Watched this insightful documentary and thought everybody should know about it.  Check out the link for more info..

PBS Special

The stress response: in the beginning it saved our lives, making us run from predators and enabling us to take down prey. Today, human beings are turning on the same life-saving physical reaction to cope with 30-year mortgages, $4 a gallon gasoline, final exams, difficult bosses and even traffic jams — we can’t seem to turn it off. So, we’re constantly marinating in corrosive hormones triggered by the stress response.

Now, scientists are showing just how measurable — and dangerous — prolonged exposure to stress can be. Stanford University neurobiologist, MacArthur “genius” grant recipient, and renowned author Robert Sapolsky reveals new answers to why and how chronic stress is threatening our lives in Killer Stress, a National Geographic Special.
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It’s no secret that a man’s sexual function declines with age. As his testosterone level falls, it takes more to arouse him. Once aroused, he takes longer to get an erection and to achieve orgasm and, following orgasm, to become aroused again. Age brings marked declines in semen volume and sperm quality. Erectile dysfunction (ED), or impotence, is clearly linked to advancing years; between the ages of 40 and 70, the percentage of potent men falls from 60% to roughly 30%, studies show.

Men also experience a gradual decline in urinary function. Studies show that a man’s urine stream weakens over time, the consequence of weakened bladder muscles and, in many cases, prostate enlargement.

And that’s not all. Recent research confirms what men have long suspected and, in some cases, feared: that the penis itself undergoes significant changes as a man moves from his sexual prime — around age 30 for most guys — into middle age and on to his dotage. These changes include:

Appearance. There are two major changes. The head of the penis (glans) gradually loses its purplish color, the result of reduced blood flow. And there is a slow loss of pubic hair. “As testosterone wanes, the penis gradually reverts to its prepubertal, mostly hairless, state,” says Irwin Goldstein, MD, director of sexual medicine at Alvarado Hospital in San Diego and editor-in-chief of The Journal of Sexual Medicine.

Penis Size.  Weight gain is common as men grow older. As fat accumulates on the lower abdomen, the apparent size of the penis changes. “A large prepubic fat pad makes the penile shaft look shorter,” says Ira Sharlip, MD, clinical professor of urology at the University of California, San Francisco.

“In some cases, abdominal fat all but buries the penis,” says Ronald Tamler, MD, PhD, co-director of the Men’s Health Program at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. “One way I motivate my overweight patients is by telling them that they can appear to gain up to an inch in size simply by losing weight.”

In addition to this apparent shrinkage (which is reversible) the penis tends to undergo an actual (and irreversible) reduction in size. The reduction — in both length and thickness — typically isn’t dramatic but may be noticeable. “If a man’s erect penis is 6 inches long when he is in his 30s, it might be 5 or 5-and-a-half inches when he reaches his 60s or 70s,” says Goldstein.

What causes the penis to shrink? At least two mechanisms are involved, experts say. One is the slow deposition of fatty substances (plaques) inside tiny arteries in the penis, which impairs blood flow to the organ. This process, known as atherosclerosis, is the same one that contributes to blockages inside the coronary arteries — a leading cause of heart attack.

Goldstein explains that another mechanism involves the gradual buildup of relatively inelastic collagen (scar tissue) within the stretchy fibrous sheath that surrounds the erection chambers. Erections occur when these chambers fill with blood. Blockages within the penile arteries — and increasingly inelastic chambers — mean smaller erections.

As penis size changes, so do the testicles. “Starting around age 40, the testicles definitely begin to shrink,” says Goldstein. The testicles of a 30-year-old man might measure 3 centimeters in diameter, he says; those of a 60-year-old, perhaps only 2 centimeters.

Curvature. If penile scar tissue accumulates unevenly, the penis can become curved. This condition, known as Peyronie’s disease, occurs most commonly in middle age. It can cause painful erections and make intercourse difficult. The condition may require surgery.

Sensitivity. Numerous studies have shown that the penis becomes less sensitive over time. This can make it hard to achieve an erection and to have an orgasm. Whether it renders orgasm less pleasurable remains an open question.

