Health & Wellbeing

will's picture

These Specific Techniques Allow You To Control Your Dreams

by April McCarthy, PreventDisease.com

Dreams have fascinated philosophers for thousands of years, but only recently have dreams been subjected to empirical research and concentrated scientific study. Chances are that you’ve often found yourself puzzling over the mysterious content of a dream, or perhaps you’ve wondered why you dream at all.

Although many techniques exist for inducing lucid dreams, previous studies have reported low success rates, preventing researchers from being able to study the potential benefits and applications of lucid dreaming.

Although anecdotal reports of people awakening inside a dream have been around for centuries and over 50 percent of people report having at least one such experience in their lifetime, the first rigorous study of the phenomenon was only conducted in the last century.

Dr Denholm Aspy's research in the University of Adelaide's School of Psychology is aimed at addressing this problem and developing more effective lucid dream induction techniques.

will's picture

Trouble for Big Pharma as Nearly 50% of People Report Quitting Pills for CBD

by Carey Wedler, The Anti-Media

According to a recent survey conducted by cannabis market research firm the Brightfield Group and HelloMD, an online medical cannabis community, nearly half of CBD (cannabidiol) users give up prescription drugs and over the counter medications in favor of the non-psychoactive substance.

The survey of over 2,400 respondents found forty-two percent of CBD users — whether they used marijuana-derived CBD or hemp-derived CBD — “have left their traditional medications behind altogether and now use cannabis instead.”

The survey summarized that roughly “66% of CBD users indicated that CBD products are either ‘more effective’ or ‘much more effective’ in relieving their medical conditions than are over-the-counter (OTC) products.”

Further, “[a]pproximately 52% of this consumer group indicated that their CBD products are either ‘more effective’ or ‘much more effective’ in relieving medical conditions than are prescription medications.

will's picture

Magnesium Found to Treat Depression Better than Antidepressant Drugs

(Natural News) A breakthrough nutritional study conducted at the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont and published in PLoS ONE has found that just 248mg of magnesium per day leads to an astounding reversal of depression symptoms in study subjects.

New clinical research results show magnesium is effective at addressing symptoms and is safer and easier on the wallet than prescription therapies,” reports Science Daily, echoing the reporting of Natural News from over a decade ago. Today, even mainstream science is now confirming that magnesium is a safe, affordable and effective treatment for depression.

What’s really astonishing about all this is that while dangerous pharmaceuticals are bankrupting our nation and causing our health care system to collapse under the weight of out-of-control costs, magnesium can treat and prevent depression for mere pennies a day. Just a quarter of a gram of magnesium is all that’s necessary, and it costs less than 10 cents a day.

will's picture

Science Reveals Two New Reasons Why Cacao is Ideal Food for the Brain

by Anna Hunt, Awareness Junkie

Great news to all chocolate lovers! Italian scientists prove that cacao, which is used to make chocolate, is an ideal food for the brain. Thanks to flavonols, a substance found in the cacao plant, consuming dark chocolate can enhance your cognitive abilities. This could mean improved memory and attention span.

Scientists out of the University of L’Aquila, Italy, published a new study, Enhancing Human Cognition with Cacao Flavenoids, which states:

…the evidence accumulated so far suggests that cocoa flavanols administration can be effective at sustaining cognitive performance, leading to improvements in measures of general cognition, attention, processing speed and memory.

Two Ways Cacao is Ideal Food for the Brain

Surprisingly, the scientists discovered that eating cacao regularly over time has two interesting effects. Their research reveals that cacao affected the part of the brain associated with aging. Thus, cacao has the potential to protect against age-related cognitive decline.

will's picture

Why Artists Think Differently Compared To Other People

by PreventDisease.com

When asked to talk about images of places, painters are more likely to describe the depicted space as a two-dimensional image, while architects are more likely to focus on paths and the boundaries of the space.

"We found that painters, sculptors and architects consistently showed signs of their profession when talking about the spaces we showed them, and all three groups had more elaborate, detailed descriptions than people in unrelated professions," said senior author Dr Hugo Spiers (UCL Psychology & Language Sciences).

