A report published in the International Journal of Microbiology has verified once again that Monsanto's genetically modified (GM) crops are causing severe health problems. A legal challenge issued against Monsanto forced the multi-national agriculture giant to release raw data revealing that animals fed its patented GM corn suffered liver and kidney damage within just three months.
Adding to the mounting evidence that GM crops are dangerous all around, this information provides a damning indictment against Monsanto which continually insists that its GM products are safe. Not only are GM crops proving disastrous for the environment, but study after study, including those conducted by Monsanto itself, is showing that GM foods are detrimental to health.
Monsanto's data indicated that the company had conducted tests on three varieties of its GM corn, two of which contain the dangerous Bt protein, and one designed specifically to resist Monsanto's Roundup herbicide. All three are widely grown in the United States while only one is currently grown in Europe.
Health & Wellness
Fluoride chemicals added to public water supplies, boosts lead absorption in lab animals' bones, teeth and blood, report Sawan, et al. (Toxicology 2/2010). Earlier studies already show children's blood-lead-levels are higher in fluoridated communities, reports Sawan's research team.
"...exposure to increased amounts of lead and fluoride occurs at about the same age (1-3 years)... Therefore, this is a critical time when systemic exposure to fluoride should be minimized since fluoride may increase lead accumulation," the researchers caution.
Low-level lead exposure is associated with lower IQ, ADHD and many health and behavior ailments.
Fluosilicic acid (fluoride) is added to water supplies ostensibly to reduce tooth decay.
Sawan's team put fluosilicic acid, with and without lead, into lab animals' drinking water. They found more lead in tooth enamel, surface bone, whole bone, and tooth dentine in rats co-exposed to fluoride and lead.
"...exposure to increased amounts of lead and fluoride occurs at about the same age (1-3 years)... Therefore, this is a critical time when systemic exposure to fluoride should be minimized since fluoride may increase lead accumulation," the researchers caution.
Low-level lead exposure is associated with lower IQ, ADHD and many health and behavior ailments.
Fluosilicic acid (fluoride) is added to water supplies ostensibly to reduce tooth decay.
Sawan's team put fluosilicic acid, with and without lead, into lab animals' drinking water. They found more lead in tooth enamel, surface bone, whole bone, and tooth dentine in rats co-exposed to fluoride and lead.
© Stelios Lazakis
Outside a cathedral in Moldova, wedding guests walk by a panhandler. According to Richard Wilkinson's research, inequality within a society erodes mental, physical, and community health.
Outside a cathedral in Moldova, wedding guests walk by a panhandler. According to Richard Wilkinson's research, inequality within a society erodes mental, physical, and community health.
We live in a world of deep inequality, and the gap between the rich and the poor is widening. We in the rich world generally agree that this is a problem we ought to help fix - but that the real beneficiaries will be the billions of people living in poverty. After all, inequality has little impact on the lives of those who find themselves on top of the pile. Right?
Not exactly, says British epidemiologist Richard Wilkinson.
For decades, Wilkinson has studied why some societies are healthier than others. He found that what the healthiest societies have in common is not that they have more - more income, more education, or more wealth - but that what they have is more equitably shared.
In fact, it turns out that not only disease, but a whole host of social problems ranging from mental illness to drug use are worse in unequal societies. In his latest book, The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better, co-written with Kate Pickett, Wilkinson details the pernicious effects that inequality has on societies: eroding trust, increasing anxiety and illness, encouraging excessive consumption.
© Dreamstime
Babies move in time to music even before they learn to speak, new research shows.
Babies move in time to music even before they learn to speak, new research shows.
The research showed babies respond to the rhythm and tempo of music, and find it more engaging than speech.
The findings, based on a study of 120 infants between 5 months and 2 years old, suggest that humans may be born with a predisposition to move rhythmically in response to music.
"Our research suggests that it is the beat rather than other features of the music, such as the melody, that produces the response in infants," said researcher Marcel Zentner, a psychologist at the University of York in England. "We also found that the better the children were able to synchronize their movements with the music, the more they smiled."
Scientists showed, for the first time using neuro-imaging, that supplementation with DHA alters the functional activity in cortical attention networks in humans.
The study follows hot on the heels of backing from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) for DHA-related brain and eye health claims for infants. EFSA's Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA) said DHA levels of 100 mg of per day were appropriate for 7-24 month-old infants, along with 200 mg per day for pregnant and lactating women.
Additionally, supplements of omega-3 fats, vitamins and minerals for prisoners may reduce the number of violent and aggressive episodes, according to another recent study.
Nutritional supplements containing vitamins, minerals, omega-3 and omega-6 fats were associated with a 34 percent reduction in violent incidents, according to findings of a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled trial with over 200 young adult offenders.
Meanwhile, there was a 14 percent increase in the number of reported violent incidents in participants in a placebo group.
