I am really starting to feel amazing!!! The first few days my head hurt, I felt lethargic, and my legs felt so heavy. But after I got past that, I have so much energy. I don't get tired anymore around 3pm. The best part is, I am not constantly thinking and obsessing about food. I feel a real sense of inner calm. My skin looks better, my hair looks better too. I have been having bacon and eggs for breakfast, a pork chop or other piece of meat for lunch, and usually some pork and sometimes some green beans for dinner. I have also lost some weight! Woo hoo!!! -Angela, United States. Sott.net forum.
We have been on a ketogenic diet for nearly three million years and it has made us human. It was the lifestyle in which our brains got nurtured and evolved. But not anymore, unless we all make an effort to reclaim this lost wisdom. Nowadays the human brain is not only shrinking, but brain atrophy is the norm as we age and get plagued with diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, senile dementia and so forth.

In the mean time new research is starting to elucidate the key role of our mitochondria in the regulation of the cell cycle - the vital process by which a single celled fertilized egg develops into a mature organism, as well as the process by which hair, skin, blood cells, and some internal organs are renewed."

The Ketogenic Diet - An Overview
See also:

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Pills

Children who take ADHD medication perform worse in school

Ethan A. Huff
Natural News
Sat, 03 Jan 2015 22:51 UTC
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Children who take mind-altering medications like Ritalin (methylphenidate) and Adderall (amphetamine and dextroamphetamine) for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have been shown in a new peer-reviewed study to perform worse in school than if they weren't taking the substances at all.

Researchers from Princeton University, Cornell University and the University of Toronto found that the administration of these drugs to children, which is supposedly to help them remain calm and focus in class, actually leaves students at a deficit when it comes to paying attention and learning in a formal academic setting.

These shocking findings, which were published recently in the Journal of Health Economics, reveal that increasing the use of stimulants isn't helping children any more than loading them up with anti-psychotic medications helps them think more rationally. Once again, pharmaceutical drugs are shown to harm the normal thought process and inhibit natural human cognition.

Back in 1997, some rules changed in the Canadian province of Quebec that made it easier for people to access prescription drugs. In the 10 years following this change, the number of children taking stimulants in Quebec more than doubled, with an astounding 44 percent of Canada's ADHD prescriptions now going to the province.

This massive increase made for an easier time studying the outcomes of ADHD drugs in children, the results of which are sure to surprise many parents. Based on the researchers' work, children on ADHD drugs fared slightly worse than other children and were far more likely not to finish school without having to first repeat a grade, suggesting added learning impairment.

Comment: The conditions which derail the development of children are in areas which doctors and various "authorities" refuse to look at as causative factors of bad behavior: poor nutrition, preponderance of toxicity from heavy metals and vaccinations, and the toxic pollution that pervades most urban environments. Instead of pumping children full of useless pharmaceuticals which only exacerbate conditions and turn children into emotion-less zombies, we should be trying to solve the problems instead of covering up the symptoms. If doctors were anything more than pill-pushers for the pharmaceutical companies, that would be possible. As it stands, doctors are taught to be salesmen for the Big Pharma and not healers like was originally intended.

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Health

Epigenetics: How exercise and other lifestyle changes can affect your DNA

Gretchen Reynolds
New York Times
Wed, 17 Dec 2014 23:21 UTC
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© Mun Fitness BlogExercising literally changes your DNA expression
We all know that exercise can make us fitter and reduce our risk for illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease. But just how, from start to finish, a run or a bike ride might translate into a healthier life has remained baffling.

Now new research reports that the answer may lie, in part, in our DNA. Exercise, a new study finds, changes the shape and functioning of our genes, an important stop on the way to improved health and fitness.

The human genome is astonishingly complex and dynamic, with genes constantly turning on or off, depending on what biochemical signals they receive from the body. When genes are turned on, they express proteins that prompt physiological responses elsewhere in the body.

Scientists know that certain genes become active or quieter as a result of exercise. But they hadn't understood how those genes know how to respond to exercise.

Comment: In addition to exercise, improving your diet and decreasing your stress or managing it properly can have beneficial effects on your DNA.

Image
© UnknownYou can change your DNA by making healthy choices.


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Health

Exposure to cold reveals 'switch' that controls formation of brown, white fat


ScienceDaily
Mon, 05 Jan 2015 21:50 UTC
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Each type of fat may change into the other, depending on the temperature. In particular, cold temperatures may encourage 'unhealthy' white fat to change into 'healthy' brown fat.
The roles that white fat and brown fat play in metabolism is well documented, but new research published in the January 2015 issue of the FASEB Journal presents a new wrinkle: each type of fat may change into the other, depending on the temperature. In particular, cold temperatures may encourage "unhealthy" white fat to change into "healthy" brown fat.

