Studies and Progress Notes (Apr 2010)

* * * STUDIES and PROGRESS NOTES * * *       

* *  SPIRITUAL AWARENESS AND WHOLISTIC HEALING * *       

Distant group healing intentions affect patterns of cosmic rays     

In an exciting report on evolutionary research conducted by Gary C. Schwartz, PhD at the 13th Annual Energy Healing Conference of Healing Touch International, a hypothesis was supported. This demonstrated that focused group intention can bring coherence and coalescence to random cosmic rays. Dr. Schwartz, of the Laboratory for Advances in Consciousness and Health, housed at The University of Arizona, Tucson, conducted an exploratory experiment involving the effect of group intention on patterns of cosmic rays.  Recordings were made and measurements taken of a 15 minute pre intention baseline of random cosmic ray activity on a low light CCD camera system, placed in a completely dark chamber at the laboratory.  Then a group of 300 plus experienced energy healers, led by Healing Touch International President, Sue Kagel, focused healing intention for 15 minutes toward the camera, followed by another set of 15 minute post intention baseline recordings.

Two dimensional spectral analyses of distribution of dots of cosmic light were recorded on a photographic plate and graphed, showing results of all thee time periods. Pre and post experimental baselines remained stable, while the 15 minute focused intention period produced a surprisingly much brighter light with much greater structure and patterned coherence. Schwartz reported, “These findings… suggest that distant group intentions, provided by skilled practitioners, can have a measurable effect on patterns of cosmic rays.”

Schwartz, Gary E. Can distant group healing intentions affect patterns of cosmic rays? Perspectives in Healing, publication of Healing Touch International, Inc. 2009,  6, 22; 25
http://healingtouchinternational.org/images/pdfs/Newsletter/09-dec8%20newsletter.pdf

IJHC – WHR Observations

If this research can be replicated with rigorous controls, it will confirm mind-matter interactions that could contribute to basic questions in quantum physics about observer interactions with quantum physics effects.

* *  FUTURE RESEARCH IN WHOLISTIC HEALING * * 

The IJHC/WHR E-Zine features monthly suggestions for future research in healing.
READERS ARE INVITED TO SUBMIT SUGGESTIONS FOR TOPICS TO STUDY
If your topic is chosen, you ill receive free access to the IJHC for a month, including the current issue and all back issues.
 

Further studies of mental influence in quantum domains.

While the loosely performed study above may seem far-fetched and of limited value, there is a robust body of research on the effects of human intentions on electronic random number generators (RNGs) to support this possibility. See: Meta-analysis of intentional effects on electronic RNGs (Radin, 1997; Radin & Nelson, internet reference) demonstrate significant deviations from randomness ( p < 10 x 10-8 = odds against chance over 1 trillion to one)
Radin DI and Ferrari DC. Effects of consciousness on the fall of dice: A meta-analysis, Journal of Scientific Exploration 1991, 5, 61-84.
Radin D and Nelson, R. Meta-analysis of mind-matter interaction experiments: 1959 to 2000 www.boundaryinstitute.org/articles/rngma.pdf  (Accessed 2/26/06)

There have also been studies confirming significant effects of mind upon RNGs that are based on radioactive emissions.
Schmidt, H. Precognition of a quantum process. J Parapsychology, 1969, 33, 99-108.
Schmidt, H. A quantum mechanical random number generator for psi tests. J Parapsychology, 1970, 34, 219-224.
Schmidt, Helmut. Observation of a psychokinetic effect under highly controlled conditions, Journal of Parapsychology, 1993, 57  http://www.fourmilab.ch/rpkp/observ.html  accessed 100315

Further studies appear warranted.

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Research participants needed

Volunteers are needed for a study investigating communications between mediums (individuals who communicate with deceased people) and specific deceased people (called "discarnates").  We're recruiting research participants (called "sitters") who have experienced the loss of a close friend or family member.  These "sitters" will score information supplied by the medium for accuracy.

