3 Reasons You Should Have More Plants In Your Home

by Dan McNulty

Plants are a powerhouse of wellness for your home. They’ll provide you with a host of benefits, and they’ll make your house look great while doing it. I’ll admit, I’ve been kind of obsessed with this idea lately, and I think you’ll find the concept intriguing as well after learning about the myriad benefits they offer.

1. They purify your air.

You probably know that plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen; plants in your home are no exception. Oxygen affects every part of your body and mind, and making sure you get quality air is essential to your well-being.

Did you know NASA uses plants on the International Space Station to help with air quality? Certain species purify the air of toxins like benzene, formaldehyde, and more. In order to do this efficiently, the researchers at NASA recommend at least one plant per 100 square feet of home or office space.

2. They’re truly local produce.

A lot of people don’t live in a climate where it’s possible to plant something like a lemon tree or a lime tree outside, but did you know there are dwarf versions of these? They thrive while potted indoors virtually everywhere in the US. They even have dwarf banana trees, pineapple trees, avocado trees, fig trees, and more. All that fruit right in your sun room or living room window!

Imagine picking stevia leaves right off the stem, enjoying a fresh avocado for breakfast, or making a drink with limes and mint leaves that were grown right in your kitchen. A fully fruited lemon tree at a party would probably make for quite the conversation piece as well. There are some things you just won’t find in a Midwest or Northeastern farmer’s market, and fresh local citrus fruits or locally grown avocados are usually some of those things. Having these growing right in your own house is as local as it gets.

3. They make your house a home.

This is probably the best catchall for all those intangible qualities that having more plants will bring to your home. Plants are living things, and when you’re surrounded by living things you will feel better; you’re literally bringing more life into your house! There’s something about bringing live pieces of nature inside that just radiates a healthy energy throughout the room.

Fragrant plants like dwarf Kaffir lime trees will also fill the room with the most wonderful scents. It’s an all-natural alternative to those wall plug-ins filled with artificial fragrance chemicals. Other aromatics like mint, lemon grass, bay leaves, and basil (as well other others) have the added bonus of naturally repelling bugs as well!

All in all, when you have a lot of plants in your house, the benefits reach multiple aspects of your life. You’re improving the air you breathe, getting a healthy renewable ultra-local agricultural pipeline, naturally freshening your air, repelling insects, and bringing a unique energy into your home. With a little botanical maintenance, the rewards are endless.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com

 

Blood Plasma, Sweat, and Tears

How America’s poor sell the contents of their veins to get by

KATHRYN EDIN AND H. LUKE SHAEFER

There is no money to be made selling blood anymore. It can, however, pay off to sell plasma, a component in blood that is used in a number of treatments for serious illnesses. It is legal to “donate” plasma up to two times a week, for which a bank will pay around $30 each time. Selling plasma is so common among America’s extremely poor that it can be thought of as their lifeblood.

But no one could reasonably think of a twice-weekly plasma donation as a job. It’s a survival strategy, one of many operating well outside the low-wage job market.

In Johnson City, Tennessee, we met a 21-year-old who donates plasma as often as 10 times a month—as frequently as the law allows. (The terms of our research prevent us from revealing her identity.) She is able to donate only when her husband has time to keep an eye on their two young daughters. When we met him in February, he could do that pretty frequently because he’d been out of work since the beginning of December, when McDonald’s reduced his hours to zero in response to slow foot traffic. Six months ago, walking his wife to the plasma clinic and back, kids in tow, was the most important job he had.

The first thing the 21-year-old does when she gets to the donation center is check in, and as a regular donor, she can bypass the initial, time-consuming health screening. She proceeds to a kiosk, rhythmically clicking the mouse to answer the required questions about her health. “When you get there, they have you fill out … 22 questions … They ask you about your health and, like, if you’ve had any recent tattoos or been in jail or had any piercings lately.” Her husband has too many tattoos and doesn’t remember the exact times and places he acquired all of them, details that the plasma center requires. He says he has been told he “need not come by” to donate.

After completing these initial steps, she sits in the waiting room, listening for her name to be called. She describes what happens after that: “They take your blood pressure and your temp. And then if everything is okay, you wait and get your finger pricked to test for your iron and your protein and stuff … Usually, it be during my time of the month that my iron really goes down.” Lately, the iron pills she has tried haven’t been working. This terrifies her, because “donating” is the bedrock of the family’s finances right now. The phlebotomist in charge of the finger pricking has told her that “if the iron pills don’t help, [it means] I could be, like, anemic.” Anemics are barred from donating.

Today, like other days, she’s nervous—what will happen if she is not allowed to give plasma? The family desperately needs the $30. They’re now nearly three months behind on the rent. Once she passes all the tests, she proceeds to the back room, where she’s directed to a recliner. Today she has brought along a Nicholas Sparks novel she checked out of the library. “I always bring a book with me,” she says.

A technician feels around for her vein with a plastic-gloved finger, rubs on some iodine with a Q-tip, positions an IV, and inserts a needle. For the usual donor, the procedure takes about 45 minutes, but for her it takes well over an hour, as she is just over the minimum weight of 110 pounds. “I get tired. Especially if my iron’s down, I get, like, really tired,” she says. The ritual takes roughly three hours, door to door. Even so, the payoff is relatively good: $10 an hour. As long as her iron, blood pressure, and temperature are okay, she’ll donate as often as she is legally allowed.

Later, she says the procedure makes her squeamish. “I can’t ever look at it. I never look at it when they do it. They do it right here,” she says, pointing to the obvious indentation at the crease in her arm, which looks somewhat like a drug track line. Many among the extreme poor bear these small scars from repeated plasma donations.

* * *

Before welfare died in 1996, a family of three couldn’t live solely on the $360 or so the program provided on average. Just prior to welfare reform, it took roughly $875 to meet such a family’s monthly expenses, but families could generally get only about three-fifths of that from the combination of cash welfare and food stamps.

To make matters worse, when a mother secured a job, she would lose about a dollar in welfare benefits for every dollar she earned. Often, she couldn’t afford to rely only on earnings from work in the formal economy. Work paid only a little more than welfare but cost a lot more in terms of added expenses for transportation, child care, health care, and the like. It was more expensive to go to work than stay on the welfare rolls.

Back then, neither welfare nor work could singlehandedly bring a poor family’s budget into balance, yet the ability to combine them legally was limited at best. How did these single mothers survive?

Some gleaned some sustenance through private charities, as the couple in Johnson City do now. In addition, at any given time, almost half of single mothers on welfare were secretly working. Some used a false identity to avoid detection, or hopped from job to job, since short stints wouldn’t typically get reported to the welfare office. Those without a formal job did hair, babysat, sold meals, cleaned homes, or, occasionally, resorted to fencing stolen goods or selling drugs or sex. Back before welfare reform, the strategies poor single mothers employed were hardly get-rich-quick schemes; they provided a few dollars here and there, often garnered with considerable effort. When combined with welfare, plus a lot of old-fashioned frugality, these strategies usually allowed for a bare-bones survival.

Today, a striking number of Americans live on extremely small incomes. As of early 2011, 1.5 million households (with roughly 3 million children) were surviving on cash incomes of no more than $2 per person, per day, during any given month. What’s different these days—and what affects the $2-a-day poor so profoundly—is that welfare can no longer be counted on to provide a floor of cash that families can depend on.

The variety of survival strategies used by today’s $2-a-day poor are variations on the same tactics poor families used a generation ago to get by: private charity, a variety of small-time, under-the-table schemes, and plain old thriftiness. Even those somewhat higher up the income ladder today, who have steady jobs, draw on such strategies from time to time when the money doesn’t quite stretch to the end of the month. But the degree to which people must resort to the riskiest strategies—those that can exact a sharp psychological, legal, and even physical toll—appears to be an order of magnitude greater for the virtually cashless poor than it is for poor families with some cash on hand.

Far from being passive, many among the $2-a-day poor take what few resources they have and try to “make the best out of a bad,” as the son of one cash-strapped parent put it. While the circumstances that they find themselves in may appear wholly un-American, in many ways their actions and outlooks are as American as they come: often surprisingly optimistic, creative, family-focused, scrappy, and imbued with a can-do spirit that belies their desperate circumstances. They may be officially jobless, but they are laboring intently. Their work can be grueling, and, at times, it’s work into which they’re literally pouring their blood, sweat, and tears.

 

Why Does Hair Change Colour And Turn Grey?

| by Rodney Sinclair

photo credit: Men generally have more grey hairs than women. crumpart/Flickr, CC BY-NC

Most of us find our first “greys” by the time we turn 30, usually at the temples, then later, across the scalp. While many people find the salt and pepper look appealing, others go to great lengths to conceal these locks.

The grey hair “rule of thumb” is that by the age of 50, half of the population have lost the colour in 50% of their hair. When researchers tested this rule, they found that 74% of people aged between 45 and 65 had grey hair, with an average intensity of 27%.

Generally, men have more grey hair than women. Asians and Africans have less grey hair than Caucasians.

What Determines The Colour Of Hair?

Hair colour is produced by cells known as melanocytes, which migrate into the hair bulb as the hair follicles develop in utero. The melanocytes produce pigment that is incorporated into the growing hair fibres to produce hair in a bewildering array of natural shades.

Hair colour depends on the presence and ratios of two groups of melanins: eumelanins (brown and black pigments) and pheomelanins (red and yellow pigments). While variations in the ratio of these pigments can produce an large number of colours and tones, siblings often have strikingly similar hair colour.

Hair colour varies according to body site, with eyelashes being darkest because they contain high levels of eumalanin. Scalp hair is usually lighter than pubic hair, which often has a red tinge, due to the presence of more phaeomelanin pigments. A red tinge is also common in underarm and beard hair, even in people with essentially brown hair on their scalp.

Hormones such as melanocyte-stimulating hormone can darken light hair, as can high levels of oestrogen and progesterone, which are produced in pregnancy. Certain drugs such as those to prevent malaria can lighten hair, while some epilepsy medications can darken it.

Siblings often have strikingly similar hair colour. hans905/Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA

Blond children tend to see their hair darken around the age or seven or eight. The mechanism for this is unknown and probably not related to hormones, as the darkening precedes puberty by a number of years.

New parents often find the first coat of their baby’s hair is darker than expected. It is not until this first hair is shed and replaced, at around eight to 12 months of age, that you get a clear indication of their hair colour.

Growth

Human hair growth is cyclical. During the anagen phase, hair grows continuously at a rate of 1cm per month. Anagen can last three to five years on the scalp and produce hair that grows to between 36 to 60cm in length.

At the end of the anagen phase, the follicle turns off, hair growth stops and remains off for the three months. Towards the end of this resting (telogen) phase, the hair is shed and the follicle remains empty until the anagen phase of the cycle restarts.

Pigment production also turns on and off in rhythm with the hair cycle. When pigment cells turn off at the end of one hair cycle and fail to turn back on with the onset of the next, hair becomes grey.

Losing Colour

Genetic factors appear to be important in determining when we turn grey. Identical twins seem to go grey at a similar age, rate and pattern, however we’re yet to identify the controlling genes.

There is no evidence to link the onset of greying to stress, diet or lifestyle. Certain autoimmune diseases such as vitiligo and alopecia areata can damage pigment cells and induce greying. However, these conditions are uncommon and can explain only a tiny fraction of greying.

 

Don’t worry, stress won’t turn your hair grey. frankieleon/Flickr, CC BY

Early greying occurs in premature ageing syndromes such as Hutchinson’s-progeria andWerner syndrome, where every aspect ageing in the body is accelerated. Premature greying can also be seen in people affected by pernicious anaemia, autoimmune thyroid disease or Down syndrome.

So, why doesn’t pigment production turn back on?

At the end of each hair cycle, some pigment-producing melanocytes become damaged and die. If the melanocyte stem cell reservoir at the top of the hair follicle can replenish the bulb, this keeps pigment production going. But when the reservoir of stem cells is exhausted, pigment production stops and the hair turns grey.

Scientists have long known that in order to prevent hair from going grey they would need to either prolong the life of the melanocytes in the hair bulb – by protecting them from injury – or expand the melanocyte stem cell reservoir in the upper or top region of the hair follicle so they continue to replace lost pigment cells.

A group of French scientists have identified a new series of agents that protect hair follicle melanocytes from damage at the end of the hair cycle. This enables pigment production to restart as soon as the next hair cycle begins.

The agents work by mimicking the action of an enzyme called DOPAchrome tautomerase. This enzyme is the naturally occurring antioxidant in the hair bulb that protects melanocytes from oxidative damage. By duplicating the effects of DOPAchrome tautomerase, melanocyte metabolism and survival improves.

The new agents are being formulated into a product that can be applied as a spray-on serum or shampoo. But they won’t re-colour grey hair or bring back the dead cells that produce hair colour. Instead, they protect your melanocytes.

So for those who cannot find it within themselves to embrace the salt and pepper look, new options are on the horizon.

