You have heard it before. Psychics say that they can read the mind of strangers, you have premonitions regarding a close family member or you have seen documentaries on the telepathic connection between twins. Are these just magical mysteries or is there any substance to this? Harvard scientists have recently completed an experiment of sending a simple ‘mind-to-mind’ message from a person in India to a person in France. The researchers have demonstrated the conscious transmission of information between human brains through the intact scalp and without intervention of motor or peripheral sensory systems. This experiment did not prove psychic powers do, or don’t, exist, but it did categorically demonstrated that brain-to-brain communication can take place. The complex experiment involved computers, robots, and one person wearing a wireless, internet-linked electroencephalogram. For the experiment, the person wearing the EEG would concentrate deeply on a simple greeting i.e. ‘hola’ or ‘ciao’ which was then translated these words into digital binary code by the computer. Then, this message was emailed from India to France, and delivered via robot to the receiver in France, who through non-invasive brain stimulation could see flashes of light in their peripheral vision. The individual receiving the message did not hear or see the words , but were correctly able to report the flashes of light that corresponded to the message. , These ‘phosphenes’ or white flashes were then interpreted into the words ‘hola’ and ‘ciao’, in a process that took another half hour. A second similar experiment was conducted between individuals in Spain and France, with the end result a total error rate of just 15 %. “We were able to directly and noninvasively transmit a thought - information -from one person to another, without them having to speak, touch, write, hear or see each other,” says Giulio Ruffini. “This in itself is a remarkable step in the progress of human communication. We believe these experiments represent an important first step in exploring the feasibility of complementing or bypassing traditional language-based or motor-based communication to empower human interaction.” The researchers further stated in their research paper ‘.. these initial results suggest new research directions, including the non-invasive direct transmission of emotions and feelings’. This technology may play an important role in treating people with depression, psychosis and speech impediments. Many best-selling motivational authors such as Louise Hay, Esther Hicks, and Wayne Dyer have oftentimes proposed that human thought is a vibration and that every thought has an impact. The neuroscientist and epi-geneticists are now at the doorway of understanding this phenomenon through scientific studies. As the great physicist Nikola Tesla once said “If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.”. The confluence of all these ideas can only benefit humanity. Health literacy is the patient’s ability to understand and use health information so that they can make good decisions about their health. Low literacy level significantly reduces the success of healthcare treatment. Low health literacy rates are prevalent throughout the developed world . For example, in the USA low literacy levels are at an astounding 88%, and in Canada levels are as high as 80%. Whilst in UK and Australia it is around 60% whereas in the Netherlands low literacy levels are only 30%. Low health literacy levels present huge challenges for patients such as: · Lacking the ability to assess general health information · Poor understanding standard medical terminology/language · Deficient management of their own health in the context of their own daily lives, social interactions and work environment · Not following through with the advice given to them by their doctors and other health care professionals · Inadequate understanding of health funding and available support networks · Poor compliance of prescribed medication and health promotion advice All these aspects not only result in frustration for the doctor but also lead to increased hospitalization, emergency care and increased demands on the under-pressure healthcare system. I work in the Vocational Education sector in Australia where I manage training programs for adult health care workers. As a growing number of healthcare clients are from Culturally and Linguistic Diverse (C.A.L.D.) background, we continually face challenges of low health literacy levels which is prominent among Seniors. So we have a training framework in place which abates this issue. These strategies can be modified to suit the primary healthcare environment and help alleviate the problem in dealing with low literacy levels. So what can be done to improve the situation? · A different level of communication is needed for patients with low literacy. Doctors and other health professional should attempt to use language that is familiar to the patient. · Supplement the spoken information during the consultation with leaflets, but check for understanding , as sometimes the patient with low literacy level may have difficulties with reading or understanding written information. · Any clinic letters should be followed up with a phone call to the patient to check for understanding of the written instructions · Health care professionals are also advised to speak slowly and avoid jargon. For example, perhaps instead of using the term ‘chronic’ they may use other more familiar terminology to the patient such as “repeated” or “long-lasting” · Consider using a whiteboard for drawing a diagrammatic representation to supplement the verbal information conveyed to the patient/client · ‘Trigger words’ are a standard pedagogical technique employed in adult education for people with low literacy levels. Trigger words are action words used in conjunction with a related word; these are a catalyst for learning or following through with an action. These are motivating actions for the patient to follow through. For example , ‘Go to the optician”, “Eat less salt”, ‘Drink more water” etc. · Consider referring clients to bilingual clinicians/services who speak the client’s language · Take a positive approach to care and promoting the strengths of the patient’s strengths. · Ensure there are no distractions (e.g. avoid unnecessary noise, heat or glare in the treatment room). · Ensure that client privacy is upheld · Use a qualified interpreter, when affordable These may seem as simplistic advice, but the challenge is implementing these strategies when one is faced with the pressures of time and budget restriction. However, in the long run this application may save resources. The focus in modern-day health care is “ Person centred care” and this involves a collaborative and respectful partnership with the patient. If we can overcome low health literacy level we can empower our clients and allow them to make decisions which will affect their life and sharing power and responsibility over these decisions whilst providing accessible and