Health & WellnessS


Pills

Danish doctor offers ten myths about psychotropic drugs

Pete Calautti
Design&Trend
Thu, 23 Jan 2014 13:18 UTC
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© Reuters/Shannon StapletonPsychotropic drugs are causing more harm than good, especially in children
Dr. Peter Gotzsche has created a controversy and sparked criticism over what he sees as a damaging over-prescription of drugs by psychiatrists.

Gotzsche recently compiled a list of ten common myths held not only by the general public, but also trained psychiatrists concerning the safety of psychotropic drugs, and the rationale for their use.

As an internist, Gotzsche remarked that since he was outside of the political orthodoxy of the world of psychiatric medicine, he was free to express what he believed to be the sentiments of many psychiatrists who must remain quiet in their objections for fear of hurting their careers.

1. Mental diseases are caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain

"We have no idea about which interplay of psychosocial conditions, biochemical processes, receptors and neural pathways that lead to mental disorders and the theories that patients with depression lack serotonin and that patients with schizophrenia have too much dopamine have long been refuted."

2. It's easy to go off antidepressants any time you want to

Here, Gotzsche points to drug trails involving agoraphobics and people suffering from panic disorder, whom were not depressed. Fifty percent of the patients found it difficult to come off antidepressants even though they were gradually reducing their doses. It could not be that the patients saw their depression returning, as they were not depressed to begin with.
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Briefcase

Sitting at work for hours can be as unhealthy as smoking


CBS News
Fri, 24 Jan 2014 09:32 UTC
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© Boagworld.com
Take a stand for your health - literally.

Doctors are urging the millions of people who work at a desk all day to stand up or walk around the office.

As CBS 2′s Dr. Max Gomez reported, our couch-potato lifestyle is killing us at about the same rate as smoking.

And it's not just sitting around at home; it's also our sit-for-hours workdays that are part of an unhealthy sedentary lifestyle.

"Sitting is probably killing me," said Linda Caufield, of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

Caufiled is right. A number of studies have shown that prolonged sitting is linked to an increased risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer and even early death.

"Smoking certainly is a major cardiovascular risk factor, and sitting can be equivalent in many cases," said Dr. David Coven, a cardiologist at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center. "The fact of being sedentary causes factors to happen in the body that are very detrimental."

A recent study shows levels of physical activity and lower levels of sitting time were positively associated with excellent health and quality of life.

Comment: MU study finds that sitting may increase risk of disease

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Ambulance

Three Aborigine boys airlifted to hospital after circumcision ritual goes horrifically wrong and they are left sitting in 'pools of blood'

Bernard O'shea
Source
Thu, 23 Jan 2014 06:11 UTC
  • Three boys airlifted to hospital after disastrous initiation ceremony
  • Ambulance driver finds his grandson sitting in pool of blood
  • No medical staff from local clinic were in attendance at the ritual
  • NT Police investigate after complaints to child abuse taskforce
Borroloola, 700km away in the Gulf of Carpentaria
© UnknownBorroloola, 700km away in the Gulf of Carpentaria, where the young boys had the ceremony performed
Three teenage boys have been hospitalised following a circumcision ceremony in the Northern Territory that went disastrously wrong.

The boys were evacuated to Darwin from a remote community near Borroloola, 700km away in the Gulf of Carpentaria, after suffering severe cuts during the ceremony. The incident has sparked anger and debate in the community over safety procedures surrounding indigenous initiation ceremonies.

One of the boys who was airlifted to hospital, Bryce Miller, 17, said when he was circumcised the cut was so bad that 'heaps' of blood poured out.
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Magnify

Superbugs are breeding, spreading drug-resistant genes at water treatment plants

L.J. Devon
Natural News
Wed, 22 Jan 2014 17:40 UTC
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What role does the current overuse of antibiotics play in encouraging the spread of new and invasive super bugs?

Why are water treatment facilities spreading super bugs even after the water has been treated?

Is chlorine an effective water disinfectant?

Experts are beginning to ponder these questions as water treatment plants are routinely found to be ineffective. New lab results show that specific infectious superbugs can now spread drug-resistant genes at water treatment plants.
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Fish

Fish oil could help prevent Alzheimer's and also give you a bigger brain

Jenny Hope
Daily Mail, UK
Wed, 22 Jan 2014 09:17 UTC
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Eating more fish could give you a bigger brain and greater protection against diseases including Alzheimer's
  • Research shows people with higher levels of the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil may also have larger brain volumes in old age
  • This would be the equivalent to preserving one or two years of brain health
Eating more fish could give you a bigger brain - and greater protection against diseases such as Alzheimer's, claim researchers.

They found people with higher levels of the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil may also have larger brain volumes in old age.

This would be the equivalent to preserving one to two years of brain health, says a new study published in the journal Neurology.
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Bacon

Scientists use discovery that humans can sniff out good fats to trick them into eating evil fats


ScienceDaily.com
Wed, 22 Jan 2014 03:51 UTC
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© rufar/FotoliaNew research from the Monell Center reveals humans can use the sense of smell to detect dietary fat in food.
New research from the Monell Center reveals humans can use the sense of smell to detect dietary fat in food. As food smell almost always is detected before taste, the findings identify one of the first sensory qualities that signals whether a food contains fat. Innovative methods using odor to make low-fat foods more palatable could someday aid public health efforts to reduce dietary fat intake.


