Nature Knows and Psionic Success

New study suggests blue light glasses can make a difference. Odds are you’re part of the larger whopping 52% of Americans who say work stress interferes with sleep. And if you’re not getting enough shut-eye, that can spell trouble. A long-term sleep study shows that people who sleep less than six hours at night have a decline in brain function equivalent to aging four to seven years. When you don’t doze enough, sleep deprivation lowers your resistance to stress and harms your brain.

Research shows that lack of sleep interferes with memory and learning. Your brain moves slower. You’re more forgetful. Your attention is short-circuited, and you’re grumpier. Plus, you’re more likely to nod off at your desk. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that these situations derail career success. Studies also show that if you don’t get enough sleep, you’re at greater risk of heart attack or stroke and your risk of death from heart disease more than doubles. Lack of sleep is linked to depression, impaired immune system function, weight gain, hypertension and Type 2 diabetes.

Screen Glow And Blue-Light Glasses

A National Sleep Foundation study showed that the glow from electronic devices suppresses melatonin and interferes with falling and staying asleep. A good night’s sleep not only benefits workers; it also helps an employer’s bottom line. During the pandemic, a lot has been written about zoom exhaustion. As remote working has become more commonplace, the amount of screen time for many people working and learning from home as well as binge-watching TV has sharply increased. New research published in the Journal of Applied Psychology found that wearing blue-light glasses just before sleeping can lead to a better night’s sleep, better career decision-making and contribute to a better day’s work productivity.

Most of the technology we commonly use—such as computer screens, smartphones and tablets—emits blue light, which past research has found can disrupt sleep. Workers have become more dependent on these devices, especially as we navigate remote work and school during the coronavirus pandemic. The media have recently reported on the benefits of blue-light glasses for those spending a lot of time in front of a computer screen. This new research extends understanding of the circadian rhythm, a natural, internal process that regulates the sleep-wake cycle and repeats roughly every 24 hours.

Research led by Cristiano Guarana at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business collected data from 63 company managers and 67 call center representatives at Brazil-based offices for a U.S. multinational financial firm and measured task performance from clients. Participants were randomly chosen to test glasses that filtered blue light or those that were placebo glasses. “Employees are often required to work early mornings, which may lead to a misalignment between their internal clock and the externally controlled work time,” the researchers said, adding that their analyses showed a general pattern that blue-light filtration can have a cumulative effect on job performance, at least in the short term.

According to Guarana, “We found that wearing blue-light-filtering glasses is an effective intervention to improve sleep, work engagement, task performance and organizational behavior, and reduced counterproductive work behavior.” The advantages of blue-light-filtering glasses were stronger for “night owls” than morning people because they encounter greater misalignments between their internal clock and the externally controlled work time.

“Blue-light exposure should also be of concern to organizations,” Guarana said. “The ubiquity of the phenomenon suggests that control of blue-light exposure may be a viable first step for organizations to protect the circadian cycles of their employees from disruption.”

Read more at www.forbes.com

( Natural News ) When a doctor tells someone that their cholesterol levels are high enough to warrant a prescription for statins, many people are more than willing to comply in hopes of avoiding a heart attack. Statins are the second-most prescribed drugs on the planet, and one out of every five Americans aged 40 to 75 takes these drugs on a regular basis. Although doctors hand out prescriptions for statins like it’s not a big deal, this is one case where it is best to avoid emotional reactions and spend some time researching the situation very carefully.

Unfortunately, the statins used to fight cholesterol can actually harm your health quite significantly, and they don’t quite offer the benefits many people expect. In fact, explaining all the ways these drugs can put your health in danger goes beyond the scope of this article as at least 300 adverse health effects have been revealed in published literature so far. Some of the major categories include damage to the muscles, nerves and liver, endocrine disruption, cardiovascular damage and birth defects in addition to raising your risk of cancer and diabetes.

Myopathy, or muscle breakdown and pain, is one of the more well-known side effects of these drugs, affecting up to 40 percent of patients within the first month of treatment. Several trials have shown statistically significant rises in cancer incidence and deaths. In particular, the greater risk of breast cancer associated with these drugs means that women need to be extra careful with them.