You may be eligible to be a "sitter" if you:

*       Are age 25 or older
*       Have experienced the loss of a close friend or family member over one year ago
*       Are familiar with the details of the discarnate's life
*       Are willing and able to score statements made by a medium as accurate or relevant (once given instructions on the scoring)
*       Have an email address, and are knowledgeable about sending and receiving email attachments

All communications between you and the researchers will be done via email.  Participating in either will take 15 to 30 minutes to fill out a questionnaire, then 30 minutes to 1 hour to score the readings.  If you are interested in participating, please email Marilyn (mjmcgehee@hotmail.com), she’s my research assistant who is “collecting” the sitters.  

This is a pilot study for a doctoral dissertation at Holos University (www.holosuniversity.org).

* *  WHOLISTIC APPROACHES * *

Proven program for decreasing teen eating disorders
 
There's nothing new about TV and fashion magazines giving girls unhealthy ideas about how thin they need to be in order to be considered beautiful. What is surprising is the method psychologists at the University of Texas have come up with to keep girls from developing eating disorders. Their main weapon against superskinny (role) models: a brand of civil disobedience dubbed "body activism."

Since 2001, more than 1,000 high school and college students have participated in the Body Project, which works by getting girls to understand how they have been buying into the notion that you have to be thin to be happy or successful. After critiquing the so-called thin ideal by writing essays and role-playing with their peers, participants are directed to come up with and execute small, nonviolent acts. They include slipping notes saying "Love your body the way it is" into dieting books at stores like Borders and writing letters to Mattel, makers of the impossibly proportioned Barbie doll.

According to a study in the latest issue of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, the risk of developing eating disorders was reduced 61% among Body Project participants. And they continued to exhibit positive body-image attitudes as long as three years after completing the program, which consists of four one-hour sessions. Such lasting effects may be due to girls' realizing not only how they were being influenced but also who was benefiting from the societal pressure to be thin. "These people who promote the perfect body really don't care about you at all," says Kelsey Hertel, a high school junior and Body Project veteran in Eugene, Ore. "They purposefully make you feel like less of a person so you'll buy their stuff and they'll make money."

As part of the program, Hertel and a friend posted signs in a school bathroom saying YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL. DON'T BE SOMEONE THAT YOU'RE NOT. BE YOURSELF. The girls then watched their classmates react. "They'd see the signs and say things like 'That's encouraging because I always feel so fat and gross and ugly,'" Hertel says.

The study's lead author, Eric Stice, designed the Body Project betting that a crucial element in preventing eating disorders lay in getting a participant to critique a fashion ad or other negative influence in front of her peers. "If I write down 10 things bad about it and post it on MySpace so anyone can view it, I'm accountable for it," says Stice, now at the Oregon Research Institute.
More
Source: GUPTA, SANJAY. Taking On the Thin Ideal. Time January 17, 2008

IJHC – WHR Observations

This is a lovely, straightforward approach to counteract the media hype that is intended to promote purchases of varieties of products through creating self-dissatisfaction in vulnerable teens.

'Sexercise' yourself into shape
Forget about jogging round the block, the NHS says. The NHS has some new advice for people struggling to schedule a fitness routine into their daily lives - a workout between the sheets.

According to the NHS Direct website, "sexercise" can lower the risk of heart attacks and helps people live longer.

Endorphins released during orgasm stimulate immune system cells, which also helps target illnesses like cancer, as well as wrinkles, it states.

Sexual health experts said such claims could not be scientifically proven.

"It's good to see the NHS are promoting sexual wellbeing," Dr Melissa Sayer told the Guardian newspaper.

"Yes, there is evidence that sex has benefits for mental wellbeing, but to say there is a link with reduced risk of heart disease and cancer is taking the argument too far."

NHS Direct, however, told the paper the content was "backed by science and clinical evidence" and "isn't just a bit of fun".

'Regular romps'
The advice, published under the headline "Get more than zeds in bed", is one of several sexual health-related articles to be found on the NHS Direct website.
Sex with a little energy and imagination provides a workout worthy of an athlete, the article says.
If you're worried about wrinkles - orgasms even help prevent frown lines from deepening
More

IJHC – WHR Observations

Ahhhh, the media hype on juicy items is clearly irresistible. Nice to know that sexual activity promotes health, but clearly an exaggeration to suggest that sex can take the place of a cardiac and general muscle workout.

