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New Ebola case confirmed in Sierra Leone after WHO declares outbreak over


BBC
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 01:30 UTC
Ebola Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone officials have confirmed a death from Ebola, hours after the World Health Organization declared the latest West Africa outbreak over.

The country was declared free of the virus on 7 November, and the region as a whole was cleared when Liberia was pronounced Ebola-free on Thursday.

Tests on a person who died in northern Sierra Leone proved positive, an Ebola test centre spokesman told the BBC. The WHO has warned, however, that more flare-ups are expected. The Sierra Leone death occurred earlier this week.

Ebola test centre spokesman Sidi Yahya Tunis told the BBC that the patient had died in the Tonkolili district. He had travelled there from Kambia, close to the border with Guinea.

The tests were conducted by British health experts. The BBC's Umaru Fofana in the capital Freetown said health officials were now urgently seeking those who had come into contact with the victim.

Close to 4,000 people have died of Ebola in Sierra Leone, and 11,000 people across the region, since December 2013.

Liberia was the last country to see the end of active transmission of Ebola. But it had been declared clear twice before, only for the infection to re-emerge.

Comment: Ebola - What you're not being told

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Beaker

The toxic fumes from fragranced chemical cocktails


BBC
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 20:55 UTC
perfume
It's the time of year when we generally keep our doors and windows shut and maybe light a few scented candles to brighten up the long dark evenings. But is there a potential danger, asks Saleyha Ahsan.

Lots of people use air fresheners and body sprays - almost all of which contain what the ingredients listing coyly describes as "perfume".

All in all, it adds up to quite a fragranced atmosphere - and with little airflow in our increasingly-insulated homes, have you ever wondered what happens to all these perfume chemicals? Well, it seems they could be reacting in the air forming a potentially dangerous cocktail.

The levels of perfume chemicals are regulated inside products, but what we then do with those products is entirely up to us. No one measures air quality inside our houses. Prof Alastair Lewis of the National Centre for Atmospheric Science at the University of York and the team from Trust Me, I'm a Doctor set out to do just that.

Firstly he measured the levels of a whole range of "volatile organic chemicals" (VOCs) in six similar, modern houses in York over the course of five days. The stand-out chemical - varying most among the houses - was limonene. It's commonly used to give a citrus smell. In the three houses that used the most cleaning products, limonene levels were so high that Prof Lewis even had to adjust the sensitivity of the monitors.

Comment: Another ingenious solution to getting rid of limeonene in homes would be to simply not buy fragrances candles, plug-ins, air fresheners and certain types of cleaning products! What a wild idea! If people want to freshen the air, opening the window isn't as impractical as the author makes it sound. And there are alternatives like beeswax candles, essential oil diffusers and air purifiers. Is modern society so enmeshed with toxic household consumerism that such thoughts are verboten?

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Family

Supergirl? Seven-year-old doesn't feel tired or hungry and doesn't feel pain

Zoie O'Brien
Express
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 20:54 UTC
Olivia Farnsworth
© SWNS
Olivia Farnsworth does not feel tired or hungry and cannot feel pain.
Unique Olivia Farnsworth stunned medics when they discovered she has a rare chromosome condition stopping her from feeling hunger, fatigue or pain.

It is thought she could be the only person in the world to exhibit the three symptoms together.

When she was diagnosed, the consultant geneticist told mum Niki Trepak, 32, she had never seen the disorder before which allows the youngster to go THREE DAYS without sleeping.

Little Olivia's condition is described as chromosome 6 deletion but the mix of super-human abilities has never been reported before.
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Syringe

France to hold vaccine debate as anti-vaccine movement gains momentum


The Connection
Thu, 14 Jan 2016 00:00 UTC
opt in opt out
© www.collective-evolution.com
...if only we could!
The Ministry of Health has launched a national debate on vaccination to counter a growing anti-vaccine movement in France. Health Minister Marisol Touraine said she wanted to "reinforce confidence" in vaccination and "respond to all worries and preoccupations".

The ministry is responding to dropping numbers of vaccinations. Since 2008 the number of people receiving winter flu jabs has dropped 13 percentage points and the number of outbreaks of measles is rising after a drop in baby vaccinations.