Sources:
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition February 3, 2010 [Epub ahead of print]
Aggressive Behavior March 2010; 36(2):117-26
Awareness of the toll has prompted more research into how to lessen it.
Gary McMane, 50, of Fontana, is convinced that his own depression has taken a toll on the three children he adores. "They're all good kids, and good in school, but I know it's had a terrible effect on them."
His 22-year-old daughter hangs on to her high school boyfriend as a security blanket, he says, and his 17-year-old son seems seriously depressed. Further, he adds, the 13-year-old boy is overly sensitive, feeling compelled to "rescue" anyone who is hurt. Granted, such perceptions are filtered through McMane's own feelings of guilt and responsibility - and his kids might not agree - but he's right to worry.
Although their father's depression may not be the cause of all these qualities, evidence is mounting that growing up with a depressed parent increases a child's risk for mental health problems, cognitive difficulties and troubled social relationships. The research on how a depressed parent affects kids has slowly accumulated for about 20 years, "but it's really taken off in the last few years," says Vanderbilt University psychologist Bruce Compas.
Gary McMane, 50, of Fontana, is convinced that his own depression has taken a toll on the three children he adores. "They're all good kids, and good in school, but I know it's had a terrible effect on them."
His 22-year-old daughter hangs on to her high school boyfriend as a security blanket, he says, and his 17-year-old son seems seriously depressed. Further, he adds, the 13-year-old boy is overly sensitive, feeling compelled to "rescue" anyone who is hurt. Granted, such perceptions are filtered through McMane's own feelings of guilt and responsibility - and his kids might not agree - but he's right to worry.
Although their father's depression may not be the cause of all these qualities, evidence is mounting that growing up with a depressed parent increases a child's risk for mental health problems, cognitive difficulties and troubled social relationships. The research on how a depressed parent affects kids has slowly accumulated for about 20 years, "but it's really taken off in the last few years," says Vanderbilt University psychologist Bruce Compas.
New HIV infections are increasing among homosexuals, drug users and prostitutes who don't seek help because of laws that criminalize these practices, the head of the U.N. AIDS agency said Monday.
Michel Sidibe, the head of UNAIDS, said "it is unacceptable" that 85 countries still have laws criminalizing same sex relations among adults, including seven that impose the death penalty for homosexual practices.
He called a proposed Ugandan law that would impose the death penalty for some gays "very unfortunate" and expressed hope it will never be approved.
At a time when UNAIDS is scaling up its program and seeking universal access to HIV treatment, Sidibe said he was "very scared" because bad laws are being introduced by countries making it impossible for these at risk groups to have access to services.
Michel Sidibe, the head of UNAIDS, said "it is unacceptable" that 85 countries still have laws criminalizing same sex relations among adults, including seven that impose the death penalty for homosexual practices.
He called a proposed Ugandan law that would impose the death penalty for some gays "very unfortunate" and expressed hope it will never be approved.
At a time when UNAIDS is scaling up its program and seeking universal access to HIV treatment, Sidibe said he was "very scared" because bad laws are being introduced by countries making it impossible for these at risk groups to have access to services.
© Todd Warnock/Getty Images
Trans fats are found in many cakes, biscuits, pies and chips.
Trans fats are found in many cakes, biscuits, pies and chips.
Trans-fats are derived from vegetable oils that have been chemically modified. They bear no nutritional value but are used by food manufacturers to bulk up foods and extend their shelf life. Typically labeled as hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated, these artificial fats are commonly found in processed baked goods and desserts, pastries, and fast foods as well as in margarine and shortening.
Worried?
You should be ...
We are exposed to 6 million pounds of mercury and the 2.5 billion pounds other toxic chemicals each year.
Eighty thousand toxic chemicals have been released into our environment since the dawn of the industrial revolution, and very few have been tested for their long-term impact on human health. And let me tell you, the results aren't pretty for those that have been tested ...
How can we not be affected by this massive amount of poison?
According to the nonprofit organization Environmental Working Group, the average newborn baby has 287 known toxins in his or her umbilical cord blood.
If a newborn is exposed to that many toxins, imagine how many you have been exposed to in your life...
Team 5 Investigates After Amesbury Pulls Sodium Fluoride From Water Supply
Amesbury, Massachusetts. -- Fluoride is added to the water most of us drink because the government believes it's a safe and inexpensive way to prevent tooth decay.
However, Team 5 Investigates found the Amesbury Water Department pulled fluoride from its system amid concerns about its supply from China.
Department of Public Works Director Rob Desmarais said after he mixes the white powder with water, 40 percent of it will not dissolve.
Amesbury, Massachusetts. -- Fluoride is added to the water most of us drink because the government believes it's a safe and inexpensive way to prevent tooth decay.
However, Team 5 Investigates found the Amesbury Water Department pulled fluoride from its system amid concerns about its supply from China.
Department of Public Works Director Rob Desmarais said after he mixes the white powder with water, 40 percent of it will not dissolve.
