Clipmarks | righthand's Health, collection

This you MUST watch, as you can. Bat Boy, Unbelievable!

Sun, 14 Oct 2007 16:18:23 GMT

clipped by: righthand
clipper's remarks: posted Oct 12th by Vivek Sethi as "best video of the year" with NO poppers?

Clip Source: www.metacafe.com

Best Video Of The Year

[Video]

Tags: health

7 Medical Myths Even Doctors Believe

Fri, 21 Dec 2007 10:26:02 GMT

clipped by: wildcat

Clip Source: www.livescience.com

Popular culture is loaded with myths and half-truths. Most are harmless. But when doctors start believing medical myths, perhaps it's time to worry.

In the British Medical Journal this week, researchers looked into several common misconceptions, from the belief that a person should drink eight glasses of water per day to the notion that reading in low light ruins your eyesight.

"We got fired up about this because we knew that physicians accepted these beliefs and were passing this information along to their patients," said Dr. Aaron Carroll, assistant professor of pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. "And these beliefs are frequently cited in the popular media."

Myth: We use only 10 percent of our brains.

Myth: You should drink at least eight glasses of water a day.

Myth: Fingernails and hair grow after death.

Myth: Shaved hair grows back faster, coarser and darker.

Myth: Reading in dim light ruins your eyesight.

Myth: Eating turkey makes you drowsy.

Tags: myths, common

Why Is Marijuana Illegal?

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 14:40:47 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: A brief history of the criminalization of cannabis.

Clip Source: blogs.salon.com

Many people assume that marijuana was made illegal through some kind of process involving scientific, medical, and government hearings; that it was to protect the citizens from what was determined to be a dangerous drug.

The actual story shows a much different picture. Those who voted on the legal fate of this plant never had the facts, but were dependent on information supplied by those who had a specific agenda to deceive lawmakers. You'll see below that the very first federal vote to prohibit marijuana was based entirely on a documented lie on the floor of the Senate.

You'll also see that the history of marijuana's criminalization is filled with:

Racism

Fear

Protection of Corporate Profits

Yellow Journalism

Ignorant, Incompetent, and/or Corrupt Legislators

Personal Career Advancement and Greed

These are the actual reasons marijuana is illegal.

'Torturer's Dicks got Hard with New Ideas'. She didn't have a Dick!

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 22:40:55 GMT

clipped by: righthand
clipper's remarks: On December 2, Detainee 063 was in an isolated, plywood interrogation booth at Camp X-Ray.
He was bolted to the floor and secured to a chair, his hands and legs cuffed.
He had been held in isolation since August 8, nearly four months earlier.
He was dehydrated and in need of regular hook-ups to an intravenous drip.
His feet were swollen.
He was urinating on himself.

The pattern was always the same: 20-hour interrogation sessions, followed by four hours of sleep. Sleep deprivation appears as a central theme, along with stress positions and constant humiliation, including sexual humiliation. These techniques were supplemented by the use of water, regular bouts of dehydration, the use of IV tubes, loud noise, nudity, female contact, pin-ups. An interrogator even tied a leash to him, led him around the room and forced him to perform a series of dog tricks. He was forced to wear a woman's bra and a thong was placed on his head.

Author Philippe Sands is a UK Queen's Council

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Stress hooding noise nudity dogs

It was the young officials at Guantánamo who dreamed up a list of new aggressive interrogation techniques, inspired by Jack Bauer from the TV series, 24

The younger men would get particularly agitated, excited even: "You could almost see their dicks getting hard as they got new ideas."

"And I said to myself, you know what, I don't have a dick to get hard. I can stay detached."

Detainee 063 was in an isolated, plywood interrogation booth at Camp X-Ray

He was bolted to the floor and secured to a chair, his hands and legs cuffed

He had been held in isolation since August 8, nearly four months earlier

He was dehydrated and in need of regular hook-ups to an intravenous drip

His feet were swollen

He was urinating on himself.

Time magazine published

interrogation log of Detainee 063

Some of the Abu Ghraib images bore a resemblance to what Detainee 063 had been through:

humiliation, stress, hooding, nudity, female interrogators, shackles, dogs. Was this just a coincidence?

Tags: torture, usa, guantanamo, sex, waterboarding

Depression can be Good for You

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 09:01:57 GMT

clipped by: abailart
clipper's remarks: There is serious depression that needs help. There are poverty, abuse, bad circumstance that need addressing. But for most of us, a bit of depression, the article suggests, is a catalyst for refelction, change and growth

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

A leading psychiatrist says that depression is not a human defect at all, but a defence mechanism that in its mild and moderate forms can force a healthy reassessment of personal circumstances.

Dr Paul Keedwell, an expert on mood disorders at the Institute of Psychiatry, argues all people are vulnerable to depression in the face of stress to varying degrees, and always have been.

The fact it has survived so long - and not been eradicated by evolution - indicates it has helped the human race become stronger.

"Psychological unease can generate creative work and the rebirth after depression brings a new love affair with life."

