Comments for Health, Medical, and Science Updates

Comment on Bottled water banned at college; students must use water filling stations, reusable bottles by Logan

Logan — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:54:01 +0000

This was done at Washington University in St. Louis almost two years ago.

Comment on Someone call Nucky: UCSF researchers say sugar needs to be controlled like alcohol, tobacco by Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, M.D.

Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, M.D. — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:40:06 +0000

Now this is revolutionary and will definitely spark debate! In response to the diabesity epidemic which is literally fueled by sugar leading to insulin resistance, medical scientists from my alma mater call for a political and legal solution…regulation!

Comment on Diet soft drinks may up risk of stroke, heart attack, vascular death: new study by monica

monica — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:16:22 +0000

how much did they drink per day?

Comment on Women and men remember unpleasant things differently: new study by Moreen

Moreen — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:32:58 +0000

Why do you think that scenes of babies crying would be low-valence, low-arousal for women?

Comment on Women and men remember unpleasant things differently: new study by Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, M.D.

Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, M.D. — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:48:27 +0000

The visceral response to a negative event in combination with anxiety have a negative effect on short term memory. Anxiety alone has been shown to distract people from task performance and from the transfer from short term to long term memory.

Comment on Diet soft drinks may up risk of stroke, heart attack, vascular death: new study by Robyn Cotler

Robyn Cotler — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 21:08:23 +0000

Has anyone noticed that over the last 30 years more and more artificial sweeteners or various types have been introduced. Has this helped obesity? Apparently not, obesity is at an all time high. Why can’t we just eat the real thing and less of it????

Comment on Diet soft drinks may up risk of stroke, heart attack, vascular death: new study by Anne Temple

Anne Temple — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:44:05 +0000

No mention of the 92 known side effects that aspartame MIGHT have. It amazes that they spend all this money on research and conveniently leave out the obvious. Gee, afraid to make Monsanto angry?

Comment on Say good night, Jenny. The weight-loss advice industry may just be one big scam after all. by Naomi

Naomi — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:47:53 +0000

The fact that there are studies to determine whether people lose WEIGHT doing any particular thing saddens me. Not just because it’s very easy to lose weight by reducing calories, but because calorie-restricted diets all — as THIS STUDY CLEARLY SHOWS — result in an unacceptable amount of muscle loss which will cause further metabolic derangement.

The point is to lose fat, not “weight”.

Most people do not have 2.1kg of lean mass to spare… it’s going to take them half a year to put that muscle back on again, in most cases.

Again, it just makes me sad. There ARE dietary protocols based on science that help people exclusively lose fat… and none of them are based on calorie restriction.

Comment on Does group exercise make people aggressive? New study says maybe. by Ernie Boxall

Ernie Boxall — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:13:54 +0000

My reply is based purely on personal experience and therefore un-scientific. I have asked both the studios I have worked in to notice the difference in attitude between members leaving the gym after the high octane boxercise and spinning classes and my tai chi group. The first group were seen to spend very little time communicating between the end of the class and leaving the studio. The incidence of smiling and connecting with other members was minimal amd the general attitude appeared to be more self centred and yes, even aggressive.
Tai chi on the other hand, with the same number of members, perhaps mirrored the whole ethos of the session where the ideal is “not to try” to “float”; “be “grounded” and move as a group. The class has been seen to leave the studio with smiles and a relaxed attitude, generally talking to each other as they leave the gym and communicating with other members when appropriate.

Comment on Say good night, Jenny. The weight-loss advice industry may just be one big scam after all. by m

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:07:30 +0000

This study shows results from subjects who succeeded in consuming less calories. It doesn’t include the failure rate, thus, it doesn’t show possible differences dietary choices might make in the success rate. Yes, you can lose weight eating Twinkies, (especially if you’re a motivated researcher), but are you more, equally, or less likely to succeed on a high -protein diet?

Comment on Say good night, Jenny. The weight-loss advice industry may just be one big scam after all. by Damon

Damon — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:58:36 +0000

What a terrible study. It’s really ok to lose that much muscle mass in order to lose a little fat?