 

Stress Isn’t a Threat, It’s a Signal to Change

• David Brendel

Is stress impairing your performance at work and compromising your relationships? Changing the way you think about stress can help you turn stress into an ally and use it to improve mental agility and work performance; a reportin the Journal of Experimental Psychology showed that physiological and cognitive benefits result from thinking of stress as “functional and adaptive” rather than a signifier of “threat.”

Turning stress to your advantage is no easy task. It requires mental discipline to pause when you’re in the grip of stress and to reframe it as potentially useful. In my executive coaching practice, I help clients transform their attitude about stress. There are many ways to do this, and the method needs to be individually tailored to each client’s unique situation. Here are three ways that clients in my practice have reappraised their stress and used it to propel positive changes:

Reconceive essential relationships. The third-generation CEO of a family business, my client experienced severe stress as his executive team (comprised of older family members) lambasted his every decision about how to run the company. Feeling defensive, he retreated from key CEO tasks such as strategic planning and securing a line of credit to keep the business afloat. Coaching focused on interpreting his stress as a signal to redefine his relationships with family members, whose support would be essential for survival of the company. Coaching empowered him to think of his family members as repositories of wisdom, people whose interests were aligned with his own. As he rethought these relationships, he transformed the monthly executive meetings from a battleground into a collaborative brainstorming session on opportunities for the company. With this newfound focus, the CEO harnessed the team’s knowledge and motivation to grow the company. Not only did he feel calmer and happier, but within four months he secured the line of credit and initiated critical discussions with potential outside investors. By reappraising his stress as a friendly message to heal valuable relationships, he protected the business and repositioned it for growth.

Develop strategic leadership skills. Another client was an attorney who was recently promoted to serving as his biotech firm’s general counsel, a position in which he was expected both to oversee the legal department and function as a strategic partner in the C-suite. He felt overwhelmed by the pressures of the two roles and the need to delegate tasks to associate attorneys. His stress mounted as he micromanaged their work and got “stuck in the weeds” of low-level tasks. We strove to reframe his stress as a signal that he should stretch beyond his comfort zone and embrace his new responsibilities as a strategic partner on the executive team. This reappraisal prompted him to begin placing more trust in his legal staff’s decision-making capabilities, to meet more often with key partners inside and outside the firm, and to embrace leadership roles that would position him more as a visionary leader than a worker bee. As he did so, his stress evaporated and he led the executive team to take a bold step toward expanding the business into a complex but potentially lucrative overseas market.

Apologize and express gratitude. Another client, the chief operating officer of an insurance company, was experiencing massive stress in the context of a work crisis. During a recent company event, she consumed an excessive amount of alcohol and embarrassed herself by making loud and rude comments to colleagues. Her behavior became so unruly that she was put in a taxi and sent home. She was terrified that she would lose her job. Part of the coaching focused on how to communicate with the CEO and executive team in the wake of this blunder. I was taken aback when she told me that she planned in an upcoming meeting with the CEO to complain that her year-end bonus was lower than she deserved based on performance metrics. My responsibility, I realized, was to respectfully confront her about how ill-conceived and potentially destructive this approach would be. After pointing out that her ongoing stress might be a signal that she was still uncomfortable with this course of action, we had a productive dialogue about alternative strategies. Ultimately, she concluded that it would be most prudent not to request a higher bonus, but instead to apologize for her behavior at the event and express thanks that she still had her job at all. This decision immediately reduced her stress level and served her well with the CEO and management team. She retained her position and continues to repair her reputation as a trustworthy leader in the firm.

These vignettes are real-world examples of what psychologists have been learning about stress management in well-controlled experiments.  If you can reappraise stress as a constructive hint that you should seriously reorient your thinking and behavior, then the stress can diminish and steer you toward a renewed sense of purpose and growth.

 

Work Anxiety Kills Thousands of Americans Every Year

Workplace stress contributes to 120,000 deaths and up to $190 billion in health-care costs annually, a new study estimates

Don’t Miss Out —

byNatalie Kitroeff

  

Ashley Campbell/Flickr

Workplace stress may contribute up to $190 billion in health-care expenses and over 120,000 deaths each year, according to a study (PDF) by researchers at the Harvard Business School and Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. This means that anxiety about employment could be killing more Americans than diabetes, Alzheimer’s, or the flu every year. The study, to be published in the journal Management Science, estimates that a lack of health insurance, a heavy workload, and conflicts between work and family are the most financially costly workplace stressors. Not having insurance, which can also lead to poor treatment, had the largest impact on mortality, contributing to 49,000 deaths per year, followed by unemployment and low control over workplace demands, which together contributed to 65,000 deaths.

“Work is a very important part of people’s psychological and physical environment, so if we are concerned about health and health-care costs, we ought to worry about what goes on at work,” says Jeffrey Pfeffer, who coauthored the piece with GSB colleague Stefanos Zenios and lead author Joel Goh of HBS. It may seem as though people with lucrative but intense jobs in the financial sector would be most at risk of getting pummeled into sickness, but lower-income Americans are probably most at risk because, says Pfeffer, they “tend to get sorted into … shift jobs, long hours, economic insecurity.”

To predict the effect of job-related anxieties, the researchers scoured medical literature about 10 work-related triggers that lead to negative health outcomes–including unemployment, long hours, and feeling unfairly treated—and used survey data to determine their prevalence. Then they built a model that estimated the overall effect of those triggers in terms of cost and mortality. The researchers noted that worker neuroses tended to mirror the health of the overall economy: In 2006, when the markets were humming, there were fewer workplace-stress-related costs, according to their model; in 2010, when the country was climbing out of a crisis, the costs would have been higher. The fact that work angst can be cyclical doesn’t mean managers should be excused from making practical changes to make their employees feel better, Pfeffer says.

“People have discretion as to how they are going to deal with the general economic trends,” says Pfeffer. He points to such companies as Southwest Airlines or Costco, which have resisted industry-wide trends that create awful, high-pressure, low-security environments for workers. Refraining from layoffs during a downturn may seem costly, but Pfeffer says that type of policy could pay off in health-insurance savings.

 

10 Important Reasons to Start Making Time for Silence, Rest and Solitude

Image Credit: Pixabay.

It’s amazing how tuned out we become to the motor of the air-conditioner and refrigerator — the sudden silence is a startling reprieve. Likewise, we become numb to the buzz of our technology saturated world.

Smartphone users check their device every 6.5 minutes, which works out to around 150 times a day. Silence is replaced with a cacophony of communication, and solitude is replaced with social media.

Indeed they’re an endangered species: silence and solitude; yet great revelations and benefits are found in them. Here are ten:

1. Bypassing Burnout
Too often, our culture assigns self-worth with productivity. Whether it’s asking what your country can do for you, or what you can do for your country, the question remains — what can be done? It’s a one-way ticket to burnout.

Solitude allows for a break from the tyrant of productivity. And rather than being in opposition, doing nothing helps with doing much. Promega is a company with on-the-job “third spaces” where employees are able to take solitude breaks and meditate in natural light. The health benefits have resulted in improved productivity levels for the company. And will do the same for us.

2. Heightened Sensitivity 
For many, attempting ten days of silence would be akin to walking on water. Vipassana silent retreats are exactly that; participants are instructed to refrain from reading, writing, or eye contact.

One hundred scientists went on a retreat for research and noted that shutting off the faculty of speech heightens awareness in other areas. Beginning with breathing, that focus and sensitivity is then transferred to sights, sounds, sensations, thoughts, intentions, and emotions.

3. Dissolving Tomorrow’s Troubles 
Alan Watts argues that our frustration and anxiety is rooted in being disconnected — living in the future, which is but an illusion.

Silence brings our awareness back to the present — where concrete happiness is experienced. Watts makes the distinction between our basic and ingenious consciousness; the latter makes predictions based on our memories, which seem so real to the mind that we’re caught in a hypothetical abstraction. It plans out our lives with an abstract happiness, but an abstract happiness is a very real disappointment.

The future falls short of what the present can deliver. Silence and solitude pulls us out and immerses us back in the present.

4. Improves Memory
Combining solitude with a walk in nature causes brain growth in the hippocampus region, resulting in better memory.

Evolutionists explain that being in nature sparks our spatial memory as it did when our ancestors went hunting — remembering where the food and predators were was essential for survival. Taking a walk alone gives the brain uninterrupted focus and helps with memory consolidation.

5. Strengthens Intention and Action
Psychologist Kelly McGonigal says during silence, the mind is best able to cultivate a form of mindful intention that later motivates us to take action.

Intentional silence puts us in a state of mental reflection and disengages our intellectual mind. At that point McGonigal says to ask yourself three questions:

• “If anything were possible, what would I welcome or create in my life?”
• “When I’m feeling most courageous and inspired, what do I want to offer the world?”
• “When I’m honest about how I suffer, what do I want to make peace with?”

Removing that critical mind allows the imagination and positive emotions to build a subconscious intention and add fuel to our goals. McGonigal explains, “When you approach the practice of figuring this stuff out in that way, you start to get images and memories and ideas that are different than if you tried to answer those questions intellectually.”
6. Increases Self-Awareness
The visceral reaction of cussing at a loved one or over-disciplining our children often comes with regret. It happens when we’re completely governed by actions, and absent of reasonable thought.

In silence, we make room for the self-awareness to be in control of our actions, rather than under their control. The break from external voices puts us in tune to our inner voices — and it’s those inner voices that drive our actions. Awareness leads to control.

Practice becoming an observer of your thoughts. The human will is strengthened whenever we choose not to respond to every actionable thought.

7. Grow Your Brain
The brain is the most complex and powerful organ, and like muscles, benefits from rest. UCLA research showed that regular times set aside to disengage, sit in silence, and mentally rest, improves the the “folding” of the cortex and boosts our ability to process information.

Carving out as little as 10 minutes to sit in your car and visualize peaceful scenery (rainforest, snow-falling, beach) will thicken grey matter in your brain.

8. “A-Ha” Moments
The creative process includes a crucial stage called incubation, where all the ideas we’ve been exposed to get to meet, mingle, marinate — then produce a eureka or “A-ha” moment. The secret to incubation? Nothing. Literally; disengage from the work at hand, and take a rest. It’s also the elixir for mental blocks.

What’s typically seen as useless daydreaming is now being seen as an essential experience. Professor Jonathan Schooler from UC Santa Barbara says, “Daydreaming and boredom seem to be a source for incubation and creative discovery in the brain.”

9. Mastering Discomfort
Just when you’ve found a quiet place to sit alone and reflect, an itch will beckon to be scratched. But many meditation teachers will encourage you to refrain, and breath into the experience until it passes. Along with bringing your mind back from distracting thoughts and to your breathing, these practices during silence and solitude work to build greater self-discipline.

10. Emotional Cleansing
Our fight/flight mechanism causes us to flee not only from physical difficulties, but also emotional difficulties. Ignoring and burying negative emotions however, only causes them to manifest in stress, anxiety, anger, and insomnia.

Strategies to release emotional turbulence include sitting in silence and thinking in detail about what triggered the negative emotion. The key is to do so as an observer — stepping outside of yourself as if you’re reporting for a newspaper. It’s a visualization technique used by psychotherapists to detach a person from their emotions, which allows you to process an experience objectively and rationally.

 

Black Health TV Announces Programming Partnership With Kitara Media’s HealthGuru.com

 

BlackNews.com

New Orleans, LA  — Black Health TV, (www.blackhealthtv.com) the leading online video destination website focused on the health issues of African-American consumers and physicians, today announced that it has signed an exclusive agreement with Healthguru.com, Kitara Media’s leading health site in video engagement.

“Black Health TV couldn’t be more excited to partner with Healthguru.com, the premier destination for health video information,” said Corey Hebert, M.D., CEO of Black Health TV. “This agreement ushers in a new era of collaboration of health content value creation for digital marketers seeking targeted audiences, consumers demanding culturally relevant content, and for our collective organizations as we look to build upon our unique strengths and reach a broad audience of consumers.”

Healthguru.com has a comprehensive library of health videos, with over 4,000 titles covering 125 different conditions. As part of the relationship, Black Health TV will work closely with Healthguru.com to re-produce regular, co-branded medical and health news segments. This new agreement, which will help drive significant traffic to Black Health TV by giving viewers more daily content from Black Health TV.

“Healthguru.com delivers more video streams than industry leading sites WebMD, Everyday Health and the next 10 largest health sites combined,” said Robert Regular, CEO of Kitara Media. “Together with Black Health TV, we will deliver targeted audiences, engaging video content and data intelligence for advertisers, digital marketers and publishers.”

