Studies and Progress Notes (Oct 2008)
* * SPIRITUAL AWARENESS AND WHOLISTIC HEALING * *
Healing Touch helps anxiety in coronary artery bypass surgery recovery
Abstract:
Context: The use of complementary therapies in conjunction with conventional care has great potential to address patient pain, complication rates, and recovery time. Few studies of such therapies have been conducted in hospital settings where some of the most stressful procedures are performed on a regular basis. Objective: We hypothesized that patients receiving healing touch (HT) would see improved outcomes. Design: Patients were randomized into 1 of 3 treatment groups: no intervention, partial intervention (visitors), and an HT group. Setting: This study was conducted in an acute-care hospital in a large metropolitan area. Patients or Other Participants: Patients undergoing first- time elective coronary artery bypass surgery were invited to participate. There were 237 study subjects. Intervention: HT is an energy-based therapeutic approach to healing that arose out of nursing in the early 1980s. HT aids relaxation and supports the body's natural healing process. Main Outcome Measures: This study consisted of 6 outcome measures: postoperative length of stay, incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation, use of anti-emetic medication, amount of narcotic pain medication, functional status, and anxiety. Results: Analysis was conducted for all patients and separately by inpatient/outpatient status. Though no significant decrease in the use of pain medication, anti-emetic medication, or incidence of atrial fibrillation was observed, significant differences were noted in anxiety scores and length of stay. All HT patients showed a greater decrease in anxiety scores when compared to the visitor and control groups. In addition, there was a significant difference in outpatient HT length of stay when compared to the visitor and control groups.
Source: Maclntyre, Barb; Hamilton, Jane; Fricke, Theresa; Wenjun Ma; Mehie, Susan; Michel, Matt. The efficacy of healing touch in coronary artery bypass surgery recovery: a randomized clinical trial. (cover story) Alternative Therapies in Health & Medicine; 2008, 14(4), 24-32.
IJHC – WHR Observations
It is interesting that length of stay was shorter with HT treatments, even though physical effects were not identified that contributed to improvements. This suggests that either the relevant physical effects were not identified, or that decreases in anxiety may have contributed to the briefer hospital stays.
** 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.
Anxieties and duration hospital stays
Following on to the above study, it would be helpful in future studies of spiritual healing for anxiety to assess whether duration of hospital stay is affected when there is a decrease in anxiety. There is a vast body of literature on the health benefits of addressing stress.
The following resources have hundreds of references on understanding these mind-body connections.
Healing Research, V. 2 – Popular edition - How Can I Heal What Hurts?
www.wholistichealingresearch.com/HealingResearchVolume2.html
Healing Research, V. 2 - Professional edition - Consciousness, Bioenergy and Healing
BOOK OF THE YEAR (The Scientific and Medical Network, UK)
Paperback and CD-ROM editions
www.wholistichealingresearch.com/HealingResearchVolume2-Pro-Ed.html
* * WHOLISTIC APPROACHES * *
Caesarean birth may predispose to childhood development of diabetes
“Children born by Caesarean section have a 20% higher risk of developing type 1 diabetes than those born naturally, says a report in PubMed journal.
This form of diabetes, which can start in early childhood, is on the rise in Europe and scientists are unsure why.
Queen's University Belfast examined 20 past studies, suggesting contact with hospital bacteria rather than maternal bacteria in delivery may be to blame.
The normal risk of a baby developing type 1 diabetes is three in 1,000.
Not all women have the choice of whether to have a Caesarean or not, but those who do may wish to take this risk into consideration before choosing to give birth this way…
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7576829.stm
Source: Cardwell CR, et al. Caesarean section is associated with an increased risk of childhood-onset type 1 diabetes mellitus: a meta-analysis of observational studies. Diabetologia. 2008 May;51(5):726-35. Epub 2008 Feb 22. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18292986
IJHC – WHR Observations
Doctors warn people about the dangers of midwife births and home births, but there are also dangers in hospital births, which are far more likely to be by caesarian operations. In some hospitals as many as 25 percent of births are by caesarian section.
* * COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES * *
Vitamin B12 may protect the brain in old age
“Vitamin B12, a nutrient found in meat, fish and milk, may protect against brain volume loss in older people, according to a University of Oxford study.
For the study, 107 people between the ages of 61 and 87 underwent brain scans, memory testing and physical exams. The researchers from the Oxford Project to Investigate Memory and Ageing (OPTIMA) also collected blood samples to check vitamin B12 levels. Brain scans and memory tests were also performed again five years later.