If there’s a silver lining to these presumably unwelcome changes, it’s this: Experts say these changes need not ruin your erotic life. One recent study involving 2,213 men in Olmstead County, Minn., showed significant declines in erectile function, libido, and ejaculatory function — but only moderate decreases in sexual satisfaction. “Older men may be less likely to perceive these declines as a problem and be dissatisfied,” concluded the study’s authors.

As Goldstein puts it, “The most important ingredient for a satisfying sex life is the ability to satisfy your partner, and that doesn’t require peak sexual performance or a big penis. As long as a man’s partner enjoys sexual intercourse, he feels like a god.”

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Studies Show Epidemic That Could Be Stemmed by Cervical Cancer Vaccine Gardasil

For years now, doctors have urged young women to be vaccinated against the human papilloma virus (HPV), which is believed to cause cervical cancer.

But now, growing research in Europe and the United States is implicating HPV in a rising number of cases of head and neck cancers in men, and many doctors are recommending that all boys be vaccinated as well.

Doctors say that changing sexual behaviors — earlier sex, more partners and especially oral sex — are contributing to a new epidemic of orpharyngeal squamous cell cancers, those of the throat, tonsils and base of the tongue.

These cancers can be deadly, and are striking men at a younger age and in increasing numbers.

“There’s a lag in information,” said Dr. John Deeken, a medical oncologist at Georgetown University. “We physicians have done a poor job of advertising the fact that boys and girls should have the vaccine.”

“This kind of cancer traditionally affects males who have been smoking and drinking all their life, and now in their mid-60s they are getting head and neck cancer,” he said. “However, HPV cancer we are seeing in younger patients who have never smoked.”

Two decades ago, about 20 percent of all oral cancers were HPV-related, but today that number is more than 50 percent, according to studies published by the American Association for Cancer Research.

Similarly high rates have also been seen in Europe, where a new Swedish study has shown a strong correlation between oral cancers and oral sex. Oddly, the rising rates have not been seen yet in the Southern Hemisphere in Australia and New Zealand.

Each year, more than 30,000 new cases of cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx are diagnosed, and more than 8,000 people die from oral cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Cure rates are higher than for smoking-related throat cancers, but still only 50 percent.

Today, men are more likely to get oral cancer than are women, but as the epidemic grows, that could soon change.

“We expect in head and neck cancers that 85 percent are men and 15 percent are women,” said Deeken. “But over the coming years that could become equal.”

“It’s going to take a couple of decades to see the trend turning around,” he said. “The epidemiological risk factors are past sexual partners as well as marijuana exposure, not just oral sex.”

Human Papilloma Virus Affecting More Men

HPV is the most common sexually-transmitted infection. Those who are infected often have no symptoms and pass it on to their partners through genital contact during vaginal and anal sex. It can also be transmitted during oral sex and, more rarely, during deep kissing through saliva.
PHOTO Growing research in Europe and the United States is implicating the most common sexually transmitted disease in a rising number of cases of oropharyngeal squamous cell cancers and many doctors are recommending that boys be vaccinated, as well.
Research increasingly shows that Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), believed to cause cervical cancer in… Expand
Research increasingly shows that Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), believed to cause cervical cancer in women, may also be causing head and neck cancers in men, perhaps because of an increase in oral sex. Women can be vaccinated against HPV. Many doctors are recommending that boys be vaccinated as well. Collapse
(Digital Vision/Getty Images)

There are more than 100 strains of the virus. Some cause genital warts, but others can result in cell changes that decades later can become cancerous. Each strain is identified by a number; oral and cervical cancers are caused by HPV sub-types 16 and 18.

HPV can also cause cancers of the vulva, vagina, penis and anus, and there is some evidence it is associated with esophageal and lung cancers.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of Gardasil for girls in 2006 and for boys for treatment of genital and anal warts in 2009. The vaccine can be given at any age, though it is most effective given young people before any sexual exposure.

