How Long to Nap for the Best Brain Benefits

Taking a nap, we've seen time and again, is like rebooting your brain. But napping may be as much of an art as it is a science. Scientists offer recommendations for planning your perfect nap, including how long to nap and when.

The sleep experts in the article say a 10-to-20-minute power nap gives you the best "bang for your buck," but depending on what you want the nap to do for you, other durations might be ideal:
For a quick boost of alertness, experts say a 10-to-20-minute power nap is adequate for getting back to work in a pinch.

For cognitive memory processing, however, a 60-minute nap may do more good, Dr. Mednick said. Including slow-wave sleep helps with remembering facts, places and faces. The downside: some grogginess upon waking.

Finally, the 90-minute nap will likely involve a full cycle of sleep, which aids creativity and emotional and procedural memory, such as learning how to ride a bike. Waking up after REM sleep usually means a minimal amount of sleep inertia, Dr. Mednick said.

In addition to those recommendations, one surprising suggestion is to sit slightly upright during your nap, because it will help you avoid a deep sleep. And if you find yourself dreaming during your power naps, it may be a sign you're sleep deprived. While you're planning your nap, don't forget to time it during the right time of day as well.

Source: LifeHacker

Preclinical Study: Turmeric Extract Kills Highly Lethal Pancreatic Tumors

by Sayer Ji – greenmedinfo.com

Considering that the conventional treatment of advanced stage pancreatic cancer can result in as little as a 1% 5-year survival rate, new preclinical research on a liposomal turmeric extract that inhibits pancreatic tumor growth by 42% is all the more amazing.

A promising new study published in the journal Anticancer Research, a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the International Institute of Anticancer Research, reveals a unique turmeric extract known as liposomal curcumin may provide an ideal chemotherapy alternative in the treatment of highly lethal pancreatic cancers.

Image: www.fourwinds10.net

Curcumin is the primarly polyphenol in turmeric, and has been the subject of extensive research demonstrating its ability to kill cancer cells, with over 1,500 studies available to view on Greenmedinfo.com relevant to over 100 distinct cancer types, including 24 studies demonstrating its anti-pancreatic cancer properties.

Liposomal curcumin utilizes a successful lipid-based drug delivery system, with some liposomal formulations having already received FDA approval. Owing to curcumin’s low water solubility and subsequent low systemic bioavailability, its encapsulation into liposomes (artificially-prepared vesicle composed of a lipid bilayer) greatly improves its ability to gain entry into the body by passing through the ‘glucoronidation barrier’ in the liver.

Exocrine pancreatic cancer is notorious for responding poorly to conventional treatment, with American Cancer Society statistics promising only a 14% 5-year survival rate in Stage IA cancers, spiraling down to only 1% for Stage IV types. Moreover, even when chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy results in the successful debulking of the tumor, and the patient manages to survive past 5 years, recurrence is still common; this often occurs as a direct result of conventional treatment, which damages the immune system and enriches the treatment-resistance tumorigenic cancer stem cell population within the post-treatment cancer survivor’s body.

The new study was performed by researchers at the Department of Molecular Biology and Immunology, and Institute for Cancer Research, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, Texas. They determined the antitumor effects of a liposomal curcumin formulation against human pancreatic cancer cells through in vitro and xenograft studies, where the cells were implanted into mice to form tumors.

The liposomal curcumin formulation was found to inhibit pancreatic cancer cell proliferation in vitro, and when administered to the animals intraperitoneally at a dose of 20 mg/kg, three-times a week for four weeks, a 42% suppression of tumor growth was observed compared to untreated controls. This would be the equivalent of 1,360 mg for a 150 lb adult. Note, the 20 mg/kg dose given to the test animals is 100 times lower than the LD50 for mice (i.e. the dose that would take to kill 50% of a test group).

Additionally, researchers observed “A potent antiangiogenic effect,” characterized by a reduced number blood vessels and other pro-angiogenic factors associated with the growth of the tumor’s blood supply.

The researchers concluded, “These data clearly establish the efficacy of liposomal curcumin in reducing human pancreatic cancer growth in the examined model. The therapeutic curcumin-based effects, with no limiting side-effects, suggest that liposomal curcumin may be beneficial in patients with pancreatic cancer.”

Considering the relatively high safety margin, affordability, accessibility and effectiveness (as demonstrated by pre-clinical research and a vast body of anecdotes) of turmeric extracts in fighting highly lethal cancers, we can only hope the medical establishment begins to incorporate these medicinal spices into their treatment protocols.

Court Quietly Confirms MMR Vaccine Can Cause Autism

At the center of the fifteen-year controversy is Dr. Andrew Wakefield of Austin, Texas. It was Dr. Wakefield that first publicized the link between stomach disorders and autism, and taking the findings one step further, the link between stomach disorders, autism and the Measles Mumps Rubella (MMR) vaccine.

In recent months, courts, governments and vaccine manufacturers have quietly conceded the fact that the Measles Mumps Rubella (MMR) vaccine most likely does cause autism and stomach diseases. Pharmaceutical companies have even gone so far as to pay out massive monetary awards, totaling in the millions, to the victims in an attempt to compensate them for damages and to buy their silence.

