- - European weblog on food, health and environment
News - Week 33 - 2008
Gary Null Show
Dr. Gary Null speaks with Naomi Klein, an
award-winning journalist with syndicated columns in The Nation and The Guardian. Her last
book The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism explores who corporate greed
capitalizes on war and environmental disasters and influences domestic economic policy.
I-Team: New UFO Mystery Surfaces
A large object with a turquoise hue
plummeted out of the sky earlier this summer and plowed into the earth south of Las Vegas.
Eyewitnesses say this was no meteorite, especially since a bunch of helicopters hauled it
away. Chief Investigative Reporter George Knapp has the story.
The history of the weapons of mass
destruction fraud
Many people know that Scott Ritter, former
Marine Corps major and former UN weapons inspector publicly disputed the Bush
Administration’s claim that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
Children Are Likely to Suffer Most
from Our Fossil Fuel Addiction
onsideration of the full spectrum of health risks to children from fossil fuel combustion
underscores the urgent need for environmental and energy policies to reduce fossil fuel
dependence and maximize the health benefits to this susceptible population. We do not have
to leave our children a double legacy of ill health and ecologic disaster.
Pentachlorophenol, a fungicide widely used as a wood preservative, was classified in 1999
by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a possible human carcinogen. We
reviewed currently available data to determine the extent to which recent studies assist
in distinguishing the effect of pentachlorophenol from that of its contaminants (e.g.,
dioxins and other chlorophenols). The updated cohort study focusing on pentachlorophenol
provides increased statistical power and precision, and demonstrates associations between
hematopoietic cancer and pentachlorophenol exposure not observed in earlier evaluations of
this cohort. Contaminant confounding is an unlikely explanation for the risks seen with
pentachlorophenol exposure.
Ambient Ozone Concentrations Cause
Increased Hospitalizations for Asthma in Children
Asthma is the most important chronic disease of childhood. The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency has concluded that children with asthma continue to be susceptible to
ozone-associated adverse effects on their disease. Our data indicate that at current
levels of O3 experienced in Southern California, O3 contributes to an increased risk of
hospitalization for children with asthma.
MA—Researchers from Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center have found that
approximately one in ten U.S. children uses one or more cough and cold medications during
a given week. These findings appear in the August issue of the journal
Pediatrics.Pediatric cough and cold medications are widely marketed in the U.S. but
surprisingly little is known about just how often they are used in children. This
information is especially important in light of recent revelations that cough and cold
medications are responsible for serious adverse events and even deaths among children.
Sweeney reviewed research out of England, Germany, Norway, Japan, South Africa and the
United States, which she reports lagged behind the European countries in examining the
phenomenon of bullying prior to this decade. The majority of the research that she
examined involved children between the ages of nine and 16. Sweeney says her review of the
literature found that children raised by authoritarian parents – parents who are
demanding, directive and unresponsive – are the most prone to act out bullying
behavior.
Canadian study of colds and kids -
Positive safety results for ginseng extract
Positive findings of a safety study involving children and a highly touted botanical
extract (COLD-fX) show promise for its future development for kids as a Canadian cold and
flu remedy. The results appear in the August, 2008 issue of Pediatrics – the official
journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. The randomized, double-blind, placebo
controlled Canadian trial which was conducted in collaboration with the University of
Alberta in Canada was designed to measure the safety and tolerability of COLD-fX for
treatment of cold and flu in children. Acute three-day doses of COLD-fX were well
tolerated with no serious adverse events, or differences in adverse events versus the
placebo group. The research was also successful in determining effect size, which enables
appropriate statistical planning of a potential efficacy study. "We hope this trial
will be viewed as timely and beneficial research in an area where there is clearly a
demonstrated need for safe and effective products to treat cold and flu in children, who
suffer from these ailments much more than adults," said Jacqueline Shan PhD, DSc,
Chief Scientific Officer and CEO of CV Technologies. She added, "These results are
promising and support the development of a children's formulation." The Company
anticipates launching large scale clinical studies in the next fiscal year testing for
efficacy to further support the use of COLD-fX for treating colds and flu in children.
