Health
Why you should smile at strangers
By Stephanie Pappas
LiveScience
CHICAGO — Next time you’re out walking about, you may want to give passers-by a smile, or at least a nod. Recent research reveals that these tiny gestures can make people feel more connected.
People who have been acknowledged by a stranger feel more connected to others immediately after the experience than people who have been deliberately ignored, according to study reported here today (May 24) at the annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Motivation.
“Ostracism is painful,” said study researcher Eric Wesselmann, a social psychologist at Purdue University in Indiana. “Sometimes, colloquially, I like to say ostracism sucks. It’s not a pleasant experience.”
The pain is psychological, but it can also extend to the physical. Studies have linked loneliness to a weakened immune system and a hardening of the arteries, for example. And a variety of laboratory experiments have shown that when a person is excluded, even if for a brief time in something as inconsequential as a silly computer game, they feel worse about themselves and experience an all-around sour mood.
Kidney stone rate doubles in last 16 years
Kidney stones are nearly twice as common now as they were in the early 1990s, according to a new study.
In 1994, one in 20 people in the U.S. had kidney stones, in the years between 2007 and 2010, the rate was one in 11.
“While we expected the prevalence of kidney stones to increase, the size of the increase was surprising,” says study researcher Dr. Charles Scales Jr., a urologist at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Additionally, the researchers found that people with obesity, diabetes or gout were more likely than healthy people to be diagnosed with kidney stones.
A baby made in India: a couple’s dream comes true
By Ian Williams and Rory Kress
Anand, India
Robyn and Jason Wright are learning the dusty streets of their son’s birthplace, where spluttering rickshaws weave around abandoned cows with bright painted faces, piles of trash smoldering on the sidewalk.
This is Anand, half a world away from their American home, where amid all the chaos, passersby strain to catch a glimpse of the tiny bundle Robyn is cradling in her arms.
Baby Jake Wright, seven weeks old and weighing just four pounds is the baby they thought they would never have, as Robyn was unable to carry a child after a hysterectomy.
“We’d written it off, thought we’d never have kids,” Robyn told us. “Someone had mentioned doing surrogacy in India. I thought they were crazy.”
Crazy as it seemed, the Wrights flew from their home in Wyoming to the Akanksha Infertility Clinic here in Anand: the reproductive tourist hub for an international baby boom. They supplied the egg and sperm for baby Jake and he was carried in the womb of an Indian surrogate mother called Usha, who gave birth to him in December.
NBC News
Robyn and Jason Wright with their son Jake, walking through Ananad, India.
“We’ve traveled half way round the world to have him,” Robyn said. “He was very much wanted, very much loved – by Usha too.”
But Robyn and Jason are not such a strange sight in Anand.
Locals spot Americans on the street and know they’re here for the Akanksha Clinic. So far, the clinic has produced more than 500 surrogate babies and their biggest overseas market is the United States. Most would-be parents are drawn by the price. In India, a surrogate baby costs around US$25,000. In the US, the cost can exceed US$100,000.
“We knew we couldn’t afford it in the US,” Robyn told us.
“Sixty, sixty-five surrogates are pregnant at any time, carrying babies for couples from all over the world,” says Dr. Nayna Patel, the director of the Akanksha Infertility Clinic.
Is your couch giving you cancer?
By Ethan A. Huff, May 27 2012
(NaturalNews) You may not be aware of it, but hidden in your clothing, furniture and even electronics are toxic flame retardant chemicals that are increasingly being linked to neurological damage, endocrine disruption and cancer. And in a fascinating investigative series, Chicago Tribune reporters uncover the dirty secrets behind why these toxic chemicals continue to be used in consumer products — despite their extreme toxicity — and what you can do to help avoid them. The history of flame retardant…
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Holistic Health
Revitalize mind and body in the shower daily
By Lindsay Chimileski , May 27 2012
(NaturalNews) Although it has become just part of the routine, showering has the potential to be not only an enjoyable and invigorating treat but also a revitalizing therapy. By simply alternating the faucets, you can boost your immune system, increase metabolism, enliven healthy circulation of blood and lymph and promote detoxification. The procedure is simple and easy to remember, just think three minutes, thirty seconds, three times. Three minutes hot, followed by thirty sec cold, repeated…
Ten reasons dehydration is a great tool to preserve and store food
By Scott Morefield,
(NaturalNews) With Spring well established and Summer fast approaching, farmer’s markets and backyard gardens are about to be or already are teeming with fresh fruits and vegetables. Eating organic, seasonal, locally grown foods is one of the best ways to stay healthy, yet it often seems like the season for some of the best produce is far too short. Sure, most basic produce is ‘available’ year-round, but that’s because it’s being picked before maturity, then shipped halfway across the planet. By…
Boycott junk food in schools – California mandates set a healthy eating example
By PF Louis,
(NaturalNews) Legislation in California has set limits on what foods can be sold as competitive foods in their public schools. Competitive food sales include snack bars and kiosks, a la carte cafeteria purchases, and vending machines. The restrictions deal with lowering added sugars and fat contents and even excluding artificial sweeteners. The calorie amounts are limited while nutritional values are required to meet federal guidelines. For example, fruit juices are required to contain 50% natural…
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Pet Health
Heart Disease in Cats
By Dr. Becker
- Feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a disease of the heart muscle in which the walls thicken and the heart enlarges.
