Category Archives: Science

Science Backs Mind Over Matter In The Brain’s Healing Potential

The brain is arguably one of the most powerful tools available for human use. Its only limitations are the ones we consciously put on it or what we can’t conceive readily. Over the years many powers and super natural abilities have been stipulated as potentially inherent to any individual’s mind. As we become a better connected and open to possibilities, scientists has begun to explore the validity of each. One of these super abilities is a person’s ability to use their brain to guide and accelerate physical .

To be clear we aren’t talking about Reiki or chakra channeling or crystal based energy displacement. Self executed and self reliant ability to direct or speed up the body’s natural ability to heal itself. This is normally achieved through varying forms of meditative trances. There is a form of this ‘self healing’ practiced in most cultures around the world, through out the ages.

Reccently scientists have taken an interest in the  possibilities of these once thought myths. The video below has Lissa Rankin speaking at a TEDtalk about the known reality of self accelerated healing. The medical profession is baffled and a little intimidated of the truth  and applications of this procedure.

The only real way to test and prove this theory is with placebos. Placebos are sugar pills that are given to experiment participants.. They participants are told that the pills have certain effects, though in fact the most they could do give the person a slight sugar rush. 3,500 people with different diseases were given placebos to test the mindful healing theory. The results were all participants were healed or symptoms were improved.

In 1957, the Journal of Projective Techniques published a paper detailing an experiment in which a gentleman was given a placebo. He was told the pill was a wonder drug that would cure his cancer. After taking the pill his tumors shrank tremendously. They revealed that he had taken nothing more than suger pills and his tumors returned to the same size. They gave him another placebo and told him that the new pill was really the wonder drug. Again histumors shrank, this time to half their original size. Radio broadcasts reported that all versions of the drug he had belived to have been taking were worthless and extremely ineffective. He died the next day.

The power of intention is clear and has been proven in many unscientific arenas. Patients with terminal diseases don’t last very long if there is no family or support structure. The American Psychological Association has shown that most antidepressant are not any more effective than the placebos used to substantiate the double blind studies used to test them. Mind over matter is a hard theory to quantify but the evidence is mounting to prove that the main thing holding us back is ourselves.

How This Tibetan Monk Became The ‘World’s Happiest Man’

Matthieu Ricard is a Tibetan monk with the title of the ‘worlds’s happiest man’. The 69 year old media icon got this title from the University of Wisconsin’s neurology department. Ricard participated in a 12 year study of meditation and compassion. This research pertains specifically to a field known as neuroplasticity; an umbrella term for changes of the brain over the course of an organisms life. This field is attempting to show that the brain can undergo continual and permanent changes through conscious and unconscious means.

Over the course of 12 years, 265 sensors were placed on the heads of hundreds of participants. While the sensors were attached scientists had subjects interacting with stimuli and meditating. In their free time with out the sensors attached they were instructed to practice meditation for 15-20 minutes a day. All the participants showed marked increase in the areas of the brain pertaining to empathy, positivity and general cognitive abilities such as learning abilities, focus and memory.

Ricard’s brain scans showed the most impressive results. His brain, while meditating showed production of gamma waves at levels, ‘never before reported in the neuroscience literature’.  Scans also indicated an excessive amount of activity in his left prefrontal cortex when compared to his right counter part. Researchers surmise that this difference is a  physical indication of the capacity for happiness and the negation of negative emotions. Ricard’s was shown to be much higher than any other subject tested for this in this manner.

The experiment showed that long time practitioners had permanently modified their brains to be better geared for happiness and compassion but even people who were not ‘consistent practitioners showed massive increases in joy, focus and compassion.

After the university claimed him to be happiest man in the world the internet ran with the title. Riccard tours the world giving dharma talks on the benefits and applications of meditation. He uses the publicity handed to him in a very productive manner. His talks have similar themes no matter who he speaking to.  Long time practitioners and new comers alike can benefit greatly from his points of interest.

Stop thinking ‘me, me, me’

If your meditative practice is centered around you it is bound to not succeed. The broader the focus, the more benefits you will reap. There is a line of thought in mountain biking that if you can’t stop yourself from focusing on the rock you want to avoid then you will eventually hit it. Even if your every thought about the rock is bent on avoiding it, you are building the negative potentials up.

You are pouring energy into the problem instead of the path. A productive way of looking at this example is to not make the obstacles a prevailing element. Think instead of the journey, the grit of the path, the breeze that is cooling you. There is so much else going on in your ride, it would be a shame if all you focused on was rocks.

“If your mind is filled with benevolence, you know — the passion and solidarity … this is a very healthy state of mind that is conducive to flourishing,” Ricard says. “So you, yourself, are in a much better mental state. Your body will be healthier, so [it] has been shown. And also, people will perceive it as something nice.”