Data mining detects signs of Lou
Gehrig's disease in gene carriers long before symptoms appear
Inspired by the use of microarray chips that look for gene combinations, psychologists are
using "pattern array" software to spot movements in rats that might help them
predict diseases such as Lou Gehrig's syndrome.
Many people try to fulfill their nutrition needs by taking dietary supplements. But
instead of buying supplements, you might want to head to the produce aisle to meet your
dietary requirements, said a University of Missouri Extension nutrition and health
education specialist. Fruits and vegetables contain hundreds of phytochemicals that help
promote health and prevent disease, said Karen Elliott. These phytochemicals are easily
absorbed to provide maximum health benefits. In contrast, common dietary supplements
contain large doses of only one or two phytochemicals. Moreover, supplements do not have
to undergo testing for safety and effectiveness.
The brains of young children absorb twice as much as radio frequency energy from a cell
phone as those of adults, according to a set of new calculations carried out by Joe
Wiart's research group at France Telecom in the suburbs of Paris."Our analysis
confirms that peripheral brain tissues of children seem to be higher exposed than the
peripheral brain tissue of adults," Wiart concludes in a paper that appears in the
July 7 issue of the journal "Physics in Medicine and Biology."
Frito-Lay and two other potato chip companies have agreed to reduce the levels of a
cancer-causing chemical in their products in a settlement of a state lawsuit, Attorney
General Jerry Brown said Friday. The court-approved settlement comes three years after
Brown's predecessor, Bill Lockyer, sued fast-food chains and potato chip companies, saying
they had failed to warn California consumers about the dangers of acrylamide.
VCU Massey Cancer researchers find
gene therapy that kills pancreatic cancer cells
Researchers at the Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and the VCU
Institute of Molecular Medicine have published findings that implicate a new
chemoprevention gene therapy for preventing and treating pancreatic cancer, one of the
most lethal and treatment-resistant forms of cancer.
Fungus Causing Cancer - - A Novel
Approach to Most Common Cause of Death
A prominent Italian oncologist explains his
view that cancer is fungus and can be easily treated. Fascinating viewing.
Johan Norberg -Swedish Myths and
Realities - 6 min
Johan Norberg, author of In Defense of
Global Capitalism, sits down with reason.tv's Michael C. Moynihan to sort out the myths of
the Sweden's welfare state, health services, tax rates, and its status as the "most
successful society the world has ever known.
In order to maintain uninterrupted milk
production, cows are forced year after year to go through an endless cycle of pregancy and
birth, only to have their calves immediately taken from them. Cows and calves cry out for
each other as they are separated. All forms of dairy farming involve forcibly impregnating
cows. This involves a person inserting his arm far into the cow's rectum in order to
position the uterus, and then forcing an instrument into her vagina. The restraining
apparatus used is commonly called a "rape rack."
Half of all calves born are male. Of no use in milk production, they are sent to
veal-producing operations or directly to auctions where they are sold and slaughtered when
they are just a few days old. Male calves used for veal production suffer a crude
castration process and are killed after 4 months spent in small crates or pens. After just
4 to 6 years, dairy cows are "spent" from being forced to continuously produce
milk. Often weak and ill, they endure transport to auction and slaughter, both of which
are traumatic for these gentle animals. If allowed to exist free of exploitation and
slaughter, cows can live 25 years or more.
Remedial instruction rewires
dyslexic brains, provides lasting results, study shows
A new Carnegie Mellon University brain imaging study of dyslexic students and other poor
readers shows that the brain can rewire itself and overcome reading deficits, if students
are given 100 hours of intensive remedial instruction. The study, published in the August
issue of the journal Neuropsychologia, shows that the remedial instruction resulted in a
brain activity increase in cortical regions associated with reading, and that neural gains
solidified further during the year following instruction.
