Selling depression to the world

After the SSRIs were developed, their manufacturers realized the population needed to be convinced they were suffering from depression so as many people as possible would buy their drugs

The tricks the drug industry used to perform this were remarkable and have many parallels to how the predatory pharmaceutical industry pushes many other drugs on us 

While a minority of patients (about a third) benefit from antidepressant therapy, the majority do not (termed “treatment resistant depression”), but unfortunately, until recently there have been minimal options available for these patients

Much of this results from depression being viewed as a single illness, rather than a myriad of conditions with somewhat overlapping symptoms which each need to be treated differently (rather than simply all being given the same drug)

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Preventing Urinary Tract Infections

An animal study from Baylor College of Medicine demonstrated how supplementation with the natural sugar D-mannose may improve cellular function in the urinary tract of older adults and lower the rate of urinary tract infections (UTIs)

Researchers compared the cellular function of naturally aging mouse bladder cells against younger animals and found increased cellular senescence, oxidative stress and increased susceptibility to recurring UTIs, with an increased inefficiency in combating stress

The prevalence of UTIs is rising, having grown by 60.4% from 1990 to 2019. Up to 60% of all women have at least one UTI during their lifetime according to some experts. The annual cost of treatment in the Medicare population for those with a UTI was approximately $12,000 per person in 2019 

In 2018, 79.8% of sampled pork, chicken and turkey in Flagstaff, Arizona, was contaminated with E. coli; blood and urine samples from a nearby medical center revealed 72.4% of those with a UTI had E. coli of the same strain, known as ST131

You can take precautions at home to prevent and start early treatment. Women can take several specific hygienic steps that may help prevent the development of a UTI; you may consider using D-mannose, the active component in cranberries — proanthocyanidins (PAC) — and a saturated solution of potassium iodide (SSKI) as early treatment

More tips to prevent UTI

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The benefits of cherries

Sweet cherries are a great source of potassium, which is important for maintaining normal blood pressure, and contain a number of potent anticancer agents

Tart cherries have been shown to improve athletic performance, endurance and recovery, reducing post-exercise pain and inflammation. Tart cherries also help relieve and prevent arthritis and gout

If you live in a sub-tropical area, growing acerola cherry trees in your backyard can provide you with this potent super food for several months of the year. Relying on commercially-available cherries will limit them to just a few weeks a year

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Eating carrots

Carrots are a popular snack food in the U.S. as they are easy, sweet and go well with a number of different dipping sauces, such as humus

While baby carrots are nutrient-dense, they also are bathed in chlorine before sale, increasing the risk of exposure to disinfection byproducts, some of the most dangerous chemicals to your health

Cooking and cutting whole unprocessed carrots may release more beneficial and powerful antioxidants in the vegetable

 

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Chemical Bayer strikes again, with a Trojan horse !

Bayer’s modified soil microbes could trigger a genetically engineered doomsday for agriculture

If you don’t like the toxic pollution from industrial agriculture’s synthetic nitrogen fertilizers and pesticides, Bayer and its partner Ginkgo Bioworks have a solution 

They say they’re going to swap out some of the old fossil-fuel-based agrochemicals for genetically engineered microbes

The uncontrolled spread of genetically engineered microbes could contaminate soil on such a vast scale that it could be the end of farming!

 

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CoQ10 prevents heart diseases

A number of studies support the use of CoQ10 for heart health; much of CoQ10’s cardioprotective effects involve its antioxidant effects and ability to produce ATP

People who took CoQ10 were also less likely to experience a nonfatal or fatal heart attack over 12 months compared to those who did not

Low levels of CoQ10 are associated with an increased risk of heart failure, with the severity of heart failure correlated with the severity of CoQ10 deficiency 

Supplementing with CoQ10 for eight to 12 weeks can significantly reduce CRP , tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and IL-6, measures of widespread inflammation

By the age of 65, your body typically produces only about half the amount it did at 25, so supplementation with CoQ10 or its reduced form ubiquinol is helpful in some cases
 

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Vision loss & Alzheimer's go hand in hand

Loss of vision is associated with a higher risk for certain subtypes of Alzheimer’s; having distance vision worse than 20/40 is associated with a nearly threefold higher risk of cognitive impairment

Amyloid beta protein plays an important role in both vision loss and Alzheimer’s, and studies suggest noninvasive ocular testing may help with early Alzheimer’s diagnosis 

Microwaves emitted from wireless devices trigger a chemical cascade that significantly raises your risk for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s

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