The study, published in the journal Neurology, found that people who had higher vitamin B12 levels were six times less likely to experience brain shrinkage compared with those who had lower levels of the vitamin in their blood. None of the people in the study had vitamin B12 deficiency…”
Source: Oxford University Media website http://www.ox.ac.uk/media/news_stories/2008/080909.html
IJHC – WHR Observations
This is an easy, inexpensive approach to enhancing quality of life and preserving mental capacities in advancing years.
Cranberry for urinary tract infections in pregnant women
“Women experience urinary tract infections with greater frequency during pregnancy. Given the evidence to support the use of cranberry for urinary tract infections (UTIs) and its safety profile, cranberry supplementation as fruit or fruit juice may be a valuable therapeutic choice in the treatment of UTIs during pregnancy. (full text available by clicking on the pdf icon at the end of page)”
Source: Safety and efficacy of cranberry (vaccinium macrocarpon) during pregnancy and lactation
The Canadian Journal of Clinical Pharmacology (Jan 18, 2008)
http://www.cjcp.ca/hm/index.php?id=311
IJHC – WHR Observations
Antibiotics have numerous side effects, and their effects on fetal development is largely unknown. Cranberry is a safe first intervention.
More CAM reviews at
http://www.naturalhealthvillage.com/
www.mdlinx.com/FamilyMDLinx
www.ucalgary.ca/~camig/litsearch.html
AMSA website
www.amsa.org/humed/camresources/camnews.cfm
* * TECHNOLOGY * *
Getting more out of your Googling
- Google is a global White Pages and Yellow Pages. Search for "phonebook: home depot norwalk, ct," Google instantly produces the address and phone number of the Norwalk Home Depot. This works with names ("phonebook:robert jones las vegas, NV") as well as businesses. Don't put any space after "phonebook." And in all of the following examples, don't type the quotes shown here.
- Google is a package tracker. Type a FedEx or UPS package number (just the digits); when you click Search, Google offers a link to its tracking information.
- Google is a calculator. Type in an equation ("32+2345*3-234="). Click Search to see the answer.
- Google is a units-of-measurement converter. Type "teaspoons in a gallon," for example, or "centimeters in a foot." Click Search to see the answer.
- Google is a stock ticker. Type in AAPL or MSFT, for example, to see a link to the current Apple or Microsoft stock price, graphs, financial news, and so on.
= Google is an atlas. Type in an area code, like 212, to see a Mapquest map of the area.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/25/technology/circuits/
25POGUE-EMAIL.html?ex=1201496400&en=88a4aa9f2a24f4ff&ei=5070
Cattle and deer align in a North-South direction when grazing
“Have you ever noticed that herds of grazing animals all face the same way?
Images from Google Earth have confirmed that cattle tend to align their bodies in a north-south direction.
Wild deer also display this behaviour - a phenomenon that has apparently gone unnoticed by herdsmen and hunters for thousands of years…”
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7575459.stm
IJHC – WHR Observations
It is fascinating to find this sort of evidence suggesting that living beings participate in a vast grid of energies.
* * ENVIRONMENT (HEALING OUR PLANET) * *
The Climate Time Machine
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory has created a stunner of a graphic that shows climate change in recent years. You can click and drag your mouse across the image to see changes in the ice cap, in CO2 emissions, air temperature and sea levels.
The ice cap melt, CO2 emissions and air temperature changes are not projections, but are taken from NASA's most recent satellite data. The sea level changes show where the water will be as sea level rises over the next few years.
The map shows very clearly that we are in an extreme of climate change right now. The polar ice cap has declined incredibly in the past two years, and global temperatures have skyrocketed.
The Climate Time Machine makes the situation very, very clear.
To have a look, click here...
http://climate.jpl.nasa.gov/ClimateTimeMachine/climateTimeMachine.cfm
From Whitley Strieber's Unknown Country e-newsletter
Forwarded by Judy Steele
IJHC – WHR Observations
This is one of the most important websites I’ve ever seen on climate change.
The fact that NASA has published this has very serious implications.
The figures on carbon emissions look like they are not changing, but they are accumulating – and the figures on this model don’t show that.
The temperature map is the most alarming one.
It is time to make carbon emissions our top priority!
Scientists mimic essence of plants' energy storage system
“In a revolutionary leap that could transform solar power from a marginal, boutique alternative into a mainstream energy source, MIT researchers have overcome a major barrier to large-scale solar power: storing energy for use when the sun doesn't shine.
Daniel Nocera describes new process for storing solar energy:
Until now, solar power has been a daytime-only energy source, because storing extra solar energy for later use is prohibitively expensive and grossly inefficient. With today's announcement, MIT researchers have hit upon a simple, inexpensive, highly efficient process for storing solar energy.