Sesame seed extract and konjac gum
may help ward off Salmonella and E. coli
A new study in SCI's Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture shows that konjac gum
and sesame seed extract may offer protection against different strains of E. coli and
Salmonella bacteria.
Exposure to Agent Orange linked to
prostate cancer in Vietnam veterans
UC Davis Cancer Center physicians today released results of research showing that Vietnam
War veterans exposed to Agent Orange have greatly increased risks of prostate cancer and
even greater risks of getting the most aggressive form of the disease as compared to those
who were not exposed.
Metabolic insight to illuminate
causes of iron imbalance
New insight into key players in iron metabolism has yielded a novel tool for
distinguishing among root causes of iron overload or deficiency in humans, the researchers
report in the August issue of Cell Metabolism, a publication of Cell Press. While the body
needs iron to produce hemoglobin, a substance in red blood cells that enables them to
carry oxygen, too much iron can build up and eventually damage organs.
Happiness does not heal, but happiness protects against falling ill. As a result, happy
people live longer. The size of the effect on longevity is comparable to that of smoking
or not. This is concluded from an analysis of 30 follow-up studies published in the latest
issue of the Journal of Happiness Studies (September 2008).
Het injecteren van een hoge dosis vitamine C remt de groei van kankertumoren, in sommige
gevallen zelfs met vijftig procent. Dat concluderen Amerikaanse onderzoekers aan de hand
van proeven op muizen.
High-dose injections of vitamin C, also known as ascorbate or ascorbic acid, reduced tumor
weight and growth rate by about 50 percent in mouse models of brain, ovarian, and
pancreatic cancers.
Author Claire Hope Cummings dishes
the dirt on genetically modified food
The right to good, clean, and fair food, to borrow Slow Food's shorthand, seems to unite
people who'd never otherwise find themselves chatting at the same party: Home schoolers
and dreadlocked hippies, libertarian DIYers and heartland moms.
Tijdens een algemene behandeling worden de schimmels of gisten “verhongerd” door
een koolhydraat of eiwit arm dieet en geëlimineerd door het gebruik van supplementen of
geneesmiddelen (of beide). Tijdens de behandeling is het belangrijk dat het immuunsysteem
niet onnodig wordt belast en bovendien in zijn werking wordt versterkt. Tegen het einde
van de behandeling is het raadzaam de darmflora d.m.v. probiotica te versterken. Bij een
algemene behandeling gaat het primair om het elimineren van de in het ontlastingonderzoek
gevonden schimmels of gisten.
On the physical level, circulatory problems and heart disease are caused by a build-up of
impurities in the blood, the lymph, the tissue fluid that connects cells (connective
tissue), and the walls of the blood vessels (capillaries and arteries). Of all the foods,
protein from animal sources has the most congesting effects. Since the human body can only
utilize a very small amount of the protein contained in meat, eggs, fish, or cheese, etc.,
much of the unused protein is passed via the blood stream into the connective tissues.
When too many proteins enter the connective tissue it thickens to the consistency of
jelly. This obstructs the cells' nutrient supply and removal of metabolic waste materials.
To make the tissue fluid thin again the excessive proteins are stored as collagen in the
basement membranes of the capillaries and arteries. Once their storage capacity for
protein is exhausted the blood pressure may rise and the blood becomes thicker. The cells
of the body begin to suffer malnutrition and, unable to remove all their metabolic waste
products, the level of impurities in the body's organs, tissues and cells starts to rise.
This greatly adds to the workload of the heart, cuts down oxygen supply and the body as a
whole becomes tired more easily.
