Health & WellnessS


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Junk Food Found to Deteriorate Pleasure Center of Brain

Kim Evans
NaturalNews
Mon, 12 Apr 2010 00:00 UTC
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© Michael Boone
A new study just found that a diet with unlimited junk food desensitizes the pleasure centers of the brain. As a consequence, more and more junk foods were required to feel the same level of pleasure. The study used rats, but since rats and humans are wired pretty similarly in this region of the brain, the researchers think this might be the underlying cause of obesity and binge eating. In fact, the rats did keep eating until they became obese.

But what's really interesting is that by witnessing the desensitizing of the pleasure centers of the rats' brains, we're actually witnessing the deterioration of their brains - and these researchers were able to pinpoint the brain's deterioration to eating large amounts of junk food.

It shouldn't come as any surprise that junk foods deteriorate the brain because they actually deteriorate the entire body. In fact, processed foods, particularly junk foods, are at the root of a great deal of aging and disease. In addition, they overwork the liver and cause an accumulation of chemicals in the body - because junk and processed foods are often full of unnatural chemicals. Eating them also deprives our bodies of the whole foods from nature that we're meant to be eating. And these researchers found that this was enough to desensitize us to pleasure by deteriorating the brain.
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Women with Hormonal Disorder at Risk of Heart Disease


PhysOrg
Mon, 12 Apr 2010 07:00 UTC
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© Marinka van Holten
University of Adelaide researchers have found evidence of a link between a common hormonal disorder in women and heart disease - and they're seeking more women to take part in a new study to confirm their results.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal disorder affecting about 10% of women of reproductive age and is a leading cause of infertility.

A preliminary study - conducted by researchers with the University of Adelaide's Robinson Institute and the Cardiology Department of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital - has exposed other major health risks and some common misconceptions about PCOS.
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Turmeric is the Anti-Aging, Anti-Oxidant, Anti-Inflammatory Super Spice

Paul Fassa
NaturalNews
Mon, 12 Apr 2010 00:00 UTC
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© Getty ImagesTurmeric
Curcumin's anti-inflammatory properties have been known in Chinese and Ayurvedic Medicines for thousands of years. It is the active ingredient of turmeric, which is a component of the curry preparations used daily in Indian and other South Asian cuisines. Since those cuisines have infiltrated the west, modern science has also been investigating the health benefits of turmeric and curcumin.

Curcumin/Turmeric Health Benefits

Don't confuse curry powder with turmeric. Turmeric is the substance that gives curry its yellowish color, while curcumin is the active ingredient of turmeric that offers the health benefits known in earlier medical traditions and that is being discovered now in western nutritional medicine. Curcumin comprises five percent of turmeric.

Curcumin is both an anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant. Epidemiological studies of people who have a high dietary intake of turmeric show a lower incidence of cancer among them.
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Qi Stimulation Without Needles: Acupressure Brings Healing

Cathy Sherman
NaturalNews
Mon, 12 Apr 2010 00:00 UTC
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© Getty Images
Acupressure has become increasingly popular in the west in recent years, though it has been used for centuries as a natural treatment for various diseases. A traditional technique of Chinese medicine, it is similar to acupuncture but less known.

The underlying theory is that there is an invisible force or energy, called qi in Chinese, which has healing power. There are many points, called acupoints or meridians, which connect to the glands of the body. In therapy, pressure is applied at specific points to increase the flow of the qi, in and around the body through the point network. Pressuring acupoints ensures normal qi circulation.

Once a therapist diagnoses a particular ailment by acupressure, he or she provides some acupoints to the patient. Self-applied acupressure is a free treatment which is quick and effective in providing relief from many disorders, a unique advantage. Its effectiveness increases with regular treatment, including self-treatment.
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Greatly Relieve Your Daily Stress with Tulsi Tea

Heidi Fagley
NaturalNews
Sun, 11 Apr 2010 00:00 UTC
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© Getty ImagesTeatulia's Tulsi Tea.
Tulsi tea originated in India and the tropical regions of Asia over 5,000 years ago. This herbal wonder is respected and honored for its rich antioxidant and adaptogenic properties, both of which are beneficial to reducing stress and promoting mental clarity. Commonly referred to as Holy Basil, this sacred plant is a principle herb in India's holistic health practice of Ayurveda.

Tulsi is renowned for its health-promoting and disease-preventing properties, and is revered as being infused with healing powers. Known for its calming effect, this tropical plant promotes wellness by strengthening the body's immune system. It contains hundreds of favorable phytochemicals - plant compounds containing protective and health-boosting properties. The essential oils in Tulsi's green and purple foliage are an excellent source of these immune-strengthening phytochemicals.

The leaves of this aromatic plant are also rich in antioxidants. These vitally important nutrients help slow down the process of excess oxidation that can occur after prolonged periods of stress, and protect the body from disease by neutralizing free radicals which can harm your cells and tissues.
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Enjoy the Benefits of Hot and Cold Water Therapy

Kim Evans
NaturalNews
Sun, 11 Apr 2010 03:00 UTC
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© Martin Waugh/Liquid Sculpture
Hot and cold baths have been used for centuries and some of the benefits they bring include: increased energy, increased circulation, detoxification, and the clearing of negative energy. An easy way to replicate the spa experience of alternating hot and cold baths, and the primal experience of jumping from hot springs to cold rivers, is to simply alternate hot and cold water in your shower. Most of us are quite accustomed to warm showers and even the idea of introducing cold water can be intimidating. But once you've done it for yourself, you'll see it's really not that bad. Actually, you'll probably find it's quite invigorating.