- HCM is an inherited disease in many purebred cats, however, it is the average house cat who is most commonly diagnosed with the condition, usually at midlife.
- HCM can be mild or severe. Cats with mild or moderate disease can be asymptomatic; those with significant disease will often show signs of respiratory distress caused by congestive heart failure, or leg paralysis due to a blood clot.
- There are no drugs that have proved consistently helpful in treating HCM in kitties, however, Dr. Becker has had good success with HCM patients in her practice using a combination of appropriate supplements, glandulars, and herbs.
- Acquired HCM is likely the result of a diet deficient in meat-based protein, so feeding your cat a human grade, meat-based diet is important. The earlier HCM is diagnosed and treated, the better the outcome for your kitty.
Feline Cardiomyopathy in Cats
Can Nail Polish Harm Your Pet?
By Dr. Becker
- According to testing done on nail products from California salons, several polishes labeled toxin-free actually contained one or more of the “toxic three” chemicals: dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene and formaldehyde.
- All three chemicals are linked to chronic health conditions if inhaled. And while some experts believe there’s no cause for alarm, it’s up to you as a pet owner to decide whether exposing yourself or your pet to potentially toxic nail products is worth the risk.
- If you do use nail polish or other nail products, we recommend you research the least hazardous brands available, keep all human nail products away from your pet, and use only pet-safe polish and polish remover if you can’t resist painting your dog’s nails.
Read Full Article Here
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Positivity Mind and Body
How to use Ho’oponopono to get rid of emotional baggage
By PF Louis,
(NaturalNews) A psychologist assigned to a Hawaiian ward for the criminally insane is credited to improving most of the prisoners’ conditions and the general atmosphere of the ward in four years. His name is Dr. Ihaleakala S. Hew Len, hereafter referred to as Dr. Hew Len.
He used a technique called Ho’oponopono taught to him by Morrnah Nalamaku Simeona. Morrnah was a Kahuna La’au Lapa’au, a healing priest, and the techniques she taught had originally been use to resolve family issues. What’s truly amazing is Dr. Hew Len never personally counseled the prisoners or staff!
Dr. Hew Len and success motivator Dr. Joe Vitale have put Ho’oponopono into greater public awareness in the book Zero Limits, written by Dr. Joe after attending Dr. Hew Len’s workshop. Dr. Joe is not your average life coach or success guru.
Ho’oponopono highlights
The first thing Dr. Hew Len advises is to determine who you are, not as a character, persona, or ego, but to attempt contact with your spiritual or higher Self. This helps remove mind clutter from this practice.
The practice itself demands acceptance of full responsibility, not only for your feelings and emotions, but of others’ actions and words. That’s not so easy for most of us. Dr. Hew Len looked over prisoners’ files in that ward, and would utter to the universe or infinity or God (whatever term suits you) “I’m sorry” and “I love you” quietly and sincerely.
This is especially useful to avoid having one’s own internal or external reactions be negative towards another person or persons actions or words. Having negative feelings or proving one is right and the other is wrong or others are evil, holds that specific person or group in place.
Dr. Hew Len explains that we have subconscious memories or recordings that we react to by not accepting 100% responsibility for how we feel from outer circumstances. We all share these subconscious memories. But by uttering those phrases of apology and love we release them from an incident of turmoil or upset.
You are urged to look into the sources below for more understanding.
Sources for this article include:
How Dr. Hew Len healed a ward of mentally ill criminals with Ho’oponopono:
http://rosariomontenegro.hubpages.com
Article written by Dr. Joe Vitale: http://www.mrfire.com
Theory of Ho’oponopono: http://www.ancienthuna.com/ho-oponopono.htm
Where to learn more about Ho’oponopono: http://www.hooponopono.org/index.htm
Video interview of Dr. Hew Len: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL972JihAmg
Main source for this article: http://www.ancienthuna.com/ho-oponopono.htm
http://hooponoponoworks.blogspot.com/2008/10/hooponopono-summary.html
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Articles of Interest
Weird memory drain: Chewing gum
By Sara Cann
Men’s Health
Chomping on gum all day long won’t just annoy your cube mate–it’ll muck up your memory, too. Researchers at Cardiff University in the U.K. found that people who chewed gum had a harder time memorizing lists of letters and numbers than those who didn’t chew.
