Health & WellnessS


Brain

For real life, brain games don't work

Clara Mindock
International Business Times
Tue, 11 Oct 2016 09:17 UTC
Brain game
© mindgames.com
Brain games promise some big benefits to your cognitive functions. Have trouble concentrating? Spend some time online sharpening that up. Can't remember what you ate this morning for breakfast? Again, internet games have your back.

But new research shows those promises may only be true in as much as they help you concentrate on the game itself. In real life? Not so much.

The new conclusion on brain games — which include things like quizzes and mental challenges — comes after a wide-ranging review of 400 studies on brain training published this week in the journal Psychological Science in the Public Interest. The researchers found none of the studies analyzing the games followed best scientific practices and weren't calibrated to make sure the control groups weren't somehow tainted.

"What we found is that there's really no compelling evidence that these sorts of interventions lead to objectively measured real-world improvements," Daniel Simons, the first author of the review and a professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, told the Wall Street Journal.

Comment: Study: Brain Games Don't Make You Smarter

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Info

Being poor can change your genes and increase chances of depression, mental illness and drug abuse

Ian Johnston
The Independent
Tue, 24 May 2016 00:00 UTC
poverty
'These small daily hassles of scraping by are evident in changes that build up and affect children's development'

Living in poverty can cause changes to people's DNA that make them more likely to become depressed, anxious and possibly take drugs, according to a ground-breaking new study.

Researchers in the United States found that teenagers from deprived backgrounds tended to undergo changes to a gene that increases the activity of a part of the brain involved in the 'fight or flight' response and panic attacks. This increased activity in the amygdala has been linked to a greater risk of depression.


Comment: See: The epigenetics of stress


They also found that a low socio-economic status was associated with low levels of serotonin, sometimes referred to as the happiness hormone.

In recent years, studies have shown that not only can genes be changed by the environment and even social interactions, but these 'epigenetic' changes can then be passed on to the next generation.
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Cardboard Box

GMO's & the mentality of propaganda control

Richard Gale & Dr. Gary Null
Global Research
Tue, 11 Oct 2016 23:16 UTC
propaganda
The evidence for genetically modified organism (GMOs) safety for human consumption and its environmental risks remains one of the nation's most contentious, controversial and debated subjects. Throughout the world, governments, national health ministries and their populations have been led to believe that there is no reason to critically object to GMOs. American mainstream media, which have now been fully absorbed into the agendas of large multinational corporate chemical and food sponsors, claim GMOs are completely harmless. We are sold a promise that they are urgently needed for feeding the world. Consequently, in the absence of critical journalism, aside from independent media, the spread of GMOs has become widespread.

Monsanto, Dupont, Syngenta, and Bayer dominate the global GMO market.

Corn is the US' number one crop with eighty-nine percent being genetically modified. Ninety-three percent of American soybeans are GMO. GM sugar beets, certain squashes, canola, alfalfa, papaya (77% of Hawaii's crop), and new apple strains are genetically engineered.

Many more GM vegetables and fruits are in the pipeline.

Only during the past 15 years have voices within the environmental and public health movements, and free-thinking scientists and researchers in molecular biology, genetics and agriculture turned vocal to publicly challenge GMO safety and their exaggerated promises. One especially unfounded promise, often promulgated by Monsanto and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the GMO revolution's ability to feed the world. Yet as a senior economic analyst at the Environmental Working Group in Washington DC has reported, "this is simply a myth adopted and deployed by US agribusiness to distract the public from reality."[1]
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Lemon

Once again the FDA wants to define 'healthy'


Alliance for Natural Health
Tue, 11 Oct 2016 20:41 UTC
healthy food
As usual, the agency is using outdated science and is heavily influenced by industry.

Following the recent update to the Nutrition Facts label and the approval of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the FDA is proposing to update the definition of "healthy" and in federal regulations. The idea is to harmonize the regulatory definition of "healthy" (as well as related terms) with the "latest nutrition science," presumably contained in the newly approved guidelines.