If You Don’t Fight Diabetes Now, You’ll Hate Yourself Later

Did you know that millions of people are already suffering from Type 2 diabetes?

In fact, you might be suffering from it but you are still not aware of your condition. There are so many people who have the disease but they do not know it.

This insulin is needed in order for the body to break down glucose. When the glucose builds up in the body, this leads to complications. Type 2 diabetes is more common among members of certain races, and it also tends to run in families. There are, however, ways one can help prevent the disease.

However, you have to take note that the food you eat is the key in fighting or preventing Type 2 diabetes. What you need to do is to eat foods that have low saturated fats and low calories. It is also not true that a diabetic diet is boring. There are tasty and delicious meals that are effective against diabetes.
Fight Diabetes with Flavorful Mediterranean Diet

According to the recommendations of the American Diabetes Association, you need to eat lean proteins, vegetables, and whole grains if you are suffering from Type 2 diabetes. These are food groups that will effectively fight diabetes.

A Mediterranean diet is also highly recommended if you have Type 2 diabetes. This diet is rich in lean proteins and whole grains. Mediterranean cuisine is tasty and rich. But it is also healthy and will help you fight diabetes.

For your sources of whole grains, you must consider eating pasta meals. Studies have shown that whole grains are very effective in lowering blood sugar levels.

You may want to try a Mediterranean meal called Fettucine with Shrimp. This exotic dish has feta cheese, low fat yogurt, and spinach. Fettucine with Shrimp is very delicious and very healthy also.

The fresh spinach in this dish is effective against Type 2 diabetes because it is rich in magnesium. The low fat yogurt, on the hand, is rich in lean proteins and calcium. With such combination of healthy ingredients, you will be able to fight diabetes.

It is true that fighting Type 2 diabetes is not easy. You need to implement radical changes in your diet and lifestyle. Eating boring and bland foods is one of the most common complaints of diabetic persons. However, there is no need for you to eat boring foods. All you need to do is adopt a Mediterranean diet. Mediterranean dishes are very delicious and flavorful. But they are also healthy and highly effective against Type 2 diabetes.

For those of you interested on this recipes here a quick suggestion from: http://www.diabetes.org 

Mediterranean Fettucine with Shrimp

Ingredients
· 6 cups cooked fettucine
· 12 oz medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
· 10 oz frozen, chopped spinach, thawed
· 1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
· 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
· 2 garlic clove, minced
· 1 Tbsp minced dill
· 1 pinch Fresh ground pepper

Preparation
1. Three minutes before the pasta is finished cooking, add the shrimp and spinach to the pot. Drain completely.
2. Toss with the remaining ingredients and serve. 

Nutrition Information for:
Serves: 6; Serving size: 2 oz shrimp with 1 cup cooked pasta
· Total Calories: 279
· Total Fat: 5 g
· Saturated Fat: 2 g
· Cholesterol: 136 mg
· Sodium: 267 mg
· Total Carbohydrate: 39 g
· Dietary Fiber: 3 g
· Sugars: 5 g
· Protein: 20 g

About the Author
Sandra Bentley writes for the needles disposal blog, her personal hobby blog focused on tips to prevent and cure diabetes using the right diet.

* *  COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES * * 

Preparing for Surgery – a no cost online program entitled

This grant-funded website is an evidence-based mind-body program that is based on the eight-year Holistic Surgery Program developed by a clinical nurse specialist at Beth Israel.   

While other websites describe the benefits of practicing mind-body stress reduction techniques before and after surgery, this is the only site that takes the patient step by step through a complete program.  The new site teaches mind-body therapies directly in audio and video formats so patients can do the work of preparing for surgery at home, while being guided by an expert in the field.
 
We know the value of this work in the surgical setting through a robust scientific literature that documents the many psychological and medical benefits of mind-body stress-management interventions before and after surgery.  These include:
§    decreased anxiety and  improved mood
§    reduced use of pain  medication
§    less post-operative  pain and discomfort
§    improved quality of  sleep
§    reduced post-surgical  complications
 
Thank you for helping us spread the word to colleagues, patients, friends and family.
 
