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Zika virus: Information about the latest global health scare


RT
Sat, 23 Jan 2016 04:51 UTC
zika virus
© Ma Qiang / Southern Metropolis Daily / Reuters
It is not known if the infected are currently in the UK
You may not have heard of it until very recently, but new cases of the Zika virus continue to pop up around the world. Spreading mostly in Latin America and the Caribbean, the virus has now been confirmed in three travelers from the UK.

A statement from Public Health England said those infected had recently traveled through South America, but it is not clear if the people involved have since returned to the UK.

The Britons travelled to Colombia, Suriname and Guyana, where they are suspected of contracting the mosquito-borne disease. Public Health England has not confirmed if any of the three are pregnant.

Why is Zika dangerous?

There is no vaccine for the virus, which can cause fever, rashes, joint pains, and conjunctivitis within days of being contracted. For most of those infected, the virus causes a short illness lasting between two and seven days. However, in some rare cases, it can result in serious illness and death.

Infants are most at risk from Zika, as mothers can pass the infection on to their fetus, leading to microcephaly - a rare birth defect where babies are born with abnormally small heads and developmental delays.


Treatment for the Zika virus focuses on pain relief and fever reduction, with some patients also given antihistamines for itchy skin rashes.

Preventative measures focus on general mosquito bite prevention, such as using insecticides, and special nets and screens.

Comment: See these related articles for further information on the Zika virus:

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Bulb

Healthy ways to increase your brain's dopamine levels

Stephan Gardner
Collective Evolution
Wed, 20 Jan 2016 00:00 UTC
brain, neurotransmitter
"Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that helps control the brain's reward and pleasure centers. Dopamine also helps regulate movement and emotional response, and it enables us not only to see rewards, but to take action to move toward them." - Psychology Today

There are a lot of articles on the internet about dopamine and how it affects your mood, behavior, energy, and focus. What's not commonly spoken about, however, is how dopamine is affected by your perception. Discussed more rarely still is the reason why your dopamine levels may be low. Below are 10 ways to increase your dopamine levels, courtesy of Power of Positivity, as well as my own observations regarding the underlying issues which may have led to each situation, and how to tackle them.
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Satellite

Activist uses spy drone to expose the truth about factory farming

Phillip Schneider
Waking Times
Fri, 22 Jan 2016 21:04 UTC
factory farming
Factory farming is quite possibly the most horrific and destructive practice we humans engage in today. It sacrifices billions of lives each year and serves to pollute, not protect, the environment of our planet. According to the animal rights group, Last Chance for Animals, "97% of the 10 billion animals tortured and killed each year are [factory] farm animals." So why is it that when most people look at their plates they don't see the real story behind what they're eating?

Pollution and Environmental Damage

Let's take a look at a video published by Factory Farm Drones about a man who infiltrated factory farm territory with a surveillance drone. In the video, you see a glimpse of how devastating factory farming can be on the environment as well as on neighboring communities who happen to be down-wind of one of these facilities.
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Attention

Correlation or causation? The link between diet soda consumption and coronary problems

Arjun Walia
Collective Evolution
Tue, 09 Jun 2015 20:44 UTC
diet coke
One of the largest studies of its kind recently examined the link between diet drinks and cardiovascular issues such as heart attack and stroke in healthy, postmenopausal women. The research took place at the University of Iowa, and the findings were presented at the American College of Cardiology's 63rd Annual Scientific Session in Washington, D.C.

60,000 women participated in the study, and it found that women who consumed two or more diet drinks a day are 30 percent more likely to experience a cardiovascular event, and 50 percent more likely to die from a related disease. (source)

These are huge numbers, even if you are thinking correlation does not mean causation. When using theBradford Hill criteria to evaluate the relationship between diet drinks and human health, it becomes quite clear that the danger is at least worth considering. It's a great example of how potentially deadly, unhealthy products are marketed to us as a "better alternative" and completely safe.

Comment: Diet soda drinkers aren't just at increased risk for heart troubles. Migraines, seizures, vision problems and cancer have all been linked to aspartame consumption as well.

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Health

Whole stevia leaf more effective than antibiotics in treating Lyme disease, says study

Sayer Ji
Green Med Info
Fri, 22 Jan 2016 20:28 UTC
lyme bug
Lyme disease is exceedingly difficult to treat, due to its well-known shape-shifting (pleomorphic) abilities, with conventional antibiotics often failing to produce a long-term cure. Could the commonly used natural plant Stevia provide a safer, and more effective means to combat this increasingly prevalent infection?

A promising new preclinical study has revealed that whole stevia leaf extract possesses exceptional antibiotic activity against the exceedingly difficult to treat pathogen Borrelia Burgdorferi known to cause Lyme disease. The study found,
Stevia whole leaf extract, as an individual agent, was effective against all known morphological forms of B. burgdorferi."
At present, the CDC acknowledges that at least 300,000 are infected with Lyme disease, annually, with the conventional standard of care relying on antibiotics that are not only toxic but increasingly coming under scrutiny for addressing only surface aspects of the infection, often leaving antibiotic-resistance Lyme disease deep within the system to continue to cause harm.

Comment: This research is promising. Hopefully, it will be fully investigated.

