The Epigenetics Project Blog

Vegetarianism Improves Mood

georgefebish — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 13:06:27 +0000

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A finding by Beezhold BL, Johnston CS found that restriction of meat, fish, and poultry in omnivores improves mood. This appears to be the first study of this kind. People were assigned to a diet of meat, fish or vegetarian and monitored. After just 2 weeks the vegetarians were scoring higher in mood tests.

Vegetarians (socyberty.com)
Where Do Vegetarians Get Their Protein? (hethercrawford.wordpress.com)

Where Do We Get Our Protein?

georgefebish — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 12:43:08 +0000

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All life is made of protein! I am so tired of hearing educated people say “How do you get your protein?” All life from single cell up to human is made up of cells. Cells are made of protein. Anything you eat that was a living thing (plant or animal) gives you protein. How did this misunderstanding start? After World War II we associated eating meat and steak in particular with the good life. The meat industry read a scientific finding that stated meat contained all nine essential amino acids. Plants contained most but not all nine. They started to advertise meat as the better protein, then the complete protein and finally just protein. Today scientists have found no difference in eating all nine essential amino acids in a portion of meat or in several different types of plant life.

Where Do Vegetarians Get Their Protein? (hethercrawford.wordpress.com)
Protein : Where Can I Get Protein and How Much Do I Need Every Day? (blissreturned.wordpress.com)
I May Be a Vegetarian, But I Can Still Spell “Chicken” (lessonsfromtheendofamarriage.com)

Cholesterol

georgefebish — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:57:36 +0000

We are in a society that hears about cholesterol all the time. We have good and bad cholesterol. We are preached to via TV ads that we need to take pills. One ad says when diet and exercise isn’t enough. The truth is our bodies make cholesterol and we need it to function properly. Most of the problem comes from a combination of poor diet that introduces excess cholesterol over and above we our bodies make and poor exercise that prevents our bodies from dealing with it. Cholesterol comes from animal products. It is not present in plant based foods. If your diet is mostly meats and fats you are introducing way too much cholesterol to be handled by your body. Cut back on meats, butter, creams, milk, eggs and cheese. These are all produced from animal fats loaded with cholesterol. Instead eat plenty of vegetables and fruits. It’s your body, guard what type of fuel you put into it.

Can You Reduce Heart Disease and Cancer with a Fork? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Introducing Cholesterol (myintrinsichealth.com)
Control Your Cholesterol (wdok.radio.com)
10 Foods That Lower Your Cholesterol (self.com)
Is Cholesterol all evil? (drphyllisokereke.com)
Avocados, Good Fats & Heart Health (avocadocentral.com)

Hidden Salt Everywhere Can be Hard to Find

georgefebish — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 12:05:48 +0000

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We all know that too much salt is bad for you. Most people who are taking in too much salt don’t get it from the shaker. It comes from hidden salts in foods that we don’t associate with salty flavors. Yahoo Health recently ran the top ten hidden sources of salt:
• Salad dressing, dips, ketchup, mustard, soy sauce
• Cheeses
• Canned soups, stews and vegetables
• Breakfast cereals
• Bagels and baked goods
• Cured, smoked and deli meats
• Anything labeled low salt. The law says it must be 25% lower than regular product. If the regular product is very high the low version is still high.
• Fast food and French fries
• Products labeled “Low Fat” or “Heart Healthy” uses salt to make the product taste good.
• Some desserts like puddings and cream pies

Salt, Salt … Too Much Salt (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Ask Dr. K: Gradually lower salt intake (goerie.com)
Top-selling breakfast cereals are STILL too high in sugar, says watchdog… with many as sweet as chocolate biscuits (dailymail.co.uk)
Are you having too much salt? (ontrackeating.wordpress.com)

We now Understand How Smoking causes Lung Cancer and Emphysema

georgefebish — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 12:59:39 +0000

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Dr. Farrah Kheradmand, professor of medicine and immunology at BCM said, “DNA is written in pen,” said Kheradmand, using a metaphor. “Epigenetics is written in pencil. If you have enough genes affected by epigenetic factors strung together, it can tip you over into lung damage and emphysema. The inflammation that drives emphysema could also drive cancer development, a testable hypothesis that we have begun to pursue.” We are getting clearer maps of how the environmental factors cause epigenetic changes. If enough of our genes are changed, things can happen like lung cancer or emphysema. As we study epigenetics more, we will be able to build better road maps for all diseases and map them back to changes in our lifestyle. This is a clear case where if you have lung cancer you need lots of drugs and operations but it usually ends with the patient dying. Preventing the cause by not smoking prevents the illness, the drugs, the operations and the premature death.

Study Maps Path from Smoking to Emphysema in Mice (nlm.nih.gov)
Your Breath Could Reveal If You Have Lung Cancer (psfk.com)
Breathalyzers can now test for lung cancer (dvice.com)
SBRT provides better outcomes than surgery for cancer patients with common lung disease (eurekalert.org)
Where the right to smoke stops (japantimes.co.jp)
Japan – Researchers identify genes causing lung cancer (laaska.wordpress.com)
Smoking May Lead to Faster Cognitive Decline in Men (healthland.time.com)
Many lung cancer patients get radiation therapy that may not prolong their lives (medicalxpress.com)
Genetic mutations discovered in non-smoking lung cancer patients (fiercebiotechresearch.com)

Drugs & Epigenetics

georgefebish — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 12:34:48 +0000

Epigenetics (Photo credit: AJC1)

Do a Google search on “Epigenetic News” and you will see many drug companies announcing new drugs and studies using epigenetics. I am for anything that will help people who are suffering but I wish we had some studies to look at how we can prevent chronic illness and disease through changes to diet, exercise, stress and thinking. Imagine a world where we learned to eat correctly, lower our modern stress, exercise more and think positive! This world would have less obesity, happier people and much less need for healthcare. The hard question is what would our government do with all the excess money from reduced healthcare needs?

