Stem Cell Therapy

I found it interesting how in The Hindu, they described Stem Cell therapy as aiming at addressing the root cause of the disease rather than the symptoms which sounds more in line with the Chinese medicine than many other Western medicine developments I have heard of. I think it sounds like a promising therapy for quite a wide variety of diseases, particularly the autologous treatment since it uses ones and own cells and tissues and I imagine is therefore less likely to be rejected by the body's immune system. However it looks as though the allogenic path will likely be more pushed since it is more affordable and profitable. I am a bit skeptical about the possible side effects that could unfold over time from having a donor's foreign cells introduced into another person's system, but hopefully they are moving with caution in this regard and not just getting swept up in the money making potential.

Laughter really is the best medicine

Absolutely! It is such a natural expression and a huge emotional release. When you are heavy hearted there is a stagnancy created that impedes the flow of energy. Funny things happen so spontaneously that in one instant laughter can occur and give rise to a lightness and relaxation within. It has the power to break the habitual stress or negative patterns of the mind. Once I went to an Ayurvedic clinic in India when I was very ill and down about it. I went in for my first consultation with the doctor who was loud, boisterous and looked like a car salesman. He was completely incomprehensible because his Indian accent was so thick, but he insisted on speaking English, ignoring the translator named Guru who was sitting by his side. He kept referring to my condition as Rheumatoidikal Artriti and it sounded so absurd that the more he said it I felt this laughter bubbling up inside of me. I tried to disguise it by coughing but eventually it just came pouring out and once I started I couldn't stop. Guru and the doctor looked at each other and then suddenly the laughter became contagious and we were all doubled over in hysterics. Once we all calmed down I tried to apologize but he interrupted me and said "Laughter makes the life longer so we are off to a good start"

Montana and Idaho plan open-season wolf hunt

Can we balance the issues involved?

It seems that the decision to allow open hunts so soon after they have been removed from the endangered species list was perhaps a bit premature. It may have been more effective to allow wolf recovery to flourish some more, before letting the hunters have a field day. If they are too hasty with making allowances, wolves could end up right back on the endangered species list. I understand that ranchers need to protect their livestock, but I wonder how strictly the rules are enforced and obeyed. From what I have heard American ranchers can be quite ruthless when it comes to killing animals considered to pose a risk, even if there is no direct threat on their property. Cases like these need to be more carefully monitored, especially since the trigger happy ranchers have an unfair advantage with their guns. As mentioned in class, top predators, such as wolves help create a balanced, healthy ecosystem and there should be more emphasis placed on this when creating the hunting laws. There should also be rules against killing entire wolf packs which clearly inhibits effective genetic exchange and diversity. Another point I came across in research was that if adult wolves are shot it completely disrupts the pack structure and without experienced hunters to help capture the wild prey, the young ones may turn to easier prey such as cattle or sheep, which is obviously not favorable for the ranchers. I see why hunting can assist in population control but it also has such adverse effects for the surviving wolf population, so I'm unsure if a fair balance can be struck as humans attempt to manipulate the growth and control of a wild species.

Vaccinations

I do think it is very important to educate oneself in order to make an informed decision on what you choose to let into your child's system. The CDC recommended vaccine schedule seems a little hasty, considering that a baby's immune system is not fully developed until it is about 6 months old. This is used as an argument for why babies should receive vaccinations as early as possible, as they are more susceptible to virus and disease but if the baby is being breastfed, then it is receiving immunity through the mother's breastmilk. Apparently babies get the hep B vaccine right after they are born, but the only way for a newborn to contract this disease is if the mother is a carrier. It all seems a bit overly eager.
I don't agree that there should be one vaccination schedule for all children, it should more depend on the individual factors such as the child's particular condition of health and the environment (at home and in the community) in which it is raised. Likewise, I don't think that vaccination programs should be made compulsory, since they do not even guarantee complete protection from a disease. Furthermore, until they can develop vaccines that do not contain toxic, harmful substances such as mercury, formaldahyde and aluminium hydroxide, it doesn't seem right to force parents to have these toxins injected into their otherwise healthy children.