Studies have also shown that statins can raise people’s risk of Type 2 diabetes . Doctors have long been aware of the connection, but many tend to attribute it to the fact that those taking statins often have more risk factors for diabetes in the first place. However, more recent studies have shown that the risk is indeed related to the use of these drugs. One study found that they can cause post-menopausal women’s diabetes risk to rise by 71 percent, even after making adjustments for other factors that might influence their diabetes risk such as body mass index, age and ethnicity.

The rise in Alzheimer’s disease that is being seen right now just as more Americans than ever are taking statins may be more than a coincidence. High cholesterol levels can actually protect elderly people against dementia and the inverse is also true; low cholesterol levels are linked to a higher risk of dementia. Memory loss is one of the documented side effects of statins, which reduce the body’s production of CoQ10, a nutrient that protects the brain and the heart. CoQ10 deficiency is also behind the muscle pain and fatigue that many of those taking statins experience. Keep your heart healthy naturally

Of course, there is no reason that anyone has to choose between potentially having a heart attack or suffering from the many side effects and risks of statins. There are several natural ways that you can improve your heart health that might require a bit more effort than taking a pill but can reap tremendous benefits in all areas of your physical and mental health. For example, physical exercise is a great way to improve your heart health. Start getting more active or increase the intensity of any activity you are doing already if your cholesterol numbers are concerning.

Yoga is another great way to enhance your heart health. You can also increase your intake of foods known to help fight high cholesterol, such as oats and fiber-rich foods. At the same time, it is important to avoid processed foods.

Unfortunately, statins are huge money maker for Big Pharma, and recent changes to the guidelines have broadened the definition of “high cholesterol” and mean many more Americans than before are being prescribed these drugs. The many potential drawbacks of these drugs, paired with their rather questionable benefits, should have everyone seeking alternative ways of keeping their heart in top shape.

Sources for this article include:

GreenMedInfo.com

Read more at www.naturalnews.com

Related Research says that we are expanding our lifespan, but we are not expanding healthy lifespan. We live longer, but also have more diseases for longer.

If our goal is to live not just longer but with a maximum health then taking care of what we eat to optimise our risk of certain diseases can make all the difference. Always should be an essential part of your diet.

Fibre
Foods that are high in fibre – like fruits and vegetables, oatmeal, nuts, and legumes — can help with constipation that becomes more common as you age.

They’re also able to help lower your cholesterol levels, manage your blood sugar, and keep you at a healthy weight. Women over 51 need around 21 grams daily, but men need more – around 30 grams a day.

Whole grains

They’re a great source of fibre and rich in B-vitamins, which you’ll need more of as you age. In particular B-6 and folate are key to keeping your brain healthy.

Even a small shortage can make a subtle difference. Whole grains could also cut your chances of getting heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

Go for variety, not just wholemeal bread, though but Quinoa, wheat berries, and wholewheat couscous are tasty options, too.

Nuts

Many women try to avoid having too many nuts because yes they can rack up the calories but nuts like almonds, walnuts, cashews, pecans, and pistachios have big anti-aging powers.

They contain special nutrients that can help delay or prevent age-related heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, nerve disease, and some types of cancer. Nuts also protect your brain as you age.

Water

One of the things that is most noticeable as we age is that not only does your body lose water, but your sense of thirst starts to fade. That means it will take you longer to know when you’re low on fluids and it is easy to become dehydrated.

Water is food for your health in lots of ways. It cushions your joints, helps control your body temperature, affects your mood and how well you focus. Make eight glasses of water each day your goal.

Fish

Fatty fish like salmon, tuna, herring, and farmed trout should be on your menu twice a week because they’re high in DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid that’s good for your brain.

Low levels of DHA have been linked to Alzheimer’s disease, but get enough of it, and you may improve your memory and ability to learn new things.

If you don’t eat or like fish, algae, walnuts, flaxseed, and chia seeds are also good sources of DHA.

