Health 08 (Oct 14 - Jun 15)

[winston]

Why you should add nuts to your diet

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/health/nutriti ... ar-AAaHpbW

[behappyalways]

【科健籽】五臟好唔好　個樣睇得到
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/supplemen ... 2/19132391

[behappyalways]

Irish waterfall video becomes unlikely YouTube hit for insomnia sufferers
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstop ... erers.html

[winston]

5 Ways to Add 22 Years to Your Life

http://www.msn.com/en-us/health/wellnes ... tmd#page=1

[behappyalways]

放屁有利健康
無/多/臭屁就弊傢伙！
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/internati ... 6/19137814

[behappyalways]

these-mites-live-on-your-face
http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150508 ... -your-face

[winston]

Fluoride

It's not often you hear the government say less and fluoride in the same sentence.

And that's why I couldn't believe what I was hearing!

The Department of Health and Human Services has just recommended that communities lower -- that's right -- lower, the amount of fluoride added to our drinking water.

And that's been a long time in coming, because they haven't touched these recommended levels since 1962.

But now they're being cut almost in half.

So what could be behind this dramatic proposal? After all, fluoride is the most sacred of sacred cows grazing in the fed's farmyard of fairy tales.

Could it be that they've finally seen the light and realize just how dangerous it is?

Not exactly.

The feds are saying they did it to keep children safe from getting "barely visible" little white marks on their teeth. It's nothing much, HHS says, just an insignificant cosmetic thing.

But that "little" thing, called dental fluorosis, is actually a really big deal.

Dental fluorosis was almost unheard of before the widespread use of fluoride. Now, over 40 percent of kids have some form of it. And it's not just tiny, faint white spots on teeth, either.

Fluorosis can range from white streaks to pitting, dark staining and even the actual crumbling of teeth. And then there's the danger of excessive fluoride accumulation in places you can't see, such as the bones, pineal gland and arteries.

All from our daily glass of fluoridated tap water.

Fluorosis is just the (visible) tip of the fluoride iceberg.

Fluoride can zap your thyroid function, causing weight gain, high cholesterol, memory problems, depression and exhaustion. Imported fluoride from China (yes, China!) added to our drinking water has been found to contain lead, arsenic and aluminum.

And numerous studies have uncovered that fluoride can lower a child's IQ.

When Dr. Philippe Grandjean from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health heard about these new fluoride recommendations, his comment was that to have "the best possible brains in the future" we needed to be awfully careful about how much fluoride is put in the water.

He ranks it right up there with the damaging effects of lead and mercury.

So maybe in another 53 years we'll hear back from the feds again about fluoride. Of course, if you don't feel like being a guinea pig for even one more day, it's time to take matters into your own hands.

If you live in a community that adds fluoride to your drinking water, get a water purification system -- such as a reverse osmosis filter -- that can take the fluoride out.

Because the only safe amount of fluoride added to drinking water is none -- as in zero.

Source: HSI

[behappyalways]

【科健籽】啡色脂肪減肥　你條頸有冇？
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/supplemen ... 3/19144956

[winston]

Aspirin

Is there any drug that tries to look more innocent than aspirin?

You can buy it in all sorts of fun colors and flavors. On the Bayer bottles there's even that well-advertised slogan: "The Wonder Drug."

But more research is proving that aspirin is no miracle medicine -- it's a sledgehammer to your gut that could leave you with debilitating pain or a life-threatening bleed.

And the only wonder is that the mainstream keeps inventing excuses to keep us popping these dangerous pills.

Dr. Steve Nissen from the Cleveland Clinic calls the "vast majority" of Americans who take aspirin to prevent a heart attack the "worried well."

And there are plenty of them. Nearly half of Americans between the ages of 45 and 75 who have never had a heart attack are still taking aspirin.

But lots of them are quickly becoming the worried not so well.

Long-term aspirin use seriously ups your chance of ulcers, gastro-intestinal hemorrhages and bleeding in your brain. A major Italian study showed aspirin can increase your chance of a brain bleed by a frightening 54 percent.

And that's even at low doses.

In fact, research is now showing that a daily aspirin is just as likely to cause a serious, potentially life-threatening side effect as it is to prevent a heart attack.

In statistical terms, they call that a net benefit of zero. Some wonder drug.

Even the FDA, an agency that always errs on the side of Big Pharma, says that unless you've had a heart attack or stroke, the benefits of a daily aspirin don't outweigh the serious risks. They even rejected an application from Bayer to claim aspirin can prevent heart attacks.

But, unfortunately, aspirin has the best PR machine in the health industry and we'll keep being inundated with stories about its wonders. There was even a study making the media rounds at the end of April claiming aspirin cuts your cancer risk.

Even the feds tapped the brakes on that one. The National Institutes of Health points out that plenty of studies have failed to prove that aspirin does anything to keep you from developing or dying of cancer.

When it comes to aspirin, always dig around and do the math. Most of the time you'll find lots of hype, and plenty of promises this "wonder drug" can't keep.

Source: HSI

[winston]

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)

The good news: Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a dangerous chemical used for decades to make non-stick marvels like Teflon, is finally being phased out. By the end of this year, it can no longer be used in America.

The bad news: The chemicals used to replace the older, hazardous PFOA are close relatives that may be just as dangerous to our health.

Those "next generation" perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) may already be finding their way into your microwave popcorn, take-out pizza or even a Danish from the bakery department. And an international team of scientists is warning that we may be getting a larger dose than we ever imagined.

It's all about the "miracle of modern chemistry" that started with DuPont's Teflon. But it turned out not to be such a miracle after all.

Chemicals like PFOA in Teflon resist grease, stains and water. They allow us make an omelet without having to get a scouring pad out to clean the pan.

But it looks like convenience got traded for some horrible diseases such as thyroid disease, colitis and even cancer.

Industry claims (of course!) that the new PFCs being used in cookware and food packaging are safe -- unlike PFOA -- even though they're less effective and much higher quantities are being used.

But many scientists aren't so sure.

In fact, more than 200 of them from 38 countries have issued a warning about the potential harm to human health posed by both PFOA and PFCs. They want to see their production and use limited until less toxic alternatives are found.

That document, called the "Madrid Statement," says that these chemicals "only degrade very slowly, if at all," and that the newer versions have similar structures to the old ones. It also points out that "little information is publicly available" about the new PFCs now in use.

But keeping us in the dark about non-stick chemicals has practically become an industry tradition. For example, DuPont knew for decades that PFOA in Teflon was a major health hazard.

It hid those findings, never telling its workers, people who lived near its plants or even the EPA. And 10 years ago that agency fined the company millions for the deception.

So if history teaches us anything, it's not to expect any information about the health dangers of the new PFCs to get out anytime soon.

And those revelations may come a day late and a dollar short. Because at this point PFCs can be found in the blood of just about every man, woman and child in the United States, according to the CDC.

How that happens isn't really known, either. It could be from food, from water, using products that contain them -- or because of their release into the environment.

Even though it may sound like a lost cause to steer clear of these compounds altogether, it's still important to lower your exposure as much as possible. The more you're exposed, the higher the risk can be to your health.

The Environmental Working Group has been following and investigating this for some time now. It recently issued a report called Poisoned Legacy about the history of PFOA and PFCs.

The group also put out a guide to avoiding PFCs, which goes way beyond just skipping the pizza delivery. It lists things like avoiding non-stick pans and kitchen utensils, and buying products that aren't treated to be stain-repellent.

And if you're craving some popcorn, the group warns to ditch the microwave varieties and make it the old fashioned way.

Source: HSI