Aristotle believed depression to be of great value because of the insights it could bring. There is also an increased empathy in people who have or have had depression, he says, because they become more attuned to other people's suffering.

Tags: depression

Honey makes comeback as medicinal agent

Thu, 27 Dec 2007 04:20:51 GMT

clipped by: kkcapricorn
clipper's remarks: This is a good thing. Use of natural agents can help reduce dependence on drug companies

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

nature's original antibiotic — honey — is making a comeback.

Egyptians began applying honey to wounds

Medihoney, it is made from a highly absorbent seaweed-based material, saturated with manuka honey

manuka honey comes from hives of bees that collect nectar from manuka and jelly bushes in Australia and New Zealand.

Antibiotics becoming ineffective

Medihoney product has worked on about half the patients with diabetic foot ulcers

Medihoney dressing can also prevent the dangerous drug-resistant staph infection known as MRSA from infecting open wounds

manuka honey can kill the toughest bacteria even when diluted 10 times and recommends it especially for people with weak immune systems.

Iraqi families soon preferred the honey over other treatments because it was natural and because the honey dressings don't need to be changed as often

children also healed more quickly and with fewer complications

Tags: honey, medicine, wounds

Sexercising keeps you fit and healthy

Sun, 10 Feb 2008 09:09:37 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

The NHS has some new advice for people struggling to schedule a fitness routine into their daily lives - a workout between the sheets.

According to the NHS Direct website, "sexercise" can lower the risk of heart attacks and helps people live longer.

Endorphins released during orgasm stimulate immune system cells, which also helps target illnesses like cancer, as well as wrinkles, it states.

"Forget about jogging round the block or struggling with sit-ups.

"Sex uses every muscle group, gets the heart and lungs working hard, and burns about 300 calories an hour."

The advice suggests "regular romps this winter" could lead to a better body and a younger look.

Increased production of endorphins "will make your hair shine and your skin smooth," it adds.

"If you're worried about wrinkles - orgasms even help prevent frown lines from deepening."

keep mild illnesses like colds and aches and pains at bay

feeling fabulous inside and out

Tags: health

Possible Blood Test for Depression

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 02:03:17 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

Protein discovery could lead to depression test

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Changes in the location of a single protein in the brain could be used to tell whether a person with depression is responding to an antidepressant within days of taking the drug, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

People with depression now must wait weeks before they learn whether the drug they are taking will bring relief.

But researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have discovered that a single protein in the brain changes its location within a cell membrane when an antidepressant is working, and this change could be identified with a simple blood test.

In people with depression, this protein is trapped in what Rasenick called a "lipid raft" inside the cell membrane. While stuck in this thick, gluey area of the cell, the signaling protein seemed less effective at directing the action of message-carrying chemicals.

Psoriasis "cure" found by Irishman

Sun, 16 Dec 2007 01:08:34 GMT

clipped by: Antara
clipper's remarks: rest of article:

"It nearly had me destroyed. My scalp, ears, hands were all covered in it as well as my body. I tried absolutely everything. My marriage broke up and I even thought about taking my own life," he revealed.

The condition left David with a constant itch, and he left a trail of dead skin everywhere he went. When they asked, he told children asked what was wrong with him, he told them he had been burnt in a fire.

Four years ago, a friend suggested that he try Argan oil, extracted from the nut of a tree found in Morocco and used widely in cosmetics. Within hours of application, the itch which had troubled him for 14 years had stopped.

David spent the next four years experimenting with different combinations of natural ingredients, using the oil as a base, with remarkable results.

"Within four weeks there was a massive improvement and after seven to nine weeks it was completely gone from my scalp.

"I know this works. It has given me back my freedom. I was a

Clip Source: www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk

Irishman hits on 'cure' for psoriasis

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

A Sligo man became an amateur scientist in his desperate search for a cure for the skin condition which was slowly destroying his life.

For years, David Duncan lived as a recluse because of the psoriasis which covered 85pc of his body. After trying countless skin specialists, prescriptions and quack cures, the 36-year-old is convinced he has now come up with his own effective treatment.

The inflammatory disease, which typically causes red scaly patches on the skin, developed when David was 19 years old

Chemicals in food wrapping turn toxic

Sat, 02 Jun 2007 18:27:59 GMT

clipped by: dorine
clipper's remarks: Quote: Mabury's group is now assessing the toxicity of the intermediates. The team also plans to study how widespread PAPS are in the environment.

Clip Source: www.sciencenews.org

Chemicals that prevent grease from seeping through food packaging transform in rats into a suspected carcinogenic compound. This conversion could help explain why that compound—perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)—shows up so widely in people's blood, say researchers.

PFOA, used to manufacture nonstick cookware and rain gear, turns up in blood samples worldwide, reaching concentrations of 30 nanograms per milliliter or more. The chemical doesn't degrade, and people excrete it slowly. An advisory group to the Environmental Protection Agency has recommended classifying PFOA as a rodent carcinogen that may harm people.

But scientists don't know the primary route by which PFOA gets into people

A study in 2005 showed that similar compounds used in these applications can leach from microwave-popcorn packaging into the food.

