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Jimi's Daily Health Articles

Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
This Memory Nutrient has a Strange Source

Some of the most powerful nutrients yet discovered for ensuring a sharper, stronger memory are made naturally by your own body.

I’m talking about nutrients like enzymes and vitamin D. Recently, scientists uncovered another naturally occurring nutrient that could eventually be accepted as a potent brain-saver. In fact, it looks to be a powerful new tool for reducing risk of death from all causes, not just brain diseases.

But I hope you’re sitting down because WHERE they discovered this breakthrough is sure to give you pause. They found this critical brain nutrient… in human sperm.

Now, before you dismiss this new discovery called spermidine as just too weird, I urge you to keep reading and take a look at the amazing research.1 (And you may be relieved to learn you can get it from plant sources, too.)

The first tests of spermidine showed that in both people and animals, the substance could boost brain power. And now thanks to further research we have an idea as to exactly how it strengthens memories old and new.

To operate at full capacity, your brain requires constant cleaning. It’s a busy organ and the nonstop communication and networking among its neurons give rise to a steady accumulation of cellular debris and waste products. If not eliminated, this cellular waste can injure neurons and lead to what’s called neurodegeneration.

Neurodegeneration signifies exactly what it sounds like – it’s the breakdown and death or serious malfunction of the neurons in the brain.

As the neurons transmit their messages to each other, harmful chemical byproducts along with broken down cellular structures – such as dysfunctional mitochondria, the cell’s energy producers -- build up, and the brain has to dispose of the waste with a process called autophagy – literally “self-eating.” Scientists use this moniker because the body is consuming its own tissue (or in this case, tissue debris).

The “self-eating” process occurs when microscopic sac-like structures surround the “garbage” (like tiny garbage bags) and then break down the refuse with special enzymes that allows the newly generated raw material to be reused and recycled by the cells.

Research shows that as we get older, the self-eating autophagy process in the brain slows down. Because of this slowdown, as you might expect, neurons become vulnerable to damage and even death from the toxic effects of the microscopic uncollected trash heaps. And when that happens, diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative conditions can make mincemeat of your memory and intellectual abilities.2

Spermidine and Autophagy

Studies show that not only does spermidine help spur on a higher level of autophagy, but it carries on this function, for neurons, in a very important place – in the spaces between neurons called synapses.

Synapses are not only crucial structures for the brain’s recall of old memories, but they also help the brain incorporate and retain new information. If the autophagic “self-eating” process falters the synapses become cluttered, then this interferes with all of these mental processes.

And stimulating the proper clearing of synapses is one of spermidine’s most important functions. Plus, researchers have found that when spermidine facilitates this removal function, it also helps to maintain the “plasticity” of neuronal networks – their ability to form new connections that improve our memories of the things we learn during daily life.3

Beyond supporting autophagy, spermidine has been shown to:

  • Keep your body’s internal clock functioning properly as you age. Maintaining this clock, which produces what’s called the body’s circadian rhythm, may make you less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease as well as cancer.4
  • Lower your blood pressure. Research in Europe shows spermidine does more than clear waste from the brain. It also improves autophagy in the kidneys, heart and arteries, as well as clearing out malfunctioning mitochondria in those tissues. These benefits may lower the risk of hypertension and death from heart problems.5
  • Act as a powerful antioxidant, protecting cell membranes and other parts of the cell from free radical damage.6
  • Increase your life expectancy. A 20-year Austrian study involving people who were aged 45 to 84 at the beginning of the research showed that the people who consumed the most spermidine had the lowest chance of dying during the the study7
Vegetarian foods that are relatively high in spermidine include cereals, legumes (beans) and soy. Mushrooms, hazelnuts, peas, spinach, pistachios, broccoli, cauliflower and green beans also have significant spermidine, but not quite as much. Meats and poultry contain significant amounts of spermidine, while fish has somewhat less. Dairy products and eggs generally contain even less.8

Few studies have been done on the effects of spermidine supplements. But research in Japan and Europe, so far, has got researchers saying that consuming spermidine may soon be a widespread strategy for protecting brain health as we age.9
 
Rhianne

Rhianne

Diamond Contributor
Member For 2 Years
ECF Refugee
Hey, Jimi. Hope you’re okay. I just ordered a Travel Berkey! I can’t wait to be drinking clean water. Thanks for recommending it.
Hugs to you, my friend.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Rhianne said:
Hey, Jimi. Hope you’re okay. I just ordered a Travel Berkey! I can’t wait to be drinking clean water. Thanks for recommending it.
Hugs to you, my friend.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
You are very welcome my friend, for the money you can't get better than a Berkey;)
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Simple Self-Help Therapy
Reduces Visits to Doctors
Today I’m going to talk about a unique therapy that lifts and empowers people who are sick, anxious, stressed, or depressed. According to some experts, it improves their outlook and quality of life.