Artists’ portraits predominantly present subjects’ in a specific profile which aligns with their expectations and profession.

will's picture

The Erosion of Empathy in Medicine | Global Freedom Movement

by Brendan D Murphy, Global Freedom Movement

…despite the obvious vital importance of feelings to the human condition, little can be found on the subject in modern and medical psychology textbooks. We are being held back by a structure that is ill-suited to our needs. What is needed is the energy and vision to support the emerging paradigm…It is clear that, as doctors, we need your help.

–Dr. Robin Kelly, The Human Hologram

will's picture

Neuroscience Shows the Brain Literally Eats Itself Due to Lack of Sleep

by Anna Hunt, Awareness Junkie

New scientific research shows that lack of sleep may be more damaging to the brain than we’ve previously thought.

It’s well known that the brain gets a makeover every time you sleep. During sleep, support cells in the brain clear away residue left over from the day.

Now, new research shows that these support cells go into overdrive when you are not getting enough sleep. They clear away more than unneeded residue. They actually start to harm the brain.

Michele Bellesi, leader of the research team, told New Scientist:

We show for the first time that portions of synapses are literally eaten by astrocytes because of sleep loss.

Astrocytes are support cell in the brain that clear out unnecessary connections between neurons. This process is called phagocytosis, which means “to devour” in Greek.

The Brain’s Clean-up Process

It is absolutely normal for the brain’s support cells, called glial cells, to clean up the brain during sleep. They clear out old and worn out neurons. They also clean up old and unnecessary synapses, or connections, between neurons.

will's picture

18 Health Benefits of Fish Oil, According to Science

by Jen Reviews

Many people speak highly of the benefits of fish oil supplementation. Fish oil contains a high concentration of omega-3 fatty acids - the good fats that are necessary to help your body function properly.

Omega-3 fatty acid deficiency has ranked among the top ten leading causes of death in the United States. This statistic is surprising considering obesity - an excess of fat - is one of the other leading causes of disease. This shows the stark contrast to different types of fats. Fish oil’s got what you need.

Human beings evolved typically consuming a balance of omega-6 fats and omega-3 fats. The typical western diet finds this ratio extremely imbalanced. People consume up to 20 times more omega-6 fats than omega-3s, which can promote inflammation in the human body.

What Types Of Omega-3 Fats Does The Body Need?

There are several omega-3 fatty acids that are more important and prominent than others. The two most commonly cited and consumed essential fatty acids (considered essential because the body cannot synthesize them on its own) are

  • Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) is a very important in the maintenance of the cardiovascular system. It helps improve your blood’s ability to clot. EPA also reduces inflammation in the intestines and other areas of your body.

will's picture

Education Expert Finds Scheduling Every Free Moment For Children Prevents Self Discovery

by Josh Richardson, PreventDisease.com

Are children scheduled to the max these days? Are there any waking moments that give children the freedom to express themselves in unstructured environments? Children should be allowed to get bored so they can develop their innate ability to be creative, an education expert says.

Deschoolers maintain that a child's learning should be curiosity-driven rather than dictated by teachers and textbooks, and that forcing kids to adhere to curricula quashes their natural inclination to explore and ask questions because children think differently.

Dr Teresa Belton says cultural expectations that children should be constantly active could hamper the development of their imagination.

The senior researcher at the University of East Anglia's School of Education and Lifelong Learning interviewed a number of authors, artists and scientists in her exploration of the effects of boredom.

will's picture

Scientists Identify 28,000 Medicinal Plants That Treat Ailments from Cancer to Diabetes

by Carey Wedler, The Anti-Media

In recent years, the term “plant medicine” has come to be associated with psychedelics like mushrooms and ayahuasca, which are increasingly documented to provide mental and emotional relief to users. But according to a recent analysis from Kew Gardens in the United Kingdom, there are over 28,000 other plants currently being used as medicine throughout the world.

The second annual report from Britain’s Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, located in London, is the result of the research and analysis of 128 scientists from 12 countries around across the globe.

According to their findings, there are 28,187 plants “currently recorded as being of medicinal use.

The report [pdf] explains:

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Health & Wellbeing