Comment: The reason why we can sniff out good fats is because saturated fat is essential for health and well-being!

With one hand, 'scientists' tell us that saturated animal fats are evil for us, and with the other they're going to try and trick us into believing that the really evil fats are the good ones.

Diabolical!


"The human sense of smell is far better at guiding us through our everyday lives than we give it credit for," said senior author Johan Lundström, PhD, a cognitive neuroscientist at Monell. "That we have the ability to detect and discriminate minute differences in the fat content of our food suggests that this ability must have had considerable evolutionary importance."
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Evil Rays

Children trapped in 'toxic climate' of dieting, pornography and school stress

Ian Johnston
The Independent
Mon, 20 Jan 2014 05:10 UTC
children toxic environment
Children are living in an "unprecedented toxic climate" in which they skip meals to stay thin, are bombarded by pornographic images and fear they will be failures amid a "continuous onslaught of stress at school", according to research published today.

A poll commissioned to coincide with the launch of a national campaign found 40 per cent of 11 to 14-year-olds said they missed meals for weight-loss reasons, while a similar proportion said their relationships with other children had been affected by watching pornography online.

Half of children and young people had been bullied and more than half believed they would end up being a failure if they did not get good exam grades. The charity YoungMinds said the UK was sitting on a "mental health time bomb" and that action is needed by the Government, schools and parents to help young people cope with the pressures of modern life.

Comment: From eating-disorders to eating a diet poor in the essentials needed for optimum growth of the brain and body; from "competition stress" to mindless online-gaming and exposure to pornography, our children's mental health suffers the results of "civilization" and "progress" that cares nothing of their well-being and emotional/spiritual development. Perhaps the solution is to look back and learn a thing or two from our "uncivilized" ancestors?

Hunter-Gatherer Societies: Research shows child rearing practices of distant ancestors foster morality, compassion in kids

SOTT Talk Radio: Nora Gedgaudas interview - Healing through NeuroFeedback and an Ice Age diet

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Heart - Black

Family with rare medical conditions denied Obamacare coverage

Liz Klimas
The Blaze
Tue, 21 Jan 2014 18:15 UTC
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© YouTubeThe Davert family has unique physical struggles with medical conditions and changes in health care due to the Affordable Care Act has added insurance to their list of difficulties.
  • Ken Davert has spina bifida. Melissa "Missy" Davert and their two children have a condition that makes their bones fragile and susceptible to breaking.
  • When the Davert family was told their insurance for their children would be cancelled, they turned to Obamacare and were denied.
  • Now, with a fixed income, the family is worried about being able to afford the out-of-pocket maximum for the private insurance their children need.
  • "... we've overcome many obstacles in life. And now it's a shame that one of the obstacles we have to overcome is our own government to pay for health care," Ken Davert said.
Every member in the Davert family has a medical condition requiring special care. But after losing their preferred insurance upon the enactment of the Affordable Care Act and being denied federal coverage, the Michigan family is now worried about high costs associated with their new private plan.

According to The Bay City Times, Ken Davert has cerebral palsy and his wife, Missy, and their 15-year-old fraternal twins all have a condition called osteogensis imperfecta, which makes their bones very fragile.
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Health

Is hydrogen peroxide mouthwash harmful for teeth?

Eleni Roumeliotou
GreenMedInfo
Sun, 05 Jan 2014 08:30 UTC
teeth
© unknown
Hydrogen peroxide is praised for its antiseptic and healing properties. In fact, there is a new urban myth proclaiming that hydrogen peroxide is universally beneficial for all the body organs and tissues. Regarding dental health, this couldn't be further from the truth as evidence shows that hydrogen peroxide is actually toxic for the cells in the inner part of the teeth, also known as the dental pulp. Without a doubt, hydrogen peroxide does a really good job at bleaching and disinfecting teeth; hydrogen peroxide- based bleaching gels are essential for dentists and there is solid evidence demonstrating the efficacy of these protocols. On the other hand, there is a lot of uncontrolled information and advice, recommending hydrogen peroxide as an ideal everyday mouthwash. Taking into account that over-the-counter hydrogen peroxide concentrations can be as high as the formulas used by dentists in bleaching sessions (20-30%) and the growing popularity of hydrogen peroxide as an alternative therapy, the danger of potential long-term teeth damage by using high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide as a casual mouthwash are unknown, underestimated and largely under-discussed.
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Pills

Common pain relievers may amplify flu spread

Nicholas Bakalar
New York Times
Wed, 22 Jan 2014 13:28 UTC
tylenol
© Reuters
Taking drugs like aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen when you have the flu reduces fever and makes you feel better, but it may have unintended consequences.

A new study using mathematical projections has concluded that the use of anti-fever drugs during flu epidemics increases disease transmission, both by raising the amount of flu virus shed and increasing the interaction that flu sufferers have with uninfected people.

Fever fights viruses by reducing their ability to reproduce. Reducing fever defeats this effect, increasing the rate and duration of viral shedding.

"We're not saying to avoid these drugs," said the senior author, David J.D. Earn, a professor of mathematics at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. "But if you take them, there's this effect that's not obvious."
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