Combining the resources of Healthguru.com with those at Black Health TV will enable us to provide the most comprehensive coverage, whether it be health news or in depth specific health condition information. Factor in Corey Hebert, M.D., the award-winning medical journalist, Asst. Professor at both LSU Health Sciences Center and Tulane University Medical Center, Black Health TV is better equipped to cover health news and information more than it ever has been before.
About Black Health TV
Black Health TV (www.blackhealthtv.com), owned and operated by Community Health TV, is the largest provider of health video on the Internet geared toward African-American consumers. Black Health TV contains a broad portfolio of service offerings that span the health spectrum, from in-depth medical content for condition prevention and management to fitness and cooking videos and information to achieve a healthy lifestyle. Black Health TV is based in New Orleans and is led by CEO, Corey Hebert, M.D., Asst. Professor at both LSU Health Sciences Center and Tulane University Medical Center and one of the most sought after speakers in his field. He is a highly regarded medical broadcast journalist, working as on-air medical editor for the NBC television affiliate in New Orleans, Louisiana and the Gulf Coast, as well as a frequent on-air contributor to the “Dr. Oz Show.” He is also a fan favorite on MSNBC where he is a frequent on-air contributor to the “Ed Show.”
About Healthguru.com
Healthguru.com, owned and operated by Kitara Media, is a leading online health video resource site for consumers. With over 4,000 professional digital videos and 75 million monthly video views, the media company optimizes brand opportunities to reach key users through tailored video formats. Syndicated through premium partners and publishers, consumers gain access to expert based insights on health issues. Healthguru.com provides health brand advertisers and digital marketers with both engaging content and targeted audiences. For more information visit: www.healthguru.com orwww.kitaramedia.com

 

4 Ways To Stay Fit With Sickle Cell

 

By Sandria Washington -blackdocto.org

Chronic pain is one of the most common  complications of sickle cell disease (SCD). Avoiding activities that can trigger a full blown pain “episode” or “crisis” is key to staying healthy and out of the ER, and for some, this includes avoiding exercise. But, it doesn’t have to.Strenuous exercise, like taking a boot camp class or hiking, reduces oxygen levels in the blood and may cause red blood cells to sickle. The cells become hard and sticky C shapes and as they travel through tiny blood vessels, they can become stuck and painfully clog blood flow. Low –  to moderate-impact exercise, on the other hand, can help to increase oxygen, keep blood circulating and flowing smoothly and help to alleviate pain symptoms.Here are four ways to stay fit and make exercise a safe part of your sickle cell crisis prevention.

1. Drink LOTS of water: Dehydration – a loss of fluid – can slow down the blood flow in the body, increasing the chance of having a pain episode.  Stay well hydrated at all times, but particularly before, during and after a workout.

2. Walking: The CDC recommends 150 minutes of moderate activity per week, and research has shown there are several health benefits to walking at least 30 minutues a day. If keeping a slow, steady pace, oxygen consumption will also stay steady. Walking on flat terrain is less taxing on the body, so treadmill walking is a good option since you can control the incline (unlike outdoor walking).

3. Yoga: Stress can be a sickle cell pain trigger and the practice of yoga is proven to relieve stress in the mind, body and spirit. Learning to breathe properly is a large part of the yoga practice and the increased oxygen intake helps the circulation of blood. Bikram “hot yoga” may be all the craze, but it is NOT for you if you have sickle cell. Stick to a gentle flow like yin yoga, restorative yoga or hatha.

4. Swimming/Water aerobics (heated):  Cold air and cold water is shockng to the body and can bring on a SCD pain crisis. However, even with sickle cell you can enjoy the benefits of low-impact water aerobics and swimming in an indoor heated pool. Before entering the pool, take a warm shower to avoid a sudden change in body temperature that can bring on a pain episode. Wrap yourself in a towel immediately after getting out of the pool.

Remember to rest when you feel tired and always consult with your doctor first before starting or changing your fitness regimen.

 

Food Cravings and What You Really Need

 

‘Fat Letters’ Worry Students, Parents and Experts

 

ABC News’ Mary Pflum reports:

A growing initiative by some schools across the country has students and parents up in arms: the school are measuring students at an annual weigh-in, and sending reports home telling parents whether their child’s body mass index is healthy or dangerous.

Hope Green, who has two school-aged children in upstate New York, said children are placed under too much stress at school.

“The last thing they need is the school to now step in … ‘You’re too skinny,’ ‘You’re too fat,'” she said.

Schools in 19 states, from Arkansas to Illinois, participate in the annual student weigh-ins. Some pediatricians say body mass index (BMI) readings are helpful in combating childhood obesity, which is a growing problem.

Right now, BMI readings are “the best means we have to determine whether a child’s weight is healthy or unhealthy,” said Dr. Lanre Omojokun Falusi, a Washington, D.C.-based pediatrician and a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics.

But some eating disorder experts worry that taking the readings may do more harm than good.

“I would like to see BMI testing in schools banned,” said Claire Mysko of the National Eating Disorders Association. “For those who are already insecure about their weight, these tests can … potentially trigger an eating disorder.”

Experts are concerned about the potential for eating disorders in girls and boys, but are especially concerned about girls given that girls are more likely than boys to experience such disorders.

More than 40 percent of 9- and 10-year-old girls have already been on a diet. As many as 60 percent of all children between the ages of 6 and 12 years old are worried about their weight, according to Duke University.

Some children who get the “fat letters” – as students themselves call them – are as young as 6 or 7 years old.

Lucy Williams attends a public middle school in New York City. She says she’s “insecure” because she’s taller than a lot of her fellow students.

“And I’m also bigger than a lot of them,” the 13-year-old said. “I’m not incredibly skinny.”

“Good Morning America” talked to other students who share Lucy’s concern.

Of the BMI reports, Zuzu Park-Stettner, 13, who also attends public school in Manhattan, said: “I hate them.”

Added her sister, Jane Park-Stettner, 9: “If they knew how much you weighed and if it was a really high number, like 100 … it would cause bullying.”

Jane and Zuzu’s mother, Shannon Park, is also concerned about the effects of measuring students’ BMIs, especially for students who are entering adolescence.

“Their bodies are changing … And then they get this number that says, ‘Oh, you know, you’re not the right number.’ It’s just a horrible way to start womanhood,” she said.

 

The Pros & Cons of a High Protein Diet

 

(BlackDoctor.org)

Are high protein diet foods actually good for you? Can they help you lose long-term weight?

There is so much literature out there saying “yes” to a high protein diet and how it helps satisfies ones hunger pains. But in the next breath, you stumble upon research that says “no” to a high protein diet and that it is best to have a variety from all food group sources.  All of the information on the Internet, books, magazines and even word of mouth can be quite confusing.

One of the first and most important things to realize is that everyone’s body chemical make-up is different. What works for one person to help them lose weight may not necessarily work for someone else.  It is best to create a diary and write down what you eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and all snacks in between. Also, make a commitment to recording how what you eat makes you feel.  For example, do you feel drowsy, energized, and/or bloated? Sometimes, it is simply trial and error and listening to what your body needs and understanding when you are truly hungry and not just eating because food is directly in front of you or you are eating out of emotions.

What About Protein?

Protein is the key essential building block to the function of our bodies. Therefore, it is important to make sure that we intake a certain amount from viable sources.

It is best to have a variety of all the food groups. For those that are meat eaters, a couple of good sources of protein are from organic free-range chicken and fish.

There is so much misconception in our society having people believe that you cannot get protein in your diet without eating meat.  This is untrue. You can absolutely obtain a good amount of protein from green leafy vegetables, seeds, nuts, nut butters, grains and even fruit. Yes, who would have thought fruit, right?

A few examples of the above-mentioned are below:

Green leafy vegetables: Kale, Collards, and Spinach
Vegetables: Artichokes, Sweet Potato, and Broccoli
Seeds: Hemp Seeds, Flax Seeds, and Chia Seeds
Nuts: Almonds, Cashews, and Pistachios
Nut Butters: Raw Almond Butter, Raw Cashew Butter, and Raw Sunflower Seed Butter
Fruit:  Strawberries, Navel Oranges and Watermelon
Grain: Quinoa, Barley and Raw Oats

Most of all, it is important to support a well-balanced diet with regular exercise and plenty of water (with a splash of ½ a lemon).  Exercise can be a quick stroll in the park at a brisk pace or another type of cardio for at least 30 minutes most days of the week, and lifting weights.

Your ultimate mission? Realize that taking care of your body is truly a way of life…not a “diet”.  When you are able to recondition your mind, the rest will follow in terms of losing weight and feeling amazing!!

 

South Korean doctors warn smartphones cause ‘digital dementia’

 

By JohnThomas Didymus

 

South Korean doctors have found that increasing use of smartphones among young Koreans has led to a surge in incidence of “digital dementia” characterized by deterioration of cognitive abilities and symptoms found in people who have suffered head injury.

According to Dr. Byun Gi-won, a South Korean expert in cognitive problems related to computer and smartphone usage at the Balance Brain Center in Seoul, the high incidence of digital dementia in Korea is a side effect of the fact that the country has one of the world’s best developed and fastest networks with a very high rate of usage of digital devices by its citizens.

The South Korean Joongang Daily reports that Internet addiction had emerged among both adult and young Koreans as early as the late 1990s. Recent trends show that Internet addiction is giving way to iPhone or smartphone addiction.

Cases of “digital dementia” associated with smartphone addiction are characterized by memory deficits, attention disorders and emotional flattening among young people who spend too much time using a gaming device, web searching, texting, and multimedia on smartphones.

The Telegraph reports that according to recent studies, young people have become so heavily reliant on digital technology that they are no longer able to pay attention to remembering routine details such as their own phone numbers.

Brain researchers have known for long that the two brain hemispheres exhibit a significant degree of what is termed lateralization, in which the left and right sides of the brain exhibit some specialization with regard to functions.

Research has shown that logic, reasoning and language functions such as grammar, vocabulary and literal meaning of words tend to the lateralized to the left hemisphere, especially in right handed individuals. In contrast, other mental functions involving memory, processing of visual, auditory stimuli, spatial manipulation, facial perception, creativity and prosodic language functions such as intonation and accentuation, tend to be lateralized to the right hemisphere.

Damage to the right brain hemisphere has been associated with deficits in ability to concentrate, short attention, memory span, and emotional disturbances, such as depression.

Byun Gi-won told the Joongang Daily Newspaper: “Overuse of smartphones and game devices hampers the balanced development of the brain.”

He said that heavy reliance on smartphones creates an imbalance in brain development which leads to the left side of the brain becoming overstimulated while the right side suffers and becomes relatively stunted. Heavy use of smartphones engages the left brain at the expense of the right, leading to deterioration of right side-leaning cognitive abilities and symptoms of “digital dementia,” which include loss of memory, short attention span and problems regulating emotion.

Gi-won said: “Heavy [technology] users are likely to develop the left side of their brains, leaving the right side untapped or underdeveloped.”

Researchers believe that young people are at a higher risk of developing “digital dementia” because their brains are still developing. If the left side of the brain develops properly while the right side is stunted it can lead to serious cognitive problems as the child develops.

According to recent statistics, the number of people aged between 10 and 19 who use smartphones for more than seven hours daily has increased by 18.4 percent. According to The Telegraph, the statistics indicate that fifteen percent of young people are at risk of developing digital dementia.

A UCLA study found that about 14 percent of young people aged between 18 and 39 complained of memory problems.

Korean doctors warn that increasing use of smartphones and similar digital devices will lead to increase in incidence of digital dementia. Doctors say the problem is serious because dementia is generally resistant to treatment once it has developed.

This is not the first time that digital devices have been blamed for serious medical, social and psychological problems. Previous research found that decreased real-life social interaction by people addicted to the Internet could lead to severe personality disorders.

Doctors advise young people and parents to exercise moderation in the use of digital devices, noting that researchers still have a lot to learn about the long term side effects of heavy use of smartphones and similar devices.

 

 

Top five regrets of the dying

A nurse has recorded the most common regrets of the dying, and among the top ones is ‘I wish I hadn’t worked so hard’. What would your biggest regret be if this was your last day of life?

A palliative nurse has recorded the top five regrets of the dying. Photograph: Montgomery Martin/Alamy

There was no mention of more sex or bungee jumps. A palliative nurse who has counselled the dying in their last days has revealed the most common regrets we have at the end of our lives. And among the top, from men in particular, is ‘I wish I hadn’t worked so hard’.

Bronnie Ware is an Australian nurse who spent several years working in palliative care, caring for patients in the last 12 weeks of their lives. She recorded their dying epiphanies in a blog called Inspiration and Chai, which gathered so much attention that she put her observations into a book called The Top Five Regrets of the Dying.

Ware writes of the phenomenal clarity of vision that people gain at the end of their lives, and how we might learn from their wisdom. “When questioned about any regrets they had or anything they would do differently,” she says, “common themes surfaced again and again.”

Here are the top five regrets of the dying, as witnessed by Ware:

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

“This was the most common regret of all. When people realise that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people had not honoured even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made. Health brings a freedom very few realise, until they no longer have it.”

2. I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.

“This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship. Women also spoke of this regret, but as most were from an older generation, many of the female patients had not been breadwinners. All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence.”

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

“Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming. Many developed illnesses relating to the bitterness and resentment they carried as a result.”

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

“Often they would not truly realise the full benefits of old friends until their dying weeks and it was not always possible to track them down. Many had become so caught up in their own lives that they had let golden friendships slip by over the years. There were many deep regrets about not giving friendships the time and effort that they deserved. Everyone misses their friends when they are dying.”