Doctors say it could prevent 10,000 more cases of oral cancer a year.

Several deaths associated with the vaccine led doctors to advise caution in the rush to promote widespread use of the vaccine, and doctors say there is a lack of public awareness of its role in preventing cancer.

“With any new vaccine, you have to err on the side of caution, but every year we know more about it,” said Deeken. “But we have to ask the question: What do we do for the spouses and kids of our patients? I don’t see any downside to vaccination at this time. My son and daughter will get it.”

Because humans are the only reservoir for HPV, “it could be eliminated like smallpox,” he said.

The research isn’t new, but it has not received wide attention, perhaps because of taboos associated with oral sex.

Oral sex has become more commonplace; people have more sex partners and have sex earlier in life — all behaviors linked to HPV-related oral cancers, according to a study in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Emerging Infectious Diseases report.

A study at the Swedish Karolinska Institutet showed the risk of developing oral HPV infection increased with a rise in lifetime oral or vaginal sex partners. It also cited “open mouth kissing.”

The study included 542 American students, and noted similar increases in such cancers in Britain, Finland and The Netherlands.

But Dr. Kevin Cullen, director of University of Maryland’s Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, is not sure only oral sex is to blame.

“It’s hard for me to believe sexual behaviors have changed that much in 15 to 20 years,” he said. “It may be that as happens, epidemics get enough people infected and an infection begins to take off, and that may have happened with HPV at some point.”

A study Cullen did last year found that HPV-related oral cancer in African Americans were less common than whites, perhaps because of negative cultural attitudes about oral sex.

“But it looks like blacks are beginning to catch up with whites,” said Cullen.

Scientists also don’t know why women tend to develop cervical cancer while men have more throat cancer. “Maybe women are better able to transmit to a man than a man to the oral mucosa of a woman,” said Cullen.

Doctors also think that cancer is likely to develop in the first area of exposure ? in women, usually the vagina. The woman may then develop later immunity in the throat.

But with more oral sex, often before vaginal sex, female throat cancers could increase, they say.

Very little HPV was seen until the 1980s. “It was very rare in our archives,” said Cullen. “But each year we looked, it was more prevalent. Why, no one is really sure.”

And doctors say those numbers have not yet peaked.

“There is increasing evidence that boys as well as girls should be vaccinated,” said Cullen. “Men and women are increasingly going to face the burden of cancer, and we have a tool to prevent it.”

Why the medical community has not fully embraced vaccination is not clear.

“The lead time for development of oral cancer is in decades, so to do definitive studies would take decades to do,” he said. “[The FDA] picked the simpler task of preventing HPV warts in the short time frame.”

Resistance has also come from safety concerns, as well as the fear by some groups that vaccination for a sexually transmitted disease will promote sexual behavior.

Cervical cancer just may just be “sexier” than throat cancer, said Dr. Ranit Mishori, a family physician in the Georgetown University School of Medicine.

“We don’t think about oral cancer except in smokers,” she said. “There is no question HPV is the cause of most oral cancers, but it’s partly an awareness issue relating to our kids’ sex life, and who wants to talk about oral sex?”

Convincing parents to vaccinate their sons as well as their daughters is a “hard sell,” said Mishori.

“Oftentimes it’s the moms who take the kids to the doctor, and we tell them we have this great vaccine that can prevent their daughter from getting cervical cancer,” she said. “Moms can easily relate.”

But it’s harder to tell her “to give her son three painful shots so that he won’t transmit it to his girlfriend in the future and might not transmit cancer or have oral cancer himself,” said Mishori.

As for potential side effects with the vaccine, Mishori said those concerns are “pretty minor compared to the potential.”

“It hasn’t been around too long, but it’s been tested on thousands of women,” she said. “The fact that the vaccine prevents cancer is astounding in itself.”

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Recently, the The Food and Drug Administration restated via its Web site that gay men are still banned from donating blood because of the risk of HIV/AIDS. Before giving blood, all men are asked if they have had sex, even once, with another man since 1977. If they happen to answer yes, they will be permanently banned from giving blood.