Cancer patients use it as a coping mechanism and a way to stay sane (or at least saner) while they undergo treatment.

Therapists often suggest it as a treatment for moodiness, depression, and PTSD.

It helps you take control of your life and put things in perspective.

So what is this unique therapy

I’m talking about keeping a journal.

You may associate journaling with junior high girls gushing about their latest crush. “Dear Diary, these are my feelings…”

But keeping a daily diary is not just for young people trying to figure out their lives.

It’s a form of self-expression that can be valuable whatever your age or season of life. It can help you navigate through the bumps and bruises of a world where things don’t make sense and things don’t go perfectly all the time.

The cancer patients who use it (and their therapists who suggest it) may be on to something.

Two-time cancer survivor Barbara Tako says she journals whenever life gets really intense and/or her brain starts spinning out of control. She says she wrote about her anxiety to keep from drowning in it.

And you can, too – even if you’re not a “writer.”

The first all-important step

The first step to keeping a journal is to ditch your preconceived notions about it. There’s no right or wrong way to do it.

You type it, write it by hand, draw or sketch it, or clip it from magazines.

Your journal entry of the day can be a rant... or a bulleted list, or a letter you wrote but decided not to send. It can be an email from a friend, a travel log, or whatever. Let go of the rules, regulations, and boxes, and just let it flow.

Your diary is for you, and only for you.

It’s designed to help you clear your head, make important connections about your dreams and struggles, and more.

Journaling can improve your health

This is all very nice, you may think, but can putting words on a page really have any effect on your health?

Turns out it can – and does.

Letting it all out on a regular basis helps us process difficult events and compose a cohesive narrative about our experiences. This is especially important for those facing challenging health or life events – including cancer, depression, PTSD, grief, and life’s general letdowns…

Not surprisingly, those who journal regularly recommend it for everyone – healthy or sick, struggling or not.

Journaling engages both your analytical, rational left brain and your touchy-feely, creative right brain.

Boosts T-lymphocytes and more

Journaling has very real health benefits. According to an article by Michael Grothaus in Fast Company,1 it strengthens your T-lymphocyte immune cells. It’s also linked to decreased depression and anxiety, and improvements in mood, social engagement, and quality of friendships.

Dr. James Pennebaker is a psychologist and journaling expert. In his seminal study, participants in the experimental group wrote about “past trauma,” expressing their thoughts and feelings about it.2

They were asked to write down their deepest thoughts and feelings about the most horrible experience of their life. Or about an extremely important emotional issue that affected them and their life.

The goal was to explore their deepest emotions and connect those emotions to their key relationships.

In contrast, the control group was instructed to write as objectively and factually as possible about neutral topics (such as how they would describe a room or what their plans were for the day). They were told to write without expressing opinions or emotions.

Both groups wrote for 15 minutes a day for four consecutive days.

They were also told that if they ran out of things to write, they could go back and repeat a topic, perhaps writing about it a bit differently the second time around.

They were allowed to write on different topics each day, or the same topic every day. And they were specifically instructed NOT to worry about grammar, spelling, or sentence structure.

All writing was completely confidential.

The researchers conducted multiple assessments before and after each subject’s four-day journaling stint.

The most striking result was that the people in the experimental (expressive) group went to the doctor far less than those in the control group during the few months following the study.

Another profound finding was the boost in lymphocyte production among those in the experimental group. Levels of lymphocytes rose during the six weeks of the study.

Increased lymphocyte production is a sign of a healthier immune system, which may be behind the reduction in doctor visits.

Some participants reported that while the writing experience upset them, it was also valuable and meaningful.3

Quite a number of other researchers have replicated and validated the results. The study was NOT a one-off fluke.

The Fast Company article also discusses benefits such as faster wound healing, greater mobility for people with arthritis, and more. In short, it looks like blowing off steam in a diary is powerful medicine.

Never done it? Here’s how to get started…

If you’re intrigued by the research and want to give it a try, here are some tips to get you started.