Surprisingly, the FDA believes what is contained in the Dietary Guidelines is the most up-to-date science—but, as usual, they are woefully incorrect. When the guidelines came out, we outlined in detail the problems with the panel's recommendations.

Comment: The reality is that the FDA really doesn't care about your health! The lack of scientific expertise, rampant conflicts of interest, ongoing attempts to ban supplements, Big Pharma collusion and nominating the ultimate industry insider, Robert Califf to run the organization speaks volumes about the FDA's ability to give any meaningful health advice!
The stated mission of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is to protect and promote public health through the regulation of everything from food products to pharmaceutical drugs. Based on the agency's actions (or perhaps their severe lack of real action) however, it is quite apparent that this government organization has a blatant disregard for your health and is most certainly not in the business of 'promoting' health.


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Magnify

Flu vaccine toxicity: 25,000 times more mercury than legally allowed in drinking water


complete-health-and-happiness.com
Tue, 27 Sep 2016 19:33 UTC
flu vaccine
In case you missed it, recent lab tests conducted at the Natural News Forensic Food Lab found that seasonal flu vaccines, which are pushed on virtually everyone these days, including young babies, pregnant women and the elderly, contain outrageously high levels of neurotoxic mercury. Vials of batch flu vaccine produced by British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) were found to contain upwards of 51 parts per million of mercury, or 25,000 times the legal maximum for drinking water established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

This shocking discovery was made using advanced mass spectrometry technology with incredible accuracy, filling the gap left by the nation's regulatory agencies that have failed to conduct this type of safety testing themselves. Millions of people are injected with flu vaccines annually, and most of them are completely unaware that one of the most toxic metals known to man is being implanted directly into their muscle tissue unabated.

"Mercury is one of the most poisonous substances known to mankind," explained Dr. David Brownstein, a board-certified family physician and holistic medicine specialist, on his blog. "For over twenty years, I have been testing nearly every patient seen in my office for heavy metal contamination. ... I have found that over 80% of my patients, both healthy and sick, have mercury toxicity."

Comment: Flu Vaccine: No Good Evidence

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Sun

Children whose mothers had adequate levels of vitamin D during pregnancy have fewer ADHD symptoms


Science Daily
Fri, 07 Oct 2016 00:00 UTC
vitamine, gesundheit,nahrungsergänzung
Children of mothers who took vitamin D during pregnancy with resultant high levels of the vitamin in the umbilical blood have fewer symptoms of ADHD at the age of 2½ years.

These were the findings in a new study from the Odense Child Cohort just published in The Australia & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry.

"And for every 10 nmol/L increase in the vitamin D concentration in umbilical blood, the risk of a being among the 10% highest score on the ADHD symptom scale fell by 11%," explains one of the study's initiators, Professor Niels Bilenberg.

1,233 children from Odense Municipality were monitored in the study. Vitamin D was measured in umbilical blood, and mothers completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) when their child was 2½ years old. The CBCL questionnaire can be used to identify early symptoms of ADHD, even though an ADHD diagnosis cannot be made at that age.

"And the trend was clear: those mothers who had taken vitamin D, and had a vitamin D level (25OHD) in their umbilical blood over 25 nmol/L, had children with lower ADHD scores," continues Bilenberg. "This was after we had corrected for other factors that could explain the link, such as the mother's age, smoking, alcohol, obesity, education, number of children, psychiatric disease in the parents, child's sex, age and seasonal variation."

The link between vitamin D and early ADHD symptoms has not been described before, and has therefore attracted attention.

Comment: The importance of having adequate levels of Vitamin D cannot be overstated; it is vitally important for proper immune function, reducing the risk for diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes and even cancer. It has also been shown to ameliorate certain brain disorders, such as Alzheimer's.

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Health

Mystery illness sends 11 college students to Utah hospital

Dan Rascon
KUTV
Mon, 10 Oct 2016 16:24 UTC
Mountainland Applied Technology College
© KUTVMountainland Applied Technology College in Spanish Forks, UT
A mystery illness at a technology college in Spanish Fork shut down classes and sent 11 students to the hospital Monday.

