What Happened To Make Me Sick? Why? People want to know. Why they have an illness and new, never before experienced symptoms plagues, obsesses and fascinates patients. The human brain thrives on order, creating it wherever it can. The confusing pixels of a computer monitor processed in the brain come to represent a 1930s film […]
Can Even Minor Stress Kill You? (Plus What You Can Do About It – 8/13/12)
Does Psychological Distress Harm You? Studies and Results A recent study from University College, London concluded very minor forms of stress that doctors and many patients hardly notice increases overall mortality. The more psychological stress reported, the higher the death rates – and they really went up. How Was the Study Done? The National Health […]
Getting healthy through nature (5/14/12)
Getting Well Naturally There are many different ways to get and feel well. One of the simplest is to spend time in nature. But why does it work? Perhaps because we’re hardwired to live and enjoy natural environments. Professor Catherine Ward Thompson recently explained to the BBC that one theory that “our whole neuroendocrine system […]
Surviving with nothing – lessons from bears and men (3/26/12)
Recycling and Hibernating How important is recycling to regenerating your body? Critical. We use up a lot of “stuff” getting through the day – proteins, sugars, fats, DNA – and much else. Fortunately we get to remake it constantly – and remake ourselves continually as we go. And some animals – like bears – can […]
What your gut tells your brain (9/20/11)
Is It Romance, Or Do the Right Bacteria Make the Mood? Brain, your gut is calling. It’s got a lot to say – about, stress, anxiety, and your mood. That’s the potential upshot of a recent study published in PNAS (http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2011/08/26/1102999108.abstract?sid=1091d71a-9201-45df-90ec-6134dfd8231d) by Javier Bravo and company from the University College, Cork, and nicely described in […]