  1. Try to get used to using a pen again. Hardly anyone does this today.

    Maud Purcell, psychotherapist and journaling expert, says that most of his patients intuitively know that writing by hand is better than typing.

    And research supports their intuition. Writing by hand stimulates an area of the brain called the reticular activating system (RAS), which helps us filter and focus on what we’re writing.

    Writing with pen also keeps us from constantly editing what we’ve written. Even if pen writing is awkward at first, it gets easier with time. Just give it a few weeks.
  2. It’s for you, not for anyone else. So play by your rules. If you can’t stand writing by hand, find the alternative that’s best for you. Maybe it’s a touch screen, maybe a keyboard.
  3. Stick to a time limit. That might mean five minutes, or fifteen. Don’t force yourself to fill a certain number of pages. Set a timer and let that be your guide. Then write continuously. Let it flow.
  4. There’s no “right” time or place to make your daily journal entry. Some people like doing it first thing in the morning, others right before bed. Find a routine that works for you. Journaling in the same place every day can be helpful, but isn’t mandatory.

    Cancer survivor Barbara Tako reminds us that “habits are things that help us, and rules are things that restrict us.” Make your decisions accordingly.
  5. Don’t try to be Shakespeare. This isn’t a performance for others to critique. It’s for you! Shakespeare wrote for a living, and was a careful observer of human nature for decades. Good for him. But be true to yourself. Stop trying to imitate great writers, and forget about spelling, grammar, sentence structure, and edits. If you’re worrying about all those things, you may miss the very point of journaling.
  6. Incorporate gratitude into your journaling. Use your journal as an opportunity to reflect (and record) the good things in your life, and to be thankful for them. Gratitude helps reduce symptoms of depression, enables you to reach your goals, and improves social engagement. Plus it boosts long-term wellbeing, reduces pain, and improves sleep. Can you think of even one downside to gratitude? I can’t.
  7. Keep it private and secure. Unless you’re working with a psychologist who asks you to keep a journal so you can discuss your thoughts at appointments, keep yours private and in a secure place.

    If you’re going to benefit from journaling, you have to feel free to express things you wouldn’t even tell your best friend or your spouse. It has to be a judgment-free zone.

    Writing a book is for others. Journaling is for yourself. If anything you write could harm your relationships or your reputation, destroy it or put it under lock and key.
Why journal? A quick review…

Journaling is a great habit – whether or not you’re suffering (or have suffered) from disease or trauma. It’s time well spent.

Regular journaling promotes creativity and propels you toward your goals… Helps relieve stress… Gives you an outlet for your emotions… Facilitates learning through its record of lessons and ideas… Increases gratitude… Provides a reason to push through difficult seasons of life.

It’s hard to find a downside to this simple habit that only costs a pen and a $5 or $10 journal. And its positive effects on your health and wellbeing could be beyond measure.
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
I have a couple Health Thoughts for you today:

What is called genius is the abundance of life and health.

and

Without health life is not life; it is only a state of langour and suffering - an image of death.

Buddha
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
New Clue as to Why Women Are
More Prone to Dementia

Almost two out of three Americans with Alzheimer's disease are women, yet we only have some dubious theories to explain why.

Is it caused by genetics? Differences in brain anatomy? Hormones? All of the above? Scientists aren’t sure.

But another possibility has emerged. Aging affects a woman's stress response differently from a man's. This in turn has an impact on memory. Here’s what I mean…

Stressful Life Experiences Are Commonplace

Do stress hormones act differently in men and women to bring about differences in cognition as they age?

That question was explored by Cynthia Munro, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

She and her team gathered data on 909 residents of Baltimore, almost two-thirds of whom were women, in 1981.

They were interviewed and had health check-ups on four occasions – at the time they were enrolled, again in 1982, between 1993 and 1996 -- when they averaged 47 years of age -- and then again between 2003 and 2004.

During the third check-up in the 1990s, the volunteers were asked if they had experienced a traumatic or stressful life event in the previous year.

Stressful events were deemed to include physical attacks, muggings, threats, living through a natural disaster or seeing another person attacked or killed. Between a quarter and a fifth of both men and women reported that they had.

The researchers also questioned the participants about any stressful life experiences in the previous year such as marriage, divorce, job loss, retirement, severe injury or sickness, a son or daughter moving out of the family home, the birth of a child, or death of a loved one. Almost half the participants said they had suffered stress as a result of at least one of these experiences.