It's best to start with hot and after a few minutes to use a blast of cold for a minute. Then use hot water again, repeat several times, and end your shower when you're ready. The hot should be hot and the cold should be cold - in fact, as long as you're not scalding yourself: the hotter the better and the colder the better. This can be done daily, but if you're clearing a negative energy dump or if you need more powerful detoxification, it can be done several times a day.

The extremes of hot and cold water cause your muscles to expand and contract which offers gentle detoxification as toxins are squeezed from your muscles. It also improves circulation and the benefits of improved circulation shouldn't be underestimated. When your body has poor circulation, it's impeded in delivering fresh blood to all areas of the body. As a result, the body can't cleanse the blocked and stagnant areas regularly - and toxins, filth and disease accumulate in these oxygen and fresh blood deprived areas.
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Poverty Now Rampant: Half of U.S. Kids on Food Stamps

David Gutierrez
NaturalNews
Sun, 11 Apr 2010 03:00 UTC
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© New York Times MagazineChildren In Poverty
Almost half of all children living in the United States will receive food stamp assistance at some point before they turn 18, according to a study conducted by researchers from Cornell and Washington Universities and published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

Although food stamps were first introduced as a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program, they are now overseen by state governments. Researchers analyzed 30 years worth of data from food stamp programs around the country, finding that nearly 50 percent of all children will receive food stamp assistance at least once during their childhood, if not multiple times.

According to researcher Andrew Gelman, the findings rebut the common perception "that people are either on welfare or they're not." In reality, many families use food stamps and other forms of economic assistance to get through short-term difficulties such as job loss, professional transition, or other financial troubles.
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Some U.S. Hospital Patients Exposed to 700 Percent Excess Radiation from CT Scans

David Gutierrez
NaturalNews
Mon, 12 Apr 2010 00:00 UTC
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© Jack Hollingsworth/Corbis
The FDA has launched an investigation into how patients at several different hospitals were exposed to as much as eight times more radiation than they were supposed to receive while undergoing computed tomography (CT) scans of their brains.

The scans, known as CT perfusion, already expose patients to more radiation than regular CT scans. Patients are injected with an iodine solution, then their heads are exposed to a rapid series of X-rays to create a picture of how blood flows through their brains. The scans are most often used to diagnose strokes, but can also be given in the chest as a way of examining blood flow through the heart.

An estimated 150,000 of the brain scans are performed in the United States every year.
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American Humane Certified is Rising the Bar in Animal Agriculture

Ethan A. Huff
NaturalNews
Sun, 11 Apr 2010 03:00 UTC
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© NaturalNews
Proper animal husbandry is a vital component to any farming operation, whether large or small. With the advent of agricultural industrialization came the tendency to raise ever more animals in increasingly inhumane conditions, all in order to remain competitive and continue to turn a profit. Thanks to the American Humane Association (AHA) and its Humane Certification program, producers are raising the bar in humane animal husbandry standards and setting themselves above the rest.

The oldest humane association in America, AHA has been working for over 100 years to improve the welfare of both children and animals. In more recent years, the organization has developed a certification program that helps consumers choose food products that come from humanely-raised animals.

Whether one eats animal products or not, it is important that animals raised for food are treated decently throughout their life cycle, or "from birth to the knock box" as it is put in the industry. Animals that produce food products like milk or eggs must also be given proper living conditions, and AHA has established guidelines for its certification program that it believes ensures animal welfare while allowing farmers to operate both practically and profitably.
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Procter and Gamble to Reduce 1,4-dioxane Levels in Herbal Essences Shampoos

Ethan A. Huff
NaturalNews
Mon, 12 Apr 2010 00:00 UTC
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© Procter and Gamble
A recent press conference hosted by the Green Patriot Working Group (GPWG) included an announcement that Procter and Gamble (P&G) will be reducing the levels of toxic 1,4-dioxane in its Herbal Essences line of hair care products. P&G has stated that it will reformulate eighteen different Herbal Essences products to meet the guidelines established by California's Proposition 65, which require that consumer products contain no more than 10 parts per million (ppm) of 1,4-dioxane.

David Steinman, environmental health consumer advocate and head of GPWG, issued a notice of intent to file a lawsuit against P&G for violating Prop. 65 and exposing consumers to unacceptably dangerous levels of 1,4-dioxane. Together with the Organic Consumers Association (OCA), an 850,000-member watchdog group, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and Clean Water Action California, GPWG proudly announced that the nation's fourth largest company would be reformulating 17 Herbal Essences products by July 1, 2010.

1,4-dioxane is a petrochemical carcinogen that results from using ethoxylation, a chemical process that renders harsh cleaning ingredients more gentle. 1,4-dioxane is created inadvertently due to the chemical processing and is therefore not listed on ingredient labels. Nevertheless, the chemical is highly toxic and consumers are exposed to it through a myriad of different sources.
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