Vaccinations against human papilloma virus in young girls have also had a low take up, just 17%, compared to 80% in neighbouring countries. As HPV infection can increase the risk of developing cancer of the uterus, the national health authority recommends the vaccination in girls aged between nine and 14.


Comment: A new study in EbioMedicine shows that vaccine controversies and the decline of administered vaccinations, as in France, comprise concerns about a) severe and adverse side effects, and b) the eroding confidence in health authorities, experts and science. It manifests as either a delay in acceptance, refusal, doubts as to safety and benefits, along with a growing number of physicians altering their perception of the risks.


Comment: Bravo to the 'healthy' resistance in France. A new electronic vaccination card? Forced compliance. Control. Can France resist this as well?

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Beaker

Fountain of youth? Researchers discover hormone that extends lifespan

Lizzie Parry
Daily Mail
Thu, 14 Jan 2016 20:14 UTC
women

A team of scientists at Yale School of Medicine have identified a hormone that could help extend lifespan.
It is the Holy Grail of health research, discovering the key to help people live longer.

Now scientists believe they may be one step closer.

A team at Yale School of Medicine have identified a hormone, produced by the thymus glad, extends lifespan by 40 per cent.

Their findings reveal increased levels of the hormone, known as FGF21, protects the immune system against the ravages of age.

Researchers said the study could have implications in the future for improving immune function in the elderly, for obesity, and for diseases such as cancer and type 2 diabetes.

Comment: Save money and skip the drugs by increasing your levels of FGF21 naturally. If you want to avoid the ravages of ageing try the ketogenic diet.

Is the ketogenic diet the holy grail of anti-ageing?

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Water

Sharpen your brain and live longer with intermittent fasting

Ari LeVaux
Alternet
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 19:28 UTC
health diet intermittent fasting
© Syda Productions/Shutterstock
Regular doses of moderate hunger may even help prevent Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

The new year is a popular time to contemplate our relationship to calories, usually with the goal to reduce caloric intake. But in the last decade, our understanding of how the body deals with these units of energy has grown considerably. So here's a look at what it means to eat a calorie in 2016.

You've probably heard that processed carbohydrates are now being viewed with the skepticism once reserved for fats, which are making a comeback. First thing in 2016, the USDA's Dietary Guidelines Advisory committee reversed decades-long guidance and ditched caps on cholesterol and saturated fats.

In his 2008 book Good Calories, Bad Calories, Gary Taubes blew a hole in the idea that fat is the dietary boogeyman it's been made out to be. He pointed out that the obesity epidemic coincides with the rise of a fat-fearing dietary paradigm and the accompanying boom in low-fat and nonfat processed foods that swapped fat for extra sugar.

That boom, which is supported by your tax dollars, is the real problem. Refined carbohydrates, Taubes explained, quickly convert into sugars, a process that starts in the mouth. And refined carbohydrates are everywhere, dominating most dishes on the American menu from pizza to macaroni and cheese. These arguments formed the basis for the many low-carb diets, such as South Beach and paleo, that have flourished in recent years.

Comment: A ketogenic diet paired with cycles of intermittent fasting is a great way to tune up the body.

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SOTT Logo Radio

The Health & Wellness Show: A Closer Look at Depression


Sott.net
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 15:00 UTC
Sott Talk Radio logo
According to Healthline.com, there are an estimated 121 million people worldwide who suffer from depression, affecting as many as 1 in 10 Americans, and diagnoses are growing at an alarming rate. Depression is also shown to be correlated with higher rates of other negative health outcomes, including obesity, heart disease, and stroke, as well as social factors including higher rates of unemployment, divorce, sleep disorders, lack of education and lack of access to medical insurance.

Today on the SOTT Radio Network's Health and Wellness Show, we take a look at the latest research on depression including its causes and strategies on dealing with it. The mainstream view on depression is that it is a result of a "chemical imbalance" that can be rectified with medications. But is this really the whole picture? How do infections, toxic load, diet and social factors contribute to depression? What can an individual do for themselves or loved ones to try to get on top of this crippling condition?