On their third and fourth meetings with the researchers, the Baltimore residents underwent memory tests. As expected, there was a decrease in performance after the fourth meeting since this took place some years after the third. This drop was then compared to the reported number of stressful life events and experiences.

Women's Stress Response Triple that of Men

What Dr. Munro and her team discovered was that one-off stressful events such as a death in the family did not increase the risk of dementia for either sex, but chronic, long-term stress sometimes did. What’s more, the outcomes were different for men and women.

Unlike men, middle-aged women who experienced chronic stress had a greater decline in memory over a decade later.

The researchers also found no link between stress in earlier life and memory in either women or men.

Dr. Munro explained that chronic ongoing stress from life experiences has an impact on the brain which is more detrimental than distinct traumatic events.

"A normal stress response causes a temporary increase in stress hormones like cortisol, and when it's over, levels return to baseline and you recover," she said.

"But with repeated stress, or with enhanced sensitivity to stress, your body mounts an increased and sustained hormone response that takes longer to recover. We know if stress hormone levels increase and remain high, this isn't good for the brain's hippocampus—the seat of memory."

Although stress hormones were not measured in the study, Dr. Munro points out that other studies have shown that with aging, the stress response in women is three times greater than in men. This study adds to the evidence that stress hormones play an uneven role in men and women.

She went on to say that stress reduction hasn't had much attention compared to other factors that contribute to Alzheimer's.

"We can't get rid of stressors, but we might adjust the way we respond to stress and have a real effect on brain function as we age," she added.

How to Respond to Stress

Harvard Health suggest six relaxation techniques we can use to develop a healthy stress response. The authors recommend one or more of these, practiced for 20 minutes a day.

  1. Breath focus. Take long, slow, deep breaths. As you breathe, gently disengage your mind from distracting thoughts and sensations.
  2. Body scan. After a few minutes of the above, focus on one part of the body or group of muscles at a time and mentally release any physical tension you feel there.
  3. Guided imagery. Spend several minutes imagining relaxing and soothing scenes, places, or experiences.
  4. Mindfulness meditation. Sit comfortably, focus on your breathing, bring your mind's attention to the present moment only.
  5. Yoga, tai chi, and qigong. These combine rhythmic breathing with a series of postures or flowing movements.
  6. Repetitive prayer. Silently repeat a short prayer or phrase from a prayer while practicing breath focus.
My further comment on all this is that the Johns Hopkins study is not the last word. I would want to see the findings confirmed. And finally, stress is known to take a big toll on the body. It contributes to other medical problems such as heart disease and high blood pressure, and reduces your chance of recovery from illnesses you may already have.

You want to avoid it.
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Today's Health Thought:

A healthy outside starts from the inside.


Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.

Buddha
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Today's Health Thought:

Worrying does not take away tomorrows troubles, rather it takes away today's peace
 
2WhiteWolves

2WhiteWolves

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
VU Patreon
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Hey, gotta have cake ;) even if it is filled with :blech: a lot of bad stuff. Just have one piece ;) :teehee:
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Don’t Miss This Important First Step to
Cancer-Free Health
A lot of us know what we need to do to secure good health and stave off diseases like cancer. We all know we need to eat right, exercise, reduce stress, practice gratitude.

But actually doing those things can be tough. Not only do you have to make time for good choices, you also need the willpower to get out there and make it happen.

So I think it’s worth discussing some trusted techniques for summoning the willpower we all need to develop so we can stick to good health habits.

I speak as a sugar addict and someone who’s never liked exercise much, so this is a battle for me the same as for most people. . .

Human to the core

I once read a quote that if you put a piece of cake in front of a hungry man, he’s going to eat it. It doesn’t matter if he’s on a diet, or if he’s trying to avoid sugar or food coloring or carbs. I sure would. I’m picturing Black Forest cake, my favorite.

That’s because our willpower is only as strong, and sometimes not as strong as, our human needs. The man who eats the cake isn’t a bad person, nor is he weak. He’s just hungry.

Really, it’s a brain thing. The concept of willpower is just a tug-of-war between logical conclusions you worked out in your prefrontal cortex – what you know you should do – matched in a smackdown against the power-pull of your primal appetites and emotions.

As it turns out, willpower is a finite resource. We only have so much of it.
According to social psychologist Roy Baumeister, any act of resisting temptation (like that cake) leaves you less capable of resisting anything else you’re trying to power past, or any difficult choice you have to make.