The ban was established in 1983, during the beginning of  the epidemic. Twenty-seven years later, the ban has been reiterated, and on what premise does the FDA have to maintain this ban? None. In fact, all this ban signifies is the stigma America still attaches to homosexual men and AIDS, one that is not supported by facts, but rather biased perceptions of the LGBTQ community. The FDA maintains that this policy is not discriminatory, though  last time I checked, excluding people based on sexual orientation is considered discrimination.

The fact that the FDA has not banned (God forbid) black women from giving blood is quite interesting considering the fact that African American women make up over half of the new HIV/AIDS cases in the U.S. So why is it that the FDA is so intent on focusing on the gay population and not the black female population? Because of its need for exclusion. I doubt anyone is terribly anxious to donate their blood, but knowing that you couldn’t even if you wanted to reinforces the fact that you are still a second-class citizen in this country. When giving blood, the blood supposedly goes through several rigorous tests to ensure that the blood is uncontaminated and blemish-free. If this is the case, there is no need for this ban; it is biased and unfounded. Next, they may start requiring us to disclose how many sexual partners we have had. I wonder which number would be the limit.

Regardless of whether you identify as gay, lesbian, heterosexual, anti-gay, asexual, etc., this ban is relevant to all of us because it represents the stagnancy of this country when it comes to granting liberties for all people. We have made a significant amount of progress as a nation, but obviously we still have a quite a journey ahead of us, and racial discrimination is not the only hurdle we have to conquer. –constance collins

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NBC looks at the myth that “fat = unhealthy”

By Jessica O’Brien, Beauty Editor

After watching this video, and hearing the assumption that is presented about the heavier woman, I see this is a great example of what I go through some times as a plus size woman. After moving from Massachusetts to South Carolina with my husband in fall 2008, I was rejected by two different insurance companies because of my weight. I begged and pleaded for them to let me appeal. I told them to do the research to see my weight loss results over the past three years, and to look at things like my fitness abilities and how phenomenal my physicals look on paper as a measure of my health and risk. I have great cholesterol (including great triglycerides and HDL), great BP, great resting pulse, etc… Even at my highest weight of 350ish, I had great numbers. I’m not saying everyone at that weight reads so healthy, but for me, that’s how it was.

Yes, I need to lose more weight for my future health, but wouldn’t taking overweight people on to insurance company and providing incentives to help foster healthy habits be a more positive approach vs. giving me one less chance to have proper health coverage? I did finally find a company to cover me on an individual plan in October ’08, but, basically, the coverage sucks. To boot, I pay a $75 per month “surcharge” because of my BMI. I need to weight under 216 for 6 consecutive months to get the charge dropped. Yes, it is easy to just say that I should lose the weight. And, some day, hopefully this year, maybe next, I will be below that weight.

My point is that I am not going to hit a crash diet to get to that weight, and I am very happy that I *am* as healthy as I am today. I do not need a number on the scale to define my self worth.

This video also brings up a term called “Normal Weight Obesity” which I think is important for people to hear about. Thin doesn’t always equal healthy, and overweight doesn’t always equal unhealthy. Health is not just the “absence of disease”. Like the doctor discusses at the end, it’s really not a “get out of jail free card” for people to just go and gain weight, but a wake up call to our society that fitting into a size 2 does not guarantee a clean bill of health. Yes, there are people who may naturally be a size 2, but most women are not. Like I mentioned on the SKORCH Face Book page about one of the Dove videos that speak to “fabricating beauty” via Photoshop, families need to reinforce to our young ladies that bodies come in different sizes and shapes, and I’ll be damned if my future daughters don’t have anything else in their life than a positive self image!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

By Richard Alleyne, Science Correspondent in Chicago

Lack of connection with others not only makes us unhappy but it is also bad for the wellbeing of the body and mind, research finds.

A sense of rejection or isolation increases blood pressure, stress levels and general wear and tear as well as increases your chances of developing Alzheimer’s Disease.

