Efficacy and Safety of Ashwagandha Root Extract on Cognitive Functions in Healthy, Stressed Adults
Bengaluru Neuro Centre (India), December 26, 2021 The global prevalence of stress is increasing. Stress adversely affects cognitive ability, sleep quality, and overall psychological well-being. Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal), an essential medicine in Ayurveda, is reportedly beneficial in reducing stress and improving memory. This double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical study evaluated the effect of Ashwagandha root extract sustained-release capsule 300 mg (hereafter Ashwagandha SR) on cognitive functions, stress levels, sleep quality, overall well-being, and safety in stressed subjects.
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Social stress messes up the hippocampus
Polish Academy of Sciences, December 3, 2021 How do you feel when you are stuck in a traffic jam for hours? Or when you are late for a flight? Or when you are waiting at the university hall to pass an exam? Obviously, you feel stressed, which might endanger your hippocampus according to a research paper recently published in PLOS One by Stankiewicz and colleagues. A large body of research has clearly shown that stress, especially when repeated and unpredictable, is capable of modifying the structure and the activity of neuronal circuits. In fact, stress is a risk factor for many mood-related disorders such as depression, anxiety and schizophrenia. Adaptive and maladaptive modifications take place in our brain to counteract stressors and these modifications could lead to severe mental pathologies. One of the most vulnerable structures of the brain is the hippocampus, a brain region greatly involved in learning and memory functions.
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Healthy diet in early pregnancy reduces risk of gestational diabetes
University of Turku (Finland), December 29, 2021 A healthy, comprehensive diet that lowers the body’s inflammation reduces the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus, reveals a new study from the University of Turku in Finland. Obesity is a significant risk factor for developing gestational diabetes mellitus, and an increasing number of pregnant women are overweight or obese. Dietary habits have an impact on both obesity and the onset of gestational diabetes mellitus. The research results show that following a healthy diet in early pregnancy reduces the risk of gestational diabetes. The study also found that a higher dietary inflammatory index, meaning a diet that increases the low-grade inflammatory markers in the body was connected to an increased risk of developing gestational diabetes mellitus. Furthermore, a higher consumption of fat and especially saturated fats was connected to gestational diabetes. This is of interest as the intake of saturated fats is known to increase the body’s inflammation.
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Intake of magnesium associated with improvements in blood sugar, insulin sensitivity in meta-analysis
University of Palermo (Italy), December 24, 2021 Magnesium intake may help improve blood sugar (glucose) metabolism among people with diabetes and those who are at high risk of developing the disease, according to findings from a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials reported in the journal Nutrients. Magnesium [intake] appears to have a beneficial role and improves glucose parameters in people with diabetes,” the authors concluded. “Moreover, our work indicates that magnesium [intake] may improve insulin-sensitivity parameters in those at high risk of diabetes.”
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Nighttime electronic device use lowers melatonin levels
Brigham and Women’s Hospital, December 24 2021. The Proceedings of the National Academy of Science published the findings researchers at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital of a suppressive effect for evening use of light-emitting electronic devices on sleep and melatonin secretion. “Electronic devices emit light that is short-wavelength-enriched light, which has a higher concentration of blue light — with a peak around 450 nm — than natural light,” explained lead author Anne-Marie Chang. “This is different from natural light in composition, having a greater impact on sleep and circadian rhythms.”
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Mediterranean diet plus olive oil or nuts associated with improved cognitive function
Institute of Biomedical Investigations (Barcelona Spain), December 11, 2021 Supplementing the plant-based Mediterranean diet with antioxidant-rich extra virgin olive oil or mixed nuts was associated with improved cognitive function in a study of older adults in Spain but the authors warn more investigation is needed, according to an article published online by JAMA Internal Medicine. Emerging evidence suggests associations between dietary habits and cognitive performance. Oxidative stress (the body’s inability to appropriately detoxify itself) has long been considered to play a major role in cognitive decline. Previous research suggests following a Mediterranean diet may relate to better cognitive function and a lower risk of dementia. However, the observational studies that have examined these associations have limitations, according to the study background.