Requiring nothing but abundant, non-toxic natural materials, this discovery could unlock the most potent, carbon-free energy source of all: the sun. "This is the nirvana of what we've been talking about for years," said MIT's Daniel Nocera, the Henry Dreyfus Professor of Energy at MIT and senior author of a paper describing the work in the July 31 issue of Science. "Solar power has always been a limited, far-off solution. Now we can seriously think about solar power as unlimited and soon."
Inspired by the photosynthesis performed by plants, Nocera and Matthew Kanan, a postdoctoral fellow in Nocera's lab, have developed an unprecedented process that will allow the sun's energy to be used to split water into hydrogen and oxygen gases. Later, the oxygen and hydrogen may be recombined inside a fuel cell, creating carbon-free electricity to power your house or your electric car, day or night.
The key component in Nocera and Kanan's new process is a new catalyst that produces oxygen gas from water; another catalyst produces valuable hydrogen gas. The new catalyst consists of cobalt metal, phosphate and an electrode, placed in water. When electricity -- whether from a photovoltaic cell, a wind turbine or any other source -- runs through the electrode, the cobalt and phosphate form a thin film on the electrode, and oxygen gas is produced.
Combined with another catalyst, such as platinum, that can produce hydrogen gas from water, the system can duplicate the water splitting reaction that occurs during photosynthesis.
The new catalyst works at room temperature, in neutral pH water, and it's easy to set up, Nocera said. ‘That's why I know this is going to work. It's so easy to implement,’ he said.”
Source: MIT Media page http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2008/oxygen-0731.html
IJHC – WHR Observations
This is a truly revolutionary and potentially transformative innovation in sourcing energy naturally, with no pollution byproducts.
* * HUMAN ECOLOGY* *
Veterans Administration and US government apparently indifferent to alarming Veterans’ suicide rates
About 120 US Veterans suicide every week. This is almost certainly linked to the severe post traumatic stress disorders (PTSDs) that many veterans suffer. The numbers of veterans’ suicides will soon exceed the numbers of combat deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.
WHEE and other Energy Psychology methods are excellent for treatment of PTSD. The US government recently put out a call for research proposals for innovative methods for treating PTSD. Several proposals were submitted for treatment of PTSD with these methods but these were rejected. Similarly, it has been impossible to find a VA center that would explore the clinical effects of Energy Psychology for PTSD.
It would appear that there is actually little openness innovative approaches for these problems in the VA system.
Resources:
Suicide Epidemic Among Veterans: A CBS News Investigation Uncovers A Suicide Rate For Veterans Twice That Of Other Americans
NEW YORK, Nov. 13, 2007
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/13/
cbsnews_investigates/main3496471.shtml
Benor, DJ. Re-Entry Protocol for De-Stressing: WHEE for soldiers, rescue workers, children, and others in difficult transitions: For soldiers, children after divorce, released prisoners, people involved in relief programs, and others in stressful, shifting and changing environments,
http://www.wholistichealingresearch.com/re-entryprotocolforde-stressing.html
Veterans: Finding their Way Home with EFT
By Ingrid Dinter, EFT, ADV
(Rapid, deep responses of Veterans with PTSD, treated with EFT)
http://www.wholistichealingresearch.com/ijhccurrentissue.html
IJHC – WHR Observations
Change comes slowly in established therapies and institutions.
*human ecol
Investment in Disease Prevention Could Save America More than $16 Billion in Five Years
Return on Investment of More than 5 to 1; Focus on Increasing Physical Activity, Improving Nutrition, and Preventing Smoking
“A small strategic investment in disease prevention could result in significant savings in U.S. health care costs, according to a new report released today by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH). In its report, entitled Prevention for a Healthier America: Investments in Disease Prevention Yield Significant Savings, Stronger Communities, TFAH finds that an investment of $10 per person per year in proven community-based programs to increase physical activity, improve nutrition, and prevent smoking and other tobacco use could save the country more than $16 billion annually within five years. This is a return of $5.60 for every $1.
“Health care costs are crippling the U.S. economy. Keeping Americans healthier is one of the most important, but overlooked ways we could reduce these costs,” said Jeff Levi, PhD, Executive Director of TFAH. “This study shows that with a strategic investment in effective, evidence-based disease prevention programs, we could see tremendous returns in less than five years -- sparing millions of people from serious diseases and saving billions of dollars.” Out of the $16 billion, Medicare could save more than $5 billion, Medicaid could save more than $1.9 billion, and private payers could save more than $9 billion…”
Source: http://www.nyam.org/news/3110.html
IJHC – WHR Observations
Prevention is far more economical than treatments for diseases. Our government, however, is not geared towards investing in prevention. Our politicians’ events horizon is rarely further than the next election. Wholistic thinking and planning is sorely needed in public health!