Marsha J. Handel, MLS
Director, Informatics and Online Education
Continuum Center for Health and Healing
245 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY   10016
646 935-2246
Fax: 646 935-2273

IJHC – WHR Observations

Varieties of psychological preparations for surgery have been found helpful in reducing stress, operative bleeding, need for anesthesia, and postoperative pain and recovery times. It is great to see this is now available on line to all – and not just in a few enlightened hospital surgery departments.

Babies sleeping on their backs are less prone to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

Sleep position is an important safety issue for infants younger than 1 year. This is because sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is associated with infants sleeping on their tummies. Sudden infant death syndrome is the leading cause of death for infants younger than 1 year. It most commonly occurs in babies between the ages of 2 and 4 months.

About 1 in 5 deaths from SIDS happen when an infant is being cared for by someone other than a parent. Many of these deaths occur when babies who are used to sleeping on their backs are then placed to sleep on their tummies by another caregiver. This is called unaccustomed tummy sleeping. This is dangerous because babies who are used to sleeping on their backs and are put to sleep on their tummies are almost 20 times more likely to die of SIDS.

While it is not safe to place babies on their tummies to sleep, health care providers recommend that babies spend some time while awake on their tummies. This "tummy time" should be when babies are awake and supervised. Tummy time helps babies to develop strong neck and shoulder muscles.
More

IJHC – WHR Observations

This article is notable for alerting parents to instruct their baby sitters about this danger – something that could easily be overlooked.

More CAM reviews at
www.naturalhealthvillage.com
www.mdlinx.com/FamilyMDLinx 
www.ucalgary.ca/~camig/litsearch.html
AMSA website
www.amsa.org/humed/camresources/camnews.cfm

* * TECHNOLOGY * *

Brigham Young University study looks at how business innovation happens
Leaders » Successful people ask questions, challenge status quo.
By Lesley Mitchell

Ever wonder how Michael Dell came up with the idea to create his own computer company? Or how Pierre Omidyar dreamed up the online marketplace eBay? Or how Jeff Bezos came up with the bold moves needed to develop Amazon.com into one of America's most successful companies?

After more than six years of research, Brigham Young University professor Jeff Dyer is convinced that these visionary business leaders and others didn't start out completely hard-wired for creativity and innovation.

"I always thought creativity was genetic -- that some people have it, some people don't, and there's not much you can do to get better at it," Dyer said.

But Dyer thinks differently now. The key qualities that separate great leaders from not-so-great ones can be developed, he and his colleagues contend in "The Innovator's DNA."

Dyer, along with co-authors Hal B. Gregersen and Clayton M. Christensen of Harvard Business School, surveyed more than 3,000 executives and managers who had not started a business or invented a product. Their responses were compared with about 500 business people -- such as Dell, Omidyar and Bezos -- who are widely recognized for their creative achievements in entrepreneurship and invention.

One key characteristic among the visionaries? The tendency to ask questions -- a lot of them -- and to challenge the status quo -- plenty.

Dyer said by comparison, most executives and managers in corporate America today focus on making companies run smoothly and efficiently.

Yet based on their research published in the Harvard Business Review , the most effective leaders "are much more likely to ask 'What if' questions, such as, 'What would happen if we do this?' They ask things like, 'What if we try doing things a new way, how will it change the world?'"

Michael Dell, for example, told Dyer and his colleagues the idea for creating a computer company sprang from a simple question: Why does an assembled computer costs five times as much as the parts that went into it?

Dyer recommends that business leaders spend at least 15 minutes to 30 minutes per day jotting down questions that "challenge the status quo" in their companies, or in their industry, or in their lives.

Bezos, of Amazon.com, told researchers that questioning and experimentation are so critical to innovation that he has institutionalized it at his company.

"I encourage our employees to go down blind alleys and experiment," Bezos said. "If we can get processes decentralized so that we can do a lot of experiments without it being very costly, we'll get a lot more innovation."

Visionary leaders also are good at studying how other people -- and companies -- do things. Dyer said such leaders also are more likely than non-visionaries to have lived in more than one country for an extended period of time. He believes the two qualities are related.

"When people live in different countries, they are more likely to carefully observe what's going on," Dyer said. "It seems to broaden their experiences, and they become more attuned to observing their environments and talking to people with different backgrounds and points of view."