"Fat cells can adopt a range of metabolic phenotypes, depending on physiological conditions and location in the body," said James G. Granneman, Ph.D., a researcher involved in the work from the Center for Integrative Metabolic and Endocrine Research at the Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit, MI. "Our long-term goal is to harness this cellular and metabolic flexibility for the treatment of metabolic disorders linked to dysfunctional fat, such as type 2 diabetes."

Comment: Cold therapy enhances immune system function. In this day of superbugs, unending strains of new flu virus and ebola, it only makes sense to do everything possible to strengthen it. Cold therapy is a valuable technique for improving over all health but should be approached in a gradual way. Some helpful articles:

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Health

Depression as an allergic and inflammatory reaction

Caroline Williams
The Guardian
Sun, 04 Jan 2015 15:36 UTC
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© Mads Perch/Getty ImagesCould depression be a form of 'sickness behaviour'?
Barely a week goes by without a celebrity "opening up" about their "battle with depression". This, apparently, is a brave thing to do because, despite all efforts to get rid of the stigma around depression, it is still seen as some kind of mental and emotional weakness.

But what if was nothing of the sort? What if it was a physical illness that just happens to make people feel pretty lousy? Would that make it less of a big deal to admit to? Could it even put a final nail in the coffin of the idea that depression is all in the mind?

According to a growing number of scientists, this is exactly how we should be thinking about the condition. George Slavich, a clinical psychologist at the University of California in Los Angeles, has spent years studying depression, and has come to the conclusion that it has as much to do with the body as the mind. "I don't even talk about it as a psychiatric condition any more," he says. "It does involve psychology, but it also involves equal parts of biology and physical health."

The basis of this new view is blindingly obvious once it is pointed out: everyone feels miserable when they are ill. That feeling of being too tired, bored and fed up to move off the sofa and get on with life is known among psychologists as sickness behaviour. It happens for a good reason, helping us avoid doing more damage or spreading an infection any further.

It also looks a lot like depression. So if people with depression show classic sickness behaviour and sick people feel a lot like people with depression - might there be a common cause that accounts for both?

Comment: Start healing by eating an anti-inflammatory keto diet! See:

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Bulb

Depression: It's not your Serotonin

Dr. Kelly Brogan, M.D.
Greenmedinfo.com
Sun, 04 Jan 2015 23:34 UTC
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Millions believe depression is caused by 'serotonin deficiency,' but where is the science in support of this theory?
"Depression is a serious medical condition that may be due to a chemical imbalance, and Zoloft works to correct this imbalance."
Herein lies the serotonin myth.

As one of only two countries in the world that permits direct to consumer advertising, you have undoubtedly been subjected to promotion of the "cause of depression." A cause that is not your fault, but rather; a matter of too few little bubbles passing between the hubs in your brain! Don't add that to your list of worries, though, because there is a convenient solution awaiting you at your doctor's office...

What if I told you that, in 6 decades of research, the serotonin (or norepinephrine, or dopamine) theory of depression and anxiety has not achieved scientific credibility?

You'd want some supporting arguments for this shocking claim.

So, here you go:

Comment: Psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Carlat has said "psychiatry has become a proving ground for outrageous manipulations of science in the service of profit."

Listen to the SOTT podcast Good Science, Bad Science - Psychology and Psychiatry for a lively discussion on this topic:
In this second in our series of shows on the topic of science and its benefits and negative consequences for mankind, we'll be taking a look at the use and abuse of psychiatry and psychology.

From the psychotherapist's chair to anti-depressant drugs and diverse therapeutic modalities, psychiatry and psychology have come up with as many solutions for mental health issues as there are theories of what makes people tick.

While many individuals have benefited from some form of intervention or another, the application of psychological knowledge for propaganda purposes, mind control experiments and pure corporate greed has apparently left most people's psychological health more fragile than ever.

This week, we will attempt to sort the good from the bad and the ugly by 'psychoanalyzing' some of the questionable practices and theories of the mind, and untangle the confusion produced by psychological terminology that frequently overlaps the same basic underlying problems people encounter in our stressful modern world.


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No Entry

Skin fat helps fight infection

Bahar Gholipour
Live Science
Fri, 02 Jan 2015 19:48 UTC
fat
© Nruboc | Dreamstime
Fat cells just under a person's skin may be the first responders to invading bacteria, buying time until the white blood cells arrive at a wound site, according to a new study.