Lean protein

Protein-rich foods fight the natural muscle loss that happens as you get older. As much as you can, enjoy your protein in food like eggs, lean meat, and dairy products.

Although protein powders are popular as a weight loss alternative meal, that may not give you as many nutrients as the direct protein source.

Dairy products
The calcium in dairy keeps your bones healthy. As you get older, it can also lower your risk of osteoporosis, colon cancer, and high blood pressure.

After age 50, you’ll need around 1,000 milligrams of calcium each day, but remember your body also requires vitamin D to absorb calcium properly.

The National Osteoporosis Foundation recommends that women aged 50 or younger and men 70 or younger should get 1,000 milligrams (mg) of calcium per day. Men and women as they age may need more, up to 1,200 mg daily.

Good sources are not just milk and cheese aren’t your only options but you also get it through things like yoghurt, rice and soy drinks, fortified orange juice, and tofu. Blueberries Blueberries contain polyphenols — compounds that lower inflammation throughout your body and lessen damage to your DNA that can make some diseases more likely.They’re a good way to protect your brain as you age as they also improve how well your brain cells “talk” to each other.Fresh blueberries are best, since their polyphenol content goes down when you bake them into muffins, breads, or pies. Red/orange produce Watermelon, strawberries, tomatoes, red and orange bell peppers – all these are rich in a natural compound called lycopene. Studies show foods that have it could lower your risk of some types of cancer and may protect you against strokes, too. Cruciferous vegetables One of the things that happens as we age is that our immune system becomes weaker. That is the body’s first defence against germs and how we can protect ourselves.Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower all contain a chemical called sulforaphane that switches on your immune cells so they’re better able to attack toxins that damage your cells and cause disease over time.Eat them often, and you may lower your risk of some types of cancer. Dark leafy greens To keep your eyes healthy, eat more spinach, kale, and collard greens – members of the cabbage family that feature dark green leaves . The antioxidants they contain can lower your chances of getting cataracts and macular degeneration.Eat at least one serving a day, and you’ll also help stave off the slow-down in memory, thinking, and judgment that can happen as you get older. Avocado Studies show that the antioxidants in avocado could improve your memory and help you solve problems faster. Avocados may also lower your cholesterol, cut your chance of getting arthritis, help you stick to a healthy weight, and protect your skin from sun damage. Sweet potato These have plenty of beta carotene, which your body turns into vitamin A. This vitamin is key for healthy eyesight and skin and keeps your immune system strong.You’d have to eat 23 cups of cooked broccoli to get as much vitamin A as you’ll find in one medium sweet potato. For an extra boost, choose a purple variety. The compounds that give it a bright color may slow down age-related changes in your brain. Spices They do more than give your food flavour. Spices have antioxidants that help you stay healthy through the years. […]

Read more at www.bio-hormone-health.com

White mouse getty For humans, a drug made from a plant compound that has anti-inflammatory properties represents a possibility for prenatal treatments that are personalized to meet the needs and metabolisms of individual babies.

In humans, Down Syndrome is also called Trisomy 21 — with “trisomy” meaning a third instance of any paired chromosome, and “21” referring specifically to the human chromosome number 21 (of 46). Quite literally, all of the neurological, muscular, cardiac, dental, endocrine, gastrointestinal, sensory, oncological, and fertility symptoms that can manifest with Down Syndrome are caused by the extra chromosome 21 in the genetic makeup of a baby.

Not all of these physiological systems are disordered in everyone with Down, though common to the syndrome is some degree of developmental delay and intellectual disability. Historically, treatments in humans have had disappointing results, perhaps because most have been applied during the late teen years or during adulthood. Newborn with Down Syndrome. getty As Diana Bianchi, Director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and a senior researcher at the National Human Genome Research Institute, explained in a phone call, “The brains of teens and adults may be less flexible (and therefore potentially less responsive to interventions) than the brains of fetuses. Amniocentesis and other prenatal screenings that reveal fairly early in a pregnancy if a fetus has Trisomy 21 are almost universally available to women in the United States. This presents an opportunity; before birth may be the ideal time to try to intervene.”

