Videos:

Gary Null – Speaks to U.N. on Earth Day (Part 1 & 2)

Iain McGilchrist, ‘We Need to Act’

Iain McGilchrist is a former Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, an associate Fellow of Green Templeton College, Oxford, a Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Consultant Emeritus of the Bethlem and Maudsley Hospital, London, a former research Fellow in Neuroimaging at Johns Hopkins University Medical School, Baltimore, and a former Fellow of the Institute of Advanced Studies in Stellenbosch. He now lives on the Isle of Skye, off the coast of North West Scotland, where he continues to write, and lectures worldwide.

 

California’s “holy herb” Yerba Santa found to be an effective natural treatment for Alzheimer’s  

Salk Institute for Biological Studies, September 19, 2022

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, and aging is its primary risk factor. Therefore, researchers continue to look for ways to counter the effects of aging on the brain. In a recent study, researchers from The Salk Institute for Biological Studies discovered a potential natural treatment for Alzheimer’s in the form of a medicinal herb found in California.

In their study published in the journal Redox Biology, they found that yerba santa (Eriodictyon californicum), a plant native to California, contains an active compound called sterubin that could be used to treat people with Alzheimer’s. Yerba santa, which is the Spanish for “holy herb,” is highly regarded as a medicine for respiratory diseases, bruising, fever, headaches, infections, and pain.

For the current study, the researchers first examined 400 plant extracts with known medicinal properties for their ability to prevent oxytosis – a type of cell death that occurs in Alzheimer’s disease – in mouse hippocampal nerve cells.

The researchers found that sterubin exhibited the greatest protective effect against inflammation and other triggers of brain cell death. In particular, sterubin strongly reduced inflammation in microglia, which are brain cells that provide support to nerve cells.

In addition, the researchers found that sterubin can remove iron from cells, helping to prevent iron accumulation. Iron accumulation can result in a type of nerve cell damage that accompanies aging and occurs in neurodegenerative problems.

“Not only did sterubin turn out to be much more active than the other flavonoids in Yerba santa in our assays, it appears as good as, if not better than, other flavonoids we have studied,” said Pamela Maher, the corresponding author of the study.

Vitamin B may reduce risk of stroke

Zhengzhou University (China)  September 23, 2022  

Researchers have uncovered evidence that suggests vitamin B supplements could help to reduce the risk of stroke, according to a study published in the journal Neurology.

Vitamin B supplements are said to be beneficial for many health issues, including stress, anxiety, depression, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and heart disease.

However, according to Xu Yuming of Zhengzhou University in Zhengzhou, China, previous studies have conflicting findings regarding the use of vitamin B supplements and stroke or heart attack.

In order to determine the role of vitamin B supplements in the risk of stroke, Prof. Yuming and colleagues analyzed 14 randomized clinical trials involving a total of 54,913 participants  All studies compared use of vitamin B supplements with a placebo, or a very low dosage of the vitamin. All participants were then followed for a period of 6 months.

Results of the analysis revealed that the participants taking the vitamin B supplements had a 7% reduced risk of stroke, compared with those taking the placebo supplements or a low dosage of vitamin B.

The researchers found that a supplemental form of folate (vitamin B9) – a vitamin frequently found in fortified cereals – actually reduced the effect of vitamin B on the risk of stroke Additionally, the study showed that vitamin B12 d