Health & WellnessS


Question

Health officials say 2nd central Oregon resident contracted plague from disease-stricken cat


Washington Post
Sat, 15 Sep 2012 03:50 UTC
A woman who tried to help her friend save the life of a choking cat also contracted the plague from the disease-stricken feline over the summer, health officials said Friday.

The central Oregon woman, who asked not to be identified, has recovered since contracting the disease in June. She was treated after showing early symptoms.

The two had found a stray cat in distress, choking on a mouse. They were bitten when they tried unsuccessfully to help the animal.

The 60-year-old Gaylord spent nearly a month on life support. The woman, identified only as a Gaylord family friend, was out of the area when she started showing symptoms, including fever, chills and pain in the lymph nodes. She was treated with antibiotics at a Portland hospital.
Read More...
Info

Why You Can't Count Calories

Dr. Barry Groves
Second Opinions
Thu, 13 Sep 2012 14:10 UTC

The orthodox Golden Rule for treating overweight is: calories in minus calories out equals weight change. As you will see later, although this hypothesis looks plausible on the surface and has what looks like umpteen good, solid, rigorous, clinical studies appearing to support it, it is actually quite wrong.

However, if we assume it is correct, that brings up the first big problem: How do we answer the apparently simple question: How many calories are there in an item of food?

Despite supermarkets' desire for uniformity, natural food products can vary widely from item to item. An early season fruit, for example, may be much lower in sugar than one from the peak of the season; a green banana is mostly starch, while an overripe one is mostly sugar.

And that is only the first problem. The second is even harder to answer: How much energy do you use when you do something? If you walk a mile you will use less energy than someone else who walks the same distance, but weighs more. If you do it quicker your energy usage will differ from someone doing it slowly.

Studies have shown that when people change to a low-fat diet in a metabolic ward experiment they lose some weight. However, a few weeks later, when these people have returned home, the regulatory systems in their bodies ensures that the weight they lost was replaced. Therefore, it doesn't work. The problem with this approach is that you cannot know how much energy to take in. Neither can you know how much you are using.
Read More...
Arrow Down

Portland Authorities Unanimously Approve Plan to Poison City Population with Water Fluoridation by 2014

Kirk Johnson
The New York Times
Wed, 12 Sep 2012 13:59 UTC
Fluoridation Vote
© Don Ryan/Associated PressWhile some residents questioned the science of fluoridation, more said the decision should be put to a public vote.

Portland, Oregon, which never fluoridated its water supply and over time earned the distinction as the biggest city in the country to just say no, reversed course on Wednesday with a unanimous vote by the City Council to add fluoride beginning in early 2014.

The decision, which will cost the city about $5 million to carry out, was seen by both supporters and opponents as fraught with significance. Many Portlanders treasure their city's quirky distinctiveness. Others said its leadership role as the largest city in a state that is mostly nonfluoridated - and has some of the worst tooth-decay problems in the nation, according to various medical studies - made the new course long overdue.

The city's water system serves about 900,000 people, or almost one-fourth of Oregon's population, including some in communities outside the city limits.

"It isn't just time for Portland to enter the 21st century - we have some business to make up from the 20th century," said Randy Leonard, the public safety commissioner, who was interrupted several times by shouts from the audience. "This is not an issue for the faint of heart."

Hundreds of people converged on City Hall last week for a public hearing lasting more than six hours, and residents once more packed the council chambers on Wednesday as the five commissioners, including the mayor, Sam Adams, explained their reasons at length before casting their votes.
Read More...
Sherlock

Whoa, Is Organic Food No Healthier Than Non-Organic? Controversy Erupts Over Study

Jason Mark
Alternet
Fri, 07 Sep 2012 18:01 UTC
Image
© ftlol.com
Here's an important thing to remember: Our food choices don't just affect us, but entire communities.

I had barely drank my first cup of coffee when I heard the news yesterday morning on NPR - organic food, it turns out, may not be that much healthier for you than industrial food.

The NPR story was based on a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine which concluded, based on a review of existing studies, that there is no "strong evidence that organic foods are significantly more nutritious than conventional foods." The study, written by researchers at the Stanford School of Medicine, also found that eating organic foods "may reduce exposure to pesticide residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria."