Start Training Your Mind Now And At All Times

Ricard points out the infinity that is your mind. There is unlimited potential for both productive and unproductive thoughts.  For instance, your mind has the tendency to focus on the negative or unchangeable aspects of your life. These elements are troubling and always effecting us and our plans in ways we’d rather it not. The brain will fatigue or injure itself in trying to sort them out. There is nothing to sort out though, something that is beyond our control is beyond our control so that energy would be better spent elsewhere.

The mind has to be trained like any other muscle we have. It needs to be trained to not react full force at every stimuli we encounter. Learning how to consciously redirect energy and focus is difficult. Just like physical training methods you need simply start where you are. Build on what you have not what you want. Keep your goal in mind and find that push.

15 to twenty minutes a day of seated mediation is a tall order. Society encourages multitasking on ridiculous levels. This is one of those ultimately fatiguing exercises. Prioritize your time and start with five minutes a day. If you have to take breaks then do so. Stand up, stretch, laugh go for a walk but get an accumulative time set that you force yourself to reach every day. This is how Ricard started and now he’s the world’s happiest man. The method works so give it a try.

No Yard? No Problem – 66 Plants That Are Perfect For Growing In Pots

In no way is growing your own food a bad idea. Pick your soil and seeds carefully and BAM! You have food the way food was meant to be. Great for your health beacuse you by pass the grueling game of GMO’s and pesticides, growing your own food spells health in more subtle ways as well.

Gardening has been shown to increase life spans, fight arthritis and a great way to get a little sun. The mindfulness that goes into on protecting and encouraging life spells wonders for one’s sense of compassion and appreciation for life. The result that speaks to me the loudest though is the flavor. I don’t care how cool your local farmer is, I grew a potato over my kitchen sink and it was a mind boggling medley of flavors.

Sounds great right? You’re probably ready to grow enough food for you and your block right? But like me you don’t even have a yard, so this dream will have to be shelved for another time… Well not today my agricultural dreamer. With a little compromise you can still grow the herb, fruits and veggies you hold dearest!

Before You Start

The strength a meal lies in its preperation. That intention of wholesome productivity can be traced to how its grown. Your local farmer’s market or grocery store will probably have the seeds you desire. If not the internet has got your back. Make sure your getting the strain you prefer and that it is GMO free. As you figure out what you wanna grow look into alternative growing methods. That potatoe I mentioned earlier was grown have submerged in water with no soil. I did add a nutrient blend to the water periodically.

Not every plant will need the same requirements. You might be able to double up plants in ceratin containment methods.
Start with five plant types and now mre than three of each (three tomato plants, three chive stalks, three garlic bulbs, three aloe vera plants, and three oregano plants as an example of the most you should start out with) I know you want to start growing eden in your living room but trust that a small scale increase on what you know you can mange will ensure you don’t kill anything and maximize your harvest.

Fruit Trees

These are great for beginners. Look up the deatils on espaliering, a growing technique for maximizing little spaces.

  1.  Apples

2. Kumquats

3. Avocados (plenty of extra tips online if you search)

4. Blackberries

5. Blueberries (sometimes helpful videos are available online)

6. Pomegranate

7. Cherries

8. Figs

9. Pears

Citrus Fruits

These plants can flourish indoors adding a nice decorative touch to your house or apartment.

10. Dwarf oranges

11. Grapefruit

12. Tangerines

13. Meyer lemons

14. Limes

Tropical Fruits

Bananas (look for container gardening tips online)

