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POPSDrug tries to offset 10,000 years of evolution Gene therapies, expected some time between 2015 and 2020, promise to correct this genetic problem caused by nature, but many obese people do not want to wait. They are hoping that Nastech’s new nasal spray can provide a solution now. Within 20 to 35 minutes after taking a whiff, this new drug moves quickly through the nasal lining and into the bloodstream, sending a message to the brain that our tummy is full. So far the drug has had no negative side effects. PYY is undergoing clinical trials now, and is expected to be in drug stores by 2009 or 2010. Obesity is the 2nd leading cause of preventable death in America, so this drug offers a great chance for more people to improve their health and get ready to enjoy our “magical future”.
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POPSMoral Philosopher Questions Memory Manipulation Hurley says while the real threat of developing PTSD might be a good enough reason to use beta-blockers as a preventative measure, she also wants policy makers to consider the ramifications of what such a treatment may mean to a person’s moral well-being. “Beta-blockers do not cause amnesia. Rather they make memories less vivid, detailed and arousing,” explains Hurley, who specializes in bioethics. “They lessen the emotional impact when someone is recalling upsetting events.”
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POPS Viagra for the brain? It’s not an amphetamine or stimulant, the article explained: it doesn’t make you high, or wired. It seems to work by restricting the parts of your brain that make you sluggish or sleepy. No significant negative effects have been discovered. Now students are using it in the run-up to exams as a “smart drug” – a steroid for the mind.
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POPSWho Are We? Coming of Age on Antidepressants The reason has to do with the way drugs are tested and approved. To get F.D.A. approval, a drug has to beat a placebo in two randomized clinical trials that typically involve a few hundred subjects who are treated for relatively short periods, usually 4 to 12 weeks.So drugs are approved based on short-term studies for what turns out to be long-term — often lifelong — use in the world of clinical practice. What do I say to a depressed patient who is doing well after five years on such a drug but can’t stop without a depressive relapse and who wants reassurance that the drug has no long-term adverse effects?I usually say that we have no evidence that the drug poses a risk with long-term use; and since the risk of untreated depression is much greater than the hypothetical risk of the drug, it makes sense to stay on it.
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POPSCup of tea may help boost memory! "Drinking regular cups of tea could help improve your memory, research suggests." Both green tea and black tea inhibit enzymes that help produce protein deposits in the brain which are associated with Alzheimer's disease. Green tea's inhibitive effect lasts longer. Good news for those of us who love to drink tea, particularly green tea. I'm going to brew a pot right now...
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POPSNeuropsychology of hypnosis What is a reliable finding, however, is that in particularly susceptible individuals, hypnosis can be used to cause unusual experiences.
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POPSCocaine Vaccine "It's a very clever idea," says David Eagleman, a Baylor neuroscientist. "Scientists have spent the last few decades figuring out reward pathways in the brain and how drugs like cocaine hijack the system. It turns out those pathways are difficult to rewire once they've seen the drug. But the vaccine just circumvents all that."
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POPSHealing Herbs: Turmeric "The medicinal properties of the turmeric have for millennia been known to the ancient Indians and its medical properties have been expounded in the Ayurvedic texts. It is only in recent years that Western scientists have increasingly recognised the medicinal properties of turmeric. According to a 2005 article in the Wall Street Journal titled, "Common Indian Spice Stirs Hope," research activity into curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, is exploding. Two hundred and fifty-six curcumin papers were published in the past year according to a search of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Supplement sales have increased 35% from 2004, and the U.S. National Institutes of Health has four clinical trials underway to study curcumin treatment for pancreatic cancer, multiple myeloma, Alzheimer's, and colorectal cancer."
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POPSThe Secret World of Pharmaceutical Trial Subjects Although the tests can be risky, you can always omit the studies with obvious potential for harm or extreme discomfort such as excessive x-rays, radioactive pills, etc. Hell, these guys make $50,000/yr PT and they can take a vacation whenever they want. Where do I sign up? Would you do it?
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POPSNicotine A Wonder Drug??? Now this has me thinking -- I quit smoking 6 years ago -- I have moderate to severe ulcerative colitis. Go Figure. Ummm does marijuana contain nicotine?
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POPSBig Pharma Drug Rip-Off Many of us knew this to be true but when it is written down in some article it packs an even greater punch! OUCH! We should all stop being so afraid of death, and dying for if it weren't for this fear, I believe, THEY (big pharma, physicians, medical "caretakers" etc.) COULD NEVER GET AWAY WITH ROBBING US OF OUR MONEY, HEALTH AND WELL BEING! :mad: More here http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/04/19/shocking-facts-about-the-pharmaceutical-industry.aspx and here: http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=327 and even more here: http://www.thenation.com/doc/20020805/newman20020725
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POPSA Golden Age Of Vaccines? My colleague Robert Langreth has a fantastic story about the cutting edge of vaccine development, including this striking story of a researcher who volunteered to be part of a test for a new malaria vaccine.
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