Health & WellnessS


Ladybug

Flora on my mind

Ari LeVaux
The Durango Telegraph
Thu, 19 May 2011 16:38 UTC
mud spoon
Most children seem determined to eat dirt. It may be a coincidence, but those little mud pie makers are now being supported by a growing body of scientific evidence that early exposure to diverse microorganisms results in immune systems. Now there's reason to think that intestinal bacteria have important effects on brain development as well.

A study published in the March issue of Neurogastroenterology & Motility examined germ-free mice - i.e. mice deprived of contact with bacteria. The researchers observed changes in brain activity based on varying microbe levels. They also found germ-free mice more likely to engage in risky behavior - measured as time spent in areas where they could be seen - than mice with normal levels of intestinal flora. The study concludes this constitutes evidence of bacteria in the loop between belly and brain, influencing behavior.

A separate study, published last November in Archives of General Psychiatry, surveyed the scientific literature for evidence of a connection between gut microbes and depression, and suggested that certain bacteria might be considered as treatment for depression.

Comment: Read also:
Link between gut bacteria and behavior: That anxiety may be in your gut, not in your head
The polyvagal theory: New insights into adaptive reactions of the autonomic nervous system

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Info

A new discovery about mosquitoes reveals why vampires will never exist

Esther Inglis-Arkell
io9
Fri, 20 May 2011 06:00 UTC
Image
© unknown
Scientists have found a type of bacteria that kills off the mosquito that carries malaria. That's good news. The way the bacteria works means it could also be used to make sure there is never a plague of vampires. That's even more good news.

Anopheles gambiae, the blood-sucking, malaria-carrying mosquito has been a deadly adversary to humanity for a long time. Malaria kills almost a million people per year. Researchers have come up with hundreds of potential ways to combat the disease, from engineering a malaria-proof mosquito to shooting the mosquitos that carry malaria out of the sky with lasers. This latest effort might also fight more mythical foes of humanity.

Wolbachia is a bacteria that preys on insects. It is not carried by the type of mosquito that carries the malaria parasite. Scientists guessed that it might be fatal to this type of mosquito, and infected them with two different strains of Wolbachia, hoping for a way to kill off the carriers to stop the spread of the disease. The bacteria spread quickly, and even seemed to manipulate the mosquitos' immune systems to give itself the run of the insect's body. What's more, it inhibited the growth of malaria in the insects. But they didn't seem to die. They sucked down the sugar that the scientists provided them quite happily, and lived quite healthily. Then they were fed blood, and died in a day.
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Cow

A Metabolic Paradigm Shift, or Why Fat is the Preferred Fuel for Human Metabolism

Mark Sisson
Mark's Daily Apple
Thu, 19 May 2011 00:00 UTC
Image
There's a good reason so many people (mostly the sugar-burners, whose disparate group includes fruitarians, veg*ans, HEDers, body-builders, most MDs, the USDA and virtually every RD program in the country) can't seem to grasp why a lower carb, Primal approach to eating is a better choice for health and fitness: their fundamental paradigm - the core theory that underpins everything else in that belief system - is flawed. They remain slaves to the antiquated notion that glucose is the king of fuels, so they live their lives in a fear of running low. The truth is, fat is the preferred fuel of human metabolism and has been for most of human evolution. Under normal human circumstances, we actually require only minimal amounts of glucose, most or all of which can be supplied by the liver as needed on a daily basis. The simple SAD fact that carbs/glucose are so readily available and cheap today doesn't mean that we should depend on them as a primary source of fuel or revere them so highly. In fact, it is this blind allegiance to the "Carb Paradigm" that has driven so many of us to experience the vast array of metabolic problems that threaten to overwhelm our health care system.
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Health

Toxic Pesticides from GM Food Crops Found in Unborn Babies

Andy Bloxham
The Telegraph, UK
Fri, 20 May 2011 11:48 UTC
pregnant mother
© n/a
Toxic pesticides which are implanted into genetically modified food crops have lodged in the blood of pregnant women and their unborn babies, research shows.

Scientists at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, at the University of Sherbrooke Hospital Centre in Quebec, took dozens of samples from women.

Traces of the toxin were found 93 per cent of the pregnant mothers and in 80 per cent of the umbilical cords.

The research suggested the chemicals were entering the body through eating meat, milk and eggs from farm livestock which have been fed GM corn.

The findings appear to contradict the GM industry's long-standing claim that any potentially harmful chemicals added to crops would pass safely through the body.
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Magic Wand

Secrets of the plague revealed: Scientists discover why human cells fail to defend against killer disease


The Daily Mail
Fri, 20 May 2011 11:17 UTC
Scientists can finally explain exactly how and why a cell's defences fail against some invaders, including the plague, while successfully fending off others.