16. Pineapple

17. Papaya

18. Guavas (several varieties)

‘Neat’ Options

19. Hops—yes, as in the “spice” ingredient in beer. Turns out they’re easy to grow!

20. Aloe Vera

21. Strawberries

22. Tea (well, herbal tea)

23. Quinoa

Miscellaneous

24. Tomatoes

25. Summer squash

26. Other squashes, like acorn and pumpkin

27. Hot Peppers

28. Sweet peppers29. Cucumbers

Melons

30. Small cantaloupe

31. Jenny Lind melon (an heirloom cantaloupe)

32. Golden Midget Watermelon

Herbs

33. Basil

34. Oregano

35. Parsley

36. Rosemary

37. Chives

38. Catnip

39. Thyme

40. Sage

41. Parsley

Greens

42. Kale

43. Mesclun greens

44. Spinach

45. Swiss chard

46. Lettuces (plenty of options there, from micro-greens to head or loose-leaf)

47. Mustard greens

48. Collard greens

49. Arugula

Root Vegetables

50. Carrots

51. Beets

52. Potatoes

Healthy Options

53. Sprouts

54. More sprouts: mung bean and lentil sprouts

55. Wheatgrass

56. Kohlrabi

57. Turnips

58. Rutabagas

59. Celeriac

60. Parsnips

61. Jerusalem Artichoke

62. Sugar snap peas

63. Rhubarb (not ideal in a container, but it can work)

64. Mushrooms (again, more tips online if you look)

65. Pole Beans

66. asparagus

The Unknown Positive Effects Fasting Has on Our Brain

Fasting is the process that a person for goes food for a period of time to achieve a physical or spiritual goal. The positives of fasting have always been up contested. Once having fasted people experience new perspectives, renewed mental focus, a stronger constitution and a clearer relationship with their body. Recent science though is starting to reveal incredible evidence backing this age old practice.

what happens to your body when fastingMark Mattson is the current Chief of the Laboratory of Neuroscience at the National Institute of Aging. Mattson is a world class researcher specializing in the cellular and molecular mechanisms  of different neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. What he and researchers like him have found is amazing though scary for the current concepts of health science.

We can’t look at the subject of fasting as a means of treating patients because large corporations have too much at stake to ever let us see the whole picture. I know That sounds like I’m a crazy man with a conspiracy theory but its true. Over the last to decades more and more scientific practices have been called into question. The medical profession has been bought by the Pharmaceutical brands.

Beyond the pharma companies is the food industry and anyone making a buck off health trends. The more we eat the more they make money. If fasting became an accepted practice they could stand to lose millions. While we have experimental results of fasting being healthy,more research is needed. Though everything we’ve seen is very exciting.

“Dietary changes have long been known to have an effect on the brain. Children who suffer from epileptic seizures have fewer of them when placed on caloric restriction or fasts. It is believed that fasting helps kick-start protective measures that help counteract the overexcited signals that epileptic brains often exhibit. (Some children with epilepsy have also benefited from a specific high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet.) Normal brains, when overfed, can experience another kind of uncontrolled excitation, impairing the brain’s function, Mattson and another researcher reported in January in the journal Nature Reviews Neuroscience,’ says Mattson.

90096107-water-377Fasting experiments had amazing results with animals.

“Calorie restriction (CR) extends life span and retards age-related chronic diseases in a variety of species, including rats, mice, fish, flies, worms, and yeast. The mechanism or mechanisms through which this occurs are unclear.”

We can prove that fasting or calorie restrictive diets have positive effects we are just unclear on how. As the you get hungry the body and brain enter into a ‘survival mode’. The prioritization list for bodily functions changes and is done with the highest efficiency possible to save on resources. One clear reaction is protein production increases which promotes the growth of neurons, the connections between neurons and the strength of the synapses.

Separating the science from the politics will be hard here. This subject spans many subjects that people either hold very dear or make their livings off. This fear of moving forward because we may lose what we have is debilitating

Mysterious “Alien Probe” To Pass By Earth In 2017. What Is It?

An objected was sighted moving through our solar system in early November 1991 by astronomer James Scotti of the University of Arizona. There are many objects and phenomena to observed in our celestial back yard but this one had enough irregularities for the scientific community to take note.  It has been designated as 1991 VG and  is 10  meters (a little over 30 ft) in diameter. The object has an heliocentric orbit that spans past the edge of our galaxy.  This orbit is unusually similar to our own spinning orb, objects in space as small as VG don’t normally behave like this. The continued speed 1991 VG doesn’t make any since either. It continues to move at a varying speed which is baffling.

The mysteries continue to stack up. After we predicted its orbit, it was realized that VG had passed Earth in 1975. The changing increments of time are anomalous. The object had a strangely high rotational spin and seemed to fluctuate in brightness. The luminescent variance is probably the most confusing element of this mystery. This unusual number of anomalies in a single event makes identifying the object nearly impossible. No mutually agreeable theory has been offered.

Theories shot up like weeds after the news of 1991 VG hit the public. Its size, orbit and speed strike the normal suggestions off the list. One theory was that it was a part of Apollo 12, the second rocket to land on the moon. The timing and size don’t fit though. Scotti stated that there were few man made space vehicles that could fit the size and the window of time the object has been known to appear.

The other theory says that its a Russian rocket body or other secret accident. The Russians were attempting to get the moon with rockets as powerful as ours. If anything went wrong then the Russian government was quick to cover it up. With no comment from Russia we can only guess.

The most popular theory is aliens. 1991 VG is a alien ship or probe that is keeping tabs on our neck of the woods. Duncan Forgan and Arwen Nicholson are two mathematicians from University of Edinburgh that are attempting to prove that there is the possibility of alien craft operating in our galaxy. They published all supporting evidence in the Journal of Astrobiology. They surmise that the aliens use gravitational sling shots to quickly travel about the universe. This is the same technology the Voyager probes used.