Reintroduction of American Bison

Prairies are the most endangered ecosystems of the U.S. They were the continent's largest continuous ecosystem supporting a vast array of plants and animals. Prairies provide erosion and non-point source pollution control. They protect ground and surface water as well as act as buffers for wetlands. Apparently they once spanned about 40% of the U.S, however only one percent of North American prairies still exist. The reintroduction of Bison seem like a very important component of restoring these ecosystems since they play a key role in creating a healthy environment on the Prairie. The continuous grazing by the Bison keeps the grass short, stimulates new shoots to grow, and their hoof action sows new seeds into the earth, helping to support new vegetation. Not only do their actions contribute to a more thriving ecosystem, but their significance for the Native American people should not be ignored. As the article states, the Bison is a symbol of their strength and unity, so to promote the reintroduction of the Bison would likely be a very healing act of respect from the cultural conflicts and deliberate devestation that took place in the past.

End Goals of Social Ecology

Well sometimes it is difficult to imagine that with all of the craziness that is going on in the world now that perhaps someday, there could be a significant shift in the direction of these end goals and on a bad day it can seem all a bit idealistic. I really do think that despite our current state of affairs, it is very important to hold these goals in high regard and to works towards cultivating such changes starting in one's own life, community and environment. I think that practicing Chinese medicine has the potential to contribute to these end goals with its strong connection with nature and its holistic approach to healing.

"Ecosystems are both strong and fragile"

Ecosystems are resilient in their ability to adapt and regenerate from environmental disturbances such a fires, droughts and earthquakes. However their natural resiliency is being weakened by the continuous pressures and challenges that human activity has created in such a relatively short time span. As human populations continue to expand, there is increased dependency on water, land and animals and most of our practices are not sustainable for our environment. This has majorly contributed to the loss of biodiversity in many ecosystems and is throwing a wrench in the natural cycles of the environment, therefore putting all ecosystems at a major disadvantage with less and less of a chance to flourish.

Eight Point Deep Ecology Platform

I think the platform is interesting in its focus on the unification of human and non-human life. As our current urban, industrial lifestyle continues to develop and expand, we are not only destroying natural habitats and ecosystems, but we ourselves are becoming further out of touch with nature, which in turn is creating an imbalance within us. This manifests through all of the social, emotional and health issues that we are facing. It is important to examine what is not working with our systems and our disconnection from the earth is really at the heart of the matter. The Eight Point Deep Ecology Platform is not just about what would be better for us, but what would work better for the earth and all of its elements, which we are part of. It's looking at the bigger picture. I wonder how much impact these outlined principles have had, but in any case I do think they are an important platform to encourage people to start thinking about their actions and their relationship to the environment in a different light.

"The deal that saved the whale"

Recently I have seen so much horrendous footage of whales being slaughtered, and the exposure of the corruption that goes on within the international whaling commission in the documentary "The Cove". It is all entirely heartbreaking, so it gives me hope to learn that this cooperative has effectively banded together and agreed to protect the habitat of these grey whales. Viva Las Ballenas!! And definitely check out The Cove if you haven't already.

Can TCM strengthen our immune systems?

TCM's approach is to restore balance to the whole body so that it may function at its optimum. TCM has a long history of treating immune disorders. Research has proven that acupuncture treatments can increase the body's T-cell count, as well as the number of cells that ingest and destroy bacteria, protozoa, and cell debris. There are also several herbs that are known to boost the immune system and qigong can also help in this way as it improves oxygen supply and distribution in the body, which increases efficiency of cell metabolism and tissue regeneration. It helps the the parasympathetic nervous system to neutralize the stress response and it can also aid in circulation of the lymph fluid which eliminates toxins. These are all key components in strengthening the immune system.