An estimated one billion people in the world will suffer gall bladder disease at some
stage in their life. In the United States, 20 million adults suffer from attacks of
gallstones every year. In many cases, treatment consists of removing the gallbladder, at
the cost of $5,000 or more per operation. Yet there are many more people, including those
suffering a chronic illness such as heart disease, arthritis, MS or cancer, who have
hundreds, if not thousands of gallstones blocking the bile ducts of the liver. A liver
congested with gallstones may be one of the most common, yet rarely recognized causes of
illness today. Most people assume that gallstones occur only in the gallbladder. This
assumption is wrong. Most gallstones are actually formed in the liver and comparatively
few occur in the gall bladder. This can be verified by anyone doing a liver cleanse,
regardless of whether he/she is a lay person, a medical doctor, a scientist or someone who
no longer has a gall bladder and is thought to be free of gallstones altogether.
Prescription for Disaster is an in-depth
investigation into the symbiotic relationships between the pharmaceutical industry, the
FDA, lobbyists, lawmakers, medical schools, and researchers, and the impact this has on
consumers and their health care. During this thorough investigation, we take a close look
at patented drugs, why they are so readily prescribed by doctors, the role insurance
companies and HMO's play in promoting compliance, and the problem of rising health care
costs. We examine the marketing and public relations efforts on behalf of the
pharmaceutical companies, including sales reps, medical journals and conferences. Further,
we look at alternatives to traditional pharmacology and drug therapy, such as vitamins and
nutritional supplements, and why they are often perceived as a competitive threat to the
drug manufacturers. Alternative therapies also include diet, exercise and a healthy
lifestyle. Prescription for Disaster takes you on a journey through the tangled web of big
business, the way disease is treated today, and the consequences we suffer as a society.
FDA Advisory & Big Pharma
Conflicts of Interest, Psychology w/ Shannon
Not a conspiracy theory because it's just
too easily documented. Members of the FDA Advisory Committees for psychiatry and risk
management have major ties to the drug industry.
A robot that relaxes when stroked and
cuddled mesmerises another that loves human faces. The University of the West of England's
David McGoran takes his Heart Robot on a touchy feely tour, while Matt Denton of
Micromagic Systems explains how his facial recognition robot works.
Today, the sun is considered the main culprit for causing skin cancer, certain cataracts
leading to blindness, and aging of the skin. Only those who take the "risk" of
exposing themselves to sunlight find that the sun makes them feel better, provided they
don't use sunscreens or burn their skin. The UV-rays in sunlight actually stimulate the
thyroid gland to increase hormone production, which in turn increases the body's basal
metabolic rate. This assists both in weight loss and improved muscle development. Farm
animals fatten much faster when kept indoors, and so do people who stay out of the sun.
Therefore, if you want to lose weight or increase your muscle tone, expose your body to
the sun on a regular basis. The use of antibiotics, which has practically replaced
heliotherapy, has in recent years led to the development of drug-resistant strains of
bacteria, which defy any treatment other than the balanced use of sun, water, air, and
food. Cutting out or substantially reducing any of these four essential constituents of
life, results in disease.
After having seen thousands of cancer patients over a period of three decades, I began to
recognize a certain pattern of thinking, believing and feeling that was common to most of
them. To be more specific, I have yet to meet a cancer patient who does not feel burdened
by some poor self-image, unresolved conflict and worries, or past emotional trauma that
still lingers in his/her subconscious. Cancer, the physical disease, cannot occur unless
there is a strong undercurrent of emotional uneasiness and deep-seated frustration. Cancer
patients typically suffer from lack of self-respect or worthiness, and often have what I
call an "unfinished business" in their life. Cancer can actually be a way of
revealing the source of such inner conflict. Furthermore, cancer can help them come to
terms with such a conflict, and even heal it altogether. The way to take out weeds is to
pull them out along with their roots. This is how we must treat cancer; otherwise, it may
recur eventually. The following statement, which runs like a red thread through the entire
book, is very important in the consideration of cancer: "Cancer does not cause a
person to be sick; it is the sickness of the person that causes the cancer." To treat
cancer successfully requires the patient to become whole again on all levels of his body,
mind and spirit. Once the cancer causes have been properly identified, it will become
apparent what needs to be done to achieve complete recovery.