But Dyer said no long journey is required to capitalize on the powers of observation. 
More

IJHC – WHR Observations

What this suggests for education of our children is that exposure to multi-cultural experiences can be a stimulation to creativity. Living abroad, with extended contact with another culture has been extremely enlightening and helpful to me, personally – with sojourns of 10 years each in Israel and England.

Conversely, it would stand to reason that bringing together people from diverse cultures – as in immigration that leads to cross-cultural exchanges, rather than ghettoizing and segregation – would appear likely to produce similar results. This might help to explain high achievement rates in many of the immigrant populations in the US and Israel. Israel in particular, with its required military service for men and women, creates an atmosphere where this can happen.

Gene test aid to cancer treatment

Scientists have developed a gene test which predicts how well chemotherapy will work in cancer patients. Tests to direct treatment strategies could prevent unnecessary treatment

Starting with 829 genes in breast cancer cells, the team whittled down the possibilities to six genes which had an impact on whether a drug worked.

They then showed that these genes could be used to predict the effectiveness of a drug called paclitaxel in patients.

It is hoped the approach, reported in The Lancet Oncology, can be replicated for other cancers and treatments.

The international project, including researchers from Cancer Research UK's London Research Institute, opens the way for breast cancer treatment to be targeted to those who will benefit the most.

To find which genes, if missing or faulty, could prevent the drug from working, they deleted them one by one from cancer cells in the laboratory.

They eventually highlighted the six genes which if absent or not working prevent paclitaxel from properly killing breast cancer cells.

More
 
Source: Juul Nicolai et al. Assessment of an RNA interference screen-derived mitotic and ceramide pathway metagene as a predictor of response to neoadjuvant paclitaxel for primary triple-negative breast cancer: a retrospective analysis of five clinical trials: The Lancet Oncology, Early Online Publication, 1 March 2010  Cite or Link Using DOI

IJHC – WHR Observations

All of these high tech approaches are incredibly expensive (read 'profitable' for pharmaceutical companies and hospital laboratories).

Hopefully, a day will come when medical intuitives and an ill person's own intuition will be tapped for similar purposes – in truly integrative care. Much more empowering to the ill person and caregivers, and enormously more cost effective!

* *  ENVIRONMENT (HEALING OUR PLANET) * *

“Docs Talk”, a new blog  that the David Suzuki Foundation launched in collaboration with the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment

Docs Talk will feature monthly commentaries by medical doctors and researchers on linkages between human health and the environment.

Check it out  - and subscribe!
It’s also available in French as Vert Santé.

IJHC – WHR Observations

It's good to see physicians taking an interest in the environment. It's a well known fact that simple sanitation has been the single most effective medical intervention through all time.

There is also a vital need to deal with the problems of over-use of antibiotics in humans and animals, as well as pollution of our recycled water with residues of medications coming through our toilets – to mention only a few salient items that are begging to be addressed.

* Climate change: how fast is the earth shifting?
By Michael D. Lemonick

There are many units by which to measure the impact of climate change: degrees of increasing temperature, feet of rising sea level, dollars needed to adapt to a warming world. But a group of scientists in California have put forth an intriguing new unit of measurement: kilometers per year.

Writing in a paper published in Nature, scientists describe what they call the velocity of climate change, or more specifically, the speed of Earth's shifting climatic zones. As global temperature rises over the next century, the scientists argue, Earth's habitable climatic zones will start moving too, generally away from the Equator and toward the poles. That means many species of plants and animals will also have to move in order to survive. Whether or not they do will depend on several factors, but two of the most important are how fast a species can adjust its habitat range, and how quickly that range is moving out from under it. (See "COP15: Climate-Change Conference.")

Until now, ecologists have mostly focused on these factors as they affect individual species, but the new paper takes a more global view. By combining temperature projections on a very fine scale with global topographic maps, researchers have predicted change not for specific species, but for the climatic zones they need to keep up with.

Indeed, because global temperature is rising now, ecosystems are already on the move. "Once you explain it to people, it makes intuitive sense," says co-author David Ackerly, a University of California, Berkeley, biologist. "We know what it's like to drive north to escape the heat. It's concrete, rather than the abstractness of rising average temperatures." (See the top 10 green ideas of 2009.)