Why? Researchers believe that the motion involved in chewing impedes your brain’s ability to memorize serial lists. Just like tapping your finger or foot may distract you from accomplishing the same task, continual movements like gnawing on gum can also interfere with your short-term memory. Let’s test how good your short-term memory is. Memorize the following words: Nun, teddy bear, professor, pencil, banana, friend, soup.
In 10 minutes, see how many of the words you can recall. If you can’t get all seven, then follow this expert-approved plan to boost your short-term memory–no gum needed. Use these tricks to memorize that hot girl’s digits, directions to a buddy’s place, or the names of your new coworkers. (For more great tips, read How to Remember Everything.)
‘Friends’ with benefits: Facebook fueling organ donations
Adam Melton
Through Facebook, Becky Melton (left) learned that Jerry Wilde (center) needed a new kidney. In February, Melton gave Wilde, a stranger before, one of her kidneys. Leah Hostalet (right) launched Wilde’s kidney-solicitation Facebook page.
Becky Melton’s “friend” request to Jerry Wilde, a complete stranger in dire need of a new kidney, came with a photo and a gift.
The texted photo: a picture of Melton, 27, holding a hand-drawn sign showing two kidneys and a message — “We’re a match!” The gift: one of Melton’s kidneys.
Melton, a Richmond, Ind. resident, just days before had perused a Facebook page created in November to find a new kidney for Wilde, a 49-year-old Indiana college professor whose body had been ravaged by two years of dialysis treatments following removal of a cancerous kidney. Wilde was on a transplant waiting list and needed the organ to stay alive. The transplant surgery was successfully performed Feb. 24.
“I’d never spoken to her before she texted me,” Wilde told msnbc.com Friday. “Today I feel great. I’m stunned and honored and absolutely blown away that anyone would do that for me, or for any person. Becky always tells me, ‘Jerry, I’m not a hero.’ She is the definition of a hero.”
Facebook — which on May 1 allowed users to post their organ-donation status — is rapidly blossoming into a hub for organ solicitation. Within this surreal, new corner of the social network, the vast majority of pages are set up explicitly for people requiring kidney transplants. More than 80 people have shared their wrenching tales of illness and desperation, along with their blood types. These same “I Need a Kidney!” pages often carry an ominous sense that a clock is ticking toward a lifetime expiration date.
“Living-donor kidneys last a lot longer than kidneys from deceased donors. That’s why there’s this big push on Facebook for living donors,” said Leah Hostalet, who established the “Find A Kidney for Jerry” page. About seven years ago, Wilde was Hostalet’s educational psychology professor at Indiana University East in Richmond, Ind.
Hostalet immediately saw there were dozens of kidney-solicitation pages scattered across Facebook. She next organized many into a single Facebook nexus called “Find a Kidney Central.” On Friday, Hostalet’s page –which also includes advice and donation laws — listed 86 people (from 28 states) seeking kidney donors. She knows of four people, including Wilde, who’ve had successful transplants via Facebook-found “friends,” plus another four people who have located donors through the social network and who now are awaiting transplant surgeries.
After chemo hair loss, ‘henna crowns’ help heal
Henna design by Henna Lounge/Photography by Frances Darwin
Tara Schubert modeled for Henna Heals, a studio in Toronto where artists paint henna designs on the heads of people who have lost their hair, usually due to chemotherapy or alopecia.
After losing her hair to chemotherapy while receiving treatment for advanced stage ovarian cancer, Deanne Mayall was feeling depressed about being bald. Every look in the mirror reminded her of her cancer diagnosis.
So, the Kingston, Ontario, native decided to change that.
Henna design by Nadia Bukhari/Courtesy of Deanne Mayall
Deanne Mayall shows off her henna crown.
A friend passed along a recent article from Samaritan Magazine, which described how a new Toronto-based business named Henna Heals is using the ancient art form of henna to beautifully transform the bald heads of people with cancer and genetic alopecia.
Using a hairless head as a canvas, henna artists hand-paint intricate and captivating designs onto the women’s scalp with the natural plant-based paste called henna.
Known as henna crowns, “the designs are customized and one-off works of art,” says Frances Darwin, the brainchild behind Henna Heals. They take between 60 and 90 minutes for the artist to create, and the twirling patterns can simply ring the head, or extend as far down the neck and around the forehead and ears as a person desires, she explains.
Darwin is quick to point out that henna crowns are not tattoos, and involve no needles or pain. And the designs are temporary, lasting seven to 14 days.
Cannabis smokers show greater lung capacity and lower cancer levels than non-smokers
By Raw Michelle,
(NaturalNews) For many years, the demonizing claims being made against cannabis have been crumbling as research slowly dispels them. Fifty years ago people earnestly believed that the consumption of cannabis was directly linked to the development of an array of mental illnesses, and violent and hypersexual behavior. Medical opinion must be guided by researchBut these prejudices are still hanging on. Today, an individual who responsibly informs their doctor of their marijuana use, because, as with…
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