Another great programme from BBC Horizon presented by Dr Moseley. He starts off the programme by following the oldest man to complete the London marathon…a 101 yr old sikh who is healthy and takes no medication…the typical 65 yr old european takes 6 pills a day! The centenarian attributes his good health to his diet…
Last year I wrote an article on hydration, the signs of dehydration and how much water we need to drink each day. We now know how much water to drink but what water is best? I found a great little book called “Healthy Water for a Longer Life” by Martin Fox. It reviews an extensive…
Several experiments have been conducted on animals to study the effects of acupuncture or electroacupuncture on nerve injuries. Here are some of the results and conclusions: acupuncture increases the survival of damaged neurons electroacupuncture increases the number of nerve fibres electroacupuncture increases axon density and blood vessel area electroacupuncture improves nerve conduction speed electroacupuncture improves…
Nerves are cable-like structures that send information between the central nervous system (spinal cord and brain) and the target organs (internal organs, skin, muscles, joints, etc). A nerve if formed of bundles of axons surrounded by layers of connective tissue. Nerves are responsible for reflexes, sensation and muscle contractions. Pain, tingling, numbness and muscle weakness…
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” Nelson Mandela
“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” Confucius
Professor Apkarian has studied chronic pain for over 20 years. In a recent study looking into people with recent back pain, he was able to predict with 85% accuracy those that would go on to develop chronic back pain! How? By noticing an increased level of cross-talk between two specific parts of the brain…suggesting that…
What are the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids? Before we delve into that, it’s important to distinguish between 3 types of omega-3 fatty acids: alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) Our bodies don’t produce ALA, so it’s essential to our diet. We can convert ALA into DHA and EPA but this…
“Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.” William Hutchinson Murray (attributed to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe)
Our diets have changed considerably over time. Today, diets in industrialised countries have a higher composition of saturated fat, trans fatty acids, omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and a lower composition of omega-3 PUFA than ancestral diets. The ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 is around 15:1 and it’s thought that an optimum ratio should be…