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Holly

Natural approaches for cramps and PMS

Karen Foster
Prevent Disease
Fri, 22 Jan 2016 13:46 UTC
woman in pain
Menstrual cramps and premenstrual syndrome (PMS) can be debilitating for some women and make them feel very uncomfortable at "that time of the month." Our ancestors have utilized a variety of very effective herbal solutions to address every kind of pain associated with monthly cycles.

Restoring your menstrual cycle can be done naturally and effectively with herbs, nutrition and exercise. Here are 15 very effective herbs for menstrual pain.

1) CRAMP BARK & BLACK HAW
These are probably the most effective herbs for reducing uterine spasm and cramping. These sister herbs bring relief of pain and muscle spasm in the uterus. Cramp bark and Black haw have been shown safe for use for several days prior to onset on menses in anticipation and prevention of painful cramps.

Comment: Some women report a decrease or complete cessation of menstrual problems and PMS symptoms when dropping gluten from their diets.

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SOTT Logo Radio

The Health & Wellness Show: Willpower


Sott.net
Fri, 22 Jan 2016 15:00 UTC
Sott Talk Radio logo
January 18th has been dubbed by the media "Blue Monday", the most depressing day of the year. Among other factors, like weather and post holiday finances, one of the contributing factors to this depressing day is that it's usually around the time that people have failed at their New Years resolutions. We thought this would be a good time to discuss willpower, what it is, how we can build more of it and what impediments stand in the way for us to follow through with our goals.

Join us Fridays at 10am EST for the SOTT Talk Radio Network's Health and Wellness Show, where we expose the lies and emphasize the truth about health in our modern world! With us as always will be resident animal health expert Zoya with her weekly Pet Health Segment.

Running Time: 02:00:00

Download: MP3

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Question

Mysterious disease kills 6 children in Nepal; 50 others infected


RSOE EDIS
Wed, 20 Jan 2016 13:18 UTC
Surgical Mask
A team of health workers has reached Itawa village in Kapilbastu district, where six children died of a yet-to-be-identified disease with symptoms similar to that of measles. The District Public Health Office, Kapilbastu dispatched the team to the village Ward Number 7 and 8 of the Somdiha VDC near the Nepal-India border.

The team is treating the infected children of the village. Team leader and officiating chief of the District Public Health Office, Bishnu Jayaswal said they were making home visits in the village and treating the infected children.

They were collecting blood samples simultaneously. He said the infected children had rashes like that of measles all over the body, high fever, and diarrhoea. They have also shown symptoms of malnutrition. The blood samples have been sent to the Central Health Laboratory at Teku, Kathmandu and the disease will be identified once the blood report is available. The unidentified disease has so far claimed the lives of six children in the village. All the victims are below five years. As many as 50 children have been infected, the District Helath Office stated.
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Butterfly

Depressed? Check your gut: How bacteria affect mental health

Mark Sisson
Mark's Daily Apple
Tue, 19 Jan 2016 01:00 UTC
brain gut connection
As many of you adopt new behaviors and habits during this year's 21-Day Challenge, there's a fascinating unseen story going on between your brains and bellies I thought it'd be worth talking about. New behaviors and habits create new neural pathways, which are essentially new road maps for how you'll think, feel, and act in the future. Now the integrity of those neural pathways—whether they're firing at full force and with the right materials to do their job—is intimately connected to something I've talked about on the blog before in different ways: our gut microbiome. But as you'll see, this microscopic landscape is worth talking about again—specifically because it influences your brain (that grand master of all organs) and how well you're likely to stick to all those newly adopted changes in the future.

Comment: The link between mental health and the gut is well established, but complicated, with a lot of factors coming into play. Having enough health-promoting gut bacteria of the right strains is important, as is getting rid of any pathogenic micro-organisms that are detrimental to health. Eliminating inflammatory foods (especially junk food, grains, dairy, soy, beans, and sugar) and balancing out inflammatory and anti-inflammatory fats can also go a long way to improving mental health. Detoxing from heavy metals and toxic halogens, and healing leaky gut can also be significant factors in improving mental health.

In short, treat your gut and your gut-biome well, and they'll do the same to you, to the benefit of all.

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Pills

Big Pharma is not letting on how risky commonly prescribed drugs may be

Martha Rosenberg
Alternet
Sun, 17 Jan 2016 00:40 UTC
Big pharma
The AMA is debating whether direct-to-consumer advertising should be banned.

They are so common no one thinks twice about them: drug ads that tell you about a disease you might have, a pill that could treat it, and tell you to "ask your doctor" if the pill is right for you.

Until 1997, such direct-to-consumer ads did not exist because without a doctor's recommendation, how could people know if the medication was appropriate or safe? The only thing people knew about drugs and drug risks was from ads they peeked at in medical journals at the doctor's office.

But after the ads started in 1997, the allergy pill Claritin became a household word, along with Xenical, Meridia, Propecia, Paxil, Prozac, Vioxx, Viagra, Singulair, Nasonex, Allegra, Flonase and of course Lipitor—and Big Pharma became a Wall Street darling.

Comment: Hopefully the article Breaking Big Pharma: Doctors call for immediate drug advertising ban will help consumers look at drugs more critically and demand full information before they succumb to drugs with serious side effects! Read more about how "Direct-to-consumer advertising also inflates demand for new and more expensive drugs, even when these drugs may not be appropriate."

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