Western approaches to HIV/AIDS

HAART has created some positive change in the development of HIV/AIDS but it has not come without it's costs. It has contributed to a noticeably reduced rate in deaths, hospitalizations and new AIDS illnesses. In many cases, people with HIV/AIDS are living longer and are more able than before. However HAART is by no means a cure as it does not eliminate the virus it can only inhibit it and those who are on the drug regime must continually stay on it to keep the virus at bay. If they miss their doses a drug resistance can develop. The long term side effects can also be quite severe, including liver failure, myalgia, increasing risk for strokes and heart attacks, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. Not to mention that HAART is also outrageously expensive which simply rules it out as a possibility for so many people, but can be a major stress for those who just manage to scrape it together. I can't hate on HAART because of how it has saved many people from a death sentence but I wonder how the quality of life is with so much risk and the potential for so much added long term damage to one's system cannot be a good thing. I guess in this case, its the lesser of two evils and until a cure is found it seems to be the best option so far (with the support of chinese medicine I'd say).

Are our genes still being shaped by natural selection?

I definitely think so. Why we would stay the same when our world is constantly changing? We have different lifestyles, diets and environments that have shaped so much of our development. Not only are our local environments shifting, but the impact of globalization means factors that have often affected natural selection in the past such as diet and disease are no longer as confined to specific regions. I would imagine the fact that there is such a massive increase in multiracial people would throw some genetic changes in the mix as well as the various developments in medicine and procedures for childbirth such as IVF, c-sections and use of pitocin, modifying the conditions of birth that are supposed to happen naturally. It seems to be that there are such a vast array of changing elements today that could be constantly shaping our genetic evolution.

TCM + Cancer

TCM approaches to cancer is different to western medicine as it treats the individual and their symptoms they are presenting rather than the textbook disease that has been diagnosed. It focuses on rebalancing the system, tonifying, clearing toxic heat and phlegm. TCM also uses natural herbs rather than chemical drugs which are less damaging to the patients body. I think depending on the individuals situation, a combination of western and eastern treatment could serve to be the most beneficial approach to work on the disease in a variety of aspects.

How sophisticated is our understanding of cancer?

There has been a huge amount of funding and effort invested into researching cancer in depth and it seems that there is an incredibly sophisticated understanding of how cancer cell function and process, but comparatively our knowledge of the causes and cures is still quite elementary. It seems that cancer diagnoses are increasing at such a rapid rate that there is a tough race at hand, trying to find improved treatments and potential cures while cancer continues to persistently develop in new patterns and forms. However, there has been some success in cancer treatment as death rates are now shown to be decreasing. The main issue with the current treatments is that although they have has some effective results, radiation and chemo drugs are incredibly toxic and are a huge blow to the already weak system of the patient, so while it can kill the cancer cells, it doesn't seem to give the body much encouragement to heal otherwise. This is where TCM could really help.

Chinese Medicine Gaining Respectability in the West

As more studies on the positive effects of Chinese Medicine are conducted in the West, the media is beginning to take notice and the media has a massive influence on western culture. I think that a major issue for western minds in accepting Chinese Medicine has been cultural barriers, but since globalization is happening at such a rapid pace, the skeptics are starting to have more of an open mind (whether they like it or not) in order to keep up with the all of the change. The fact that Acupuncture has been integrated into many of the top U.S. hospital programs for their complementary medicine programs is proof that it is gaining more credibility in this country. In my own experience of having a chronic illness, western medicine could not provide many answers or solutions for my condition, except drugs that have some serious side effects. As I began to look for another path, I came across so many other people who were also feeling disillusioned by what western medicine had to offer them, and had turned to acupuncture, particularly for chronic conditions, back pain and fertility issues. I think now that Acupuncture is becoming more mainstream, people are drawn to it because it pays attention to the patient's system as a whole, not just focusing on the most overt aspect of the problem and prescribing a generalized solution. Additionally, it works to support the body's natural functions instead of a more attack-like approach of many western drugs- kill and destroy- until there is nothing left, not even the good stuff. I am definitely encouraged to see more support of Chinese medicine and look forward to seeing how an integration of different systems will take shape.