And that’s just average, daily temptation for the average person on a normal day. When you’re battling a serious disease like cancer or facing the emotional toll of watching a friend or family member fight through it, your energy reserves – including willpower – are even further depleted.

Who among us doesn’t reach for comfort foods when we’ve had a bad day?

And then the depleted willpower leads to more weak moments and bad decisions. It affects what you eat, what you think, and whether you engage in any positive health behaviors like exercise, meditation, or even laughing with friends. The following may help…

Identify your “strong hour”

Everybody has a “strong” hour during the day when willpower is highest and the ability to make good decisions is strongest. For most people, it occurs in the morning, after a solid night’s sleep. Though there are exceptions, such as people who feel best following a midday nap or those who find their energy levels soar in the evenings.

The first step in bolstering willpower is to identify your “strong time” and alter your schedule so you tackle your biggest challenges then. If getting to the gym or sitting down to meditate is a stumbling block, set up your day so you do that hard thing when you’re feeling your strongest. And then do it.

There’s an additional upside here. If you go ahead and do the hardest thing you have trouble getting motivated to do, then – guess what – you’ve just scored a win! Meaning, if you know you’ve already done that one hard thing you haven’t been able to get to for weeks, and you still have hours left in the day, you’ll be that much stronger when you go on to make other willpower-based decisions.

Whereas a failure further lessens your willpower, a win makes it stronger. And it just builds from there, in whichever direction you’ve started your day.

I was raised in a church where they put a lot of emphasis on strengthening the will. It’s like a muscle. You work it out, it gets stronger.

6 Simple strategies to boost your willpower

There are several other proven techniques for bolstering willpower and keeping up motivation. For example:

  • Purge temptations. If junk food is your weak spot, get it out of the house. You’ll be healthier for not having it around, and you won’t be faced with a continual onslaught of enticements that detract from good health. I don’t have sweets in the house. When I get the yen, they just aren’t there, and I’m not going out to a store. I’m not that much of an addict.
  • Distract and bribe. If you have the impulse to binge or drink or eat something you’re trying to avoid, try the “if—then” technique. This is where you make the agreement to do the thing you really want to do – like head out to a fast food joint for a burger, but only if you first follow through on a healthy behavior, like 30 minutes on the exercise bike or writing a page in a gratitude journal. More often than not, the healthy behavior will heighten your confidence and commitment to health so that when you’re done, you won’t want that burger after all.
  • Build an army. As anyone fighting a life-threatening disease knows, a support system plays multiple roles in keeping your spirits up and helping you past challenges. If you have a temptation you’re trying to overcome, like alcohol or smoking, or if you’re trying to get the hang of a smart new health behavior, like yoga, tell someone you know who supports you, and ask for their help. Being accountable to someone else and knowing they’re rooting for you is an effective way to stay strong – because you have someone else holding you up.
  • Get out of Dodge. Sometimes, it’s our environment that’s our worst enemy. Even if you have unhealthy foods purged from your environment, you may still feel enormous stress or emotional angst based on where you live, who you live with, or any number of other stressful factors. It could even be your job, your coworkers, or the level of pollution in your city.

    If that’s the case, the best thing to do is move. Yes, it’s a pain, but it can be just what you need. Even if you can’t pull off a full relocation to another town, you might be able to move to another house, stay with a friend, work remotely from a new place, or switch jobs. Getting yourself out of a stressful situation that muddles your mental strength is often worth the effort it takes to make the change.
  • Explore little wins. Overhauling your diet and your physical health can be a major thing, especially in our culture or if you’ve spent years living and eating a certain way. If you build yourself up with little wins, like waking up just five minutes earlier or forcing yourself to change a speech pattern (like dropping a habitual swear word), then little by little you’ll extend your willpower.
  • Forgive your humanness. You’re human, and you will slip up. But giving in to one unhealthy meal or a week of not exercising is not going to doom you to a life of disease and an early death. It doesn’t define who you are. Forgive any mistakes you make and move forward with the resolve to keep trying. It’s all any of us can do.
So many things, from laughing more to walking outside to eating farm-fresh plant foods are proven to improve our health and bolster our immune systems against foes like cancer.

But none of that does any good unless you’re first able to summon the willpower it takes to do those things. Follow these six strategies until your good health behaviors become a habit. Here’s hoping a long and healthy life is your reward in the end!
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Today's Health Thought:

"You cannot swim for new horizons until
you have courage to lose sight of the shore."


And:

“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood.

Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.”

~ Marie Curie

 
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