The new findings suggest that the task of fighting infections is not solely the responsibility of the immune system, the researchers said. Moreover, fat cells may fight infections by producing antimicrobial compounds, lab experiments in mice and human fat cells showed.

"That was totally unexpected," study co-author Dr. Richard Gallo, chief of dermatology at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, said in a statement. "It was not known that [fat cells] could produce antimicrobials, let alone that they make almost as much" as immune system cells, he said.

Comment: Fat really is a wonderful thing! A high-fat, low-carb diet can reverse obesity and insulin resistance. And cold therapy not only activates brown fat cells, which enhances metabolism, but also boosts the immune system.

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Pills

Big Pharma deflects responsibility for gruesome antibiotic side effects

Paul Fassa
Realfarmacy
Thu, 17 Dec 2015 13:06 UTC
burn victim
© unknown
A recent ABC news item featured an unfortunate tragedy of a women hospitalized in an intensive care burn unit with Stevens-Johnson syndrome after taking a pharmaceutical antibiotic. This "rare" syndrome is gruesome.

She was placed into intensive care of a burn unit in the University of California Irvine's burn unit, as 70 percent of her body is burning "from the inside out".

Dr. Joshua Zeichner, a dermatology professor at the Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan commented to ABC on this issue. "You're not truly burned, but what happens is you have compromised the skin barrier function." In other words, the epidermis separates from the dermis and 2nd and 3rd degree burns and blisters manifest painfully.
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Butterfly

Pets may improve social skills of children with autism


Neuroscience News
Tue, 30 Dec 2014 12:00 UTC
Autism and pets
© University of MissouriChildren with autism have stronger social skills when they live with a pet, an MU researcher found.
Dogs, cats and other animals may improve social skills of children with autism.

Dogs and other pets play an important role in individuals' social lives, and they can act as catalysts for social interaction, previous research has shown. Although much media attention has focused on how dogs can improve the social skills of children with autism, a University of Missouri researcher recently found that children with autism have stronger social skills when any kind of pet lived in the home.
"When I compared the social skills of children with autism who lived with dogs to those who did not, the children with dogs appeared to have greater social skills,"
said Gretchen Carlisle, research fellow at the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction (ReCHAI) in the MU College of Veterinary Medicine.
"More significantly, however, the data revealed that children with any kind of pet in the home reported being more likely to engage in behaviors such as introducing themselves, asking for information or responding to other people's questions. These kinds of social skills typically are difficult for kids with autism, but this study showed children's assertiveness was greater if they lived with a pet."
Pets often serve as "social lubricants," Carlisle said. When pets are present in social settings or a classroom, children talk and engage more with one another. This effect also seems to apply to children with autism and could account for their increased assertiveness when the children are living in a home with pets, Carlisle said.

Comment: It's puzzling why the rates of autism have increased so dramatically during the last decades. It seems more and more likely that there are multiple external factors contributing to autism instead of it just being an accidental genetic neurological condition. Our medical authorities tell us that the high increase of autism is only due to improved and more efficient diagnosis of autism. In the mid '90s, 1 out of 500 children were diagnosed with autism. Now it's about 1 out of 70 children. In the United States, the prevalence of autism has increased 30% in just two years, between 2012 and 2014, according to CDC. Are we supposed to believe that this kind of epidemic growth is happening only because we're able to detect it better? Read these articles to learn more:

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Phoenix

Altering your gut bacteria eases anxiety and depression

Rachael Rettner
LiveScience
Wed, 24 Dec 2014 11:05 UTC
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The plethora of microbes living in the human gut not only affect people's physical health, they may also influence mental health, according to a growing body of research.

Recent studies in animals show that changes in the gut bacteria community appear to make mice less anxious, and also affect levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

In humans, there is some very early evidence of a link between gut bacteria and mental health. A new study from England found that supplements that boost "good" bacteria in the gut (called "prebiotics") may alter the way people process emotional information, suggesting that changes in gut bacteria may have anti-anxiety effects.

Scientists are now interested in studying whether probiotics (strains of good bacteria) or prebiotics (carbohydrates that serve as food for those bacteria) could be used to treat anxiety or depression, or if the substances improve patients' response to psychiatric drugs, said study author Philip Burnet, a researcher in the University of Oxford's department of psychiatry. [5 Ways Gut Bacteria Affect Your Health]

Comment: For more fascinating results, see:

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