The Gary Null Show - 08.23.22

DR. IRVING KIRSCH ON 60 MINUTES PROVING PLACEBOS WORK AS GOOD OR BETTER THAN PHARMACEUTICAL DRUGS

1. Qatar: Killer Heat Cripples Workers
2. India on Fire: Dealing with the heatwave crisis

 

Higher vitamin C levels associated with lower mortality risk during 16-year period

Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, August 20 2022

A study reported in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health has uncovered an association between higher plasma vitamin C levels and a lower risk of mortality during more than 16 years of follow-up. 

The study included 473 men and 475 women between the ages of 53 and 84. 

Among subjects whose plasma vitamin C concentrations were among the top 25%, the adjusted risk of dying from any cause during follow-up was 25% lower than the risk experienced by subjects whose vitamin C levels were among the lowest quarter. Those whose plasma vitamin C levels were among the highest 25% had an adjusted risk of dying from cancer or stroke that was 28% lower and a risk of dying from heart disease that was 35% lower than subjects whose levels were lowest. 

When subjects with low vitamin C levels (defined as 28 micromoles per liter or below) and normal levels (greater than 28 micromoles per liter) were compared, a normal level was associated with a 23% lower risk of premature mortality and a 38% lower risk of dying from heart disease, in comparison with low levels. 

As a possible reason for their findings, Shao-Ming Wang and colleagues note that oxidative stress is lowered by vitamin C. Oxidative stress can promote endothelial dysfunction that underlies heart disease by increasing inflammation and lipid peroxidation and decreasing nitric oxide availability. Oxidative stress also causes DNA damage associated with cancer.

Pomegranate-cocoa blend helps improve aging men’s symptoms

Shetty Hospital (India), August 19 2022. 

A study published  in the International Journal of Medical Science found benefits for supplementing with a combination of extracts of Punica granatum (pomegranate) fruit rind and Theobroma cocoa seed extracts in middle-aged men.

Previous research that investigated the effects of a blend of extracts of pomegranate fruit rind and cocoa seed in young men resulted in increases in serum and free testosterone levels as well as muscle strength and size. The current study included 120 men between the ages of 36 to 55 years who received 200 mg or 400 mg of pomegranate-cocoa extract or a placebo for 8 weeks. All participants were assigned to a program consisting of 30 minutes of walking per day for 5 days per week. 

At the end of the 7-week period, both doses of pomegranate-cocoa extracts were associated with significant improvement in aging males’ symptom scores, free and total testosterone levels, strength and perceived stress compared to the beginning of the study and to the placebo group. 

The authors concluded that pomegranate-cocoa “is a well-tolerated, safe, and effective nutraceutical blend that boosts sexual function, testosterone level, and psychological and general well-being in aging males.”

Placebo effect demonstrates healing power of the mind

Harvard Medical School, August 13, 2022

 Experts at Harvard Medical School advocate that the placebo effect be received with more positivity, rather than viewed as a deceptive or inaccurate measure designed to test health.  They conclude that the power of thought can be extremely effective in helping people heal, focusing on physiological changes that have been linked to the placebo effect.

The placebo effect involves someone being given medicine that is actually typically nothing more than a sugar pill which does not contain active ingredients. Many times, patients receiving a placebo who are in need of healing a certain condition report feeling significantly better, if not altogether healed.

The experts at Harvard explain that improvements may take place because of the anticipated response that a person expects when given medication. The university’s literature says that there is “evidence that some of the placebo effect is a favorable reaction to care and attention from people who patients believe can help ease their suffering and distress.” It goes on to say that the placebo effect “may be an integral part of good medical care and an ally that should be embraced by doctors and patients alike.”

This paves the way for potential changes in how health is handled and, furthermore, reinforces the strength of the human mind to bring about healing and desired outcomes, health or otherwise.

Awake within a dream: Lucid dreamers show greater insight in waking life

University of Lincoln (UK), August 12, 2022

People who are aware they are asleep when they are dreaming have better than average problem-solving abilities, new research has discovered.

Experts from the University of Lincoln, UK, say that those who experience ‘lucid dreaming’ — a phenomena where someone who is asleep can recognise that they are dreaming — can solve problems in the waking world better than those who remain unaware of the dream until they wake up.

It is thought some people are able to do this because of a higher level of insight, meaning their brains detect they are in a dream because events would not make sense otherwise.

 This cognitive ability translates to the waking world when it comes to finding the solution to a problem by spotting hidden connections or inconsistencies, researchers say.

The research by Dr Patrick Bourke, Senior Lecturer at the Lincoln School of Psychology, is the first empirical study demonstrating the relationship between lucid dreaming and insight.

The study examined 68 participants aged between 18 and 25 who had experienced different levels of lucid dreaming, from never to several times a month. They were asked to solve 30 problems designed to test insight. Each problem consisted of three words and a solution word.

Results showed that frequent lucid dreamers solved 25 per cent more of the insight problems than the non-lucid dreamers.

The role of dietary coconut for the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease

Curtin University (Australia), August 12, 2022

According to news reporting originating in Bentley, Australia, research stated, “Coconut oil, derived from the coconut fruit, has been recognised historically as containing high levels of saturated fat; however, closer scrutiny suggests that coconut should be regarded more favourably.”

The news reporters obtained a quote from the research from Curtin University, “Unlike most other dietary fats that are high in long-chain fatty acids, coconut oil comprises medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA). MCFA are unique in that they are easily absorbed and metabolised by the liver, and can be converted to ketones. Ketone bodies are an important alternative energy source in the brain, and may be beneficial to people developing or already with memory impairment, as in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Coconut is classified as a highly nutritious ‘functional food’. It is rich in dietary fibre, vitamins and minerals; however, notably, evidence is mounting to support the concept that coconut may be beneficial in the treatment of obesity, dyslipidaemia, elevated LDL, insulin resistance and hypertension – these are the risk factors for CVD and type 2 diabetes, and also for AD. In addition, phenolic compounds and hormones (cytokinins) found in coconut may assist in preventing the aggregation of amyloid-beta peptide, potentially inhibiting a key step in the pathogenesis of AD.”

According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “The purpose of the present review was to explore the literature related to coconut, outlining the known mechanistic physiology, and to discuss the potential role of coconut supplementation as a therapeutic option in the prevention and management of AD.”

Cold sores virus, cardiovascular damage linked in study

Brighton and Sussex Medical School, August 14, 2022

A herpes virus similar to the one that causes cold sores has been linked to immune cells that can damage cardiovascular tissue, according to a study.

Researchers at the Brighton and Sussex Medical School in England found that a relevant number of a specific type of immune cells arise when infection with cytomegalovirus is present. Their findings were published in the journal Theranostics.

The virus, which is frequently associated with the salivary glands, has been considered harmless because the immune system usually controls it.

But the CD28null CD4 T-cells have been known to be involved in damaging the arteries around the heart.

Cytomegalovirus infection increases the risk of cardiovascular death by over 20 percent, according to a study published last year in the Journal of the American Heart Association, but the effect wasn’t identified.

One theory was they were a natural consequence of aging.

“While we had previously been aware of a link between these immune cells and cardiovascular damage, this study is the first to show that sufficient numbers to be damaging only occur in the presence of this infection,” lead author Dr. Alejandra Pera, a researcher at BSMS, said in a press release.

They found that certain tissue types, which are determined genetically, make individuals more susceptible to large numbers of these cells.

With this discovery researchers believe heart disease can be controlled by treating the virus.