The illnesses started to pop up Monday morning at the Mountainland Applied Technology College as students in the dental and cosmetology programs were getting underway.

According to a college spokesman the symptoms appeared to be carbon monoxide related but firefighters and the gas company could not find any signs of the gas or any kind of chemical leak.

"They weren't working with chemicals to make them sick so that's why it's more of a mystery of nothing was really happening to create that issue of passing out," said Mark Middlebrook college spokesman.

"I had a headache and I was feeling a little dizzy, felt like I couldn't really breath," said Harlie Meyer one of 11 students taken to the hospital and then released. "Then I started feeling like I was going to pass out." One student did end up passing out according to Middlebrook.
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Bulb

High schoolers create new light therapy device to treat seasonal affective disorder

Jake Van Der Borne
Jake's Health Solutions
Mon, 10 Oct 2016 16:05 UTC
winter blues
An inventive team of high school students has created a new light therapy device that may provide relief for the millions of people who suffer from a seasonal form of depression.

As the days shorten and fall gives in to winter, bouts of the "winter blues" aren't uncommon. But a more serious form of winter depression known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) can make the colder, darker months a long period of misery for many.

What is SAD?

When the seasons change and the length of daylight hours varies, there is a shift in our circadian rhythms. This can cause our "biological clocks" to be out of sync with our daily schedules, and can have dramatic effects on our overall wellness. The most difficult months for SAD sufferers in the Northern Hemisphere are January and February, and younger people and women tend to be at higher risk.

Comment: Light therapy is more effective than Prozac in treating depression

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Attention

Coca-Cola & Pepsi sponsored about 100 health orgs in 5yrs, primary interest of improving profit, at the expense of public health


RT
Mon, 10 Oct 2016 08:54 UTC
Coke and Pepsi
© Reuters
Coca-Cola and Pepsi aren't known for their nutritional values, but the two soda giants have managed to promote a positive image for their brands by sponsoring health organizations, making them "unwitting partners" to the cola agenda, a new study claims.

The study, conducted by researchers at Boston University (BU) and published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, found that the Coca-Cola Company and PepsiCo sponsored a combined total of at least 96 health organizations between 2011 and 2015.

That breakdown includes 12 organizations that accepted money from both companies, one which accepted cash from just PepsiCo, and 83 which only accepted funds from Coca-Cola.

Comment: Earlier this year, for instance, Barbara Bowman, Ph.D., former director of the CDC's Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (DHDSP),left the agency unexpectedly, two days after her close ties with Coca-Cola were revealed.

Bowman reportedly aided a Coca-Cola representative in efforts to influence World Health Organization (WHO) officials to relax recommendations on sugar limits. Bowman, however, was not the only CDC official looking out for Coca-Cola.

See also: The FDA is BigPharma's lapdog, not a watchdog for the public

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Syringe

Vaccines - more scary than ever

Catherine J. Frompovich
Activist Post
Sun, 09 Oct 2016 16:52 UTC
vaccines
According to a report by Tim Bolen, Hillary Clinton PERSONALLY Arranged For Chinese Vaccine Manufacturers to Avoid US Government Scrutiny..., there are going to be a lot more problems, it seems:
Chinese Made Vaccines are "Pre-Approved" by the World Health Organization (WHO). They Completely Bypass Any US Agency Inspections...
Why don't I have much faith in Chinese-made vaccines, or any vaccines? Well, the Chinese have a documented history of toxins and contamination in their products - anything from dry wall to children's toys and jewelry to farmed fish, including most products in between—and the foods they manufacture and sell globally.

In my 2009 book, Our Chemical Lives And The Hijacking of Our DNA, A Probe Into What's Probably Making Us Sick, I devote an entire chapter to exposing the problems with Chinese-made goods. I titled that chapter The China Trade Debacle: Toxic and 'Made in China.' I only can imagine what will happen with vaccines!
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