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

“This is a surprisingly common one. Many did not realise until the end that happiness is a choice. They had stayed stuck in old patterns and habits. The so-called ‘comfort’ of familiarity overflowed into their emotions, as well as their physical lives. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to their selves, that they were content, when deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again.”

What’s your greatest regret so far, and what will you set out to achieve or change before you die?

 

Skin Cancer Awareness: Protect Your Skin

While you enjoy the outdoors this summer, protect yourself from skin cancer by seeking shade, wearing sunglasses, a hat, and sun-protective clothing, and using sunscreen

When you’re having fun outdoors, it’s easy to forget how important it is to protect yourself from the sun. Unprotected skin can be damaged by the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays in as little as 15 minutes. Yet it can take up to 12 hours for skin to show the full effect of sun exposure.

Even if it’s cool and cloudy, you still need protection. UV rays, not the temperature, do the damage. Clouds do not block UV rays; they filter them—and sometimes only slightly. Remember to plan ahead, and keep sun protection handy in your car, bag, or child’s backpack.

Tan? There’s no other way to say it—tanned skin is damaged skin. Any change in the color of your skin after time outside—whether sunburn or suntan—indicates damage from UV rays. Using a tanning bed causes damage to your skin, just like the sun.

Types of Skin Cancer

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. The two most common types, called basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, are highly curable, but treatment can be disfiguring. Melanoma, the third most common skin cancer, can be deadly.

Risk Factors

Anyone can get skin cancer, but some things put you at higher risk, like having—

• A history of sunburns.
• Exposure to the sun through work and play.
• A lighter natural skin color.
• Skin that burns, freckles, reddens easily, or becomes painful in the sun.
• Blue or green eyes.
• Naturally blond or red hair.
• A personal history of skin cancer.
• A family history of melanoma.

How to Protect Yourself

Take precautions against sun exposure every day of the year, especially during midday hours (10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.), when UV rays are strongest and do the most damage. UV rays can reach you on cloudy days, and can reflect off of surfaces like water, cement, sand, and snow.

• Seek shade, especially during midday hours.
• Cover up with clothing to protect exposed skin.
• Wear a hat with a wide brim to shade the face, head, ears, and neck.
• Wear sunglasses that wrap around and block as close to 100% of both UVA and UVB rays as possible.
• Put on sunscreen with broad spectrum (UVA and UVB) protection and sun protective factor (SPF) 15 or higher.
• Remember to reapply sunscreen at least every 2 hours and after swimming, sweating, or toweling off.
• Avoid tanning beds and sunlamps. The UV rays from them can be stronger than UV rays from the summer sun at noon.

What CDC Is Doing About Skin Cancer

CDC works with national, state, and local partners to develop a coordinated approach to prevent future cases of skin cancer. Two recent publications describe promising strategies to prevent skin cancer specifically through reduction of indoor tanning. Co-authors included partners from the National Cancer Institute, American Cancer Society, Cancer Council Victoria, and academic centers.

CDC is using data from nationwide surveys to learn more about skin cancer risk behaviors among the U.S. population. Two recent studiesused data from the National Health Interview Survey: one looked at indoor tanning among U.S. adults, and the other examined sun-protective behaviors and sunburn among adults under age 30. Data from the National Youth Risk Behavior Survey were used to examine sunscreen use and indoor tanning among high school students, as well as factors related to indoor tanning among male high school students.

CDC is an advisory member of the National Council for Skin Cancer Prevention, which has designated the Friday before Memorial Day “Don’t Fry Day” to encourage sun safety awareness and to remind everyone to protect their skin while enjoying the outdoors.

CDC released the Sun Safety for America’s Youth Toolkit to help local comprehensive cancer control programs engage schools and other education partners in sun safety efforts. Since the majority of sun exposure occurs during childhood and early adulthood, addressing sun safety for young people is an important cancer control objective.

 

A Better Way to Treat Anxiety

For Teens, Therapy Turns Parents Into ‘Exposure Coaches,’ Not Protectors

• By LAURA LANDRO

Getting up the nerve to order in a coffee shop used to be difficult for 16-year-old Georgiann Steely. Speaking in front of classmates was unthinkable.

The high-school sophomore overcame a crippling case of social anxiety as a patient in the Child and Adolescent Anxiety Disorders program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Therapists there use an innovative approach early in treatment, gradually exposing children to things they fear most and teaching parents to act as “exposure coaches” rather than enable their children to avoid things and situations as a protective measure.

 

Jenn Ackerman for The Wall Street JournalGeorgiann Steely, 16, is developing confidence doing things she once would have avoided, such as ordering in a coffee shop.

When parents help children to escape from feared situations, anxiety symptoms may worsen and children frequently become more impaired, says Stephen Whiteside, a Mayo pediatric psychologist.

“Kids who avoid fearful situations don’t have the opportunity to face their fears and don’t learn that their fears are manageable,” he says.

Anxiety disorders, comprising a dozen diagnoses including phobias and obsessive-compulsive disorder, are among the most common mental health issue in youth yet they often go undetected or untreated, experts say. They can prevent a child or teen from developing skills necessary for success later in life.

Jenn Ackerman for The Wall Street JournalMs. Steely plays the violin in public.

According to a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week, about 1.8 million children under 18 currently have anxiety disorders. Some studies suggest as many as 10% of children suffer from phobias.

There are many external reasons for a child to experience anxiety, such as bullying at school or problems at home, and it is important to assess if such factors are to blame rather than “just stressing personal coping strategies,” says Howard Adelman, a psychologist and co-director of the Center for Mental Health in Schools at the University of California, Los Angeles.

But unlike the normal fears of childhood, or the shyness and insecurities of teen angst, anxiety disorders are extreme and don’t subside with time. They can significantly impair a child’s ability to function, according to Thomas Ollendick, director of the Child Study Center at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

 

Jenn Ackerman for The Wall Street JournalMs. Steely and her parents, Stan and Amy, took part inaMayo Clinic program that helps teens overcome fear in anxiety-causing situations with parents acting as coaches.

Children and teens with anxiety disorders don’t recognize their fears as unreasonable and may have physical symptoms like stomachache and headache. They may suffer from chronic, excessive worry about school, social interactions, health and safety, and world events.

Some children with anxiety also suffer from depression, and medications may be prescribed to help with both. Mental-health professionals have also relied on cognitive behavioral therapy, which focuses on anxiety-management and relaxation skills to help children control their own physical responses to anxiety. Other customary treatments include “cognitive restructuring,” which includes positive thinking, weighing evidence for and against their fears and creating a coping plan for feared situations. Typically, when exposure therapy has been used, it is usually introduced later in treatment.

But researchers at Mayo, Virginia Tech and other institutions are finding that slowly exposing children to the things they are anxious about, at an early point in treatment, can be highly effective in helping them overcome anxiety. Sometimes, it doesn’t require a long course of therapy.

Dr. Ollendick developed an intensive three-hour session to help children overcome phobias such as riding in elevators or encountering a dog. His intensive approach has been shown to be more effective than treatments that emphasize education about phobias but not exposure to a feared object or situation. Therapists work with parents to reinforce and maintain what the child has learned and to schedule follow-up calls.

In addition to its regular anxiety clinics, Mayo offers intensive one-week sessions for patients who don’t live locally. Dr. Whiteside is currently conducting a study evaluating the effectiveness of six sessions of parent-assisted exposure therapy.

He measures avoidance behaviors in both parents and children with questionnaires that ask parents, for example, “When your child is scared or worried about something, does he try to get away from it?” Children are asked to describe their habits, such as, “When I feel scared or worried about something I try not to go near it.”

Stan SteelyGeorgiann Steely, on a rock in Lake Superior in 2012.

A study led by Dr. Whiteside and published in March in the journal Behavior Therapy showed that when children were slowly exposed to situations that caused fear, their parents’ avoidance scores on questionnaires declined by half. Dr. Whiteside also developed a mobile app, the Anxiety Coach, which helps patients learn about anxiety, manage symptoms and make lists of activities to help them face their fears.

The gradual-exposure principles are part of the program that helped Georgiann Steely at Mayo’s teen clinic. Georgiann has struggled with depression since the eighth grade and she was treated with medication. But she also seemed painfully shy, avoiding parties and gatherings of friends. Her mother, Amy, says she worried that her daughter “wasn’t participating in her own life.”

The Steely family was part of a random sample of Rochester residents invited to participate in research Dr. Whiteside was conducting to develop anxiety questionnaires. Mrs. Steely says even after filling out survey questions about how she reacted when her daughter tried to avoid situations, “I didn’t make the connection that our stepping in and making accommodations for Georgiann could increase anxiety.”

“I knew I was an overprotective Mom, but I had my reasons,” she adds. She and she husband, Stan, who works as a nurse in an infusion clinic at Mayo, “thought we were helping by keeping her stress level down.”

When Georgiann’s depression took a turn for the worse a year ago, the family doctor steered them to Mayo’s teen clinic. As part of her initial evaluation “they picked up on her anxiety right away,” Mrs. Steely says.

Therapist Michael Tiede worked with Georgiann in group sessions and one on one to help her gradually do things she was afraid of and, as she says, “put myself out there.” Mr. Tiede and Georgiann say she shared her goals with the group each week, whether it was agreeing to meet friends at the mall, joining in a conversation or even just wearing her hair differently one day to see that it wouldn’t attract undue attention.

“It builds momentum and they do the next thing, and the next thing, and then it is not so hard anymore,” Mr. Tiede says.

Recently, a friend asked Georgiann to participate in a school program to help students become more compassionate and stop bullying. She agreed to speak about her struggle with depression at a school assembly along with others sharing tough experiences. Another milestone: she played her violin in an ensemble performance with musicians she didn’t know.

Georgiann says she is thinking about becoming a counselor herself someday. Mrs. Steele says the family learned to “provide support while she steps out and challenges herself.”

“Every day I am astounded at how far she has come,” she adds. “It’s like having a different kid.”

 

Video game aims to help young cancer patients

By Larry Frum, Special to CNN

“Re-Mission 2,” designed for young cancer patients, turns disease-fighting into games, helping players understand what’s happening in their treatment.

(CNN) — In the battle against cancer, one video game is taking the deadly disease head-on. And some young patients are the winners.

“Re-Mission 2” is a collection of online minigames designed to get teen and young-adult cancer patients involved in understanding more about their conditions and how the body benefits from sometimes unpleasant treatments.

Researchers at HopeLab, a nonprofit organization searching for products that positively impact health behavior, were emboldened by the success of their original 2006 title, “Re-Mission,” and were looking for a better way to help patients.

“Research on the original ‘Re-Mission’ showed that it impacted biology and behavior, primarily by energizing positive motivation circuits in the human brain and giving players a sense of power and control over cancer,” said Dr. Steve Cole, a vice president at HopeLab and professor of medicine at UCLA. “That gave us a whole new recipe for engineering the games in ‘Re-Mission 2’ by harnessing the power of positive motivation circuits in the human brain.”

The Flash-based games in “Re-Mission 2” mimic what the patients are going through in their therapy, but in a way that gamifies the treatment and involves the patient in “destroying” their cancer.

Weapons in the game include chemotherapy, cancer drugs and cells in the body’s own immune system.

A 2008 study into the effectiveness of the “ReMission” idea found that, for patients from 13 to 29, sticking to a treatment regimen when managing chronic illness was a significant problem. Playing the game greatly improved treatment adherence and understanding of that treatment in that age group, according to the study.

“(Cancer) can be incredibly disruptive and rips you away from your identity of being a normal kid,” said HopeLab spokesman Richard Tate. “The games give them the experience of what it means to be inside the body fighting cancer, using these prescriptions as weapons in their arsenal and the fight to regain a sense of control with your life.”

Many game developers lent their talents to the project. But developers also got some inside help.

Former cancer patients worked with the design teams to help create the right mood, challenges and visual design for “ReMission’s” five games.

Brooke Jaffe, a 21-year-old English major at Barnard College in New York, and Justin Lambert, a 20-year-old nursing major at Concordia University in Portland, Oregon, are two cancer patients in remission who helped with the project.

Both worked on concept art, images and play testing. But both said that the most important aspect of the game, to them, was how it would make a patient undergoing cancer treatment feel.

“Other than feeling like crap all the time, you don’t see the results,” said Lambert, who was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia at 2. “You don’t see the impact that’s brought to the body fighting the cancer. (The game) puts it into perspective — something they can visualize and definitely get hope from that.”

Jaffe was diagnosed with papillary carcinoma in 2011 and said the cancer experience can make young people feel powerless — like their recovery is based on passively allowing doctors and others to do their work.

“You actually don’t feel like you’re doing that much because it’s all these outside forces acting upon you,” she said. “I think what’s really beneficial about a game like ‘Re-Mission 2’ is the whole concept of using games to help people get a sense of activity in a situation that can rob you of that activity.

“I think that’s a very powerful thing even on a psychological level.”