Comment on Say good night, Jenny. The weight-loss advice industry may just be one big scam after all. by Mr. EET

Mr. EET — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:16:13 +0000

How can you not see what this study REALLY shows? NONE of these diets work AT ALL! And by year 5 ALL of the trial participants will weigh more than they started — THIS HAS BEEN PROVEN IN EVERY SINGLE DIET STUDY–EVER. Please provide a study that shows weight loss after 5 years, EET would love to review it! EET has reviewed over 100 studies (NEJM, JAMA, UCLA, more) and ALL show weight gain. The emporer truly has no clothes but the calorie restrictive diet industry simply doesn’t want to admit the massive failure it is–and the harm it’s causing people. — ∼”Participants REGAINED ∼40% of these losses by 2 y, with no differences between diets (P ≥ 0.23).” EET has our “checkmarks from hell” review of these studies for anyone interested.

Comment on Say good night, Jenny. The weight-loss advice industry may just be one big scam after all. by Sham

Sham — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:11:09 +0000

certain diets do offer effects such as curbing of hunger, cravings, & often restore the balance required in areas such as calorie control, apetite suppression, feeling of satiation, fullness, micronutrient balance etc. this fact can not be denied. but like the report said, for weight loss per se, its definitely eating less. unlearning all the bad habits, reversing the anguish casued by hunger, correcting deficiencies caused by prolonged overeatin etc takes re education. so any program which addresses such issues is a sure fire winner.

Comment on Say good night, Jenny. The weight-loss advice industry may just be one big scam after all. by Valari Fauntleroy

Valari Fauntleroy — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:49:01 +0000

The secret to weight loss is less calories in. I don’t find the study’s results surprising. While no one program maybe better than the other people still need support and guidance with weight loss. There are some weight loss programs; plan and simple that are unsafe and should not be practiced no matter the success.

Comment on Stroke related dementia: detection tips from: Methodist Neurological Institute in Houston by health journal

health journal — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 08:49:53 +0000

If you have ever had someone in your family who suffered a stroke, then you know just how debilitating they can be. Our own beloved “eternal teenager” Dick Clark was stricken at the age of 75 and now the poor man’s speech is all by unintelligible. Strokes are horribly damaging and can render a person all but a shell of their former self. So it makes sense that we do all that we can to prevent them.

First of all, we must understand exactly what a stroke is. A stroke occurs when plaque breaks of the walls of one of your arteries or blood vessels and becomes lodged in a vessel that is delivering oxygen to the brain. When the brain is deprived of oxygen, part of it dies. This results in partial paralysis and loss of use of bodily functions that can include speech, limb movement, and even bladder control.

So now that you know a little about what a stroke is and what if can do, how can we prevent it? Well, if the word PLAQUE sounded familiar to you, that’s because it probably is. The same plaque that causes coronary heart disease and heart attacks causes strokes as well. So the prevention of strokes is generally the same in both cases and that is EATING HEALTHY AND EXERCISING! People in general live a much more sedentary lifestyle now than ever before, thanks to technology, and our diets tend to be far less healthy as well. So for those folks that do not exercise and don’t eat healthy meals the two best pieces of advice to reduce the chances of stroke are to hire a fitness trainer and seek nutrition coaching to get your lifestyle back on track.

A fitness trainer can help you develop a program of physical fitness that will help you lose fat and build muscle, both will help you avoid all kinds of ailments. Plaque is much less likely to build up in a body that is actively involved in an intense exercise regimen. in addition, seeking nutrition coaching can help you to better plan your meals and stay away from the types of foods that will encourage the deposit of plaque on your arteries. Animals, for instance, contain cholesterol so the more red meat you eat more cholesterol you take in as well. Feeling your diet with more fruits and vegetables as per the recommendations of the nutrition coach can help your arteries and vessels steer clear of cholesterol in the potential dangers build up of plaque. Both of these changes, a fitness trainer and nutrition coaching, can represent a huge shift in what you may have been doing for years but by adding these positive attributes in your life they may be just the thing that prevents you from suffering that the debilitating effects of a stroke.

Please keep in mind that while exercise and diet can play a huge role in your health, you should make sure to visit your physician twice a year for regular checkups to help monitor your cholesterol levels and your overall general health. While not all strokes are detectable in the early stages, it is important that your doctor has regular records of your general health.

Comment on Kids with autism spend a lot of time with screen-based media, and we need to determine whether this is good or bad by Julie Pennell

Julie Pennell — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:41:43 +0000

I am wondering about a potential error in the data that was collected. The article describes video games as non-social, screen-based media. In the study, did the authors differentiate between games that are truly played in a solitary fashion (player vs the computer) from the Masive Multi-Player On-line (MMO) games? Speaking as the mother of a son who spends a lot of time “gaming”, I can report there is a huge social component to these MMOs. In order to be successful, a player must form alliances with other players to achieve higher level goals. If we are talking about teens and adults, the online gaming community is a potentially valuable source of companionship and commaraderie.