Bianchi acknowledged that medical interventions on fetuses are fraught with ethical complications because of the potential for further damaging a baby before it is even born. “Safety, she said, “is paramount.”

Bianchi is senior author of a paper published today in the American Journal of Human Genetics . It details a trial conducted on mice that were bred to have Down Syndrome characteristics. The trial is of the prenatal use of apigenin, a plant compound found in chamomile, celery, parsley, peppermint, and citrus fruits.

According to Bianchi, prenatal imaging studies of human fetuses with Down Syndrome show neurological abnormalities. Typically with Down, over the course of a pregnancy production of new brain cells is slowed, as is production of the nerve fibers connecting the cells, the myelin (or cellular insulation) that protects nerve fibers, and the synapses that permit nerve cells to pass electrical and chemical signals to each other.

The evidence of these early impairments suggests that Down Syndrome is not a neurodegenerative disorder but a developmental one. Baby girl with Down Syndrome. getty Suspecting that inflammation during brain development might be to blame, Bianchi and her team of investigators set out to address neurological inflammation in mice fetuses. Mice have a vastly different genome from humans. In mice the rough equivalent of Down doesn’t result from a trisomy of chromosome 21. The mice model used in Bianchi’s trial (it is called Ts1Cje), represents a partial triplication of the mouse chromosome numbered MMU16.

Bianchi’s team hopes that, within several years, they can run trials of treatments for human fetuses. Because of this, in their mouse trial they took extra care to do no harm to the Ts1Cje mice. Additionally, they were diligent about creating an intervention that could be delivered humanely to mouse mothers. They knew that any medicine or compound they used would need to infuse into fetuses from placenta. It would also need to cross the fetus’ blood-brain barrier, which is the cellular layer that protects the brain by allowing only certain substances to cross into it.

Bianchi’s team used publicly available software to help them select apigenin from a range of nine possible compounds. “We had no intention of limiting ourselves to a natural substance approach,” Bianchi explained. “Our goal was simply to find a compound that had genetic markers that met all of our chemical and functional criteria. The software identified for us which of the nine compounds to use in our trail.”

Bianchi did note in the call that, in other studies, apigenin has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties.

The research team incorporated apigenin into the chow of the pregnant and nursing Ts1Cje mothers. They later fed it to the weaned Ts1Cje pups. The mice that were given apigenin scored better in tests of spatial and olfactory memory than did control-group mice. The team also found that apigenin-treated mice had benefitted from more blood vessel and nervous system growth and that they had less inflammation overall.

Importantly, apigenin appeared to do no harm. The investigators found no significant increase in birth defects or deaths among Ts1Cje pups treated prenatally and postnatally with apigenin. Amniocentesis. (Photo by: BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) According to Bianchi, the trial depicted in today’s issue of The American Journal of Human Genetics was a proof-of-principle trial for an approach that ultimately could provide interventions that are personalized for individual human fetuses. To explore this possibility, the researchers tested the effect of apigenin on cells sloughed off by human fetuses and harvested during routine amniocentesis. They found that, in the lab, apigenin had anti-inflammatory effects on those cells.

Bianchi says that, ultimately, she hopes to identify several compounds that can work safely and effectively to calm inflammation in human Down Syndrome fetuses. “Not everyone metabolizes any given drug or food in the same way,” she pointed out in the phone interview. “Ideally we can eventually know of several compounds that have a moderating effect on Down. We can test each one on sloughed-off cells gathered during routine prenatal screening, and then select the single approach most appropriate for any given fetus.”

A lot of preclinical work remains to be done, even with apigenin, before that scenario can become a reality. Bianchi specified that she and her researchers still want to test different doses of apigenin. They want to identify any measures in which mouse fetuses treated with apigenin do more poorly than fetuses who aren’t treated. They want to supplement their work with the Ts1Cje mice with trials conducted on other models of Down Syndrome in mice. They want […]

Read more at www.forbes.com

Pfizer and IBM researchers claim to have developed a machine learning technique that can predict Alzheimer’s disease years before symptoms develop. By analyzing small samples of language data obtained from clinical verbal tests, the team says their approach achieved 71% accuracy when tested against a group of cognitively healthy people.