Dr. Brandon Hayes-Lattin, a cancer and blood disorders specialist at the Oregon Health & Science University, has been involved in a field of cancer care called adolescent and young adult oncology. He and his colleagues have been working on understanding why patients in that age group don’t show improvement in cancer-care rates on par with young kids or older adult patients.

“Across the board, no matter what the age, it is difficult to adhere to a common cancer schedule,” he said. “The number of medications, the tracking of medications can be difficult.

“You can really engage young adults through a video game as long as the video game is cool. There is also this underlying theme of empowering patients to understand what they are going through and what their own role is in their cancer care.”

With “Re-Mission 2,” he said, the mobile aspect of the minigames allow patients to be involved even while they are waiting for, or receiving, treatment.

The free minigames are available for the iPad or online. Tate said teams are working to expand the number of platforms to get the game into as many hands as possible.

 

Racial minorities live on the front lines of heat risk, study finds

By Sarah Yang, Media Relations 

BERKELEY —Some racial groups are more likely to bear the brunt of extreme heat waves because of where they live, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

Racial groups are more likely to live in neighborhoods dominated by heat-absorbing hard surfaces, finds a UC Berkeley study. Such tree-deprived landscapes magnify the effects of heat waves.

The findings, published today (Tuesday, May 14) in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, highlight racial disparities at a time when the frequency and intensity of extreme heat waves is expected to increase with climate change.

Researchers used satellite imagery data to identify areas where there is no tree canopy to provide shade, and where half or more of the land is covered by heat-absorbing hard surfaces, such as pavement, concrete or roofing materials. Such land characteristics put residents at greater risk when the mercury rises because they exacerbate the heat, the study authors said.

The authors used U.S. Census data to reveal that the heat-prone neighborhoods were disproportionately populated by African Americans, Asians and Hispanics. Compared with their white counterparts, African Americans were about 50 percent more likely to live in these communities, while Hispanics were 37 percent and Asians a third more likely to do so.

“This study highlights a mechanism by which racial and ethnic minorities will likely suffer more from the effects of climate change,” said study lead author Bill Jesdale, research associate in UC Berkeley’s Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management. “It may not be surprising that minorities live in inner cities, but this is the first paper to assess what that means in terms of heat vulnerability at a national level.”

Rachel Morello-Frosch, a professor with joint appointments at the College of Natural Resources and the School of Public Health and the study principal investigator, noted that regional studies have identified similar trends, but seeing this residential segregation on a national scale was surprising.

“Segregation tends to concentrate racial and ethnic minorities into more densely populated urban areas,” she said. “While some of this residential choice is based upon preference, a lot is based upon where people can afford to live.”

Some steps that city planners can take to ameliorate the impact of climate change include planting more trees and lightening the coloring of roofs and pavements. When possible, replacing harder surfaces with more permeable materials can also help, the authors said.

“Planting trees and changing the heat-absorbing characteristics of our built environment may be crucial to protecting our public’s health by mitigating heat risks, particularly in densely populated central areas of cities,” said Jesdale.

The Hewlett Foundation and the California Environmental Protection Agency helped support this research.

RELATED INFORMATION

• The Racial/Ethnic Distribution of Heat Risk-Related Land Cover in Relation to Residential Segregation (link toEnvironmental Health Perspectives paper)
• Confronting the Climate Gap (article in Breakthroughs magazine)

 

Banishing Man Boobs With No Drugs or Surgery

by SARAH, THE HEALTHY HOME ECONOMIST

Gynecomastia, better known as man boobs or “moobs”, is a benign enlargement of breast tissue in males thought to be caused by an imbalance of the hormones estrogen and testosterone. One or both breasts may be affected.

According to some estimates, about half of adolescent boys experience at least some breast development during puberty. Living in Florida where swimming and beach activities are popular year-round, however, I can tell you it surely seems more prevalent than this!

Cases of gynecomastia are on the rise around the globe no doubt paralleling the rise in obesity rates. Glasgow, Scotland, which boasts the second-highest obesity rate of all countries studied by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, has seen an 80 percent rise in man boobs reduction surgery since 2007.

While most cases of moobs are related to problems with overweight, it seems that even thin and normal weight men are increasingly experiencing issues with breast enlargement. Go to any water park this summer and look around. Clearly, man boobs of all shapes and sizes are at epidemic levels and it isn’t just the boys and men struggling with their weight that are affected.

Something environmental is certainly at play here as I don’t ever remember seeing even one case of man boobs when I was growing up in Florida  – certainly never on a thin or normal weight guy!

Possible Causes of Male Hormonal Imbalance Leading to Gynecomastia

Could all the soy that is in the majority of processed foods today which has added plant estrogens (isoflavones) to the male diet at a rate never before seen in history be a factor in the development of man boobs?  Not even in Asia was soy ever consumed in the large amounts experienced by those eating a modern diet. Traditional Asian societies primarily consumed soy in small, condimental amounts after careful and long periods of fermentation.

Perhaps the increasing popularity of soy infant formula starting a few decades ago is partly to blame which exposes a male infant to disruptive levels of estrogen at a very vulnerable time for the developing hormonal system. An estimated 25% of North American babies today receive infant formula made from processed soybeans, mostly GMO.

An infant exclusively receiving soy formula consumes the estrogenic equivalent of at least 5 birth control pills every single day!

What about all the steroids, hormones and antibiotic laced feed used in the conventional dairy and meat industry? Consumption of foods from factory farmed animals containing pharmaceutical residues could be another contributing factor to the estrogen/testosterone imbalance at the root of gynecomastia.

No doubt there are multiple environmental reasons for the large and very worrisome increases in gynecomastia across the board.  For the person who suffers from it, however, the reason for the condition is not nearly as important as resolving it – and quickly!

Conventional Treatments for Gynecomastia Not at all Ideal

Conventional medicine maintains that many cases of gynecomastia resolve on their own within about two years. Even if this were true (anecdotally I would dispute this from the stories I hear), two years is a very long time at a very vulnerable stage in an adolescent’s emotional development.

Enduring the ridicule or avoiding social situations that require a bathing suit for that period of time seems unrealistic particularly in a warm weather climate.

Rather than wait and see for two long years only to resort later to drugs designed for breast cancer like tamoxifen and raloxifene or surgical reduction does not seem like a health promoting plan of action particularly for a young boy possibly already struggling with self esteem issues.

Moobs Respond Well to Dietary Change and Nutritional Support

According to Kim Schuette, CN, Certified GAPS™ Practitioner and owner of Biodynamic Wellness as well as the San Diego Chapter Leader for the Weston A. Price Foundation, gynecomastia responds extremely well to nutritional support and dietary change.

She has treated a number of cases successfully in recent years and the strategies employed by the staff at Biodynamic Wellness either via office visit, phone or Skype consultation include the following:

1. Immediately stop consumption of all sources of soy in order to remove plant estrogens from the diet. Because soy is in the vast majority of processed foods, this means freshly prepared, whole foods at home must become the rule rather than the exception. Many times, this change alone will resolve the problem.
2. Add iodine supplementation.  Kim uses Iodoral or Nascent Iodine in her practice.
3. Add Symplex M from Standard Process.
4. Castor oil packs over the liver and/or coffee enemas. These two therapies assist the liver in processing all that excess estrogen causing the hormonal imbalance relative to testosterone.
5. Increase dietary animal fats to at least one tablespoon per meal.
6. Eliminate all grains for 30-60 days. After that time incorporate properly prepared, soaked grains.
7. Emphasis on a Nourishing Traditional diet.
8. Whole Vitamin C (not synthetic ascorbic acid) helps metabolize excess estrogen.
9. Some people are poor methylators (proper methylation in liver detoxification is critical for eliminating excess estrogen) and may benefit from methylated B vitamins with the addition oftrimethylglycine (TMG). Fortunately, this last step is often not necessary.

Have you or someone you love suffered from gynecomastia?  Please share your experiences in the comment section.

Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist

 

A plea for African-Americans to get screened for diseases

BY JACQUELINE MUHAMMAD

 

 

A diagnosis with stage three Hodgkin lymphoma at the age of 12 led Julius Simmons of Springfield to make a lifetime commitment to health and medical research.

While urging a Springfield audience to get more involved in minority health issues, Simmons, now 42, said he learned there was little medical knowledge about the causes of cancer and its effects on his fellow African-Americans. Because of this void, he has participated in numerous cancer research studies throughout the years.

This year, more than 94,500 African-American men and more than 82,000 African-American women will be diagnosed with cancer. According to Stephen Hunt, regional director of health initiatives for the American Cancer Society, African-Americans have the highest rates of prostate and breast cancer in the country.

However, disease education and preventative care is lacking among African-American families. Community leaders from the Springfield Urban League, Springfield Community Federation, Springfield Housing Authority, American Cancer Society, Illinois Department of Public Health Center for Minority Health Services, and Poplar Place Townhomes gathered April 26 at the Springfield Community Federation for a minority health initiative in recognition of Minority Health Month.

Residents were welcomed to free health screenings including glucose, blood pressure, cholesterol and HIV/AIDS. Testing and screening was done by Wellness On Wheels, a program funded by the Illinois Department of Public Health Center for Minority Health to bring health care to families who don’t have access to screenings and testing.

Dr. Wesley McNeese, executive assistant to the dean for diversity and multicultural and minority affairs at the SIU School of Medicine, said African-Americans are reluctant to participate in medical research because of a lack of health care and education about diseases. He also said a large number of African-Americans don’t trust researchers. “There’s this history of mistrust in the African-American community so we have to convince them that situation is no longer the same and when they come into these kind of research projects that they’re going to be treated well,” he said.

He encourages people to get involved to keep research balanced. “If someone comes up with some cure or treatment for cancer and they use only white subjects to come up with answers, then they may come up with answers which are not relevant to us African-American people,” he said.

Simmons, executive director of the Springfield Community Federation, said as a child there was little medical research on children suffering from cancer. He also said that his family had dealt with cancer diagnoses before his, but his experience caused them to become more aware of their health.

He said he has become more involved in his health by changing his eating habits and his lifestyle and that through research he has learned how to take care of himself. “I can’t stress enough how important enough it is to get African-Americans participating in cancer research. It takes a sampling of the population to have an effective research program.”

For 38-year-old Hollie Morgan of Springfield, health has become a part of the discussion for her family as her children get older and learn about different diseases.

“As I’m trying to be a role model for my children I brought them with me so they could see that you don’t have to be afraid of getting your blood pressure checked or getting tested for viruses. There are a lot of people who don’t and they end up with diseases,” she said.

As part of the health initiative, Simmons took children from Brandon Drive to a community garden and helped them plant strawberries. He said taking time to encourage others to be involved in their health is important to him.

“I know and have experienced what can happen if you don’t watch your health,” he said. “It’s something as a cancer survivor that you’re constantly aware of.”

Contact Jacqueline Muhammad at intern@illinoistimes.com.

 

20 Pain Killers in your Kitchen

 

A GREAT ALTERNATIVE TO TAKING MEDICATION!!!!

Make muscle pain a memory with ginger

When Danish researchers asked achy people to jazz up their diets with ginger, it eased muscle and joint pain, swelling and stiffness for up to 63 percent of them within two months. Experts credit ginger’s potent compounds called gingerols, which prevent the production of pain-triggering hormones. The study-recommended dose: Add at least 1 teaspoon of dried ginger or 2 teaspoons of chopped ginger to meals daily.

Cure a toothache with cloves

Got a toothache and can’t get to the dentist? Gently chewing on a clove can ease tooth pain and gum inflammation for two hours straight, say UCLA researchers. Experts point to a natural compound in cloves called eugenol, a powerful, natural anesthetic. Bonus: Sprinkling a ¼ teaspoon of ground cloves on meals daily may also protect your ticker. Scientists say this simple action helps stabilize blood sugar, plus dampen production of artery-clogging cholesterol in as little as three weeks.

Heal heartburn with cider vinegar

Sip 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar mixed with 8 ounces of water before every meal, and experts say you could shut down painful bouts of heartburn in as little as 24 hours. “Cider vinegar is rich in malic and tartaric acids, powerful digestive aids that speed the breakdown of fats and proteins so your stomach can empty quickly, before food washes up into the esophagus, triggering heartburn pain,” explains Joseph Brasco, M.D., a gastroenterologist at the Center for Colon and Digestive Diseases in Huntsville, AL.

Erase earaches with garlic

Painful ear infections drive millions of Americans to doctors’ offices every year. To cure one fast, just place two drops of warm garlic oil into your aching ear twice daily for five days. This simple treatment can clear up ear infections faster than prescription meds, say experts at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. Scientists say garlic’s active ingredients (germanium, selenium, and sulfur compounds) are naturally toxic to dozens of different pain-causing bacteria. To whip up your own garlic oil gently simmer three cloves of crushed garlic in a half a cup of extra virgin olive oil for two minutes, strain, then refrigerate for up to two weeks, suggests Teresa Graedon, Ph.D., co-author of the book, Best Choices From The People’s Pharmacy. For an optimal experience, warm this mix slightly before using so the liquid will feel soothing in your ear canal.