A 1993 report released by the American National Academy of Science Institute of Medicine
concluded that virtually all nine vaccines given to children have at some time been proved
to cause damage, including such complications as shock, convulsions, or paralysis. The
problem is that a child's body is expected to cope with not just one type of poison
contained in one vaccine, but with several different ones contained in as many as nine
vaccines. Many children have died or become permanently and severely brain damaged within
days after immunization. In many cases, however, the adverse effects from vaccination are
less devastating but still serious enough to take a good look at the reasons why parents
haven't been informed. In many countries, parents are actually forced by law to immunize
their children.
Does the mainstream media ever report about the overwhelming scientific evidence that
shows chemotherapy has zero benefits in the five-year survival rate of colon cancer
patients? Or how many oncologists stand up for their cancer patients and protect them
against chemotherapy treatment which they very well know can cause them to die far more
quickly than if they received no treatment at all? Can you trustingly place your life into
their hands when you know that most of them would not even consider chemotherapy for
themselves if they were diagnosed with cancer? What do they know that you don't? The news
is spreading fast that in the United States physician-caused fatalities now exceed 750,000
each year. Perhaps, many doctors no longer trust in what they practice, for good reasons.
"Most cancer patients in this country die of chemotherapy... Chemotherapy does not
eliminate breast, colon or lung cancers. This fact has been documented for over a decade.
Yet doctors still use chemotherapy for these tumors... Women with breast cancer are likely
to die faster with chemo than without it." - Alan Levin, M.D.
Alcohol consumption declining,
according to results of new study
Overall alcohol use -- particularly consumption of beer -- is declining in the US,
according to a new study published in the August 2008 issue of the American Journal of
Medicine. Researchers examined 50 years of data and found several changes in alcohol
intake but no change in alcohol use disorders. Americans are drinking significantly less
beer and more wine, while hard liquor use has remained fairly constant. More people now
report that they are nondrinkers.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
initiates project to eliminate intestinal worms in Ethiopia
A professor at the Faculty of Health Sciences at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev is
beginning an intensive program in Ethiopia this August to eradicate intestinal worms which
affect as much as 50 percent of the population in Africa. BGU Professor Zvi Bentwich, who
heads the Center for Tropical Diseases and AIDS in Israel, believes there is a possible
connection between the AIDS epidemic in Africa and intestinal worms.
Novel method to create personalized
immunotherapy treatments
Argos Therapeutics and Université de Montréal today announced the presentation of new
information on Argos'process for developing dendritic cell-based immunotherapies for HIV.
Results from the study demonstrate that loading monocyte-derived dendritic cells with
combinations of HIV antigen RNA stimulates the expansion of HIV-specific T cells, which
attack and kill HIV-infected cells. Argos' immunotherapies are generated by the Company's
Arcelis technology.
Spices may protect against
consequences of high blood sugar
Herbs and spices are rich in antioxidants, and a new University of Georgia study suggests
they are also potent inhibitors of tissue damage and inflammation caused by high levels of
blood sugar.
Study Reveals Use of Cleaning
Products During Pregnancy Increases Risk of Asthma in Young Children
Women who use a lot of household cleaning products when they are pregnant, or shortly
after giving birth, are increasing their child’s risk of developing asthma.
That’s according to the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents of Children (ALSPAC, also
known as Children of the Nineties), that recruited over 13,000 children from before birth
and has followed them to post 16.
Well, recent studies are showing that natural saturated fats are not only not evil, that
they are actually good for you. Read that sentence again, because it goes against all
nutritional advice given in this country for the past 50 years. I know what you're
thinking: Isn't it well established that eating saturated fats correlates with higher
rates of heart disease? As it turns out, the government's nutritional sat-fats data used
to lump natural fats together with industrial fats like hydrogenated vegetable oil. When
you split out the different kinds of fat, the artery clogger was not butter but trans
fats.