Landmark rulings

In December 2012, two landmark decisions were announced that confirmed Dr. Wakefield’s original concern that there is a link between the MMR vaccine, autism and stomach disorders. The news went mostly unreported, but independent outlets like The Liberty Beacon finally began publishing the groundbreaking news.

The website wrote last month, ‘In a recently published December 13, 2012 vaccine court ruling, hundreds of thousands of dollars were awarded to Ryan Mojabi, whose parents described how “MMR vaccinations” caused a “severe and debilitating injury to his brain, diagnosed as Autism Spectrum Disorder (‘ASD’).”’

In an April 2013 interview, Dr. Wakefield  responded publicly. The website TheRefusers.com published both the video, as well as the written transcript, of Dr. Wakefield’s public response. Which are as below:-
“The important thing to say is that back in 1996-1997 I was made aware of children developing autism, regressive autism, following exposure in many cases to the measles mumps rubella vaccine. Such was my concern about the safety of that vaccine that I went back and reviewed every safety study, every pre-licensing study of the MMR vaccine and other measles-containing vaccines before they were put into children and after. And I was appalled with the quality of that science. It really was totally below par and that has been reiterated by other authoritative sources since.

All I could do as a parent was to say, ‘what would I do for my child?’ That was the only honest answer I could give. My position on that has not changed. So, what happened subsequently? At that time the single measles vaccines were available freely on the National Health Service. Otherwise, I would not have suggested that option. So parents, if they were legitimately concerned about the safety of MMR could go and get the single vaccines. Six months later, the British government unilaterally withdrew the importation license for the single vaccines, therefore depriving parents of having these on the NHS; depriving parents who had legitimate concerns about the safety of MMR from a choice; denying them the opportunity to protect their children in the way that they saw fit.

The news shouldn't be left wing or right wing, conservative or liberal. It should be the news. It should be independent – Whiteout Press

And I was astonished by this and I said to Dr Elizabeth Miller of the Health Protection Agency, ‘why would you do this, if your principal concern is to protect children from serious infectious disease? Why would you remove an option from parents who are legitimately concerned about the safety of MMR?’ And her answer was extraordinary. She said to me, ‘if we allow parents the option of single vaccines, it would destroy our MMR program.’ In other words, her principal concern seemed to be full protection of the MMR program and not protection of children.”

[sources:  Whiteoutpress, WORLD TRUTH,HEALTH HOME, NATURAL HEALTH NEWS,]
http://theunknownbutnothidden.blogspot.in/2013/10/court-confirm-mmr-vaccine-causes-autism.html
http://www.infowars.com/breaking-courts-discreetly-confirm-mmr-vaccine-causes-autism/
http://www.whiteoutpress.com/timeless/courts-quietly-confirm-mmr-vaccine-causes-autism/
http://www.thelibertybeacon.com/2013/06/21/new-published-study-verifies-andrew-wakefields-research-on-autism-again-mmr-vaccine-causes-autism/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/post2468343_b_2468343.html
http://www.examiner.com/article/federal-vaccine-court-awards-millions-to-two-vaccine-injured-kids-with-autism
http://science.naturalnews.com/autism.html
http://science.naturalnews.com/vaccines.html

This is Why GMOs Were Created by Monsanto

Jeffrey Smith is an expert in genetically modified foods. In this video he explains how and why the practice started and what some of the potential dangers are of GMOs. This short video explains exactly why GMOs were created by Monsanto. He explains that the Roundup Ready patent was about expire so Monsanto had to do something to keep a stranglehold on the world’s food market and protect their profits.

Related: Join the March Against Monsanto on Oct 12th: http://www.march-against-monsanto.com/p/blog-page.html

Image: iHealthTube/YouTube

Upcoming March Against Monsanto to take place October 12

(http://www.march-against-monsanto.com/)Millions of activists are preparing for another March Against Monsanto to take place on October 12. Marches will be held in over 400 cities around the world and are currently scheduled in 47 U.S. states. The event will protest the controversial use of genetically modified organisms and the dangerous heavy use of pesticides in our food supply.

GMOs have never been properly tested for long-term safety. The only published study that examined the long-term effects of eating genetically modified corn produced horrifying effects in rats, but it was rejected by Monsanto and the general scientific community. The revolving door between government and biotech companies like Monsanto basically allows it greater government influence than even citizens seem to have. The use of GMO crops leads to increased pesticide usage, destroys the soil and biodiversity and contributes to bee colony collapse. GMOs have been linked to adverse health effects such as organ damage, sterility, infant mortality, birth defects, auto-immune conditions, allergies and increased cancer risks. Monsanto's business practices are equally as evil, as they file lawsuits against any innocent farmer whose field was contaminated by their mutant seed. More than a quarter of a million Indian farmers have already committed suicide after the GMO crops they bought were a failure that left their families in poverty. 62 countries mandate GMO labeling, which Monsanto has spent millions of dollars opposing in the U.S. alone. They don't even want you to know that you are eating their poisons.

That is why activists continue to march against Monsanto. And that's why anyone concerned with their health, their children or the future of the world and sustainable agriculture should join in. Protestors will march in St. Louis, Monsanto's headquarters, at 1:00 pm. To find an event near you, visit docs.google.com. You can also visit the March Against Monsanto website or Facebook page for more information.

Source: naturalnews.com