Author: Hill Castle
Expectant mothers are quite familiar with the importance of ensuring they get enough folic acid to help prevent birth defects like spina bifida, but it turns out that there’s another group who can benefit greatly from this vitamin: adults with hypertension. According to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, adults with hypertension who took a combination supplement of folic acid and enalapril noted a 73 percent decrease in their risk of experiencing a first stroke when compared to those who took enalapril on its own. It’s a significant finding when you consider stroke is…
As more children are being prescribed psychiatric drugs for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, misuse is also on the rise, prompting experts to question why so many kids are being told they need psychiatric drugs in the first place. The journal Pediatrics reports that poison control centers saw more than 150,000 calls related to people younger than 20 being improperly exposed to such meds from 2000 to 2014. Some of the drugs that are commonly prescribed for ADHD include Ritalin, Adderall and Concerta. It’s not surprising when you consider that around 6.1 million children aged 2 to 17 have been diagnosed…
People who regularly eat peanuts are in for a treat: A study in the Journal of Nutrition & Intermediary Metabolism revealed that those who snack on peanuts – in particular, women – significantly cut back on their total snack consumption. In particular, researchers from the University of Adelaide, University of South Australia, and The University of Newcastle arrived at this result after looking at how peanuts, a popular and filling snack item, can affect snacking habits and energy intake in people under a nut-free diet. For the study, researchers involved 61 healthy participants; the group had a mean age of 65 and an average body mass…
If you think eating healthy throughout the week is enough to warrant you a high-fat cheat day, think again. Scientists report that just having a single high-fat meal is enough for our bodies to be at risk for cardiovascular disease. The study, published at Laboratory Investigation, stated that consuming a meal with a calorie content similar to that of restaurants quickly transforms red blood cells into “small, spiky cells that wreak havoc inside our blood cells.” From their clinical trials, researchers from the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) observed that relatively healthy individuals, after consuming a single milkshake made with…
In today’s world, where buzzwords rule and people are always looking for the next best superfood, it’s a shame that they’ve overlooked a potential candidate growing right in their lawns. While most consider the burdock as a perennial pest, it’s actually a nutrient-dense plant that offers a lot by way of health-giving benefits. The burdock plant (Arctium lappa), also referred to as the great burdock, is part of the sunflower family. It’s a biennial plant that easily grows regardless of sunshine conditions and thrives in undisturbed areas. The plant is native to the Eurasian continent, where it’s seen almost everywhere,…
Eggs are sometimes referred to as “nature’s perfect food,” and it’s easy to see why. They’re healthy, easy to digest, and complete, and consuming them can even help you reduce your weight. Full of nutrients like B-vitamins, iron and zinc, they’re also incredibly nutritious. With so many benefits, you’d think everyone would be eating eggs all the time, but they’re not. Unfortunately, many people still believe the myth that eggs raise your cholesterol, even though study after study has shown this isn’t the case. In fact, a new study from the University of Sydney has shown that eating as many…
Concerns about soon-to-be-everywhere 5g technology (and really, WiFi and cellphone radiation in general) are on the rise. Studies continue to point to a substantial number of health risks associated with exposure to the radio-frequency (RF) radiation and electromagnetic field (EMF) radiation these kinds of things emit. Despite the growing body of research which shows radio-frequency radiation is a human health hazard, the mainstream media and other puppets of the tech industry have been quick to try and shut down the conversation about what kinds of ill effects may await us beyond the gates of wireless technology. Bu壯陽藥 t, in the…
Anyone who has received a breast cancer diagnosis will confirm that it is an absolutely terrifying experience. Battling the disease is both physically and emotionally devastating. Winning that battle and entering remission is only the first step on the road to long-term health, however. Knowing just what changes to make to stay cancer-free are vitally important. Johns Hopkins Breast Center warns that the risk of breast cancer recurrence is highest in the first two years of remission, and that no breast cancer patient will ever be out of the woods entirely. Nonetheless, there are positive steps that all of us…
As stories on the dangers of opioid use continue to come out, researchers have uncovered a potential link between these drugs and increased pain. The findings, presented at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting, showed that acute traumatic spinal cord injury patients who’d been prescribed opioids were more likely to feel pain a year after their injuries. Jennifer Bush, presenting author and medical student at the McGovern Medical School of the University of Texas Health Science Center, stated that opioids are a common form of pain management for these kinds of patients. “However, studies of animals with spinal cord…
Using medical cannabis to alleviate the ravages of Alzheimer’s disease or numb the pain that comes with PMS is one thing. Smoking weed everyday for kicks is another thing entirely. The number of young Americans who use marijuana on an everyday basis has reportedly reached a record high, according to an article in The Nation’s Health. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) released the results of its nationwide survey on September 2017. According to its survey, 7.8 percent of all college and non-college adults use marijuana at least once a day. That’s the highest it has gotten since the 1980s.…
WASHINGTON, D.C., May 31, 2018 (LifeSiteNews) – The Trump administration is investigating Hawaii and California for forcing pro-life pregnancy centers to promote abortion, according to a new report. (Article by Calvin Freiburger republished from LifeSiteNews) The Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of Civil Rights has sent letters to both states notifying them of the investigations. The letters say the government is looking into whether their requirements that crisis pregnancy centers inform women how to obtain government assistance for abortions violate federal civil rights rules, the Wall Street Journal reports. HHS is also examining California’s mandate that most health insurance plans…