The interwebs were soon full of headlines talking down the benefits of organic foods. "Stanford Scientists Cast Doubt on Advantages of Organic Meat and Produce," the NY Times announced, as reporter Kenneth Chang pointed out that pesticide residues on industrially grown fruits and vegetables are "almost always under the allowed safety limits."CBS news, running the AP story on the Stanford study, informed readers: "Organic food hardly healthier, study suggests."

Organic agriculture advocates were quick with their rebuttals. The Environmental Working Group put out a press release playing up the researchers' findings that organic produce has less pesticide residue. Charles Benbrook, a professor of agriculture at Washington State University and former chief scientist at The Organic Center, wrote a detailed critique you can find here. Benbrook noted that the Stanford study didn't include data from the USDA and US EPA about pesticide residue levels. He also pointed out that the researchers' definition of "significantly more nutritious" was a little squishy.

Comment: For more informative data on the 'Organic Food Debate' read the following articles:

Stanford Scientists Shockingly Reckless on Health Risk and Organics
Cargill and Others Behind anti-Organic "Stanford Study"
Thinking Outside the Processed Foods Box: Health and Safety Advantages of Organic Food
In Defense of Organic
Organic Vs. Conventional: Have You Been Robbed?
Organic Food: Cutting Through The Confusion
State of Science Review 'New Evidence Confirms the Nutritional Superiority of Plant-Based Organic Foods'
Organic Versus Conventional Food: UK Report Flawed

Read More...
Health

Finally, One Link Established - Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), Lupus, Fibromyalgia, Autoimmune Disease and Chronic Lyme Disease


Envita.com
Thu, 13 Sep 2012 17:39 UTC

The video is an overview of Fibromyalgia symptoms bellow we explain


An Easy Explanation to Idiopathic (unknown Cause of Disease) - But is it the Right One?

Idiopathic disease is defined as one that develops without any apparent or known causes. That is the term used for fibromyalgia, autoimmune diseases, including Lupus and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. While many of these diseases have recognizable signs and symptoms, the lack of causality haunts medical schools, doctors, practices, and hospitals. The only one benefiting from the lifelong symptom treating associated with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Lupus, Autoimmune disease, or Fibromyalgia are the pharmaceutical companies who sell billions in medication to treat them. A long list of pain medications, sleep-aids, anti-depressants and anti-inflammatories is not sufficient because the diagnosis is incorrect. So let's look at what the possible causes are to these diseases.
Here is the conventional Scientific Overview of What Causes (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) CFS and Fibromyalgia

Below, is a quick list of causes and we will give a clinical review and explanation as to what takes place.
  • Brain abnormalities
  • Genetic factors (HPA) axis
  • A hyper-reactive immune system
  • Viral or other infectious agents like (Chronic Lyme disease Complex)
  • Psychiatric or emotional conditions
Read More...
Health

Immune System Compensates for 'Leaky Gut' in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Susceptibility


ScienceDaily
Thu, 13 Sep 2012 16:28 UTC
New research could clarify how inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), conditions that include ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, are triggered and develop.

Scientists at Emory University School of Medicine have shown how the immune system can compensate for a "leaky gut" and prevent disease in mice that are susceptible to intestinal inflammation. These findings could explain why some individuals who are susceptible to developing IBD do or do not get the disease.

The results will be published online Sept. 13 in the journal Immunity.

"Our results suggest that when there is a chronically leaky intestine, defects in the immune system need to be present for the development of IBD," says senior author Charles Parkos, MD, PhD, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at Emory University School of Medicine.

"Breakdown of the intestinal barrier can occur as a result of intestinal infections or stress. The normal response involves several components of the immune system that help to heal the injury while controlling invading bacteria. When this normal response is defective and there is a leaky barrier, the risk of developing IBD is increased."
Read More...
Health

Exercise May Protect Against Future Emotional Stress, Study Show


ScienceDaily
Thu, 13 Sep 2012 16:19 UTC
Image
Moderate exercise may help people cope with anxiety and stress for an extended period of time post-workout, according to a study by kinesiology researchers in the University of Maryland School of Public Health published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise.