More than intuitive, this new index could also prove very useful, especially to conservationists who work to keep species from extinction. While the average velocity of climate change may be a bit less than a half-kilometer per year worldwide, according to the paper, it can be significantly faster or slower depending on the local topography. In deserts and other flat areas, such as the Amazon basin, climatic zones will move faster, while hilly or mountainous terrain will slow things up. "In the Northern Hemisphere, for example," explains lead author Scott Loarie, "north-facing slopes tend to be cooler and wetter than south-facing slopes."
More

IJHC – WHR Observations

Dealing with climate change is not so much a problem of what to do. We must simply decrease our carbon footprint. The challenge is in how to get people to make these changes.

 * *  HUMAN ECOLOGY* * 

Autism Jumps 57% in Just 4 Years
By Daniel J. DeNoon
WebMD Health News
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Dec. 18, 2009 – Autism disorders increased by 57% in just four years, the CDC today reported.

BY THE END OF 2006, ONE IN 110 U.S. KIDS HAD AN AUTISM DISORDER DIAGNOSED BY AGE 8: ONE IN 70 BOYS AND ONE IN 315 GIRLS, reflecting a nearly fivefold higher risk for males.

The new CDC estimate of autism prevalence, obtained from analysis of child evaluation records in 11 states, is virtually identical to autism numbers reported for 2007 from a huge telephone survey reported last October.

Are today's kids really more likely to have autism, or are doctors and parents just getting better at recognizing this family of developmental disorders?

"At this point it is hard to say how much is a true increase and how much is improved identification," CDC behavioral health scientist Catherine Rice, PhD, said at a news conference. Rice is the lead author of the CDC report.

Rice admits that no single factor or simple explanation can account for the increase. And advocates for autism research say the size and rapidity of the increase can't be explained away.

"Two decades ago we were looking at a prevalence of one in 5,000 children. Now we're looking at one in 100. That really is a staggering increase," Geraldine Dawson, PhD, chief science officer of advocacy group Autism Speaks, tells WebMD.

Dawson said the new numbers justify a huge increase in federal spending on research and treatment.

"The question is what will it take for the federal government to begin to respond to this crisis," Dawson says. "President Obama during the election campaign made a promise that there would be a billion dollars spent every year on finding the causes of autism. We feel that this kind of data coming from a CDC study really requires that level of response."

Rice expressed similar concern.

"The CDC considers autism spectrum disorders to be a significant public health issue," she said. "This report underscores the need for a coordinated and strong response to improve lives of people with ASDs."

Parents Detect Autism Earlier

A major finding from the CDC study was that the vast majority of parents of children with an autism disorder -- 70% -- expressed concern over their child's development when the child was younger than 3 years old. Most expressed concern by the time the child was two.

Yet children were, on average, four and a half years old before they were diagnosed with an autism disorder.

"The American Academy of Pediatrics has encouraged routine screening of children for autism at ages 18 and 24 months," Rice said. "Pediatricians should listen to parents if they have a concern, but also proactively follow the screening recommendations regardless of whether parents have concerns."

The Rice study was released by the CDC as special report of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Source: http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/20091218/autism-jumps-57percent-in-just-4-years
 
IJHC – WHR Observations

Autism has been on the rise for 10 years, and no one has definitive evidence to explain what is causing it. Early, unpublished clinical reports are promising for marked improvements with acupuncture treatments for early immunizations and heavy metal exposures. This is the best (though technically weak) evidence I've seen to suggest a causation for the increases in autism.

Bangladesh discourages wearing suits and ties to work – lessening needs for air conditioning

Here's one way to save power: stop wearing a suit and tie to work. That's what Bangladesh's prime minister is ordering government employees to do - even suggesting men don't tuck their shirts into their trousers. It's a bid to cut the need for air conditioning and  save energy at a time when the country is going through a major power crisis., reports the Christian Science Monitor.

Source: Christian Science Monitor.

IJHC – WHR Observations

Simple actions like these can add up to significant reductions in carbon emissions. Let's get on board with this and similar ways to turn the global heating down.