Chase away joint and headache pain with cherries

Latest studies show that at least one in four women is struggling with arthritis, gout or chronic headaches. If you’re one of them, a daily bowl of cherries could ease your ache, without the stomach upset so often triggered by today’s painkillers, say researchers at East Lansing ’s Michigan State University . Their research reveals that anthocyanins, the compounds that give cherries their brilliant red color, are anti-inflammatories 10 times stronger than ibuprofen and aspirin. “Anthocyanins help shut down the powerful enzymes that kick-start tissue inflammation, so they can prevent, as well as treat, many different kinds of pain,” explains Muraleedharan Nair, Ph.D., professor of food science at Michigan State University . His advice: Enjoy 20 cherries (fresh, frozen or dried) daily, then continue until your pain disappears.

Fight tummy troubles with fish
Indigestion, irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel diseases…if your belly always seems to be in an uproar, try munching 18 ounces of fish weekly to ease your misery. Repeated studies show that the fatty acids in fish, called EPA and DHA, can significantly reduce intestinal inflammation, cramping and belly pain and, in some cases, provide as much relief as corticosteroids and other prescription meds. “EPA and DHA are powerful, natural, side effect-free anti-inflammatories, that can dramatically improve the function of the entire gastrointestinal tract,” explains biological chemist Barry Sears, Ph.D., president of the Inflammation Research Foundation in Marblehead , MA . For best results, look for oily fish like salmon, sardines, tuna, mackerel, trout and herring.

Prevent PMS with yogurt
Up to 80 percent of women will struggle with premenstrual syndrome and its uncomfortable symptoms, report Yale researchers. The reason: Their nervous systems are sensitive to the ups and downs in estrogen and progesterone that occur naturally every month. But snacking on 2 cups of yogurt a day can slash these symptoms by 48 percent, say researchers at New York ’s Columbia University . “Yogurt is rich in calcium, a mineral that naturally calms the nervous system, preventing painful symptoms even when hormones are in flux,” explains Mary Jane Minkin, M.D., a professor of gynecology at Yale University .

Tame chronic pain with turmeric

Studies show turmeric, a popular East Indian spice, is actually three times more effective at easing pain than aspirin, ibuprofen or naproxen, plus it can help relieve chronic pain for 50 percent of people struggling with arthritis and even fibromyalgia, according to Cornell researchers. That’s because turmeric’s active ingredient, curcumin, naturally shuts down cyclooxygenase 2, an enzyme that churns out a stream of pain-producing hormones, explains nutrition researcher Julian Whitaker, M.D. and author of the book, Reversing Diabetes. The study-recommended dose: Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon of this spice daily onto any rice, poultry, meat or vegetable dish.

End endometrial pain with oats

The ticket to soothing endometriosis pain could be a daily bowl of oatmeal. Endometriosis occurs when little bits of the uterine lining detach and grow outside of the uterus. Experts say these migrating cells can turn menstruation into a misery, causing so much inflammation that they trigger severe cramping during your period, plus a heavy ache that drags on all month long. Fortunately, scientists say opting for a diet rich in oats can help reduce endometrial pain for up to 60 percent of women within six months. That’s because oats don’t contain gluten, a trouble-making protein that triggers inflammation in many women, making endometriosis difficult to bear, explains Peter Green, M.D., professor of medicine at Colombia University .

Soothe foot pain with salt

Experts say at least six million Americans develop painful ingrown toenails each year. But regularly soaking ingrown nails in warm salt water baths can cure these painful infections within four days, say scientists at California ’s Stanford University . The salt in the mix naturally nixes inflammation, plus it’s anti-bacterial, so it quickly destroys the germs that cause swelling and pain. Just mix 1 teaspoon of salt into each cup of water, heat to the warmest temperature that you can comfortably stand, and then soak the affected foot area for 20 minutes twice daily, until your infection subsides.

Prevent digestive upsets with pineapple

Got gas? One cup of fresh pineapple daily can cut painful bloating within 72 hours, say researchers at California ’s Stanford University . That’s because pineapple is natually packed with proteolytic enzymes, digestive aids that help speed the breakdown of pain-causing proteins in the stomach and small intestine, say USDA researchers.

Relax painful muscles with peppermint

Suffering from tight, sore muscles? Stubborn knots can hang around for months if they aren’t properly treated, says naturopath Mark Stengler, N.D., author of the book, The Natural Physician’s Healing Therapies. His advice: Three times each week, soak in a warm tub scented with 10 drops of peppermint oil. The warm water will relax your muscles, while the peppermint oil will naturally soothe your nerves — a combo that can ease muscle cramping 25 percent more effectively than over-the-counter painkillers, and cut the frequency of future flare-ups in half, says Stengler.

Give your back some TLC with grapes

Got an achy back? Grapes could be the ticket to a speedy recovery. Recent studies at Ohio State University suggest eating a heaping cup of grapes daily can relax tight blood vessels, significantly improving blood flow to damaged back tissues (and often within three hours of enjoying the first bowl). That’s great news because your back’s vertebrae and shock-absorbing discs are completely dependent on nearby blood vessels to bring them healing nutrients and oxygen, so improving blood flow is essential for healing damaged back tissue, says Stengler.

Wash away pain injuries with water

Whether it’s your feet, your knees or your shoulders that are throbbing, experts at New York ’s Manhattan College , say you could kick-start your recovery in one week just by drinking eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily. Why? Experts say water dilutes, and then helps flush out, histamine, a pain-triggering compound produced by injured tissues. “Plus water is a key building block of the cartilage that cushions the ends of your bones, your joints’ lubricating fluid, and the soft discs in your spine,” adds Susan M. Kleiner, Ph.D., author of the book, The Good Mood Diet. “And when these tissues are well-hydrated, they can move and glide over each other without causing pain.” One caveat: Be sure to measure your drinking glasses to find out how large they really are before you start sipping, she says. Today’s juice glasses often hold more than 12 ounces, which means five servings could be enough to meet your daily goal.

Heal sinus problems with horseradish

Latest studies show sinusitis is the nation’s number one chronic health problem. And this condition doesn’t just spur congestion and facial pain, it also makes sufferers six times more likely to feel achy all-over. Horseradish to the rescue! According to German researchers, this eye-watering condiment naturally revs up blood flow to the sinus cavities, helping to open and drain clogged sinuses and heal sinus infections more quickly than decongestant sprays do. The study-recommended dose: One teaspoon twice daily (either on its own, or used as a sandwich or meat topping) until symptoms clear.

Beat bladder infections with blueberries

Eating 1 cup of blueberries daily, whether you opt for them fresh, frozen or in juice form, can cut your risk of a urinary tract infection (UTIs) by 60 percent, according to researchers at New Jersey’s Rutgers University. That’s because blueberries are loaded with tannins, plant compounds that wrap around problem-causing bacteria in the bladder, so they can’t get a toehold and create an infection, explains Amy Howell, Ph.D. a scientist at Rutgers University .

Heal mouth sores with honey

Dab painful canker and cold sores with unpasteurized honey four times daily until these skin woes disappear, and they’ll heal 43 percent faster than if you use a prescription cream, say researchers at the Dubai Specialized Medical Center in the United Arab Emirates . Raw honey’s natural enzymes zap inflammation, destroy invading viruses and speed the healing of damaged tissues, say the study authors.

Fight breast pain with flax

In one recent study, adding 3 tablespoons of ground flax to their daily diet eased breast soreness for one in three women within 12 weeks. Scientists credit flax’s phytoestrogens, natural plant compounds that prevent the estrogen spikes that can trigger breast pain. More good news: You don’t have to be a master baker to sneak this healthy seed into your diet. Just sprinkle ground flax on oatmeal, yogurt, applesauce or add it to smoothies and veggie dips.

Cure migraines with coffee

Prone to migraines? Try muscling-up your painkiller with a coffee chaser. Whatever over-the-counter pain med you prefer, researchers at the National Headache Foundation say washing it down with a strong 12- ounce cup of coffee will boost the effectiveness of your medication by 40 percent or more. Experts say caffeine stimulates the stomach lining to absorb painkillers more quickly and more effectively.

Tame leg cramps with tomato juice

At least one in five people regularly struggle with leg cramps. The culprit? Potassium deficiencies, which occur when this mineral is flushed out by diuretics, caffeinated beverages or heavy perspiration during exercise. But sip 10 ounces of potassium-rich tomato juice daily and you’ll not only speed your recovery, you’ll reduce your risk of painful cramp flare-ups in as little as 10 days, say UCLA researchers.

 

Hunger, Obesity, and Nutrition: Observations from the Field in Pittsburgh

by Zach Murray

SOURCE: AP/Robert F. Bukaty

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack speaks at Maine Medical Center, Thursday, March, 14, 2013 in Portland, Maine.

A panel at CAP tomorrow will examine the interrelation between hunger, obesity, and nutrition, a trifecta that impacts millions of Americans and merits significant public policy attention. Residents of cities such as Pittsburgh must travel considerably long distances to use their Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, or SNAP—formerly known as food stamps—benefits to purchase healthy foods frequently unavailable to them in their own communities. The unavailability of healthy foods in turn puts these residents at risk of obesity.

When considering the impact of obesity on the nation’s future, the value of U.S. Department of Agriculture programs and federal and state efforts such as the Healthy Food Financing Initiative is quite clear. Local solutions—such as expanding the number of community gardens to improve vacant community spaces and provide local sources for fresh produce, and ensuring that individuals and families can use SNAP benefits at farmers’ markets selling fresh produce—are important as well.

Research recently sponsored by the Emerson National Hunger Fellows Program and Just Harvest in Pittsburgh combines the USDA’s two indicators of food access—neighborhood poverty and distance—with a number of other critical indicators to develop a more inclusive and locally relevant list of “food desert” communities, the poor rural and urban communities lacking access to fresh fruits and vegetables. Assessments of SNAP retailers in more than 20 towns and neighborhoods in Allegheny County and Pittsburgh offer a clear picture of what types of food are available to area residents. Of the 74 stores assessed in food deserts, only 13 retailers offer a mostly limited selection of fresh produce. And of the 21 communities visited, only three had a grocery store.

In most of the assessed communities, more than 90 percent of the local grocery dollars are “leaked” into other distant, and often more affluent, communities. This means that vulnerable low-income families and individuals without vehicles or reliable access to public transportation must shell out additional cash for transportation to a grocery store. This unique surcharge on the poor, known locally in Pittsburgh as a “jitney,” cuts into valuable dollars that could be spent on more costly healthy foods or other vital household needs such as rent and energy bills.

Many residents regularly travel more than a mile or as much as 3.5 miles to access a nearby grocery store. Elderly residents and young parents frequently speak of their difficultly in accessing fresh foods and indicate clear dissatisfaction with the lack of walkable access to healthy food retail. Additionally, some communities in Allegheny County lack direct public transportation access to grocery stores. Residents of Clairton, Pennsylvania, for example—a heavily impoverished and low-vehicle-ownership community—must cross a dangerous highway to transfer between the two buses providing the most direct access to a grocery store. And to get to the nearest supermarket, they have to catch a bus and walk nearly a mile from the bus stop to the store.

As pointed out in multiple studies and two recent articles in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, many experts disagree as to whether a causal link exists between food deserts and the likelihood of residents being obese or overweight. There is not and may never be a definitive answer to this important research challenge. The experience in places such as Pittsburgh, however, makes it perfectly clear that communities with disparate access to healthy and affordable foods for all are setting up their residents for poor health outcomes.

The current focus of national-level food-desert measures on distance and poverty in neighborhoods as opposed to individual experiences overlooks important barriers and conditions that impede food access for many. Although the Hill District and Homewood are subjects of one of the largest studies of food deserts to date and arenotoriously known in Pittsburgh for the lack of fresh food and for the distances residents must regularly travel for grocery shopping, the USDA currently does not recognize either community as a food desert. While both communities are located within a mile of grocery stores, as the crow flies, anyone who has ever spent some time in Pittsburgh knows that within that mile are burdensome elevation shifts, often of several hundred feet. Unfortunately, the USDA metric used to locate food deserts leaves out important locally relevant indicators of food access such as topography, transportation accessibility, and rates of vehicle ownership. To more effectively inform future policies and target resources to people and neighborhoods with the most critical needs, the USDA should continue to revisit its approach to measuring food deserts to account for important local factors that affect food access.

Infrastructure barriers similar to those found in parts of Pittsburgh and in towns such as Clairton undoubtedly contribute to some local residents’ inability to maintain a healthy diet. If these families and individuals lack the resources or time necessary to travel to distant grocery stores, they are left to cope with dollar-store diets. While very few neighborhoods are left entirely without food sources, the stores in low-income communities and communities of color often offer mostly processed and preserved foods and limited fresh and nutritionally dense foods.

In recognition of the challenges these barriers pose to healthy food access, the USDA recently announced implementation of a SNAP nutrition education grants program. This initiative will provide full federal support to states for local organizations and SNAP retailers to promote nutrition education and increase the number of healthy options available to low-income residents.

