Monthly Archive for July, 2011

The Illusions of Psychiatry

Published on July 29, 2011 in News. 0 Comments

By Marcia Angell from The New York Review of Books

In my article in the last issue, I focused mainly on the recent books by psychologist Irving Kirsch and journalist Robert Whitaker, and what they tell us about the epidemic of mental illness and the drugs used to treat it.1 Here I discuss the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)—often referred to as the bible of psychiatry, and now heading for its fifth edition—and its extraordinary influence within American society. I also examine Unhinged, the recent book by Daniel Carlat, a psychiatrist, who provides a disillusioned insider’s view of the psychiatric profession. And I discuss the widespread use of psychoactive drugs in children, and the baleful influence of the pharmaceutical industry on the practice of psychiatry.

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Babies, Breast Milk, and Bifidobacteria

Published on July 26, 2011 in News and Newsletter. 0 Comments

By Meghan Rosen from 3 Quarks Daily

Earlier this year, a London ice cream parlor debuted an attention-grabbing new flavor that made headlines around the world and sold out within days.  The flavor, Baby Gaga, was infused with Madagascan vanilla and lemon zest and served in a martini glass chilled with liquid nitrogen. But at over $22 a serving, customers weren’t coming for its gourmet spices or upscale presentation; they were coming for its star ingredient, its claim to fame: human breast milk.

Just a week after giving birth, women who exclusively breastfeed produce, on average, more than 500 milliliters of milk per day.  In parlor measurements, that’s about a pint of liquid.  At 6 weeks, this amount has typically increased by about 50%; in some highly productive women, it can even double.  For women with an abundant supply, excess milk can be drawn out with an electric pump and stored for future consumption (by baby, or in London, by high-paying ice cream connoisseurs.)

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Gutted: Book Review of A Modern History of the Stomach: Gastric Illness, Medicine and British Society by Ian Miller

Published on July 22, 2011 in News. 0 Comments

By Steven Shapin from London Review of Books

Book Review: Modern History of the Stomach: Gastric Illness, Medicine and British Society by Ian Miller

Alexis St Martin was one of the 19th century’s most important scientific guinea pigs. In 1822, the illiterate young French-Canadian was working as a ‘voyageur’ for John Jacob Astor’s fur-trading company in northern Michigan. He was hanging out with a bunch of rowdies in the company store when a shotgun accidentally went off and he was hit below his left nipple. The injury was serious and likely to be fatal – his half-digested breakfast was pouring out of the wound from his perforated stomach, along with bits of the stomach itself – but a US army surgeon called William Beaumont was nevertheless sent for. Beaumont was pessimistic, but he cleaned the wound as best he could and was amazed the next day to find his patient still alive. It was touch and go for almost a year: St Martin survived, though with a gastric fistula about two and a half inches in circumference. It was now possible for Beaumont to peer into St Martin’s stomach, to insert his forefinger into it, to introduce muslin bags containing bits of food and to retrieve them whenever he wanted. Human digestion had become visible.

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Weighing Cancer Risks, From Cellphones to Coffee

Published on July 19, 2011 in News and Newsletter. 0 Comments

AP Photo/Paul Sakuma

By Marilynn Marchione, AP Medical Writer from physorg.coom

Despite all the recent news about possible cancer risks from cellphones, coffee, styrene and formaldehyde in building materials, most of us probably face little if any danger from these things with ordinary use, health experts say. Inactivity and obesity may pose a greater cancer risk than chemicals for some people.

“We are being bombarded” with messages about the dangers posed by common things in our lives, yet most exposures “are not at a level that are going to cause cancer,” said Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, the American Cancer Society’s deputy chief medical officer.

Linda Birnbaum agrees. She is a toxicologist who heads the government agency that just declared styrene, an ingredient in fiberglass boats and Styrofoam, a likely cancer risk.

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Vegan: Great For Kids!

Published on July 15, 2011 in News and Newsletter. 0 Comments

Image Courtsey of seaskylab

By Kathy Freston from Huffingtion Post

Bill Clinton and Mike Tyson have joined the ranks of Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi in adopting a vegan diet, clearly signaling the popularity of the diet among adults. What I’ve been hearing as I travel around the country, though, is that more and more kids are adopting a vegan way of eating, and some parents who are unfamiliar with it are curious about this new trend, especially since it’s so different from what they grew up with. So how should you react when your child announces one day, “Mom/Dad, that’s it — no more meat, dairy, or eggs for me!”?

First of all, be really happy. Children today are in the worst physical shape of any generation in history. One in three is overweight. One in five has an abnormal cholesterol level while still in high school. One in thre

e children born in 2000 will develop diabetes at some point in his or her life, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A child who has decided to go vegetarian — or, better still, vegan — gains a measure of protection against all of these problems. And isn’t it a great thing that your child cares and is concerned about where his or her food comes from? Good job! Developing and acting on empathy is surely a good thing for everyone.

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How to Cope with Stress

Published on July 8, 2011 in News. 0 Comments

Image Courtesy of Ambro

By Walter E Jacobson, M.D  from Huffington Post

Common symptoms of stress, particularly prolonged stress, are depression, anxiety, insomnia, irritability, anger, reactivity and impulsivity. Stress can affect appetite, energy levels and motivation. It can alter one’s perceptions, thoughts, insight and judgment. People who are stressed out just don’t think as clearly, they’re out of balance, they’re disconnected from their higher, intuitive self and they are more vulnerable to a variety of illnesses, both physical and emotional.

Stress, in general, weakens the immune system and diminishes the body’s ability to fend off illness and infection, making it more difficult for the body to repair and heal. Prolonged stress, with its dampening of the immune system, can generate headaches, muscle aches, neck- and backaches, constipation, diarrhea, gastro-esophogeal reflux, ulcers, high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.

The Red Juice in Raw Red Meat Isn’t Blood

Published on July 1, 2011 in News and Newsletter. 0 Comments

From Misconception Junction

Nearly all blood is removed from meat during slaughter, which is also why you don’t see blood in raw “white meat”; only an extremely small amount of blood remains within the muscle tissue when you get it from the store.So what is that red liquid you are seeing in red meat? Red meats, such as beef, are composed of quite a bit of water. This water, mixed with a protein called myoglobin, ends up comprising most of that red liquid.

In fact, red meat is distinguished from white meat primarily based on the levels of myoglobin in the meat. The more myoglobin, the redder the meat. Thus most animals, such as mammals, with a high amount of myoglobin, are considered “red meat”, while animals with low levels of myoglobin, like most poultry, or no myoglobin, like some sea-life, are considered “white meat”.

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