flexible services which respond to the changing needs of clients. here to edit. Preconception health refers to the health of women and men during their reproductive years preparing to have a baby. It aims to identify risks to a woman’s health or pregnancy outcome through a set of prevention and management strategies usually through diet, vitamin supplementation and lifestyle modifications. As a parent you always want the best for your children and most prospective parents do not realise that their actions in pre-conception years can have a huge impact on the well-being of their children. Recent research from the University of Adelaide has shown that the bad habits from parents can be genetically passed on to their children. The researchers concluded that the sperm and eggs carry more than just genes - they are also coded with genetic memories that can affect the health of an embryo. "Many things we do in the lead up to conceiving is having an impact on the future development of the child - from the age of the parents, to poor diet, obesity, smoking and many other factors, all of which influence environmental signals transmitted into the embryo," Sarah Robertson, an author of the paper and Director of the University of Adelaide’s Robinson Research Institute, "People used to think that it didn't matter, because a child represented a new beginning, with a fresh start. The reality is, we can now say with great certainty that the child doesn't quite start from scratch - they already carry over a legacy of factors from their parents' experiences that can shape development in the fetus and after birth. Depending on the situation, we can give our children a burden before they've even started life." Professor Robertson advocated that, "A few lifestyle changes by potential parents and improvements in the right direction, especially in the months leading up to conception, could have a lasting, positive benefit for the future of their child". This concept that environment and diet during the act of conception can impact the future of your child may be a new to many. However this is not new as in many indigenous and spiritual traditions state that preparing mind, body and spirit for pregnancy before conception is vital. Teachings from the Kabbala, Taoist, Vedic, Bhuddist and Theosophical traditions believe that consciousness exist before physical existence and that there is a strong conscious connection of parents to their children and therefore a holistic approach to preconception is necessary for the well-being of our offspring. A case in point is the Ayurvedic therapy called Garbha Sanskar which literally means 'education in the womb'. It uses diet planning, yoga, music, behavioural suggestions, and herbs in a holistic manner to enhance every aspect of mother and baby. There are several MD’s and CAM healthcare practitioners who over the years have understood and advocated these approaches to their clients and they may have been thought off as being peculiar by their fellow professionals. Now science through neuroscience and epigenetics is at the doorway of validating what the ancient philosophies have always known and the aforementioned medical doctors and CAM professionals should be commended on their holistic approach. Research has shown that Vitamin C does not prevent colds under normal conditions. In a meta-analysis study of 11.306 participants showed the failure of vitamin C supplementation in reducing the incidence of colds in the general population, however some research studies indicate that regular supplementation of vitamin C reduces the duration of colds, but these results have not been replicated. Vitamin C is safe and relatively inexpensive and it’s prophylactic benefits may vary from individual to individual. This observation basically fits the premise that there is no “one size fits all” which is more applicable to conventional medicine model, but this is not advocated by the traditional medicine systems. Traditional medicine and Alternative medicine places emphasis on the individual presentation of the ailment and consequently a more individualised remedial ‘holistic’ therapy protocol is applied which can have more beneficial effects for the individual. Further issues can be the costing of many complementary therapies. In some instances Complementary and Alternative therapies can be un-affordable for many consumers, but the results can be valuable in treating ailments with multi-factorial symptoms that conventional healthcare has difficulty in managing. When we consider all aspects of medicinal treatment with an open mind and strongly consider an integrative approach in treating our clients/patients we can achieve impressive outcomes. Research studies have shown that Resveratrol increases memory performance in primates. However, there are limited studies carried out in humans. A recent research study published in the Journal of Neuroscience tested if supplementation of Resveratrol would enhance memory performance in older adults. Twenty-three healthy overweight older individuals successfully completed 26 weeks of Resveratrol intake. Before and after the intervention, subjects underwent memory tasks and neuroimaging to assess volume, microstructure, and functional connectivity of the hippocampus, a key region implicated in memory functions. In addition, anthropometry, glucose and lipid metabolism, inflammation, neurotrophic factors, and vascular parameters were measured. Researchers observed a significant effect of Resveratrol on retention of words over 30 min compared with placebo. In comparison with the placebo group, Resveratrol also showed:
The incidence of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) has increased in recent years. AMD patients have trouble recognizing and identifying people's faces and especially with focusing on people’s internal features, such as the eyes, nose and mouth. In the January 2014 issue of Optometry and Vision Science researchers believe that AMD could largely be due to abnormal eye movement patterns and fixations associated with the condition. The authors found that the AMD patients made more frequent eye movements, known as saccades, compared to those with healthy vision. This could indicate that the problem that AMD patients have with recognizing faces is not only due to their overall vision loss, but also related to an abnormality in eye movement patterns. These abnormal scanning patterns which cause difficulty in reading faces are also associated with other conditions including schizophrenia and autism. The researchers have proposed a few reasons behind why these abnormal patterns in AMD patients occur. They believe it could have a lot to do with the way the brain coordinates eye movement. Other research studies show elevation of IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-4, IL-5, IL-10, IL-13, and IL-17 in the serum of AMD patients which supports the hypothesis of AMD as an inflammatory disease. There is still a lot of science to do on the cause of AMD. |
Archives
December 2019
Categories |