It also reduces will power and perseverance, thus affecting the ability to follow a healthy lifestyle, according to scientists.

The findings were outlined by Professor John Cacioppo, of the University of Chicago, at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual conference.

Loneliness not only alters behavior, but loneliness is related to greater resistance to blood flow through your cardiovascular system, Professor Cacioppo said.

Loneliness leads to higher rises in morning levels of the stress hormone cortisol, affects the immune system, higher blood pressure and an increased level of depression.

Loneliness, or perceived social isolation, also is related to difficulty getting a deep sleep and a faster progression of Alzheimer’s disease, said Professor Cacioppo.

Healthwise, he said the difference between a lonely person and a popular person was akin to “a smoker and a non-smoker”.

“That stunned all of us, myself and all my colleagues in terms of the effects it had,” he said. “It shows just how powerful it is.

“The lonely have poor health. They exercise less, are more likely to quit. Eat more calories. They comfort eat more fats and sugars.

“Loneliness lowers the ability to control yourself. It is really easy after a bad day to have a second scotch and a third to get some comfort.”

One of the founders of a new discipline called social neuroscience, Professor Cacioppo, traced the need for connection to its evolutionary roots.

In order to survive in the past, humans needed to bond to rear their children. In order to flourish, they needed to extend their altruistic and cooperate, he concluded.

Just as physical pain is a prompt to change behavior, such as moving a finger away from the fire, loneliness evolved as a prompt to action, signaling an ancestral need to repair the social bonds.

The problem of social isolation is likely to grow as conventional family structures die out, said Professor Cacioppo, the author of Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection.

People are living longer, having fewer children later in life and increasingly mobile around the world.

Surveys also show that people report significantly fewer close friends and confidants than those a generation ago.

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It’s time for a new slim-down mantra: Eat more to weigh less. No joke! The right foods help you drop pounds by revving your calorie burn and curbing cravings. We consulted top experts for the best picks and asked leading chefs for easy, tasty ways to prepare them. Add these eats to your plate today and you’ll be slimmer and healthier in no time!

1. Steak

Beef has a rep as a diet buster, but eating it may help you peel off pounds. In a study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, women on a diet that included red meat lost more weight than those eating equal calories but little beef. “The protein in steak helps you retain muscle mass during weight loss,” says study author Manny Noakes, Ph.D. Try to consume local organic beef; it’s healthier for you and the environment.

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Night pain affects about one in three adults. It’s the number one cause of disturbed sleep and puts a real damper on your after-work activities. Fortunately, there are several ways to suppress night pain, which will help you get those 40 winks you desperately need. While you can easily implement some of these relief methods at home, for others, you should consult your doctor.

1. Revise your medications.

An inadequate pain medication routine can exacerbate night pain. For instance, a British study showed that a combination of two drugs, indomethacin (Indocin®) and diazepam (Valium®), was more effective at controlling night pain and improving morning stiffness for people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. Double-dosing is another option. Talk to your doctor about these options and possible side effects, such as addiction.

2. Exercise.

Several studies show that exercise takes the edge off pain caused by conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, and lupus. Stretching, strengthening and low-impact aerobic exercises increase pain tolerance, and strengthen and relax muscles and joint tissues to alleviate aches. If you do exercises late in the day to relieve night pain complete them at least three hours before bedtime.

3. Warm up.

According to the American Pain Society (APS), several recent studies indicate that heat can effectively reduce acute low back wrist and neck pain. However, for the best relief of night pain, you should use continuous, low-level, or long-term heat such as a heat wrap, which can be worn during the day, or when you’re exercising or sleeping.

4. Take a melatonin supplement.

Doctors commonly prescribe a melatonin supplement to treat depression, but it’s also a popular natural sleep aid. It improves sleep quality and mental alertness and offsets the long-term and short-term side effects of sleeplessness. Melatonin may also directly relieve some causes of night pain. In recent studies, melatonin has been beneficial in treating cluster headaches and migraines.

