The Gary Null Show - 07.07.22

Videos:

1. Forget the Great Reset. Embrace the Great Escape. – Zach Weissmueller of ReasonTV (8:20)
2. Whoopsie: The FDA Green-Lighted the Moderna Jab for Babies After Losing the Placebo Group – Del Bigtree of the The Highwire (20:00)
3. BOMBSHELL: Dr. Clare Craig Exposes How Pfizer Twisted Their Clinical Trial Data for Young Children

 

Greater folate and vitamin B6 intake linked to lower risk of mortality during 9.8-year period

Zhengzhou University (China), July 6 2022. 

A study published in Nutrients revealed a decreased risk of death during a median period of 9.8 years among men and women with a greater intake of vitamin B6 and the B vitamin folate compared to those whose intake was lower.

The investigation included 55,569 participants enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and eight cycles of the continuous NHANES that occurred between 1999 and 2014. Dietary recall interview responses were analyzed for the intake of folate, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12. 

Men whose intake of folate was among the top 25% of individuals in the study had a 23% lower risk of death from any cause, a 41% lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality and a 32% lower risk of cancer mortality during follow-up than those whose intake was among the lowest 25%. Among women in the top 25%, the risks of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality were 14% and 47% lower. 

For men whose intake of vitamin B6 was among the highest 25% of those included in the study, the risk of all-cause mortality was 21% lower, cardiovascular disease mortality was 31% lower and cancer mortality was 27% lower compared to individuals whose intake was lowest. The risk of mortality among women whose vitamin B6 intake was among the top 25% was 12% lower than those whose intake was among the lowest 25% and their risk of dying from cardiovascular disease was 44% lower. 

To shed weight, go vegan

E-Da Hospital  (Taiwan), June 30, 2022

People on a vegetarian diet, and especially those following a vegan one that includes no animal products, see better results than dieters on other weight-reducing plans. In fact, they can lose around two kilograms more on the short term, says Ru-Yi Huang of E-Da Hospital in Taiwan after reviewing the results of twelve diet trials. 

Huang’s review includes twelve randomized controlled trials, involving 1,151 dieters who followed a specific eating regime for between nine and 74 weeks. 

Overall, individuals assigned to the vegetarian diet groups lost significantly more weight (around 2.02 kilograms) than dieters who ate meat and other animal products. Vegetarians who followed a vegan diet lost even more weight. Comparatively, they lost around 2.52 kilograms more than non-vegetarian dieters. Vegetarians who do consume dairy products and eggs lost around 1.48 kilograms more than those on a non-vegetarian diet. People following vegetarian diets that prescribe a lower than normal intake of calories (so-called energy restriction) also shed more kilograms than those without any such limitations being placed on their eating habits.

According to Huang, the abundant intake of whole grains, fruits and vegetables might play a role in the favorable results seen in vegetarian diets. Whole-grain products and vegetables generally have low glycemic index values and don’t cause blood sugar levels to spike. Fruits are rich in fiber, antioxidants, minerals and protective chemicals that naturally occur in plants. Whole-grain products contain soluble fiber. Such so-called good fiber helps to delay the speed by which food leaves the stomach and ensures good digestion. It also allows enough nutrients to be absorbed while food moves through the intestines. 

Social interactions tied to sense of purpose for older adults

Washington University in St. Louis, July 6, 2022

Having positive social interactions is associated with older adults’ sense of purposefulness, which can fluctuate from day to day, according to research from the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.

And although these findings, published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, apply to both working and retired adults, the research found that for better and for worse these interactions are more strongly correlated to purposefulness in people who are retired.

The research team worked with a group of some 100 adults with an average age of about 71. For 15 days, participants were asked three times daily about the quality of the social interactions they’d had that day.

After analyzing the responses, they found—relative to each person’s own baseline—the more positive interactions a person had during the day, the more purposeful they reported feeling in the evening. Other measures, including employment and relationship status, did not predict a person’s sense of purpose.

Of note, Pfund said, the study also showed how dynamic a person’s own sense of purpose could be.

Although some people do tend to be generally more or less purposeful overall, Pfund said, “We found purpose can change from day to day. Everyone was experiencing fluctuations relative to their own averages.”

The association was much stronger in retired people, the data showed: more positive social interactions showed a stronger association with a higher sense of purpose while more negative interactions were more strongly tied to a lower sense of purpose.