Science has progressed since the last time we saw 1991 VG. We have found meteoroids with unusual rotational spins of similar size. We have also been made aware that certain chemical reactions can occur that cause light fluctuations. Until we see VG in 2017 scientists are left to speculate.

8 Traditional Beliefs That Have Now Been Proved By Science

Our ancestors had the same needs and desires as people in the modern age, the only difference is how we achieve them. People have always gotten sick, needed comfort, tried to push the limits, and understand the world they live.The tricks, practices, and intentions of purpose that societies practiced hundreds, or thousands of years earlier paved the way for this generation to build on.

Some of these ideas and methods are still practiced today, in the same or similar fashion they started out in. That is an indicator of something that not only works but is worth holding onto. In this modern age of a ‘prove it’ mentality, the explanations by men and women in lab coats are the only ones taken seriously. Now, finally after years of research, the good people in coats have moved these techniques from the list of holistic, to helpful.

Helping OTHERS Can Help YOUR Health

Giving factual substance to the golden rule of being a good person, a study compared two philosophies of happiness. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s study compared the effectiveness of hedonic and eudaemonic philosophies of happiness. Hedonic well-being is based on the notion that increased pleasure and decreased pain leads to happiness.shutterstock_243300958

Hedonic concepts are based on the notion of subjective well-being. Eudaemonic happiness is based on the premise that people feel happy if they experience life purpose, challenges and growth.

Using phone interviews, questionnaire,s and blood samples, the study explored how the philosophies effected people on a genetic level. Participants with more hedonic and less eudaemonic well-being were found to have a lower production of virus-attacking antibodies, while those with more eudaemonic well-being experienced an increase in antibody production.

Acupuncture Can Restore Health And Balance the Body

Originating out of China, addresses energy, blood and chemical imbalances in the body through manipulation of chi. Chi is the energy found in all living beings. The National Institutes of Health funded a study into the benefits of acupuncture, currently thought to be used by 3 million Americans a year.

Analyzing data collected from 18,000 subjects, researchers found that acupuncture is more effective than sham acupuncture and standard western care when treating various types of pain, including migraines and chronic back pain.

We Need the Support Of A Community In Order To Thrive

Every community has proven it’s worth. Support is a must for survival and growth. Without a healthy and productive social life, shutterstock_199696376we physically start to fail. Brigham Young University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers confirmed this belief in 2010.

Analyzing the 148 studies, spanning more than 300,000 individual participants, available on the subject, researchers discovered that those with stronger social relationships maintained a 50 percent increased likelihood of survival.

The effect of social relationships on mortality risk is even greater than the effect of exercise or obesity.

Tai Chi Alleviates A Number Of Health Conditions

A very old martial art that stresses balancing mental and physical discipline to achieve spiritual harmony and peace. It has been long held that this practice provides a longer life.
A report summarized several studies confirming that this “moving meditation” practice can help prevent and treat many age-related health problems, alongside standard treatment in older adults. A number of studies in the past decade have found tai chi to be helpful for those suffering from arthritis, low bone density, and heart disease.

Meditation Reduces Stress

A form of meditation can be found in every society and is not always attached to a religion. Meditation aids the mind in building awareness and focus. A team of researchers from Harvard Medical School reveals how this practice can affect genes linked to stress control and immune function.shutterstock_207563935

Utilizing neuro imaging and genomics technology to measure the physical potential for change. After regimented yoga and meditative practices, they viewed the before and afters.

There was a dramatic increase in mitochondrial energy production, utilization, and resiliency, which help to reduce the stress linked to health conditions like hypertension and infertility.

Compassion Is The Key To A Meaningful Life

Tibetan Buddhism includes a practice of ‘metta’ of the formation of loving kindness. Emory University released a study specifically marking how this practice boosted an individual’s ability to to empathize via their facial expressions.

A similar study on the same subject revealed that  participants’ positive emotions allowed them to find a deeper sense of mindfulness, their purpose in life, the network of support surrounding them, and their health. These components helped increase their overall life satisfaction.

Acceptance Is Key

Deakin University showed that facing the realities of assisted living, and therefore losing a degree of independence, helps seniors live longer and feel happier. The study compared feelings of life satisfaction and perceived control of older adults living with assistance and those living in the community.

All You Need Is Love

One constant in every era for every society is the understanding that love propagates longevity, health, and productivity. The Harvard Grant study, conducted over 75 years, gathered empirical evidence to back that up.

268 males were followed over this time and their lives were dissected to find how love motivated and changed them. Love was the most powerful and consistent element for positive change in all their lives.