Email and chatting (which for the purposes of the study are defined as “socially interactive media”) are language based activities with which many people on the spectrum already have difficulty. I can see why the appeal isn’t very high.

Technology is constantly changing to allow higher and higher levels of collaboration amongst on-line gamers. Before we declare that all forms of online gaming are “socially passive”, let’s make sure we are accurate in our assessment of the subjects.

Comment on P90X Workout gets evaluated by the American Council on Exercise, ACE by Stone Hearth News

Stone Hearth News — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:35:08 +0000

“The report mentions : ‘The tests also found the male subjects burned an estimated 441 to 699 kcals burned per workout, and females a total of 302 to 544 kcals per workout.’ Which energy substrate was utilised? Obviously the exercise plan is Anaerobic in its delivery, so I would guess that a high % of kcals utilised comes from Carbohydrates and not fat. And how can a ‘report’ from A.C.E only estimate kcals burned? What was the EPOC effect? So they guessed the calorie burn rate, they didn’t test for energy substrates and the main resulting factor was an increase in Vo2 Max. What a waste of time!”

Giuseppe Minetti, Director at The Token Yard Club

Comment on Autism, HDL cholesterol link by Marc Listokin

Marc Listokin — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:06:09 +0000

This is a very intriguing finding. We can only hope that it is followed up and may lead to more knowledge about the fundamental mechanisms involved in autism.

Comment on Whoops. School-based obesity prevention programs may INCREASE eating disorders among children: C.S. Mott study by Alex Adams MD, PhD

Alex Adams MD, PhD — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:39:32 +0000

First, this is a very poorly designed study that did not compare kids at schools with more or less obesity prevention programs, nor account for media exposure. Second, the media reporting on this study is terrible-they only found ONE association between school prevntion programs and parent reponses-more kids were seen as too physically active if they had prevention programs in place. No disorded eating behaviors were associated. So-the study was poor and was also totally mis-represented. We need to do a better job on the science and the reporting before we step out on a limb.

Comment on Overweight docs don’t give good obesity control advice: Hopkins study by Headlines I Wish I Hadn’t Seen | John Goodman's Health Policy Blog | NCPA.org

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:22:36 +0000

[...] Fat docs give bad weight loss advice to fat patients. [...]

Comment on Starbucks selling booze, Hardees over the top again, whole grain donuts, marketing to men by dissing women, more by Gary

Gary — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 22:24:59 +0000

You ask, “Why on earth would an agency suggest to its client that it should intentionally piss off half of the market?” Look at 90% of the current advertising. Men are made fools of constantly. You never see this done to women.

Comment on Contact by Elvie Guthrie-Lewis, MS, RD, LD, CPM

Elvie Guthrie-Lewis, MS, RD, LD, CPM — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:49:30 +0000

Your article states that Almond milk is high in protein, which is incorrect, since Almon milk has only 1-2g protein, when compared to between 6-7g in most Soy beverages, and 8g in milk.

Comment on How Santa delivers everything in one night: NC State researcher by The Science Behind Santa’s Efficient Delivery Method « expsychlab

The Science Behind Santa’s Efficient Delivery Method « expsychlab — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 08:52:21 +0000

[...] Health, Medical, and Science Updates | How Santa delivers everything in one night: NC State researcher. [...]

Comment on For diabetics, brief, high-intensity workouts may lower blood sugar: small McMaster proof-of-principle study by For Diabetics, Brief, High-intensity Workouts May Lower Blood Sugar | FT Gets Results

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 21:37:39 +0000

[...] Clipped from Stone Hearth News [...]

Comment on Athletes have a new app for the mental aspects of their game by Sports Psychology Web Application « expsychlab

Sports Psychology Web Application « expsychlab — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 15:31:45 +0000

[...] Health, Medical, and Science Updates | Athletes have a new app for the mental aspects of their game. [...]

Comment on Traits can be inherited, with no DNA: Columbia University Medical Center research by Science Pick: Traits Can Be Inherited, with No DNA « Our Health and Environment Blog

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:15:15 +0000

[...] An article from Stone Hearth News is titled “Traits can be inherited, with no DNA: Columbia University Medical Center research.” [...]