There are also a number of indigenous solutions in the Pittsburgh area that could benefit significantly from support for healthy food initiatives and interventions from sources such as the USDA. Last year Just Harvest successfully advocated for the city to accept Electronic Benefit Transfer, or EBT, at each of the seven Citi Parks farmers markets. And the Loaves and Fishes buying club, an initiative developed by dedicated community members such as Rev. Les Boone, delivers fresh foods to residents of Hazelwood, a local food desert severely burdened by a lack of access. What’s more, the city of Pittsburgh is building upon a growing local urban agriculture movement by launching several edible gardens in low-income communities throughout the city.

In February 2011 CAP made the case for state action food plans that would enable states to identify food system needs and undertake such efforts to maximize the economic and nutritional impact of school meals and supplemental nutrition assistance. With federal funding and increased flexibility to support nutrition education efforts, states such as Pennsylvania can work with municipalities to develop initiatives that increase and incentivize EBT redemption at farmers markets and healthy food retailers, support homegrown models such as Loaves and Fishes, and allow even more community gardens to blossom.

In a visit to his hometown in 2008, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack recalled his own struggles of being tormented about his weight as a child growing up in Pittsburgh and how it presaged his lifelong battle with weight control. Today just blocks from where Secretary Vilsack grew up, new generations of Americans still encounter conditions that perpetuate obesity and poor health. The rapid increases in hunger and obesity affect us all and pose a threat to the future prosperity of the nation as a whole.

Although there may never be agreement on whether food deserts are a direct cause of obesity, Pittsburgh offers an instructive lesson: Access to affordable healthy food should be more than just a privilege for some; it should be a right for all. People have no chance to improve their health outcomes if they lack access to the resources that make better healthier choices possible.

 

Eating Disorders Actually Most Common in Midlife

By Cynthia M. Bulik

WeNews guest author

Typecasting them as teen afflictions is incorrect and poses dangerous challenges for adults seeking help, says Cynthia M. Bulik in this excerpt from her book “Midlife Eating Disorders.”

 

Credit: Laura Lewis on Flickr, under Creative Commons (CC BY 2.0).

(WOMENSENEWS)– When someone says “eating disorder,” what image do you conjure up? Chances are if you are like most people, you imagine a thin white upper- middle class teenage girl. Surprisingly, you couldn’t be more wrong.

Whatever preconceived notions you may have about who suffers from eating disorders, it’s time to erase them and start over. Granted, anorexia nervosa is more visible than other eating disorders; those afflicted are strikingly underweight, may look pale and may have other signs of the disorder such as dry skin and brittle hair. Pictures of someone with anorexia are shocking and attention-grabbing. The media love anything with a provoking visual hook. That’s why we are much more likely to read stories about anorexia in newspapers and magazines than stories about the less visual eating disorders such as bulimia nervosa or binge eating disorder.

Plus, people are more aware of the lethality of anorexia nervosa, and the media are always hot on the trail of any story about a celeb who dies, be it from anorexia nervosa, drug or alcohol abuse or suicide. Most people are less aware that other eating disorders also carry a death toll. The landscape of eating disorders has changed and we have to update our understanding of what they are and who they afflict.

If we look at the numbers, the most common profile of someone with an eating disorder is a woman in her 30s or 40s who struggles with weight control and suffers from binge eating disorder. But countless women and men in midlife and beyond–from all racial, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds–wake up each morning to an ongoing battle with eating and body image, with many suffering from anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, purging disorder, binge eating disorder and night eating syndrome.

Under the Radar

Millions more lurk below the diagnostic radar with enough disordered eating to disrupt their lives, but not to receive an official diagnosis.

On the surface, eating disorders play out similarly in adults and teens, but the context and the impact on their own and their families’ lives differs enormously. Some adults with eating and body-image-related disorders live productive lives and carry their illness around with them like a hidden secret. For others, eating disorders remove them from the playing field of life, impairing their ability to work, reproduce and love.

In the medical field, typecasting eating disorders as teen disorders poses dangerous challenges for adult women and men seeking compassionate care. Primary care physicians, obstetricians and gynecologists and other health care providers may overlook these disorders in adults or, even worse, demean women for not having “grown out” of these adolescent problems or ridicule men for having a “girls’ disorder.”

Partners and children suffer when adult women and men are afflicted. The cost of treatment renders families destitute and destroys relationships. Intimacy is crushed by body image concerns. Trust in relationships is shattered as women and men desperately try to hide their illness from others.

The treatments that we currently use were developed primarily for adolescent girls. We are only now starting to tailor treatments to deal with the specific challenges faced by adult women and men: how to recover when you have to work, engaging partners in recovery, developing parenting skills and protecting the next generation.

It feels as if the landscape has changed abruptly, and our understanding and compassion have lagged dangerously behind.

 

The 12 Best Foods That Fight Belly Fat

by Whitney Greer, BlackDoctor.org

It’s not just about working out, but eating healthy. Here are 12 belly-fat-fighting superstars…

1. Berries

Antioxidants can improve blood flow, delivering more oxygen to muscles, so ab revealing cardio is easier.

2. Sunflower Seeds

Sunflower seeds are packed with B vitamins and vitamin E, and are great for curbing hunger.

3. Avocados

Avocados are a great source of heart-healthy MUFAs (monounsaturated fatty acid), which are healthy fats.

4. Almonds

Almonds are a great source of vegetable protein and fiber.

5. Dark Chocolate

Chocolate protects against heart disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes.

6. Natural Peanut Butter

Peanut butter contains the antioxidant vitamin E, bone-building magnesium, muscle-friendly potassium, and immunity-boosting vitamin B6.

7. Green Tea

Three cups daily may boost your metabolism, and the compound ECGC makes it easier to burn fat.

8. Flaxseed Oil

Flaxseed oil is the best plant source of omega-3 fatty acids.

9. Whole Grains

Foods like oatmeal and brown rice, fill you up, keep your insulin levels low, and may shrink fat cells.

10. Macadamia Nuts

Macadamia nuts contain fiber, which helps with digestion.

11. Olive Oil

Olive oil contains MUFA, which lowers “bad” LDL cholesterol without affecting “good” HDL cholesterol.

12. Pistachios

Pistachios contain lutein and zeaxanthin, carotenoids that protect against age-related macular degeneration.

 

African Americans want access to reproductive health care, not judgment and rhetoric

By ELEANOR HINTON HOYTT

As a long-time reproductive justice advocate, I have spent the better part of my career working to ensure that women, regardless of income or background, have access to the care that they need. For me, Women’s History Month provides a perfect opportunity to take stock of the work that still needs to be done so that women and girls can claim agency over their own destinies.

A lot of progress has taken place over the past 100 years, but none has been as central to improving the lives of women and their families as access to safe and effective reproductive health care. Ironically, in many communities, we are still fighting to gain access to such basic care. In fact, the legislative battles of the past three years have been as intense and crucial as any we’ve fought since Roe v. Wade — the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in the U.S.

Numerous polls show overwhelming voter support for women’s access to affordable birth control, safe and legal abortion and preventive services, such as STD testing and treatment. Since 2011, legislators have introduced more than 1,100 rights-related provisions aimed at limiting or eliminating access to these services, according to the Guttmacher Institute. With almost 20 percent of African Americans uninsured and over 10 percent of Black families living below the poverty level, African Americans have a lot at stake in this fight.

Many efforts to eliminate access have been squarely targeted at communities of color, particularly African Americans. For example, In 2011 Mississippi legislators tried to pass a so-called “personhood” bill, which would have deemed a fetus a person and banned not only access to safe and legal abortion in the state but also emergency contraception, commonly known as the morning after pill. As the state with the highest percentage of African-Americans—37 percent—and one of the country’s highest poverty rates, Mississippi’s personhood bill would have had a disproportionate and devastating effect on the Black community. African Americans have also been the target of vitriolic anti-reproductive-rights campaigns in recent years, including one financed by Georgia Right to Life—a largely white, male conservative group––that put up billboards accusing Black women who choose to end their pregnancies of committing genocide.

All of this activity and notoriety has made Black women’s bodies the topic of hot debate in recent years. And yet, few polls have actually looked at African American support for reproductive health services, including birth control and safe, legal abortion. A new survey commissioned by a coalition of reproductive justice organizations is providing some definitive insight that legislators would do well to consider and reproductive justice advocates would be smart to act on.

The poll (conducted by Belden Russonello Strategists and sponsored by Black Women for Wellness, Black Women’s Health Imperative , New Voices Pittsburgh, SisterLove, Inc., SPARK Reproductive Justice and individual reproductive justice activists, in partnership with Communications Consortium Media Center) queried a random sample of more than 1,000 African-American adults. Surprisingly, 86 percent of African Americans believe that contraception is a part of basic health care. An even larger percentage believes that publicly funded health services should provide birth control to low-income women who want it.

When questioned about abortion, 79 percent of respondents said they support it remaining legal and that they believe it should be available in their own communities. In fact, African-American support for legalized abortion is nearly identical to the overall percentage of Americans who, in a recent USA Today/Gallup poll, said they support legalized abortion.

Most significantly, an overwhelming majority of African Americans said that regardless of how they personally feel about abortion, it should remain legal, and women should have access to safe care if and when they need it. This belief held across political and religious lines, with 74 percent of conservatives, 88 percent of liberals and more than three-quarters of regular churchgoers saying abortion should remain safe and legal.

These findings are enlightening and can be a persuasive argument against continued efforts by some legislators and interest groups to reduce access to reproductive health-care services and vilify the women who use them. Even today, following a national election that was won largely on the basis of how women—particularly women of color—voted, too many lawmakers are working to rescind the broadened access to birth control provided by the Affordable Care Act.

Given that African American women are more likely to experience pregnancies that result in poor maternal and infant health outcomes, we have an urgent need for our views to be accurately represented and seriously considered. This new poll makes clear to lawmakers and groups that would target our communities with racially charged rhetoric that a majority of African Americans—like most other Americans—believe women, not politicians, should be trusted to make decisions about their reproductive health. Getting out of the way of women and our ability to access the care we need is the best way to pay tribute to Women’s History Month.

Eleanor Hinton Hoytt is the president and CEO, Black Women’s Health Imperative

 

5 Reasons Massages Aren’t Just For Pampering Yourself

By Kate Greenleaf

 

Many people believe that going to a massage therapist is just a way to pamper or indulge yourself. This is why so many of us wait to have one; we treat it as a way to reward ourselves for special occasions, like birthdays or vacations. The truth is, the benefits of receiving a therapeutic massage run much deeper than the superficial “feeling good” — which seems like a good enough reason, in my mind!

There are endless positive benefits to receiving a massage, but here are just a few:

1. Receiving a massage can alleviate chronic pain. 

This may seem obvious, but there are many people out there who live with chronic back, shoulder and neck issues. Massages can reduce the causes of this pain, which can be a healthier and more holistic approach than reaching for synthetic drugs or other forms of pain relief.

2. Massages promote better sleep. 

Many people struggle with falling asleep or staying asleep. When we get a massage, it not only reduces tension in the muscles, but it can also change our hormone levels in such a way that allows for more profound relaxation to arise. Massage therapy has been linked to increased delta waves in the brain, which are connected to deeper, more restful sleep.

3. Massage therapy may relieve mild depression. 

Massage therapy has been touted for releasing the tension, stress and anxiety that is often accompanied with mild depression. It’s believed that receiving physical touch can change our bio-chemisty and lower our cortisol levels, our bodies stress hormone. If our cortisol levels are too high on a regular basis it can lead to all kinds of imbalance in our system, including feelings of depression. Massage therapy can be a beautiful, natural way to regulate these hormones levels thus creating a more relaxed, improved state in our overall mental and physical wellbeing.

4. Getting a massage is a great way to boost your immunity.

When we’re stressed and anxious all the time, it’s harder for our bodies to fight off and defend against the pathogens we’re exposed to every single day. Even a light, gentle touch can allow the lymphatic system to drain and release waste like bacteria and viruses from the body more efficiently, increasing our chances to fight off the germs we come in contact with as a part of our everyday lives.

5. Self massages can ease your financial concerns.

If you’re someone who finds that taking the time to schedule a massage on a more regular basis is a challenge, or you feel hindered by the cost, you can always try self massages. Begin by finding the right oil — I like using sesame or coconut oil. You can add a few drops of high quality therapeutic grade essential oil to it, like lavender (this part isn’t necessary but adds a lot to the experience). I’ll have my health coaching and massage clients begin practicing this by focusing on the major joints in the body first. You can begin by gently rubbing the oil into your neck area, shoulders, elbows and wrists. Then continue by moving to your hips, knees and ankles. If that’s all you have time for, that’s still going to be of great benefit to you and will naturally lubricate these often neglected areas of the body.

So the next time you’re thinking about getting a massage, remember that the experience runs much deeper than just pampering yourself. Having a massage can be seen as a great tool for improving your overall health, and it’s a step in the direction for increasing your own capability to enhance and practice exceptional self care.