Alzheimer’s disease begins with vague, often misinterpreted signs of mild memory loss followed by a slow, progressively serious decline in cognitive ability and quality of life. According to the nonprofit Alzheimer’s Association, more than 5 million Americans of all ages have Alzheimer’s, and every state is expected to see at least a 14% rise in the prevalence of Alzheimer’s between 2017 and 2025. Due to the nature of Alzheimer’s disease and how it takes hold in the brain, it’s likely that the best way to delay its onset is through early intervention. But the disease is often detected too late to prevent it from accelerating. IBM previously explored using AI to identify proteins that can predict the concentration of amyloid-beta, a peptide that changes before Alzheimer’s-related memory issues are apparent. And beyond IBM, others have investigated AI’s ability to spot the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s and dementia. For example, researchers at Unlearn.AI , a startup that designs software tools for clinical research, recently published a paper laying out a system that can anticipate the disease’s progression, projecting the symptoms that patients will experience. Another paper coauthored by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, describes an AI system that can ostensibly predict Alzheimer’s disease from brain scans up to six years before clinical diagnosis.

But IBM and Pfizer claim this latest work differs “significantly” from previous research and the application of AI to aid in predicting Alzheimer’s. In contrast to studies predicting onset that focus on subjects showing signs of cognitive impairment, the researchers worked with samples that were collected before subjects in the study experienced the first signs of impairment. They also assessed the risk of Alzheimer’s in the general population instead of solely targeting high-risk groups, capturing a spectrum of people including those without a family history of the disease or other risk factors.

The study included 703 samples from 270 participants, half of whom developed Alzheimer’s symptoms before the age of 85. (The mean time to diagnosis of mild Alzheimer’s was about seven-and-a-half years.) From a language perspective, the researchers considered over 87 variables including misspellings, use of punctuation, uppercasing, verbosity, lexical richness, and repetitiveness. Beyond this, they looked at age, gender, education, visuospatial and executive reasoning, object naming, memory, attention, abstraction, and test results from the Montreal cognitive assessment MoCA .

The IBM and Pfizer team analyzed the transcriptions of participants’ samples with natural language processing, which allowed them to tap into AI to pick up subtleties and changes in discourse they might have otherwise missed. And after obtaining consent and approval from the Institutional Review Board of Boston University, they drew on data from original subjects (and their offspring and spouses) in the Framingham Heart Study, a population-based study overseen by the U.S. Public Health Service to investigate the epidemiology and risks for cardiovascular disease. In the Framingham study, enrolled people are assessed with the two-minute Mini-Mental State Examination speech test every four years and neuropsychological exams every year when possible cognitive decline is reported by a family member.

These steps resulted in a larger dataset than those used in other studies and made it possible to verify projections with real-life results. For example, if the model developed by the IBM and Pfizer coauthors predicted a 65-year-old Framingham subject would develop Alzheimer’s by age 85, they could check that person’s records to find out whether the subject had been diagnosed with the disease and when the diagnosis occurred.

It should be noted that Framingham only canvassed thousands of adults in the city of Framingham, Massachusetts. Research has shown that much of the data used to train algorithms for diagnosing diseases may perpetuate inequalities. Recently, a team of U.K. scientists found that almost all eye disease datasets come from patients in North America, Europe, and China, meaning eye disease-diagnosing algorithms are less certain to work well for racial groups from underrepresented countries. In another study, Stanford University researchers claimed that most of the U.S. data for studies involving medical uses of AI come from California, New York, and Massachusetts.

Indeed, the researchers found evidence of bias within their own model, which predicted Alzheimer’s onset for participants without a college degree more accurately than for those with (76% versus 70%). It also attained higher accuracy with women compared with men (83% versus 64%), performing on average 2.61 times better for female subjects compared with males.