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The secret to this inexpensive home whitening method is malic acid, which acts as an astringent to remove surface discoloration. Combined with baking soda, strawberries become a natural tooth-cleanser, buffing away stains from coffee, red wine, and dark sodas. While it’s no replacement for a bleaching treatment at your dentist’s office, “this is a fast, cheap way to brighten your smile,” says Adina Carrel, DMD, a dentist in private practice at Manhattan Dental Arts in New York. “Be careful not to use this too often, though, as the acid could damage the enamel on your teeth.”

You need:
1 ripe strawberry
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Directions: Crush the strawberry to a pulp, then mix with the baking soda until blended. Use a soft toothbrush to spread the mixture onto your teeth. Leave on for 5 minutes, then brush thoroughly with toothpaste to remove the berry–baking soda mix. Rinse. (A little floss will help get rid of any strawberry seeds.) Carrel says you can apply once a week.

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Nowadays, people seem to be more and more stressed, even average people that at least apparently don’t take big gambles. Researchers have put a lot of time and money into the study of this problem, and came up with a whole lot of theories, but really, don’t let those fool you. Here’s the real deal, here’s why it was so easy in those days.

Bayer’s Heroin

Yeah baby, between 1890 and 1910, heroin was sold as a ‘less addictive form of morphine’. At some point, it was even recommended to treat the usual cough, but only in children.
Diacetylmorphine was first synthesized by Alder Wright, who concluded it was even more addictive than opium, and abandoned research in this direction. However, the Bayer company concluded that it was very effective in treating moderate pains and dealing with diseases such as asthma or tuberculosis, so they branded it as Heroin. What’s interesting is that it was branded pretty much at the same time with acetylsalicylic acid, that became later known as aspirin. It’s hard to say which one of these had more success…

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Scientists and consumers have known for years that grapefruit juice can increase the absorption of certain drugs — with the potential for turning normal doses into toxic overdoses. Now, the researcher who first identified this interaction is reporting new evidence that grapefruit and other common fruit juices, including orange and apple, can do the opposite effect by substantially decreasing the absorption of other drugs, potentially wiping out their beneficial effects.

The study provides a new reason to avoid drinking grapefruit juice and these other juices when taking certain drugs, including some that are prescribed for fighting life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, cancer, organ-transplant rejection, and infection, the researcher says. These findings — representing the first controlled human studies of this type of drug-lowering interaction — were described today at the 236th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

“Recently, we discovered that grapefruit and these other fruit juices substantially decrease the oral absorption of certain drugs undergoing intestinal uptake transport,” says study leader David G. Bailey, Ph.D., a professor of clinical pharmacology with the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario. “The concern is loss of benefit of medications essential for the treatment of serious medical conditions.”

Bailey and colleagues announced almost 20 years ago the unexpected finding that grapefruit juice can dramatically boost the body’s levels of the high-blood-pressure drug felodipine, causing potentially dangerous effects from excessive drug concentrations in the blood. Since then, other researchers have identified nearly 50 medications that carry the risk of grapefruit-induced drug-overdose interactions. As a result of the so-called “Grapefruit Juice Effect,” some prescription drugs now carry warning labels against taking grapefruit juice or fresh grapefruit during drug consumption.

In the most recent research, Bailey’s group had healthy volunteers take fexofenadine, an antihistamine used to fight allergies. The volunteers consumed the drug with either a single glass of grapefruit juice, water containing only naringin (substance in grapefruit juice that gives the juice its bitter taste), or water. When fexofenadine was taken with grapefruit juice, only half of the drug was absorbed compared to taking the drug with water alone, Bailey says. Loosing half of the amount of drugs taken into the body can be critical for the performance certain drugs, he points out.

They also showed that the active ingredient of grapefruit juice, naringin, appears to block a key drug uptake transporter, called OATP1A2, involved in shuttling drugs from the small intestine to the bloodstream. Blocking this transporter reduces drug absorption and neutralizes their potential benefits, the researchers say. By contrast, drugs whose levels are boosted in the presence of grapefruit juice appear to block an important drug metabolizing enzyme, called CYP3A4, that normally breaks down drugs.