Comment on How muscle fatigue originates in the head by Neuronal Processes and Muscle Fatigue « expsychlab

Neuronal Processes and Muscle Fatigue « expsychlab — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:45:16 +0000

[...] Medical, & Science Updates | How muscle fatigue originates in the head. The extent to which we are able to activate our muscles voluntarily depends on motivation and will [...]

Comment on Kids exercise more, eat better if given behavior homework: International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity by Exercise and Diet Homework for Kids « expsychlab

Exercise and Diet Homework for Kids « expsychlab — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 12:55:27 +0000

[...] Health, Medical, and Science Updates | Kids exercise more, eat better if given behavior homework: International Journal of Behavioral Nutri… [...]

Comment on Apples have anti-inflammatory polyphenols: new finding by An Apple a Day keeps Colon Inflammation at Bay! | Diane Kress' Metabolism Miracle

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 21:16:21 +0000

[...] http://www.stonehearthnewsletters.com/apples-have-anti-inflammatory-polyphenols-new-finding/inflamma... [...]

Comment on Beware, stent makers. New device sands away plaque, may prevent heart attacks. by New device sands away plaque, may prevent heart attacks – Cardio Crusaders

New device sands away plaque, may prevent heart attacks – Cardio Crusaders — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 11:43:20 +0000

[...] through hardened coronary arteries, in an effort to prevent heart attacks and relieve chest pain. Read more. This entry was posted in Heart Health : Devices, Heart Health : Heart Attack, Heart Health : [...]

Comment on Animal cruelty at McDonald’s egg supplier: rights group by Misty Buchanan

Misty Buchanan — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 18:58:29 +0000

The people who treat these animals with such cruelty should be subjected to the same torture these animals face. These people should be crammed into cages where they cannot move, their noses should be burnt off, and they should have their faces covered in plastic bags. The abuse inflicted on these innocent creatures is disgusting and inhumane. Perhaps if we all stop eating at McDonald’s, they might be willing to do something about it. But as long as they are making a profit, they could careless how they get their eggs. Greed is an ugly, evil thing.

Comment on Global climate snapshot for October 2011 by Allen Rogers

Allen Rogers — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:19:17 +0000

What – Why is there no mention that the latest 12-15 years have showed NO warming on a global scale, but a slight decrease in global temperatures? This is something Drs Spencer and Christy both agree to.

Comment on Nonverbal children with autism: new therapy to say first words by JAYATI GHOSH

JAYATI GHOSH — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 04:35:31 +0000

I am a mother as well as a professional of a 16yr old adult with autism. He too is very much fond of music. He has limited communication. Pl suggest me how to increase his word strength.

Thank You.

Comment on When BP won’t go down: Deutsches Ärzteblatt International by Sam

Sam — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 19:41:35 +0000

sounds great.how invasive is the procedure? general or local anesthetic?

Comment on Fear not: Gov’t says killer solar flares are a physical impossibility by fred

fred — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 17:42:35 +0000

But I saw this on TV in a movie and those rays destroyed the earth…

Comment on BPA exposure in utero may up breast cancer risk by BPA: Brief Summary : Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition

BPA: Brief Summary : Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 00:46:02 +0000

[...] Soon to be released research study again links BPA with early mammary cell development that may lead to breast cancer. [...]

Comment on Belly fat linked to development of asthma by Healthy Eating » Blog Archive » Got Asthma and Belly Fat? Check this out!

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 01:20:00 +0000

[...] If you haven’t heard, carrying fat around your belly is toxic. Really. Those belly fat cells secrete all kinds of chemicals that increase inflammation in other areas of your body. Most interesting is this article associating LUNG inflammation (asthma) with belly fat. While we still don’t know exactly how the connection works or whether reducing belly fat will improve your asthma symptoms, it just might be worthwhile to seek a flat belly. My approach is simple . . . if it might help, it costs little to improve your diet and exercise lifestyle and go for that flat belly. It will take years before we have conclusive evidence about belly fat and asthma . . . and I don’t want you to wait years for potential improvement. In addition, there are all sorts of other health benefits in reducing belly fat. For more info: [...]

