Health & WellnessS


Pills

Anti-anxiety drugs are ineffective and greatly increase risk of dementia and death


EurekAlert
Mon, 05 Oct 2015 00:00 UTC
benzodiazepines, dementia
Patients taking benzodiazepines to treat psychiatric conditions should consider transitioning to other therapies because of heightened risks for dementia and death, according to clinicians from the American College of Osteopathic Neurologists and Psychiatrists.

Benzodiazepines include branded prescription drugs like Valium, Ativan, Klonopin and Xanax. This class of drug received FDA approval in the 1960s and was believed to be a safer alternative to barbiturates.

Despite new psychiatric protocols, some physicians continue to prescribe benzodiazepines as a primary treatment for insomnia, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and other ailments. A growing body of research indicates this practice could greatly increase patients' risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, according to Helene Alphonso, DO, Director of Osteopathic Medical Education at North Texas University Health Science Center.

"Current research is extremely clear and physicians need to partner with their patients to move them into therapies, like anti-depressants, that are proven to be safer and more effective," said Dr. Alphonso, a board-certified psychiatrist practicing in Fort Worth. "Due to a shortage of mental health professionals in rural and underserved areas, we see primary care physicians using this class of drugs to give relief to their patients with psychiatric symptoms. While compassionate, it's important to understand that a better long-term strategy is needed."


Comment: Actually anti-depressants are not a better alternative; they have also been found to be ineffective, and fraught with numerous serious side effects:

Comment: For more effective and safer methods to help alleviate anxiety and stress, see:

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Info

Facts about so-called 'super-food' coconut water that may surprise you

Nick Meyer
Natural Blaze
Fri, 09 Oct 2015 00:00 UTC
Coconut Water
© GreenMedInfo
When I first started getting into the world of organic "superfoods," I was a broke 23-year-old kid fresh out of college who had no idea where to start.

It all began after reading the classic book The Hundred Year Lie about chemicals in our food supply and continued when I tasted organic carrots for the first time. That's when I knew I had been missing out (they actually tasted like carrots are supposed to taste).

Eventually I made eating healthy and organic as the foundation of my new lifestyle. I started slow, adopting a budget of about $20 every 10 days that I would use only on organic food.

I started with the essentials: organic mixed greens, spinach, carrots, kale and other produce, and resolved to eat all of these foods even if it was straight out of the box or bag (I had no cooking skills at the time).

Small changes like these made a huge difference, and I started getting curious about all the new "superfoods" being talked up on natural health websites, like coconut water.

The health food store became my favorite new destination, and the large paper boxes of coconut water caught my eye almost immediately. But just as soon as I began to notice them, they were gone, and the manager told me more times than I could count times that she didn't know when they would be in stock again.

Coconut Water Mania had officially begun.

Comment: While coconut water may not live up to its over-hyped reputation, coconut oil has numerous documented health benefits:

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Snakes in Suits

The insatiable greed of Big Pharma: Valeant Pharmaceuticals CEO - 'We're in business of shareholder profit'

KJ McElrath
Ring of Fire
Fri, 09 Oct 2015 17:00 UTC
Image
Martin Shkreli might be the present poster boy for Big Pharma's psychopathic greed; however, he is only the most public face of a problem that is drawing increasing scrutiny from lawmakers whose constituents are sick and tired of an industry that is literally murdering people in the name of profits. Recently, the Progressive media turned its spotlight on yet another blood-sucking corporate vampire: J. Michael Pearson, the smirking, self-satisfied CEO of Valeant Pharmaceuticals.

Pearson's company is not in the business of curing disease and easing suffering. It exists to make big money for its shareholders, something that Pearson readily acknowledges:
"[If] products are sort of mispriced and there's an opportunity, we will act appropriately in terms of doing what I assume our shareholders would like us to do."
In "acting appropriately," Valeant has raised the prices on several drugs this year - in some cases, as much as 800%.
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Family

Brace yourself for the frightening symptoms of starvation

Joshua Krause
Ready Nutrition
Sun, 04 Oct 2015 16:28 UTC
empty plate
Everybody knows what happens when you don't eat for a long enough period of time. We're also familiar with many of the symptoms that occur along the way, such as mental fatigue, hunger pangs, fat and muscle loss, etc. However, many of us have never experienced true hunger, and we're not familiar with many of the strange and horrific symptoms that are caused by long-term malnutrition. But if you're a prepper, you better familiarize yourself with these symptoms right quick.

That's because the symptoms of starvation are often a gap in the knowledge and experience of the average prepper. We prep specifically so that we'll never experience hunger, and unfortunately, that means that many of us don't prepare ourselves for being hungry. We need to remember that no matter how much food we stock up on, or how much food we can grow, or how superb our hunting and foraging skills are, we may still go hungry someday. Horrible things happen to the best of us, and we need to prepare for the worst rather than just preparing to avoid the worst.
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Beaker

Study finds school meals have a not-so-nutritious ingredient - BPA

Timothy B. Wheeler
Baltimore Sun
Sun, 04 Oct 2015 16:01 UTC
Image
© motherjones.com
Students may be getting a less-than-nutritious extra ingredient in the lunches and breakfasts they eat in their school cafeterias, a new study suggests. Whether it's enough to worry about, though, is a matter of dispute.