“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” Bailey says. “I’m sure we’ll find more and more drugs that are affected this way.”

To date, grapefruit, orange and apple juices have been shown to lower the absorption of etoposide, an anticancer agent; certain beta blockers (atenolol, celiprolol, talinolol) used to treat high blood pressure and prevent heart attacks; cyclosporine, a drug taken to prevent rejection of transplanted organs; and certain antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, itraconazole). But additional drugs are likely to be added to the list as physicians become more aware of this drug-lowering interaction, Bailey says.

Orange and apple juices also appear to contain naringin-like substances that inhibit OATP1A2, Bailey says. The chemical in oranges appears to be hesperidin, but the chemical in apples has not yet been identified, the researchers notes.

Bailey advises patients to consult with their doctor or pharmacist before taking any medications with grapefruit juice or other fruits and juices. Unless it is known to be a problem, he recommends taking most medications only with water. This research was funded by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the United States Public Health Service.

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British scientists’ new research shows that mood may actually change how one’s dinner tastes, making the bitter and salty flavors recede.

In a new research to unpick the relationship between the chemical balance in brain and sense of taste, scientists at the University of Bristol, UK, gave 20 healthy volunteers two antidepressant drugs, and checked their sensitivity to different tastes, The Nature reported Wednesday on its website.

The scientists found that the drug that raised serotonin levels made people more sensitive to sweet and bitter tastes, while the other, which increased noradrenaline, enhanced recognition of bitter and sour tastes.

In healthy people, volunteers whose anxiety levels were naturally higher were less sensitive to bitter and salty tastes. ” What hasn’t been done before is to look precisely at which tastes are affected in depression. Now the results are in. We can discriminate between the chemicals and the tastes that seem to be altered,” Lucy Donaldson who led the research was quoted as saying.

It has long been known that people who are depressed have lower- than-usual levels of the brain chemicals serotonin or noradrenaline, or in some cases both, and many also have a blunted sense of taste, which is presumably caused by changes in brain chemistry.

The scientists plan to perform similar tests in depressed people, and in healthy volunteers given another brain chemical called tryptophan which would lower the healthy subjects’ levels of serotonin, as actually happens in depressed patients, according to the report.

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What if you could tell whether a man is husband material just by peering at his genes?

There has been speculation about the role of the hormone vasopressin in humans ever since we discovered that variations in where receptors for the hormone are expressed makes prairie voles strictly monogamous but meadow voles promiscuous; vasopressin is related to the “cuddle chemical” oxytocin. Now it seems variations in a section of the gene coding for a vasopressin receptor in people help to determine whether men are serial commitment-phobes or devoted husbands.

Hasse Walum at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, and colleagues looked at the various forms of the gene coding for a vasopressin receptor in 552 Swedish people, who were all in heterosexual partnerships. The researchers also investigated the quality of their relationships.

They found that variation in a section of the gene called RS3 334 was linked to how men bond with their partners. Men can have none, one or two copies of the RS3 334 section, and the higher the number of copies, the worse men scored on a measure of pair bonding.

Not only that, men with two copies of RS3 334 were more likely to be unmarried than men with one or none, and if they were married, they were twice as likely to have a marital crisis.

Commitment phobia

Given that everyone surveyed had been in their relationship for at least five years, the team suggests that having multiple copies somehow contributes to commitment problems in men. Because the results were collected for a different study the team couldn’t quiz the men on whether they were faithful, says Wallum.

It is not clear exactly how multiple copies of RS3 334 affect expression of the vasopressin receptor, and our most intimate relationships. And yet that’s the most interesting question, says Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

In some animals, the theory is that the brain has two “motivational” systems: one for reward, the other for social perception. In prairie voles and marmosets, receptors for the two systems sit on adjacent cells, so social activity is highly rewarding, leading to monogamy. To see if the same mechanism is at work in people will mean using tissue from post-mortems to map where vasopressin receptors lie, to see if variations are linked to the number of copies of RS3 334.