The significance of the use of language and tools in chimps

Given the similarity in DNA, I'm not quite sure why people seem so shocked when chimps show capabilities similar to that of humans. I suppose its kind of a superiority complex...What I found interesting in the "Hidden cameras" article was that they have identified a variety of distinct patterns of behavior that originate within groups of chimps and are then passed on to new generations. Since Chimps and humans have such similar DNA, but have developed in different ways, we may find some useful pieces in the puzzle of our own evolution in studying the potential functions of chimps and how they are advancing from one generation to the next.

Week 6 How do I distinguish between living and non-living systems?

Before learning about Autopoesis, I determined whether a system was living or non-living by whether it had a birth, growing/maturing and death cycle, whether or not it breathes and reproduces and if it came from nature or was man made. A more simplistic criteria, if you will..

"I always eat my broccoli"

I'm big into broccoli. Thankfully it is a really healthy food because I tend to crave food that is not quite as good for me. I've never really understood why some people have such an aversion to it, but I imagine it has a lot to do with how you are raised. Then I found this article that shows there may be more to it than that.


Hate broccoli? Spinach? Blame your genes
Extra taste buds create an aversion, for some, to bitter vegetables and other foods.
WHAT WE EAT
February 19, 2007|Susan Bowerman, Special to The Times

If you can't stand black coffee, chances are good that you also turn up your nose at bitter-tasting grapefruit juice, broccoli, spinach, green tea or soy products. You may be a genetic "super-taster" -- with more specialized taste buds on the tip of your tongue than the average person.
For you, tasting foods can be the equivalent of feeling objects with 50 fingers instead of five -- due to tiny genetic differences you share with fellow super-tasters.
The super-taster story goes back decades. In the early 1930s, a DuPont chemist named Arthur L. Fox was synthesizing a chemical called phenylthiocarbamide, or PTC, in his lab. While he was pouring the PTC into a bottle, a bit of it flew into the air -- and, apparently, right into the mouth of Fox's lab partner. The partner commented on how bitter the substance was -- yet Fox, who also got splashed, couldn't taste a thing. Fox later found that response to bitter taste runs in families.
These days, a related, but equally bitter, compound called 6-n-propylthiouracil (known as PROP for short) is used in research to determine sensitivity to bitter taste. About 25% of people (so-called super-tasters) find PROP unbearably bitter. Another 25% (nontasters) can't taste PROP at all. The remaining 50% just find PROP moderately repugnant.
Researchers have identified a taste gene, called TAS2R38, that's responsible for these differences in response to PROP as well as our perception of certain other foods. It all depends on what variant of the gene a person has. Scientists have also found that people with the super-taster version of the gene have a greater number of specialized structures, called fungiform papillae, on the tip of the tongue.
Women are more likely to be super-tasters than men. And, interestingly, many chefs are super-tasters. Most parents probably assume that their children are super-tasters, given that so many children have an aversion to vegetables. But although the desire for sweets or rejection of vegetables is certainly influenced by a child's genetic makeup, studies in children with various types of TAS2R38 gene have shown that cultural and economic forces also influence their taste preferences.
Whatever version of TAS2R38 someone has, it's true to say that many people, young and old, don't like vegetables. In evolutionary terms, that makes some sense. Plants produce natural bitter pesticides to protect themselves from being eaten, and sometimes these substances are toxic. No wonder humans have evolved to instinctively avoid very bitter foods. Luckily, the amounts of these natural toxins found in fruits and vegetables aren't harmful to us. (We're considerably larger than the average garden pest, after all.)
Scientists hypothesize that the genetic differences in response to bitterness may have evolved according to the natural environment in which ancient humans found themselves. Perhaps in one environment -- one rich with bitter and potentially toxic plants -- possessing the super-taster gene might have been a plus, assuring survival. In relatively safer surroundings with fewer toxic plants, possessing the nontaster gene would be more beneficial, because nontasters would readily consume a wider range of foods, thus reaping the health benefits of a varied plant-based diet.
Scientists hypothesize that the genetic differences in response to bitterness may have evolved according to the natural environment in which ancient humans found themselves. Perhaps in one environment -- one rich with bitter and potentially toxic plants -- possessing the super-taster gene might have been a plus, assuring survival. In relatively safer surroundings with fewer toxic plants, possessing the nontaster gene would be more beneficial, because nontasters would readily consume a wider range of foods, thus reaping the health benefits of a varied plant-based diet.
You might think that in our modern world, super-tasters would be at a disadvantage because they may avoid cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, tea, soy and many other foods that contain healthful but distasteful plant nutrients. But there may be a plus side to the super-taster trait. Some super-tasters find sweet foods too sweet, and very fatty foods unpalatable. As a result, they'll eat less of those things and their risk of obesity and heart disease might be lower. And super-tasters generally find scotch and beer undrinkable, so perhaps they are less likely to become alcoholics.