Cognizant of this, the IBM and Pfizer researchers say they plan to use datasets that expand on the geographic, socioeconomic, and racial diversity of subjects as their work continues. “This breadth of data is often very difficult to come by in terms of disease prediction, and access to it allowed us to train these models with precision,” they wrote in a blog post. “We [will] continue to train our algorithms while always respecting core principles of privacy, transparency, and consent.”

The team believes that if their work — which is published in The Lancet eClinicalMedicine — were to eventually reach production systems, it could help doctors determine the need for more complex and demanding psychiatric assessments, testing, and monitoring. It might also open up the door to more successful clinical trials, as those deemed at a high likelihood of developing the disease could enter trials for preventative therapies.

“Our vision is that one day clinicians will have multiple AI and machine learning tools to help identify if an individual is at risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. [Our model’s accuracy] is a significant increase over predictions based on clinical scales (59%), which is a prediction based on other available biomedical data from a patient,” the team continued. “One day, doctors might be able to use speech and blood tests in conjunction with each other, leveraging AI to help them predict the risk of […]

Read more at venturebeat.com

Nicotine- main addictive element of cigarette- emerging as promising treatment

May also be useful for brain disorders such as dementia and schizophrenia

In the case of Parkinson’s, nicotine, has been shown to activate the cells that produce dopamine

Matt Eagles smoked his first cigarettes — which he bought quite easily from the local newsagent — aged 12.

‘I was the sort of kid who just liked being naughty, but it soon became a regular habit,’ says the 51-year-old from Cuddington, Cheshire.

It’s a story familiar to millions, but while smoking is universally regarded as bad for health, in Matt’s case he believes the nicotine from the cigarettes may have had an unexpected benefit. Matt, who works in public relations, was diagnosed with the degenerative nerve condition Parkinson’s disease unusually early, aged eight, a year after strange symptoms appeared. Nicotine – the main addictive element of cigarettes – is emerging in studies as a promising treatment for Parkinson’s, ADHD, dementia, schizophrenia and even coronavirus. (Stock image) ‘I lost my sense of balance and at first they thought it was arthritis or a brain tumour,’ says Matt.

‘My left hand was developing a life of its own and kept shaking and moving, which was a problem because I’m left-handed. I felt as though my wrist was going to drop off, and I’d walk on tiptoes.

‘I love sport and was a goalkeeper, but it got to a stage where I was diving for the ball after it had gone into the net. It was very frustrating but I just moved on to do other things instead. In the end they worked out it was Parkinson’s.’

The disease, which causes uncontrollable tremor, stiffness and difficulty walking, affects about 145,000 people in Britain. As well as the physical symptoms, most patients develop memory loss as the disease progresses.

The condition occurs when cells that produce dopamine, a chemical messenger in the brain which helps control body movements, progressively die off.

There have been no new effective treatments for Parkinson’s for more than 20 years and current therapy merely reduces symptoms, rather than tackling the causes.

Now nicotine — the main addictive element of cigarettes — is emerging in studies as a promising treatment. And it may also be useful for some other brain disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dementia and schizophrenia — and even Covid.

In the case of Parkinson’s, nicotine, a chemical found in many plants, not just tobacco, has been shown to activate the cells that produce dopamine.

Research suggests that people whose diets contain a lot of tomatoes, peppers and aubergines — all of which contain nicotine — have a 30 per cent lower chance of developing Parkinson’s.

Separately, Dr Mohammed Shoaib, head of the psychopharmacology research group at Newcastle University, is leading a project to develop a nicotine-based treatment he hopes will work on the movement and memory degeneration that is caused by Parkinson’s disease.

Studies in the U.S. have also suggested that the receptors nicotine binds to increase the amount of calcium entering cells in the bones, which appears to reduce the bone loss associated with Parkinson’s.

Matt quit smoking aged 36, when offered deep brain stimulation treatment, where an implant delivers high-frequency electrical signals via electrodes into the brain to control symptoms. Bad, Good, Best: How to get the most out of food choices

This week: Parsnips

Bad: In soup A typical parsnip soup recipe contains butter and whole milk Creamy parsnip soup may well count as one of your five-a-day, but a typical recipe contains butter and whole milk and provides around 300 calories per bowl.