RS3 334′s social effects extend beyond bonding in couples. Earlier this year, the same gene section was shown to affect signalling in people’s amygdalas, linked to trust. Another study found that people with autism, which is characterised by unusual social behaviour, often have multiple copies of RS3 334.

Walum’s colleague Paul Lichtenstein says the team’s next task is to test how a nasal vasopressin spray affects altruism and jealousy.

A new study found that trained sexologists could infer a woman’s history of vaginal orgasm by observing the way she walks. The study is published in the September 2008 issue of The Journal of Sexual Medicine, the official journal of the International Society for Sexual Medicine and the International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health.

Led by Stuart Brody of the University of the West of Scotland in collaboration with colleagues in Belgium, the study involved 16 female Belgian university students. Subjects completed a questionnaire on their sexual behavior and were then videotaped from a distance while walking in a public place. The videotapes were rated by two professors of sexology and two research assistants trained in the functional-sexological approach to sexology, who were not aware of the women’s orgasmic history.

The results showed that the appropriately trained sexologists were able to correctly infer vaginal orgasm through watching the way the women walked over 80 percent of the time. Further analysis revealed that the sum of stride length and vertebral rotation was greater for the vaginally orgasmic women. “This could reflect the free, unblocked energetic flow from the legs through the pelvis to the spine,” the authors note.

There are several plausible explanations for the results shown by this study. One possibility is that a woman’s anatomical features may predispose her to greater or lesser tendency to experience vaginal orgasm. According to Brody, “Blocked pelvic muscles, which might be associated with psychosexual impairments, could both impair vaginal orgasmic response and gait.” In addition, vaginally orgasmic women may feel more confident about their sexuality, which might be reflected in their gait. “Such confidence might also be related to the relationship(s) that a woman has had, given the finding that specifically penile-vaginal orgasm is associated with indices of better relationship quality,” the authors state. Research has linked vaginal orgasm to better mental health.

The study provides some support for assumptions of a link between muscle blocks and sexual function, according to the authors. They conclude that it may lend credibility to the idea of incorporating training in movement, breathing and muscle patterns into the treatment of sexual dysfunction.

“Women with orgasmic dysfunction should be treated in a multi-disciplinary manner” says Irwin Goldstein, Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Sexual Medicine.”Although small, this study highlights the potential for multiple therapies such as expressive arts therapy incorporating movement and physical therapy focusing on the pelvic floor.”

Source

Significant modifications of an important gene suggests depression may play a role in changing the very makeup of the brain.

Researchers at the Robarts Research Institute at The University of Western Ontario compared the brains of people who committed suicide with those who died suddenly of natural causes, such as a heart attack. They found that the genome in suicidal, depressed people was chemically modified by a process that is normally involved in regulating the essential characteristics of all cells in the body.

The brain tissue was collected during autopsies and may eventually help explain an underlying cause of major depression and suicide.

This is apparently the first study to show that proteins that modify DNA directly are more highly expressed in the brains of people who commit suicide. These proteins are involved in chemically modifying DNA in a process called epigenomic regulation.

Michael O. Poulter, the lead researcher explains, “We have about 40,000 genes in every cell and the main reason a brain cell is a brain cell is because only a small fraction of the genes are turned on. The remaining genes that are not expressed are shut down by an epigenetic process called DNA methylation.”

The rate of methylation in the suicide brains was found to be much greater than that of the control group. Importantly, one of the genes they studied was shown to be heavily chemically modified and its expression was reduced. This particular gene plays a major role in regulating brain activity. “Interestingly, the nature of this chemical modification is long term and hard to reverse, and this fits with depression,” says Poulter.

“The whole idea that the genome is so malleable in the brain is surprising. Finding that epigenetic mechanisms continue to influence gene expression is pretty unusual,” says Poulter.

“These observations open an entirely new avenue of research and potential therapeutic interventions.”

Source: The University of Western Ontario