 

Computer Posture

 

Researchers show vitamin D supplementation may help African-Americans lower blood pressure

Brigham and Women’s Hospital study could have widespread public health benefits

High blood pressure, a risk factor for heart attacks, heart failure and stroke, is 40 percent more common in African-Americans than in other American ethnic groups. In a new study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), along with the Dana-FarberCancer Institute and Massachusetts General Hospital, researchers show that vitamin Dsupplementation may help African-Americans lower their blood pressure. The study publishes online in the March 13, 2013 edition of the American Heart Association journalHypertension.

“This study may explain and help treat an important public health disparity,” said the study’s lead author, John Forman, MD, a physician in the Renal Division and Kidney Clinical Research Institute at BWH. “More research is needed, but these data may indicate that vitamin D supplementation lowers blood pressure in African-Americans.”

To conduct the study, 250 African-American adult voluntary research participants were divided into four groups. Three of the groups received a three-month regimen of daily vitamin D supplementation at various doses that ranged between 1,000 and 4,000 units. The fourth group received a placebo. Participants in the placebo group saw their systolic blood pressure rise, but participants in the supplementation group had their systolic blood pressure decrease by one to four points, with those who received the highest dose benefiting the most. Systolic blood pressure is the top number in a blood pressure reading; it measures the pressure in the arteries when the heart beats.

“The gains were modest, but significant,” said Forman. “If further research supports our finding, widespread use of vitamin D supplementation in African-Americans could have significant public health benefits.”

 

Blueberries Fight Belly Fat!

by Gemma Greene, BlackDoctor.org, Staff Writer

Health experts have always raved about the health benefits of blueberries, but now, a new University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center study suggests that blueberries may help reduce belly fat and risk factors for heart disease and metabolic syndrome.

Blueberries are the fruits of a shrub that belong to the heath family, which includes the cranberry and bilberry as well as the azalea, mountain laurel and rhododendron.

Blueberries are the fruits of a shrub that belong to the heath family, which includes the cranberry and bilberry as well as the azalea, mountain laurel and rhododendron.

Blueberries grow in clusters and range in size from that of a small pea to a marble. They are deep in color, ranging from blue to maroon to purple-black, and feature a white-gray waxy “bloom” that covers the surface serving as a protective coat. The skin surrounds a semi-transparent flesh that encases tiny seeds.

According to a study presented at the 2009 Experimental Biology conference in New Orleans, a diet rich in blueberries lowers blood cholesterol levels while improving glucose control and insulin sensitivity, lowering the risk of subsequent heart disease and diabetes.

Just some of the benefits of blueberries include:

They have the highest antioxidant capacity of all fresh fruit: Blue Berries, being very rich in antioxidants like Anthocyanin, vitamin C, B complex, vitamin E, vitamin A, copper (a very effective immune builder and anti-bacterial), selenium, zinc, iron (promotes immunity by raising haemoglobin and oxygen concentration in blood) etc. boost up your immune system and prevent infections. Once your immunity is strong, you won’t catch colds, fever, pox and all such nasty viral and bacterial communicable diseases.

They neutralize free radicals which can affect disease and aging in the body: Blue Berries bring you the brightest ray of hope, for they are laden with anti oxidants and rank number 1 in the world of anti oxidants. This is mainly due to presence of Anthocyanin, a pigment responsible for the blue color of the blueberries. The abundance of vitamin-C is also a big factor for this as well.

They aid in reducing belly fat: A new University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center study suggests that blueberries may help reduce belly fat and risk factors for cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. So far, we know that the fruit works on rats, which were the test subjects. A blueberry-enriched powder was mixed into the rats’ diet, which was either low-fat or high-fat rat chow. After 90 days, the rats with the blueberry-enriched diet had less abdominal fat, lower triglycerides, lower cholesterol and improved fasting glucose and insulin sensitivity.

In addition, their health was even better when combined with the low-fat diet. That group had lower body weight, lower total fat mass and reduced liver mass than the rats on the high-fat diet. An enlarged liver is linked to obesity and insulin resistance, a hallmark of diabetes. Although more research is needed to confirm these results in humans, a related study presented at the same conference showed that men with risk factors for heart disease who drank wild blueberry juice for three weeks seemed to experience slight improvements in glucose and insulin control.

They help promote urinary tract health: The building of colonies of certain bacteria like b-coli along the lining of the inner walls of urinary tract is responsible for this infection, resulting in inflammation, burning sensation during in passage of urine and other complications. Here, Blue Berries can be surprisingly beneficial. It has a compound formed of big polymer like heavy molecules which inhibits the growth of such bacteria. It also has some anti biotic properties which adds to this effect. These heavy and big molecules almost wash-off these bacteria along the tract, thereby preventing the infection.

They help preserve vision: Blueberry extract, high in compounds called anthocyanosides, has been found in clinical studies to slow down visual loss. They can prevent or delay all age related ocular problems like macular degeneration, cataract, myopia and hypermetropia, dryness and infections, particularly those pertaining to retina, due to their anti-oxidant properties. Blue Berries contain a special group of anti oxidants called Carotenoids (lutein, zeaxanthin etc.), Flavonoids (like rutin, resveritrol, quercetin etc.), in addition to others such as vitamin C, vitamin E and vitamin A, selenium, zinc and phosphorus, which are very beneficial and essential for the ocular health. Data reported in a study published in the Archives of Ophthalmology indicates that eating 3 or more servings of fruit per day may lower your risk of age-related macular degeneration (ARMD), the primary cause of vision loss in older adults, by 36%, compared to persons who consume less than 1.5 servings of fruit daily.

Brain Health: The anthocyanin, the selenium, the vitamins A, B-complex, C and E, the zinc, sodium, potassium, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, manganese etc., among others, can prevent and heal neurotic disorders by preventing degeneration and death of neurons, brain-cells and also by restoring health of the central nervous system. It is hard to believe that these berries can also cure serious problems like Alzheimer’s disease to a great extent. They even heal damaged brain cells and neuron tissues and keep your memory sharp for a long-long time. Researchers found that diets rich in blueberries significantly improved both the learning capacity and motor skills of aging animals, making them mentally equivalent to much younger ones.

They fight heart disease: The high fiber content, those brilliant anti oxidants and the ability to dissolve the ‘bad cholesterol’ make the Blue Berry an ideal dietary supplement to cure many heart diseases. It also strengthens the cardiac muscles. In this study, published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, researchers found that a moderate drink (about 4 ounces) of white wine contained .47 mmol of free radical absorbing antioxidants, red wine provided 2.04 mmol, and a wine made from highbush blueberries delivered 2.42 mmol of these protective plant compounds.

They relieve constipation & aid in healthy digestion: While roughage (fiber) in Blue Berries keep away constipation (Of course, a single piece alone will not do. You need to eat a big handful of them), the vitamins, sodium, copper, fructose and acids improve digestion.

They may prevent/cure certain cancers: Blue Berries can prove to be bliss for the cancer patients, for they contain certain compounds like Pterostilbene (excellent remedy for colon and liver cancer) and Ellagic Acid which, in harmony with Anthocyanin and other anti oxidants like vitamin-C and copper, can do miracles to prevent and cure cancer. Laboratory studies published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry show that phenolic compounds in blueberries can inhibit colon cancer cell proliferation and induce apoptosis (programmed cell death). A significant 34% reduction in ovarian cancer risk was also seen in women with the highest intake of the flavone luteolin (found in citrus).

Other blueberry benefits: They keep you fresh, active, fit, sharp, close to nature and in a good mood, as they are very good antidepressants. You also need not spend a lot on medicines, neither are there any side effects. Remember, the deeper the color of the Blue Berries, the more they are rich in anti oxidants and other medicinal values.

Which blueberries are the BEST blueberries?

Choose blueberries that are firm and have a lively, uniform hue colored with a whitish bloom. Shake the container, noticing whether the berries have the tendency to move freely; if they do not, this may indicate that they are soft and damaged or moldy. Avoid berries that appear dull in color or are soft and watery in texture.

They should be free from moisture since the presence of water will cause the berries to decay. When purchasing frozen berries, shake the bag gently to ensure that the berries move freely and are not clumped together, which may suggest that they have been thawed and refrozen.

 

Infographic: How Soft Drinks Impact Your Health

 

Is Having A Child A Rational Decision?

by TANIA LOMBROZO

 

 

Debates about whether it’s rational to have children are nothing new. Recent books like David Benatar’s Better to Have Never Been: The Harm of Coming Into Existence, Bryan Caplan’sSelfish Reasons to Have More Kids, Christine Overall’s Why Have Children: The Ethical Debate, and Jessica Valenti’s Why Have Kids? span the full range of views, from passionate pleas against procreation to more light-hearted defenses.

Last year at the Huffington Post, Lisa Belkin suggested that most academic discussions of parenthood fail to address why so many people actually have kids. Most people don’t decide to start a family after logical and ethical debate; they’re moved (says Belkin):

To create a family. To craft a whole greater than yourself, of which you will eternally be a part. To take part in a life from its start to your own finish.

In other words, they’re moved by what they think it would be like to have a child and how that fits in with their vision of a full life.

Is it possible that having a child is neither rational nor irrational, but outside the scope of rational decision making altogether?

In a surprising development, Belkin may have found an advocate from within the halls of academe: philosopher L.A. Paul. In a controversial new paper forthcoming in the journal Res Philosophica, Paul argues that having a child is an “epistemically-transformative experience,” and therefore one for which rational decision-making procedures, such as maximizing your “expected utility,” simply don’t apply.

Let’s unpack that a bit.

Paul begins with a common procedure for how someone with the luxury of deciding whether to have a child might go about making the decision. First, she (or he) considers what it would be like to have a child, and what it would be like not to have a child. After careful thought, our hypothetical person determines whether she has a preference for one outcome or the other, and she pursues that outcome accordingly.

The problem, suggests Paul, is that one can’t know what it’s like to have a child of one’s own before actually having such a child. And that means that our childless decision-maker isn’t in a position to evaluate one of her options to see how it stacks up against the alternative.

It’s important to note that Paul isn’t assuming that having a child is so wonderful and fulfilling that someone without children simply couldn’t comprehend a parent’s child-induced bliss. In fact, having a child could make someone miserable. Paul’s point is precisely that you cannot knowwhat the experience of having your own child will be like until you experience it, whether the experience is positive, negative or somewhere in between. This is the sense in which having a child is an epistemically-transformative experience: it puts you in a position of access to knowledge that you didn’t have before.

The classic philosophical example of an epistemically-transformative experience comes from apaper by Frank Jackson in which he introduces Mary, a hypothetical neuroscientist and genius who knows all there is to know about how light is processed by the retina, how the visual cortex and other brain areas generate perceptions of color, and so on. (If this isn’t plausible today, feel free to fast-forward a few centuries — Jackson is willing to grant her all the knowledge of a “complete” science.) But poor Mary has been raised in a black and white cell and has never seen the color red. Jackson argues that she can’t know what it’s like to see red until she actually has the experience of seeing red. The title of Paul’s paper, “What Mary can’t expect when she’s expecting,” is a clever play on this well-known thought experiment.

If Paul is right, then we’re simply wrong to think that decisions about epistemically-transformative experiences can be made rationally, whether it’s having a child or seeing red for the first time.

In a blog post at Crooked Timber written with sociologist Kieran Healy, Paul sums up her argument as follows:

We are not arguing that it is right or wrong to have a child. Nor are we saying people shouldn’t be happy with their choice. You can be happy with a child or blissfully child-free. But if you are happy, you shouldn’t congratulate yourself on your wise decision—you should be thankful for your good luck. Choosing to have a child involves a leap of faith, not a carefully calibrated rational choice …

The standard story of parenthood says it’s a deeply fulfilling event that is like nothing else you’ve ever experienced, and that you should carefully weigh what it will be like before choosing to do it. But in reality you can’t have it both ways.

Paul’s paper has generated a lot of buzz in the philosophical blogosphere. Brian Leiter calls it smart and interesting, and says it “rings true.” Jason Streitfeld at Specter of Reason is more critical; several folks at New APPS: Art, Politics, Philosophy, Science praise the paper but wonder whether a richer cultural vocabulary for parenthood could close the epistemic gap between parents and non-parents, whether models of religious belief might be a more appropriate guide for decisions about life-transforming experiences than decision theory, andhow to cash out what counts as a transformative experience in the first place. For my own response to Paul’s argument you can visit this companion post at Psychology Today.

Part of what I admire about Paul’s paper is its elegant fusion of real life with real philosophy — she doesn’t shy away from a difficult topic, but tackles it with clarity, care, and a full philosophical arsenal.

“The great challenge for the sort of philosophy that I do,” Paul shared with me by e-mail, “is to connect rigorously developed theories of mind, metaphysics, language and epistemology to questions that really matter to people. It can be hard to connect the pure with the practical in a productive way, but I think the interest in this paper shows that contemporary philosophers see the value of trying to do that.”