How fast can Epigenetics Act? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Can You Pass the Epigenetic Test? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Epigenetics Holds Key to A Better Life (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Epigenetics – A Household Term? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Is Autism an Epigenetic Disease? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
ALS Caused by Epigenetic Muscle Triggers? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
An Epigenetics Primer on Health (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Why Is It So Hard To Help People? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Q. What is common between Alzheimer’s, Dementia and Parkinson’s diseases? A. Epigenetics (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Who Coined the Term Epigenetics? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)

How fast can Epigenetics Act?

georgefebish — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:03:49 +0000

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The answer seems to be very fast. A recent archeological find of bison bones shows that the cold environment caused the animal to rapidly grow long hair to survive. This was done without alteration to its DNA. This archeological find is important because it proves not only DNA can be found in these ancient bones but epigenetics as well. The big question that remains is “Does these epigenetic changes influence long-term evolutionary changes?”

An Epigenetics Primer on Health (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Epigenetics – A Household Term? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
ALS Caused by Epigenetic Muscle Triggers? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Who Coined the Term Epigenetics? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Is Autism an Epigenetic Disease? (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Epigenetics Viewed in a 3D World (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Q. What is common between Alzheimer’s, Dementia and Parkinson’s diseases? A. Epigenetics (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
He’s Not a Chimp, He’s My Brother (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
I saw the Light on Epigenetics (georgefebish.wordpress.com)
Here’s to Light in Your Eye, An Epigenetic Start (georgefebish.wordpress.com)

Obesity In America

georgefebish — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 13:38:40 +0000

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We are getting more obese and disease is on the rise. There is a link between obesity and chronic illness. It probably is not the cause of it but is a contributing factor. According to Denice Ferko-Adams, Director Villanova University’s new MacDonald Center for Obesity Prevention and Education:
• 34% of American’s are obese
• 12 states had an obesity percentage over 30% in 2010
• 0 States had an obesity percentage over 30% in 2000
Why have we become such an obese country? Why is Europe trimming down? It is three things: diet, diet and diet! You are what you eat.

Obesity Prevention | Special Edition (education.com)
Childhood Obesity in the Numbers (reidmillerwrites.net)
Is Obesity a Disease? (weightymatters.ca)
Food Processing and Obesity (education.com)
Why Obesity is Bad for Businesses (noobpreneur.com)
Obesity Epidemic Linked To Brain Mechanisms (medicalnewstoday.com)
Are We Truly Clueless About Weight Control? (education.com)
Prevention of Overweight and Obesity in Infants and Toddlers (education.com)
I’m OK, You’re OK: Obese Docs Less Likely To Diagnose Obese Patients (blisstree.com)

Statistics to think about on Valentine’s Day

georgefebish — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:08:57 +0000

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We associate the heart with love and Valentine’s Day is a day of love. According to Dr. Rajesh Reddy of Brandywine Valley Cardiology (Pennsylvania), there are some very interesting statistics about our heart and the blood it pumps:
• 78% of our blood is water
• The human heart beats 40 million times per year
• The human heart can propel blood up to a distance of 30 feet
• The human body has 3 gallons of blood in it
• The male human heart weighs only 10.5 ounces
• There is only 1 body part that receives no blood supply (the cornea)
• The adult human body has 60,000 miles of blood vessels
We are a marvelous machine and when we love another human, it is magic. Enjoy this day of love. Spend it with someone you love.

Heart and sold (currentindiaaffairs.wordpress.com)
You’ve Got To Have High Hopes (grannyintraining.com)
blood vs. water (freeselftherapy.wordpress.com)

Are Athletes Healthy?

georgefebish — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 12:58:46 +0000

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We assume that athletes are healthy because they are strong, able to do amazing things and look thin. In reality they may not be so healthy inside. Healthy muscle and thinness can be had by extreme exercise but it doesn’t guarantee a healthy body. Health needs exercise but diet and a positive mental attitude is needed as well. Dr. Philip Maffetone says athletes can be fit but unhealthy. He says that autopsies preformed on athletes that have had a questionable death show that only 2% have healthy hearts. They are illness wrapped in a cute package. He says we have to stop confusing fitness with healthiness. You can be very fit, able to perform remarkable feats but at the same time be unhealthy. He goes on to say people with a predisposition to heart disease can turn “OFF” the gene that causes it by lifestyle changes (epigenetics). He says that diet, stress and even over training can lead to increased heart disease. Lastly he raises the ethical question, as I have raised in this BLOG, as to who is responsible if we encourage our children or ourselves to have a lifestyle that leads to illness and premature death?

Heart Disease Prevention (answers.com)
Obesity ‘direct heart disease risk’ (confused.com)
More evidence big football players face heart risks (vancouversun.com)
More evidence big football players face heart risks (reuters.com)

The Epigenetics Project Blog

Vegetarianism Improves Mood

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