Has Cancer Spread? Research
Identifies Best Way to Find Answers
For patients with head and neck cancer, accurately determining how advanced the cancer is
and detecting secondary cancers usually means undergoing numerous tests - until now. New
Saint Louis University research has found that the PET-CT scanner can be used as a
stand-alone tool to detect secondary cancers, which occur in 5 to 10 percent of head and
neck cancer patients.
Prostate cancer screening not
recommended for men over 75
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has recommended that men over 75 should stop the
routine prostate cancer screening since the risks involved pose more immediate danger than
the cancer itself, according to media reports Wednesday.
Some mixtures and compounds of spices and herbs are as effective as prescription drugs,
says Krueger, Ferris State University professor of pharmacognosy, the study of medicines
derived from natural sources.
Most recently Kimberly wrote, directed and
produced the documentary "Once There Was a Country: Revisiting Haiti." The film,
narrated by Dr. Maya Angelou and Guy Johnson, illustrates the historic factors that have
led to Haiti's current health care crisis, and showcases the inspirational stories of the
organizations and individuals who are working to improve the country's health care
structure. Throughout her career, Kimberly has served as a special events director for the
United Way; a counselor in the Head Start Program on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in
South Dakota; a teacher of religious studies at a juvenile correctional facility; and an
event coordinator for the Children's Health Fund. She is also a board member at the
Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center. Kimberly has been recognized for her work by numerous
organizations. She was honored with the: 2006 Spirit of Liberty Award by People for the
American Way; 2005 Best Citizen Award by the Miami New Times; 2005 Up & Comers Award
for Public Service Award by the South Florida Business Journal; and 2003-2004
Philanthropist of the Year Award by the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9191118675184173781
Here is a list of the top 12 + 1 most toxic
foods that you should be buying organic. If on a tight budget, use this guide to buy
produce that has the most chemicals when grown conventionally. Lyrics (Twinkle, Twinkle)
Peaches and apples grow on trees, sweet bell peppers celery nectarines, cherries potatoes
pears lettuce grapes strawberries tomatoes, spinach is the last produce, now buy organic
there's no excuse!
The info I am gathering is that it is mostly oxygenated Magnesium hydroxide and shoudl be
perfectly safe. A cotton ball or cloth with some under the pits is all I have been doing.
Been using it for a week-working very very hard and no smell and still sweating.
Milk of Magnesia is also used as a folk remedy, topically applied and massaged in (a few
minutes before washing/shampooing), to relieve symptoms of seborrhea and dandruff. The
mechanism for its effectiveness in this application, like the causes of seborrhea itself,
are at present unknown.
Stevia, a South American plant used to create natural sugar substitutes, is set to be the
next major battleground for Coca-Cola and Pepsi, with both brands launching their own
natural sweeteners using the non-calorific herb.
Medication increasingly replaces
psychotherapy, study finds
Fewer patients are undergoing in-depth treatment as antidepressants and other drugs are
more widely used. The shift is attributed partly to insurance reimbursement policies.
Urinary tract, yeast infections are
a vicious cycle
You have a vicious cycle going on here with medication given for a UTI that causes a yeast
infection, which causes the problem all over again. Nothing is eradicated consistently.
The next time a UTI occurs, have your primary-care physician or gynecologist settle on one
prescription medication. Include one or two jars of yogurt or acidophilus tablets in your
daily diet while on the drug. Drink a glass or two of 100-percent cranberry juice daily,
too. If this doesn't deter infection, obtain a second opinion to find the real source of
the problem.
Some Tupperware food storage containers use polycarbonate (plastic nr 7), which has been
shown to leach the harmful hormone-disrupting chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) into food items
after repeated uses. Consumers concerned about such risks might want to avoid the
following polycarbonate-based Tupperware products: the Rock 'N Serve microwave line, the
Meals-in-Minutes Microsteamer, the "Elegant" Serving Line, the TupperCare baby
bottle, the Pizza Keep' N Heat container, and the Table Collection (the last three are no
longer made but might still be kicking around your kitchen).