What the humble cumin lacks in appearance it more than makes up for it in its princely health benefits. The spice is one of the more popular natural remedies in Ayurvedic medicine and is used quite often in many Indian, Asian and Mexican cuisines. The taste of the condiment is quite strong — chefs recommend only using a small amount to flavor any dish. Yet its popularity is not really due to its culinary use but in its ability to flood the body with important phytochemicals that keep our bodies strong. Do you know that cumin contains 18 amino acids?…
Many people believe that the 1.6 million people who die of lung cancer each and every year are just older citizens that have been smoking heavily for years. The truth is, however, that that couldn’t be more wrong. According to a new Norwegian-Greek study published in the Lancet-affiliated EBioMedicine Journal, those who are young and haven’t smoked very much are still at risk of developing lung cancer at some point in their lives. This finding has put even more emphasis on the importance of educating the public about risk factors, of which there are seven: increasing age, pack-years (which refers to how…
American researchers claim they are coming closer to a working birth control pill for men. In a Daily Mail article, they reported that the contraceptive compound EP055 temporarily turned off the swimming ability of sperm in male monkeys. They tested the compound on male macaques. Per their findings, the immobilizing effect took place 30 hours after infusion. Immobile sperm will have a very hard time reaching the egg for fertilization. None of the lab animals displayed negative side effects. Researchers theorize that EP055 did not alter the male hormones of the monkeys. The compound itself is not a hormone, either. In…
People who check the nutrition labels are more likely to eat healthier, according to a study led by researchers at the Miguel Hernandez University in Spain. In the study, the researchers investigated how looking at nutrition labels affected the dietary intakes of over 1,000 university students. The participants were asked to answer whether they usually read nutrition labels on packaged foods. With their answers, they were classified as label-users or non-users. Their adherence to the Mediterranean diet was also evaluated using the relative Mediterranean Diet Score (rMED), in which positive scores are attributed to fruits, vegetables, legumes, fish, olive oil, and cereals. On…
Ashwagandha was proven to be effective for managing and treating arthritis of the knee, according to a study published in the Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine. The study was carried out by researchers from Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) looked at the efficacy and tolerability of the combination of the root and leaf extracts of ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), also known as Indian ginseng. Ashwagandha is a plant that belongs to the Solanaceae family and is widely used in Ayurvedic medicine for its therapeutic effects on a variety of musculoskeletal conditions, such as arthritis and rheumatism, and as a general…
A workshop to explore, define, and promote the adoption of lighting systems, particularly for healthcare environments, was carried out and sponsored by the Center for Lighting Enabled Systems & Applications (LESA) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Illumination Engineering Society (IES). The workshop was attended by lighting and human health researchers, healthy-lighting design experts, senior representatives from healthcare standards organizations, and healthcare providers. The workshop also aimed to initiate a crucial discussion among different stakeholders on the changes in modern healthcare interior lighting applications. “Today, the field of lighting and health care is undergoing rapid development,” said Robert F. Karlicek…
If you have kids, one of the most difficult things to do is to feed them vegetables. Different strategies, such as repeated food exposure, food adaptations, mealtime adaptations, social factors, nutrition education, and mixed-methods interventions, may help you get your child to eat more vegetables. Among all these methods, repeated exposure was found to be the most effective for increasing vegetable consumption of children aged two to five years, according to a study published in the journal Current Nutrition Reports. A team of researchers from Loughborough University and Aston University, both located in the U.K., reviewed methods for feeding more vegetables to…
Not all couples discuss their physical fitness, especially since it may cause disagreements. However, this can be bad for your relationship because fitness is more than just looking good in a bathing suit or having abs. If you wait until the other person becomes too unhealthy before you start discussing their fitness, it may be too late. For example, men may not pay that much attention to their appearance or fitness after marriage, but women tend to be more aware of how much they weigh or what they look like. The facts According to behavioral scientists, human behavior is “primarily motivated…
The Canadian archipelago of Haida Gwaii is returning traditional Haida food to their two major hospitals. A Hakai Magazine article states that the move is part of a nationwide effort to improve food practices and policies in Canada’s hospitals. Found off the northwestern coast of British Columbia, Haida Gwaii is the ancestral homeland of the Haida Nation. To this day, the residents of the sparsely populated islands catch fish from the Pacific Ocean and collect food from the land. The Haida people collect butter clams, razor clams, salmon, and seaweed from the abundant waters. The forests provide them with blueberries,…
When it comes to snacking, popcorn is usually thought of as one of the healthier snacks out there. It’s low in calories, rich in antioxidants, and offers a satisfying way to get your daily fill of whole grain goodness. But that’s if you opt for plain, air-popped popcorn. According to LiveScience, microwave popcorn is anything but healthy, thanks in part to some dangerous hidden chemicals. The damage you don’t see Diacetyl is a common food additive most often used to imbue popcorn with a creamy, buttery flavor. It’s made by extracting hydrogen from 2,3-butanediol, a naturally-occurring substance and byproduct of…
We lead busy lives, and sometimes there just isn’t enough time in the day to fit everything in. Between work and family responsibilities, many of us find ourselves sacrificing sleep to get it all done. You’re probably well aware of the negative impact a lack of sleep can have on your mood, but a new study might make you think twice the next time you’re tempted to stay up late finishing that project or TV show. According to research from Georgia Southern University, getting just six hours of sleep a night – an amount many people consider acceptable if not…