Join us Fridays at 10 am EST for the 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: 01:59:00

Download: MP3

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Beaker

Does our gut microbiome control us or do we control it?

Dina Fine Maron
Scientific American
Wed, 13 Jan 2016 20:54 UTC
gut microbiome
© iStock.com
We may be able to keep our gut in check after all. That's the tantalizing finding from a new study published today that reveals a way that mice—and potentially humans—can control the makeup and behavior of their gut microbiome. Such a prospect upends the popular notion that the complex ecosystem of germs residing in our guts essentially acts as our puppet master, altering brain biochemistry even as it tends to our immune system, wards off infection and helps us break down our supersized burger and fries.

In a series of elaborate experiments researchers from Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital discovered that mouse poop is chock full of tiny, noncoding RNAs called microRNAs from their gastrointestinal (GI) tracts and that these biomolecules appear to shape and regulate the microbiome. "We've known about how microbes can influence your health for a few years now and in a way we've always suspected it's a two-way process, but never really pinned it down that well," says Tim Spector, a professor of genetic epidemiology at King's College London, not involved with the new study. "This [new work] explains quite nicely the two-way interaction between microbes and us, and it shows the relationship going the other way—which is fascinating," says Spector, author of The Diet Myth: Why the Secret to Health and Weight Loss Is Already in Your Gut.
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Butterfly

A better way to exercise: Infuse your workouts with mindfulness

Dr. Frank Lipman
DrFrankLipman.com
Thu, 14 Jan 2016 00:00 UTC
yoga, mindfulness
We all know the importance of getting to the gym and working out. Is showing up really 80 percent of the challenge? If so, why do so many people show up to their workouts but have not gotten closer to their personal fitness goals? Does your workout look something like this: you're on your phone reading or sending messages, your face is tense, at times you forget to breathe and hold your breath, you are speeding through each exercise to get it over with as quickly as possible, you stop when the movement becomes challenging. If this sounds a lot like your gym experience you are not alone, but you may be hindering your ability to reach your fitness and health goals.

One of the most profound messages within a yoga practice is to stay mindful of the body and breath while you enter into each posture. We are guided to explore what comes up when we face challenges, even though our first response is to tense up and try to avoid the challenge. If we breathe through it, however, and keep the mind still our exploration of the movement will continue. We might want to stop, but guiding ourselves through the movement is a powerful awakening of the spirit.

While this is true in yoga, I also believe it is true in all physical endeavors: lifting weights, running five miles, practicing a martial art or hiking in the mountains. There are opportunities everywhere to be in the moment and experience mindfulness without having to be on a yoga mat.

Comment: There are numerous mental, emotional and spiritual health benefits that can be obtained by mindfulness meditation and breathing exercises. The Éiriú Eolas Stress Control, Healing and Rejuvenation Program is one of the most beneficial meditation programs, which you can learn here for free.

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No Entry

New set of bills will make it even easier for corporations to poison us

Claire Bernish
Activist Post
Thu, 14 Jan 2016 18:36 UTC
toxic chemicals
In the United States, we have become so inured to ironically-titled legislation, the majority of us simply assume legislators find dystopic, tongue-in-cheek humor in toying with our hopes — think: USA Freedom Act, the sole freedom of which lies in the government's green light to spy on the populace however it chooses. Similarly, a set of bills purporting to reform the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act makes no exception to that practice, as the Senate's version, The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, bears the name of the late New Jersey senator who espoused strong environmental policy.

But these bills do anything but protect the environment or the people; in fact, states would have a far more difficult time regulating dangerous chemicals on their own, and would be prohibited entirely from doing so while waiting for often snail-paced evaluation by the EPA.

Maine's 2008 Kid Safe Product Act could serve as an excellent example for potential pitfalls in these ostensible improvements. Though the state has since used that law to list over 1,700 "chemicals of concern" and has required manufacturers to divulge when they employ some of those — even prohibiting the use of other toxic substances altogether when safer alternatives exist — the federal bills would nullify such vital protections in certain scenarios.
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