Resveratrol may prevent sedentary lifestyle effects

University of Strasbourg (France), July 01, 2022

An article published in the FASEB Journal reveals yet another benefit for resveratrol, a polyphenol found in red wine and grapes.  The current research suggests that resveratrol could help protect against the adverse effects of weightlessness during space flight as well as those caused by a sedentary lifestyle, which has been linked to cardiovascular disease, obesity and other health conditions.

“Long-term spaceflight induces hypokinesia and hypodynamia, which, along microgravity per se, result in a number of significant physiological alterations, such as muscle atrophy, force reduction, insulin resistance, substrate use shift from fats to carbohydrates, and bone loss. “Each of these adaptations could turn to serious health deterioration during the long-term spaceflight needed for planetary exploration.”

The research team tested the effects of resveratrol in rats undergoing simulated weightlessness.  While animals that did not receive resveratrol experienced a reduction in soleus muscle mass and strength, bone mineral density and resistance to breakage, as well as the development of insulin resistance, treatment with resveratrol protected against these conditions.  

“There are overwhelming data showing that the human body needs physical activity, but for some of us, getting that activity isn’t easy,” commented FASEB Journal Editor-in-Chief Gerald Weissmann, MD.  “A low gravity environment makes it nearly impossible for astronauts. For the earthbound, barriers to physical activity are equally challenging, whether they be disease, injury, or a desk job. Resveratrol may not be a substitute for exercise, but it could slow deterioration until someone can get moving again.”

Why does acupuncture work? Study finds it elevates nitric oxide, leading to pain reduction

LA BioMed, June 29, 2022  The use of acupuncture to treat pain dates back to the earliest recorded history in China. Despite centuries of acupuncture, it’s still not clear why this method of applying and stimulating tiny needles at certain points on the body can relieve pain. A new study from LA BioMed researchers offers some answers for why acupuncture may help and why clinical trials have produced mixed results. The researchers found the proper use of acupuncture (with the reinforcement method or coupled with heat, which is often used in acupuncture treatments) can lead to elevated levels of nitric oxide in the skin at the “acupoints” where the needles were inserted and manipulated. They noted that nitric oxide increases blood flow and encourages the release of analgesic or sensitizing substances, which causes the skin to feel warmer and contributes to the beneficial effects of the therapies.For the latest study, the LA BioMed researchers used a low force and rate/reinforcement method of acupuncture. They gently inserted acupuncture needles into the skin of 25 men and women, aged 18-60 years, and delicately twisted the needles for two minutes or until they achieved a sensation of “de qi” (soreness, numbness, distension or pain). They then manipulated the needles using gentle amplitude and moderate speed for two minutes every five minutes for a total of 20 minutes.They also applied electrical heat for 20 minutes and found elevated levels of nitric oxide at the acupoints. To further validate their findings, they conducted the test with high-frequency and force, which is known as a reduction method, and found nitric oxide levels over the areas of the skin region were reduced.

Thyroid problems linked to increased risk of dementia

Brown University, July 6, 2022

Older people with hypothyroidism, also called underactive thyroid, may be at increased risk of developing dementia, according to a study published in the online issue of Neurology. The risk of developing dementia was even higher for people whose thyroid condition required thyroid hormone replacement medication.

“In some cases, thyroid disorders have been associated with dementia symptoms that can be reversible with treatment,” said study author Chien-Hsiang Weng, MD, MPH, of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. 

For the study, researchers looked at the health records of 7,843 people newly diagnosed with dementia in Taiwan and compared them to the same number of people who did not have dementia. Their average age was 75. Researchers looked to see who had a history of either hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. 

A total of 102 people had hypothyroidism and 133 had hyperthyroidism.

The researchers found no link between hyperthyroidism and dementia.

Of the people with dementia, 68 people, or 0.9%, had hypothyroidism, compared to 34 of the people without dementia, or 0.4%. When researchers adjusted for other factors that could affect the risk of dementia, such as sex, age, high blood pressureand diabetes, they found that people over age 65 with hypothyroidism were 80% more likely to develop dementia than people the same age who did not have thyroid problems. For people younger than 65, having a history of hypothyroidism was not associated with an increased risk of dementia.

When researchers looked only at people who took medication for hypothyroidism, they found they were three times more likely to develop dementia than those who did not take medication. “One explanation for this could be that these people are more likely to experience greater symptoms from hypothyroidism where treatment was needed,” Weng said.