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Video – Elisabet Sahtouris PhD (evolutionary biologist) – Vaccines, Cures, Strange Policies 7 mins
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Video – Dr Scott Jensen Sounds Alarm on New Medical Surveillance Regime
First 5 minutes
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Video – Russian Roulette “Vaccines” Classified by the FDA: “Gene Transfer Technologies”
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Video – Bobby Kennedy – Reasons Why They Want to Vaccinate Kids – 2 Minutes
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Video – New York State Covid Laws on January 5th – 1 Min 40 sec
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Video – Boris Johnson Receiving a Fake Covid Booster – 40 seconds
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Safety And Tolerability Of Hydroxychloroquine In Healthcare Workers And First Responders For The Prevention Of COVID-19: WHIP COVID-19 Study
Infectious Disease, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit International Journal of Infectious Diseases, December 23, 2021 ABSTRACT Healthcare workers (HCW) are among the highest risk groups for acquisition of COVID-19 due to occupational exposures. The WHIP COVID-19 study aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) as chemoprophylaxis for SARS-CoV-2 infection in this population. HCW, first responders and other occupationally high-risk participants were enrolled in a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical study of HCQ from April-October 2020. The trial compared daily versus weekly HCQ to placebo and to a prospective cohort on HCQ for autoimmune diseases. Participants were followed for 8 weeks. Serology or a positive PCR test were used to determine laboratory confirmed clinical cases. Conclusions This randomized placebo-controlled trial was able to demonstrate the safety of HCQ outpatient chemoprophylaxis in high-risk groups against COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine chemoprophylaxis is safe in high-risk populations for COVID-19 No increased cardiovascular risks with hydroxychloroquine chemoprophylaxis• Adverse events were similar between placebo and hydroxychloroquine treatment
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Study of fully vaccinated patients with cancer who had breakthrough COVID-19 shows 13% mortality rate
Vanderbilt University Medical Center, December 24, 2021 The first study to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of fully vaccinated patients with cancer who had breakthrough COVID-19 infections indicates they remained at high risk for hospitalization and death. The study, published Dec. 24 in Annals of Oncology showed that fully vaccinated patients who experienced breakthrough infections had a hospitalization rate of 65%, an ICU or mechanical ventilation rate of 19%, and a 13% death rate. The study was conducted by the COVID-19 and Cancer Consortium (CCC19), a group of 129 research centers that has been tracking the impact of COVID-19 on patients with cancer since the beginning of the pandemic. “Patients with cancer who develop breakthrough COVID-19 even following full vaccination can still experience severe outcomes, including death,” said Toni Choueiri, MD, at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and a senior author on the report.
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Tweet by Max Blumenthal on Twitter
49-year-old NY Times editor Carlos Tejada died of a heart attack 24 hours after a Moderna mix-and-match booster. Instead of investigating and seeking justice, NYT omits this fact in his obit, the media looks the other way & his colleagues ignore it.
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Elon Musk and all that was wrong with 2021
Time magazine picked a billionaire unconcerned with human misery as ‘Person of the Year’. This is quite befitting. Belen Fernandez, AL-JAZEERA, December 27, 2021 Time magazine recently chose Elon Musk – the “richest private citizen in history” and the CEO of rocket firm SpaceX and electric vehicle company Tesla – as its “2021 Person of the Year”. In the first paragraph of the lengthy profile of Musk accompanying the accolade, we learn that the man “tosses satellites into orbit and harnesses the sun”, sends the stock market soaring and swooning with a “flick of his finger”, and also “likes to live-tweet his poops”. The second paragraph of the profile is devoted to further exploring this last theme: “‘Just dropping some friends off at the pool’, the 50-year-old zillionaire informed his 66 million Twitter followers on the evening of Nov. 29, having previously advised that at least half his tweets were ‘made on a porcelain throne’”. Might it not be more charming, then, to select a Person of the Year who is actually concerned with alleviating human misery – as opposed to someone chasing a dystopian vision of an exclusive future universe run by and for Elon Musk? Granted, this is the same magazine that named Adolf Hitler “Man of the Year” in 1938. Capitalism, of course, is fundamentally anti-human – as, it seems, is Musk, whose own brother and business partner Kimbal acknowledges in the Time profile that Elon’s “gift is not empathy with people”. Case in point: in October, a federal jury ordered Tesla to pay almost $137m to a Black ex-employee who, as the Washington Post notes, claimed workers were subjected to “a scene ‘straight from the Jim Crow era’”, characterised by rampant racist abuse and supervisors who refused to address the issue. Then in December, six women filed separate suits against Tesla for alleged sexual harassment in the workplace – with many of them contending that Musk’s own frequent lewd behaviour on Twitter only encouraged sexual taunts and other abuse in a male-dominated work environment. Add to this Musk’s willful endangerment of employees’ lives during the pandemic and other violations of labour laws – including his underhanded machinations and threats against workers wishing to unionise – and one begins to worry about how that whole Mars idea will pan out.
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Lockdown Policies And Mask Mandates Linked With Lower IQ And Social Brain Damage In Children
According to a clinical psychiatrist for children and adolescents, recent lockdown guidelines and mask regulations in the country are leading to a generation of children with lower IQs and signs of social brain damage.
Dr. Mark McDonald referred to a study published on August 11 by Brown University that noted that “children born during the pandemic have significantly reduced verbal, motor, and overall cognitive performance compared to children born pre-pandemic.”
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What the numbers tells us about a catastrophic year of wildfires
The Guardian, December 25, 2021 Amid a historic drought and record-breaking heatwaves, wildfires that erupted across the US burned close to 7.7m acres. Some broke records that had only recently been set. And while the amount of land burned this year didn’t reach 2020 levels, a troubling new trend emerged: fires are getting harder to fight Wildfires used to be largely confined to a four-month period but the threats are now felt through the year. By 21 June, close to 29,000 wildfires had already ignited across the US – roughly 4,000 more than average years according to the National Interagency Fire Center The Dixie fire, which burned close to a million acres in California over three months, became the first fire to cross over the Sierra Nevada range. Soon after, the 221,775-acre Caldor fire became the second 2021 delivered the hottest summers on record in California, Nevada, and Oregon. Washington and Arizona had their second hottest summer this year. By the end of November – even after heavy rains doused the Pacific north-west and northern California – 80% of the west remained categorized in severe drought. Half of the region was still experiencing extreme drought. The cost of battling these blazes in 2021 was more than $4.4bn, according to the NIFC – more than double the 10-year average for federal firefighting costs. That’s the most ever spent on a fire season by the federal government and these numbers don’t include state and local expenditures.