A new super-resolution microscopy technique is providing researchers with never-before-seen detail of a cell membrane.

They claim the development could open doors to new diagnostic, prevention and treatment techniques.

Image
© Jerl Timlin, Jesse Aaron and Bryan CarsonBefore and after: What scientists used to be able to see on a cell's surface (left), compared to what they can now see (right). Orange areas show the bacteria LPS, derived from E. coli, while the green areas show the cell's TLR4 receptors
Jesse Aaron, a researcher at of Sandia National Laboratories, said: 'We're trying to do molecular biology with a microscope, but in order to do that, we must be able to look at things on a molecular scale.'

The cell membrane is a bustling hub of activity on a minuscule scale. While providing structure and housing the cell's interior, the membrane regulates movement of materials in and out of the cell, controls adhesion to other objects and co-ordinates the cell's communications and subsequent actions through signalling.
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People

Cooked tomatoes 'as good as statins' for battling cholesterol


Daily Mail
Fri, 20 May 2011 05:54 UTC
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Healthy: Chemicals found in cooked tomatoes could be effective as statins in fighting cholesterol
They are common ingredients found in millions of kitchen cupboards.

But pasta sauces and pizza toppings could add much more than a tasty tomato flavour to a family's favourite meals.

Scientists said that cooked tomatoes can have the same benefits as statins for patients battling against high cholesterol levels or high blood pressure.

They could be an 'effective alternative' to statins, the class of drugs commonly prescribed for these conditions which can lead to heart problems, according to a study.

And just two ounces of tomato paste or a pint of juice a day could be enough to help many patients.
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Alarm Clock

US: Neighbors, farmworkers ask EPA to ban use of fumigant in California strawberry fields


Associated Press
Fri, 13 May 2011 21:22 UTC
Salinas - When Annette Danzer and her husband moved into a house surrounded by brush and strawberry fields on California's Central Coast, they were drawn by the rural feel and closeness to nature.

Three years later, the couple fears the fields near Salinas could become a health threat due to potential use of the pesticide methyl iodide.

California regulators approved use of methyl iodide in December despite opposition from scientists and environmental and farmworker groups who claim it's highly toxic and can cause cancer. The chemical would likely be used primarily in California's $2 billion strawberry industry, which last year produced nearly 90 percent of the nation's strawberries on over 37,000 acres.
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Pills

The Silent Epidemic - Legal Prescription Drug Abuse


Dr. Mercola
Tue, 25 May 2010 13:57 UTC
Image
© drmercola.com
Not a lot of attention is paid to prescription drug abuse. But nearly 20 percent of Americans have used prescription drugs for nonmedicinal reasons. Three quarters of those may be abusing prescription drugs.

Between 1992 and 2002, the number of prescriptions written increased by 61 percent. In that same period, the number of prescriptions written for opiates increased by almost 400 percent.

The Baltimore Sun reports:
"According to a report ... by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hospitalizations for poisoning by prescription opioids, sedatives and tranquilizers jumped 65 percent from 1999 to 2006. One-third of new addicts report that their first drug experience was with prescription drugs."
Source

The Baltimore Sun April 21, 2010
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Newspaper

Djokovic switched to gluten-free diet, now he's unstoppable on court

Morgan Campbell
The Star
Tue, 17 May 2011 12:21 UTC
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© Gabriel Bouys/AFP/GETTY IMAGESBefore the current season, Novak Djokovic switched to a gluten-free diet.
Curious about what's fueling Novak Djokovic's rocket ride to the verge of the top ranking in men's tennis?

Well, it's not pasta. At least not the standard kind.

Before the current season, Djokovic switched to a gluten-free diet and suddenly most forms of processed carbohydrates became off-limits to him.

Just as suddenly, he grew into an unstoppable force on the tennis court. In January he defeated world No. 1 Rafael Nadal to win the Australian Open, and this past Sunday he dropped Nadal again to win the Italian Open.

The 23-year-old attributes much of his success to his eating habits.
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Bacon

Never Trust the Government About Nutrition


Natural Health
Mon, 16 May 2011 20:11 UTC
Ed. Note: Today's article is a guest post from Jonny Bowden, PhD, CNS, also known as The Rogue Nutritionist, a nationally known expert on weight loss and nutrition.

Have you ever heard of Dairy Management? Sounds made up, I know, but it is very real. In fact, it's part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Most intriguing is its mission: To get people to eat more cheese. According to The New York Times, "...the government, through Dairy Management, is engaged in an effort to find ways to get dairy back into Americans' diets, primarily through cheese."1

So, on one hand, the government - through a corporation that's part of its own USDA - is telling us to eat less saturated fat and yet, out of the other side of its collective mouth, is telling us to eat more of it (in the form of cheese).


What is going on?
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