First step towards switching off
breast cancer and leukaemia
Australian scientists have identified a way to ‘switch off’ a molecule, a key
player in the molecular processes that trigger breast cancer and certain forms of
leukaemia. The molecule, known as Gab2, operates downstream of a major breast cancer
oncogene, HER2, the target of the drug Herceptin. A research team from the Garvan
Institute of Medical Research, led by Professor Roger Daly, has found a novel way of
blocking signals to and from Gab2, preventing it from fulfilling its role in cell
proliferation. The finding is published online today in the EMBO Journal.
High levels of testosterone may be a key factor in spreading disease among mice, according
to biologists. The findings could help explain why males in a population are often more
likely to get infected, and transmit disease.
Researchers find cancer-inhibiting
compound under the sea
University of Florida researchers have discovered a marine compound off the coast of Key
Largo that inhibits cancer cell growth in laboratory tests. Largazole, named for its
Florida location and structural features, seeks out a family of enzymes called histone
deacetylase. Overactivity of certain HDACs has been associated with several cancers such
as prostate and colon tumors, and inhibiting HDACs may activate tumor-suppressor genes
that have been silenced in these cancers.
UT Health Science Center
researchers study diet and autism
Can autism be "cured" with diet? Researchers at the University of Texas Health
Science Center at Houston embark on a double-blind study to find out if wheat and dairy
products can affect autistic behavior, as some parents believe.
Pathogen that causes disease in
cattle also associated with Crohn's disease
People with Crohn's disease are seven-fold more likely to have in their gut tissues the
bacterium that causes a digestive-tract disease in cattle called Johne's disease. The role
this bacterium may or may not play in causing CD is a top research priority, according to
a new report released by the American Academy of Microbiology.
Likely cause of postpartum blues
and depression identified
Unique biochemical crosstalk that enables a fetus to get nutrition and oxygen from its
mother's blood just may cause common postpartum blues, researchers say. That crosstalk
allows the mother's blood to flow out of the uterine artery and get just a single cell
layer away from the fetus' blood, says Dr. Puttur D. Prasad, biochemist in the Medical
College of Georgia School of Medicine. That controlled exchange between the blood of
mother and fetus is courtesy of the placenta regulating levels of serotonin, a
neurotransmitter commonly associated with depression. But platelets that enable blood
clotting also secrete serotonin which prompts platelets to aggregate and the placenta to
want to get rid of it.
Common infertility treatments are
unlikely to improve fertility
Long-established medical interventions to help couples with infertility problems do not
seem to improve fertility, according to a study published online today.
Researchers discover how tumor
suppressor inhibits cell growth
New work by researchers at the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine
describes the mechanism by which p53 regulates cells and protects them against DNA damage
that might lead to cancer. The study shows that two p53 target genes -- called Sestrin1
and Sestrin2 -- provide an important link between p53 and a protein kinase called mTOR, a
central regulator of cell growth.
Researchers have long sought a factor that can trigger the brain's ability to learn --
recapturing the "sponge-like" quality of childhood. A study coming in the Aug. 8
Cell identifies such a factor. Called Otx2, it causes a key type of cell in the cortex to
mature, initiating a critical period -- a window of heightened brain plasticity, when the
brain can readily make new connections
Researchers report periodontal
disease independently predicts new onset diabetes
Periodontal disease may be an independent predictor of incident type 2 diabetes, according
to a study by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. While
diabetes has long been believed to be a risk factor for periodontal infections, this is
the first study exploring whether the reverse might also be true, that is, if periodontal
infections can contribute to the development of diabetes.
A recent study published in the Journal of Periodontology, the official publication of the
American Academy of Periodontology demonstrates that including flossing as part of one's
routine oral care can actually help reduce the amount of gum disease-causing bacteria
found in the mouth, therefore contributing to healthy teeth and gums.