"While it is well-known that exercise improves mood, among other benefits, not as much is known about the potency of exercise's impact on emotional state and whether these positive effects endure when we're faced with everyday stressors once we leave the gym," explains J. Carson Smith, assistant professor in the Department of Kinesiology. "We found that exercise helps to buffer the effects of emotional exposure. If you exercise, you'll not only reduce your anxiety, but you'll be better able to maintain that reduced anxiety when confronted with emotional events."

Smith, whose research explores how exercise and physical activity affect brain function, aging and mental health, compared how moderate intensity cycling versus a period of quiet rest (both for 30 minutes) affected anxiety levels in a group of healthy college students. He assessed their anxiety state before the period of activity (or rest), shortly afterward (15 minutes after) and finally after exposing them to a variety of highly arousing pleasant and unpleasant photographs, as well as neutral images. At each point, study participants answered 20 questions from the State-Trait Anxiety inventory, which is designed to assess different symptoms of anxiety. All participants were put through both the exercise and the rest states (on different days) and tested for anxiety levels pre-exercise, post-exercise, and post-picture viewing.
Read More...
Health

How Early Social Deprivation Impairs Long-Term Cognitive Function


ScienceDaily
Thu, 13 Sep 2012 16:13 UTC
A growing body of research shows that children who suffer severe neglect and social isolation have cognitive and social impairments as adults. A study from Boston Children's Hospital shows, for the first time, how these functional impairments arise: Social isolation during early life prevents the cells that make up the brain's white matter from maturing and producing the right amount of myelin, the fatty "insulation" on nerve fibers that helps them transmit long-distance messages within the brain.

The study also identifies a molecular pathway that is involved in these abnormalities, showing it is disrupted by social isolation and suggesting it could potentially be targeted with drugs. Finally, the research indicates that the timing of social deprivation is an important factor in causing impairment. The findings are reported in the Sept. 14 issue of the journal Science.

The researchers, led by Gabriel Corfas, PhD, and Manabu Makinodan, MD, PhD, both of the F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center at Boston Children's Hospital, modeled social deprivation in mice by putting them in isolation for two weeks.
Read More...
Red Flag

Aspartame: Safety Approved In 90 Nations, But Damages Brain

Sayer Ji
GreenMedInfo.com
Tue, 11 Sep 2012 11:35 UTC
Image
© greenmedinfo.com
A new study on aspartame has the potential to reignite the decades-old controversy behind this artificial sweetener's safety, or lack thereof. As far back as 1996, folks were writing about the potential link between aspartame and increasing brain tumor rates.[i] Indeed, its intrinsic neurotoxicity and carcinogenicity has been confirmed in the biomedical literature. And yet, aspartame has been approved for use in thousands of consumer products in over 90 countries, [ii] and is still being consumed by millions worldwide on a daily basis - despite the fact that over 40 adverse health effects of aspartame have been documented.

The new study, published in the September edition of the Journal of Bioscience and titled, "Effect of chronic exposure to aspartame on oxidative stress in the brain of albino rats," aimed to test the hypothesis that chronic consumption of aspartame may be causing neurological damage in exposed populations.

They found that chronic (90 day) administration of aspartame to rats, at ranges only 50% above what the FDA considers safe for human consumption, resulted in blood and brain tissue changes consistent with brain damage.
Read More...
Syringe

Cure Worse than the Illlness? Side Effects of Popular Antibiotics

Jane E. Brody
The New York Times
Mon, 10 Sep 2012 12:01 UTC
Image
Antibiotics are important drugs, often restoring health and even saving lives. But like all drugs, they can have unwanted and serious side effects, some of which may not become apparent until many thousands of patients have been treated.

Such is the case with an important class of antibiotics known as fluoroquinolones. The best known are Cipro (ciprofloxacin), Levaquin (levofloxacin) and Avelox (moxifloxacin). In 2010, Levaquin was the best-selling antibiotic in the United States.

But by last year it was also the subject of more than 2,000 lawsuits from patients who had suffered severe reactions after taking it.

Comment:
Don't Take That Pill! -- The Ignored Risks of Fluoroquinolones
Common Antibiotics Pose a Rare Risk of Severe Liver Injury in Older Patients
Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics Linked To Severe Liver Damage
Fluoride 'Can Affect Brain'
How to Detox Fluorides from Your Body

Read More...