Researchers at Stanford University and the Johns Hopkins University's Bloomberg School of Public Health say school-prepared meals may contain unsafe levels of bisphenol A, or BPA. Often found in canned foods and plastic packaging, the widely used chemical can mimic human hormones. Research has shown it can harm the developing brains and bodies of fetuses, infants and children.

"There are known sources of BPA being used in school food," said Jennifer C. Hartle, a postdoctoral research fellow at Stanford and lead author of the study, which was recently published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.

Comment: For more information about BPA and the numerous health issues associated with this pervasive toxic chemical read the following articles:

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Magnify

Professor awarded federal grant money to study the HPV vaccine condemns it and calls for a moratorium

Tom Blackwell
National Post
Thu, 08 Oct 2015 15:10 UTC
Image
© Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesThe two types of HPV vaccine now on the market have been shown effective at preventing strains of the virus that cause 70% of cervical cancer, as well as some other cancers.
A Montreal social scientist and the federal agency that awarded her almost $300,000 to study the HPV vaccine are facing criticism after the professor condemned the vaccine and called for a moratorium on its use.

Concordia University's Genevieve Rail also said there is no proof that the human papillomavirus directly causes cervical cancer, though a German scientist was awarded the Nobel Prize five years ago for discovering the link.

Experts say Rail's public attacks are seriously misinformed and risk undermining an important public-health program — and they question why the Canadian Institute for Health Research (CIHR) would fund her work.

Comment: Concordia University's Genevieve Rail is not the first scientist to explain why HPV vaccines are unsafe:

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Nuke

Is radiation good for you? The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission says 'yes'

Karl Grossman
The Ecologist
Thu, 10 Sep 2015 23:25 UTC
Image
© healthphysics.georgetown.edu
The well-founded idea that nuclear radiation is dangerous even at the lowest levels is under attack, writes Karl Grossman. Three determined nuclear enthusiasts have filed petitions to the NRC calling on it to apply the doctrine of 'radiation hormesis' - that low levels of radiation actually stimulate the immune system and promote better health. Disagree? You'd better act fast.

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering a move to eliminate the 'Linear No-Threshold' (LNT) basis of radiation protection that the US has used for decades and replace it with the 'radiation hormesis' theory - which holds that low doses of radioactivity are good for people.

The change is being pushed by "a group of pro-nuclear fanatics - there is really no other way to describe them", charges the Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) based near Washington DC.

Comment: There is no 'safe' exposure to radiation

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Health

Are environmental chemicals making you fat?

Joshua Krause
Ready Nutrition
Thu, 08 Oct 2015 14:01 UTC
scale
Those who subscribe to mainstream health advice often have a good laugh at those of us who believe in alternative health treatments; especially when it comes to our concerns about toxins in the environment. To them, words like 'toxins' and 'detoxing' are just marketing terms that snake oil salesman use to sell their products to health nuts.

But we know better. We understand that there are very nasty chemicals lingering in our environment, and we know that even in small amounts they can have an accumulative effect over the course of our lifetimes. We also know that the human body can soak up these chemicals like a sponge, and they aren't always just 'expelled' by the body as is commonly believed. These substances build up, and often linger in the human body for years.

Fortunately, science has been catching up to what we've known all along. In fact, the scientific community is beginning to realize that these chemicals are not only making us sick, but more specifically they are making us obese and diabetic.
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Rose

Prunella Vulgaris: The heal-all herb

Mae Chan
Prevent Disease
Fri, 09 Oct 2015 21:12 UTC
Prunella Vulgaris
Prunella Vulgaris has a long history of medicinal use. It shows antiviral and antibacterial properties, and in China it is used as an anti-cancer drug. It can also be used for the prevention and treatment of cognitive impairments associated with Alzheimer's disease or schizophrenia.

Prunella vulgaris var. lilacina Nakai (Labiatae) is commonly known as the 'self-heal' herb or heal-all. It is widely distributed in Europe, Asia and North America.

Daily consumption of extracts from Prunella vulgaris var. lilacina may enhance cognitive function in lab mice, says a new study from South Korea. It is often found growing in waste ground, grassland, woodland edges, usually on basic and neutral soils.
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Book 2

Killer Care: How medical error became America's third largest cause of death

James B. Lieber
Truthdig
Fri, 09 Oct 2015 18:56 UTC
Image
© Shutterstock
The following is an excerpt from Killer Care: How Medical Error Became America's Third Largest Cause of Death, and What Can Be Done About It by James B. Lieber (OR Books, 2015).

In the fourth quarter of the twentieth century, a series of medical errors captured public attention and drove change in unprecedented ways. It was a time—perhaps the last time—of powerful investigative media, especially daily newspapers that combed courthouses for stories of medical malpractice and did not simply report initial filings or final verdicts. Moreover, the victims, their families, and advocates exhibited a newfound tenacity in terms that went beyond their own struggles and spread into a quest for broader deterrence and reform. Inside health care, these epic battles are known as the "mediagenic cases."

Comment: WHO: Millions Of People Die Each Year Due To Medical Errors

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