When you buy food with a "USDA organic" label, do you know what you're getting?
Now is a good time to ask such a question, as the USDA just announced Monday it was
putting 15 out of 30 federally accredited organic certifiers they audited on probation,
allowing them 12 months to make corrections or lose their accreditation. At the heart of
the audit for several certifiers were imported foods and ingredients from other countries,
including China.
Cholesterol screening for healthy adults at no special risk of heart disease? A waste of
time and money. Annual mammograms for women at average risk of breast cancer? Not worth
it. Exercising solely because you think it will help you live longer?
About a month after being vaccinated against the cervical cancer-causing HPV virus,
13-year-old Jenny Tetlock missed the lowest hurdle in gym class, the first hint of the
degenerative muscle disease that, 15 months later, has left the previously healthy
teenager nearly completely paralyzed. Did the vaccine, Gardasil, cause her condition? Her
father, Philip Tetlock, a psychology professor at UC-Berkeley's Haas School of Business,
has embarked on an odyssey to find out whether the vaccine or random coincidence is to
blame.
On February 8, 2007 the CDC released “New Data on Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs)
from Multiple Communities in the United States.” (1)Since then, most people and the
press have been under the impression that in the United States, the “new” CDC-
reported ASD prevalence rate of 1 in 150 was a recent discovery that was current for 2007
when indeed it was not at all. The study did not document a prevalence of 1 in 150 among
children born now or five years ago. The study revealed that among U.S. children born in
1994, thirteen years ago, 1 in 150 on average had a spectral disorder.
“Australia’s dragging its feet and the reason is because of heavy lobbying from
the food industry and my biggest criticism is of FSANZ and its misleading line that
saturated fats is a far bigger problem here,” he said. “FSANZ has really been
asleep at the wheel on this one and has been derelict in its responsibilities to protect
consumers.”
One of the reasons people on low-carbohydrate diets may lose weight is that they reduce
their intake of fructose, a type of sugar that can be made into body fat quickly,
according to a researcher at UT Southwestern Medical Center. “Our study shows for the
first time the surprising speed with which humans make body fat from fructose,” Dr.
Parks said. Fructose, glucose and sucrose, which is a mixture of fructose and glucose, are
all forms of sugar but are metabolized differently.For the study, six healthy individuals
performed three different tests in which they had to consume a fruit drink formulation. In
one test, the breakfast drink was 100 percent glucose, similar to the liquid doctors give
patients to test for diabetes — the oral glucose tolerance test. In the second test,
they drank half glucose and half fructose, and in the third, they drank 25 percent glucose
and 75 percent fructose. The tests were random and blinded, and the subjects ate a regular
lunch about four hours later. The researchers found that lipogenesis, the process by which
sugars are turned into body fat, increased significantly when as little as half the
glucose was replaced with fructose. Fructose given at breakfast also changed the way the
body handled the food eaten at lunch. After fructose consumption, the liver increased the
storage of lunch fats that might have been used for other purposes. “The message from
this study is powerful because body fat synthesis was measured immediately after the sweet
drinks were consumed,” Dr. Parks said. “The carbohydrates came into the body as
sugars, the liver took the molecules apart like tinker toys, and put them back together to
build fats. All this happened within four hours after the fructose drink. As a result,
when the next meal was eaten, the lunch fat was more likely to be stored than burned.
Dietary Sugars Stimulate Fatty Acid
Synthesis in Adults
The data demonstrate that an early stimulation of lipogenesis after fructose, consumed in
a mixture of sugars, augments subsequent postprandial lipemia. The postlunch blood TG
elevation was only partially due to carry-over from the morning. Acute intake of fructose
stimulates lipogenesis and may create a metabolic milieu that enhances subsequent
esterification of fatty acids flowing to the liver to elevate TG synthesis postprandially.