Comment on Weight Watchers, Oz to begin year-long health challenge, with a million dollar payout by caryljones

caryljones — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 03:28:00 +0000

I want to join weight watchers per the show i saw today on dr. oz
win a million dollars and hook up with dr.oz and weight watchers
CARYL

Comment on Weight Watchers, Oz to begin year-long health challenge, with a million dollar payout by Joan M. Jacobs

Joan M. Jacobs — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 20:27:05 +0000

I would like to do this but I am a Canadian. Can Canadians enter?

Comment on Weight Watchers, Oz to begin year-long health challenge, with a million dollar payout by Peggy Sczepanski

Peggy Sczepanski — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 16:17:26 +0000

I’m a Registered Dietitian and a Health Promotion Coordinator for the Dow Chemical Company which has >25,000 employees in the US. Is there an opportunity for corporate partnerships with this year-long challenge? I’d be interested in exploring this – how company’s support weight management, what company’s can do to provide options and access for their employees to manage their weight…
At Dow, we have a variety of weight management programs/resources available for employees and their family members, but partnering with national TV show would be a wonderful way to visibly support the efforts we have in place and add new ones.

Comment on Sex segregation in schools detrimental to equality: Penn State study by Mary Ann Hergenrother

Mary Ann Hergenrother — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 19:36:51 +0000

Huh? This study does no more than highlight the basis of gender discrimination in schooling. The effects of the cited preschool study are precisely the learned gendered behaviors and thinking that sex bias and sex discrimination in schooling do cause. This is not a relevant argument for dismantling single sex schools. Rather, it supports the research basis of the existence of gender-based prejudice. Sadly, not enough has changed in schooling following the passage of Title IX. Ongoing education to identify, eradicate and compensate for gender bias in education is still critical.

Comment on Weight Watchers, Oz to begin year-long health challenge, with a million dollar payout by Shirley Moore

Shirley Moore — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 12:53:51 +0000

I am disappointed that you only refer to doctors and not advanced practice nurses regarding healthy living. The data show that advanced practice nurses actually have more success with helping people change health behaviors. Physicians are taught to diagnose and manage illness. Nurses spend years learning how to support health. Please look at the data and you will see that nurses have better outcomes in health promotion behaviors.

Shirley M. Moore, PhD, RN

Associate Dean for Research
School of Nurisng
Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, Ohio

Comment on Social media health tools have serious potential: USC Center for Body Computing by K Westpheling

K Westpheling — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 12:42:30 +0000

What are the demographics of those in this study? Education and socioeconomic status?

Comment on New sprint training research may surprise by Adam Kessler

Adam Kessler — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 18:04:26 +0000

This is good stuff. You always want to use assistance and resistance running, but now you can pinpoint that much more who and when in your program to apply these methods to.

Comment on Social media health tools have serious potential: USC Center for Body Computing by Anon

Anon — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 16:15:08 +0000

Where are the results? What percentage of users quit smoking? How many relapsed?….

Comment on Over-the-counter asthma inhalers containing chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) will no longer be made or sold after Dec. 31, 2011 by graham

graham — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 13:57:55 +0000

Holy cow! That is going way too far!

I can’t believe that the FDA is going to force consumers to switch their preferred method of receiving medicine because of CFC’s!

I bet a child dies from an Asthma attack and no one will have aproblem with it becuase you know, it’s for the greater good…

Is this a joke, am I actually reading something from the Onion?

Comment on Exercise and brain fatigue: a new study by Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, M.D.

Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, M.D. — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 18:00:59 +0000

I am not a proponent of animal research and my pet chinchilla would not speak to me if she knew I was writing in support of the findings of this research study. The basic cellular research finding of increased mitochondria in the brain is ground breaking!

Comment on Infant formulas fortified with long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) are good for developing brains and hearts: University of Kansas by Ann Twiggs

Ann Twiggs — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:57:50 +0000

Human milk is still free and has had milleniums in developement to be perfect for the human being. What a waste of time and money to keep on trying to make substitutes for human milk. All that money should be spent helping women be successful at breastfeeding or supplying the over abundance of human milk available to those who need it!

Comment on Picky eater or pediatric feeding disorder? by Ann Twiggs

Ann Twiggs — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:55:01 +0000

“rite: of passage not “right” of passage.

Comment on Children with autism and gastrointestinal symptoms have altered digestive genes by Janet

Janet — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 00:35:33 +0000

Check out the summary by Natasha Campbell-McBride, MD – author of Gut and Psychology Syndrome – on this subject…great merit!