It also contains 6g or 30 per cent of your daily recommended allowance of saturated fat.

Good: Roasted. Roasted parsnips supplies nearly half of your RDI of vitamin B12 A 100g portion of roasted parsnips has 133 calories and 0.7g of saturated fat.

It supplies nearly half of your RDI of vitamin B12, which staves off fatigue.

However, over-roasting can increase the chemical acrylamide that is linked to cancer.

Best: Mashed Mashed parsnips provides 20 per cent of your RDI of potassium There are just 89 calories in 3 tbsp (135g) of boiled mashed parsnips — which rises to 124 calories with 1 tsp of heart-healthy olive oil.

It also provides 20 per cent of your RDI of potassium, needed for healthy blood pressure. Mash with carrots to boost your vitamin A intake.

‘Before the operation, I was on 25 different tablets a day,’ he says. ‘I found eating anything slowed the absorption of the medication but if I had a cigarette after a meal I would feel better sooner.’While he had to stop smoking ahead of the complex six-hour procedure and hasn’t smoked since, Matt is convinced nicotine had helped him: ‘Since I’ve had the implant, things have been much better, so I don’t know what difference cigarettes might have made.’No one is suggesting people take up smoking, and there is no doubt that the use of nicotine as a drug is controversial, with different views on whether it’s addictive as a treatment, for instance.Dr Shoaib says a number of promising nicotine compounds have been investigated as treatments for Alzheimer’s and schizophrenia, but some have had to be abandoned due to side-effects.A trial of one drug, encenicline, was stopped because the treatment caused serious stomach problems in some people.’Patients have had their hopes raised so many times, but it wouldn’t surprise me if there’s a nicotine compound owned by some pharmaceutical company that’s the golden bullet, but we can’t get access to it,’ he says.But if support for nicotine-based research has been lukewarm over fears of side-effects and its addictive nature, one advance that may encourage more studies is the discovery that it seems to protect people from Covid-19 — with smokers 80 per cent less likely to develop the infection (although they are more likely to suffer badly if they do catch it).Research by Konstantinos Farsalinos, a professor of public health at the University of Patras, Greece, found that although China has high smoking rates, relatively few smokers ended up in hospital.’We thought […]

Read more at www.dailymail.co.uk

Controlling blood sugar levels helped improve thinking, learning and memory in overweight people with type 2 diabetes, a new study has found.

The US study examined 1100 diabetics and those with better blood sugar control had improved cognition, short-term memory, planning, impulse control, attention, and the ability to switch between tasks.

“Every little improvement in blood sugar control was associated with a little better cognition,” noted researchers from the Pennington Biomedical Research Centre in the US.

Lead study author, Owen Carmichael said: “It’s important to properly control your blood sugar to avoid the bad brain effects of your diabetes.”

“Don’t think you can simply let yourself get all the way to the obese range, lose some of the weight, and everything in the brain is fine. The brain might have already turned a corner that it can’t turn back from,” added Carmichael.

Diabetes is considered a global pandemic , affects up to 3.5 million South Africans and is the second most common cause of death in SA. It is reported as a risk factor for severe Covid-19 cases because high blood sugar levels may weaken the immune system.

The US study follows research in the UK which found that 30% of 24,000 people who reportedly died from Covid-19-related factors from March 1 – May 11 were diabetics.

“…Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes were both independently associated with a significant increased odds of in-hospital death with Covid-19,” noted a report on the study published recently in The Lancet .

Health and wellness expert, Vanessa Ascencao, says poor blood sugar control and bad management of diabetes may contribute to various infections. In addition to eating healthily and exercising, diabetics should explore the various powerful natural supplements available to help balance blood sugar, she added.

“Berberine for example is a powerful plant compound , supported by scores of published studies and shown to help lower blood sugar, support weight loss and improve heart health. Bio-Berberine Complex is further enhanced by polyphenol rich SA green tea extract, Origine 8 , to help improve insulin sensitivity and enhance metabolism,” she said.

Read more at www.bizcommunity.com