Not only can the body absorb PAPS, but the chemicals degrade into a potentially toxic compound "widely observed in the bloodstream," concludes Mabury.

Tags: chemicals, food, toxic, cancer, research, science

Cancer-Fighting Agent Found In Beer

Wed, 02 Jan 2008 08:41:02 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks:

Clip Source: www.upi.com

Cancer-fighting agent found in beer

A key ingredient of beer may contain a cancer-fighting substance, a German study indicated.

Studies indicated xanthohumol, found in hops, inhibits a family of enzymes that can trigger the cancer process, as well as help the body detoxify carcinogens, science newswire Ivanhoe reported Monday. Preliminary studies at Oregon State University show that xanthohumol can kill breast, colon, ovarian and prostate cancers.

"It's very healthy. I think the ingredients in the beer are very good," Werner Back of Brewing Technology at the Technical University of Munich.

Xanthohumol contains more powerful antioxidants than vitamin E and some studies indicate it helps reduce oxidation of bad cholesterol, the newswire reported.

"Xanthohumol has been shown to be a very active substance against cancer," said Markus Herrmann , also in Munich. "It comes in small sticky beads, which you find within the hops."

It would take 60 regular beers to equal

one super beer.

Tags: cbgc, beer

UK Female Prisons are MENTAL: Self-Harm, Suicide

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 08:22:45 GMT

clipped by: righthand

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Women's wing at a prison

Sick and suicidal: plight of women in UK jails

Most women prisoners have mental health problems, and nine of out 10 were convicted of non-violent offences. Now a new study shows an alarming rise in suicides and self-harm - and behind the statistics lie ruined lives and shattered relatives. With four inquests about to open, Amelia Hill reports on the growing scandal in Britain's penal system

Kent set herself on fire in her cell

two months ago, she had already tried to hang herself twice

five weeks after her suicide attempt

lay in a medically induced coma in the intensive-care unit

third-degree burns from her thighs to her earlobes, the loss of use in her fingers and a face

she was virtually unrecognisable.

48 per cent rise in the number of self-harm incidents in women's prisons in the past five years

530 per cent increase since 2003

harm themselves an average of 6.3 times a year

increased by two thirds in just five years

female prison population

doubled between 1997 and 2006

Tags: uk, prisoners, female, suicide, health

China scientists "prove" tea can help fight obesity

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 13:13:46 GMT

clipped by: Deepti

Clip Source: in.news.yahoo.com

Chinese scientists have proved it - tea can help make you thin.

Researchers spent five years studying obesity, with the focus on children, the China Daily said.

"They found that the polyphenol compound in tea - especially Oolong tea - can help obese people battle the bulge," the newspaper said. "Scientists have proved that drinking tea can help people lose weight."

Guo Xirong, director of the Nanjing Institute for Paediatrics, particularly recommends Oolong tea, the newspaper said.

Chinese have long believed in the link between tea and weight loss, something an Oolong tea Internet home page (www.oolongtea.org) espouses.

"It has been confirmed that the continuous intake of Oolong tea contributes to enhancing the function of fat metabolism and to controlling obesity," it says of a tea produced and consumed primarily in the southeast of the country.

Tags: tea, obesity, china, researchers, proof, weight loss, fat

Does Stress Cause Weight Gain?

Sun, 20 Apr 2008 03:39:38 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern

Clip Source: www.intelihealth.com

Q: Can stress cause weight gain?

The short answer is yes, though not in every person. Some people lose their appetite and lose weight when they're stressed. But if you already tend to be overweight, stress usually leads to weight gain. It also can make it harder to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight.

How likely are you to respond to negative emotions and stress by eating? It's hard to know. But in a large British study, researchers found that people with the lowest body mass index (BMI) tended to lose weight when stressed, while people with the highest BMI usually gained weight.

Since food is essential for survival — and for most of human history food was relatively scarce — the brain has evolved to protect us against times of scarcity. Sadly, the brain does a poorer job of protecting us against abundance! In fact, it may actively undermine many of us. Some experts say that chronic stress leads to a preference for foods that are high in sugar and fat.

"Why I Am An Abortion Doctor"

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 02:46:16 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: "I can take a woman, in the biggest trouble she has ever experienced in her life, and by performing a five-minute operation, in comfort and dignity, I can give her back her life"

Clip Source: www.nationalpost.com

The first time I started to think about abortion was in 1960, when I was in secondyear medical school. I was assigned the case of a young woman who had died of a septic abortion. She had aborted herself using slippery elm bark.

I had never heard of slippery elm. A buddy and I went down to skid row, and without too much difficulty, purchased some slippery elm bark to use as a visual aid in our presentation. Slippery elm is not sterile, and frequently contains spores of the bacteria that cause gas gangrene. It is called slippery elm because, when it gets wet, it feels slippery. This makes it easier to slide slender pieces through the cervix where they absorb water, expand, dilate the cervix, produce infection and induce abortion. The young woman in our case developed an overwhelming infection. At autopsy she had multiple abscesses throughout her body, in her brain, lungs, liver and abdomen.

I have never forgotten that case.