The Chicken or The Egg

I believe the egg must have come first. I can't quite see a chicken just appearing out of thin air so I think that the egg was a product of DNA mutation from two non chickens and as I just discovered, the zygote cell is the only place where DNA mutations could produce a new animal, and the zygote cell is housed in the egg so that kind of seals the deal for me.

Can Diversification save species?

Nothing in the world stays the same because everything is affected by cause and condition, so diversification seems to me to be a natural part of evolution. It doesn't always guarantee a species survival, but all current species as we know them are a product of diversification, having transformed according to the challenges they were faced with in the past.

How did Humans and Chimps diverge as a species?

Well apparently not even the top scientists who spend their career researching this exact question can come up with a definitive answer, so I don’t feel too bad in saying I’m really not sure..I do think it is an interesting idea that chimps and humans could have diverged through interbreeding and thus creating different lineages from this hybrid. I can see how this would be a plausible conclusion since at that stage I imagine the differences weren't so distinguishable that it would make them incompatible mates for the time. I would think that the different physical and mental development and the needs of this crossbreed would set them enough apart from their predecessors to support the divergence of these species, over time becoming more and more distinct.

Can we raise our Dopamine levels ourselves?

There are many ways for us to raise our levels of dopamine ourselves. Stress is a factor that affects our dopamine levels and therefore qi gong would be an excellent way to help as it emphasizes moving stagnant energy through movement, breath and intention. Other kinds of exercise from yoga to sports are also effective because they get the endorphins pumping. As mentioned in class, not only sex, but physical touch such as hugging, kissing and massage have all been proven to increase dopamine levels. Food intake is another influential aspect. Sugar, saturated fats, cholesterol, and refined foods all interfere with proper brain function and can cause low dopamine. Eating food high in antioxidants is beneficial as free radicals lower dopamine levels in the body, and antioxidants eliminate free radicals. Also caffeine can work against us because it boosts the neurotransmitters in the brain and increases serotonin temporarily, but after the high, dopamine levels sink lower.

Is there a drug around for just about everything?

So it seems. Although whether they are actually effective is another story. Pharmaceutical companies seem to be heavily pimping out all these flashy new drugs that claim to fix any problem you may have. They heavily persuade the doctors who many of us blindly trust, to prescribe their medicine. Their commercials make life appear as it though is all happy and wholesome with good looking healthy people frolicking in parks and on beaches, making you feel like if you take this drug you could be one of them. Isn't there something a bit creepy how at the end of these commercials they read this long list of possible side effects in a really fast voice? As though if they say it fast enough we won't really pay attention to the fact that the medication could actually do you more harm than good. Many of the side effects apparently aren't even detected before they go on the market. Hundreds of thousands of people in the United States die every year from adverse drug reactions. I don't think all medication is evil but I do think that many of the problems that people are suffering from need to be looked at from a more holistic perspective. I understand wanting a fast and easy solution to take the pain away but the same disease can manifest so differently in each individual and therefore it doesn't make sense that can be one cure for all. So while they continue to create drugs for conditions we didn't even know existed, there still haven't really found a cure for conditions that are very prevalent in the U.S. such as cancer and other chronic diseases.

Chimps and Humans

Even from the outside, there are similarities between humans and chimps that are quite apparent. However, it is interesting how such a minor percentage of difference in our DNA can manifest as such a great difference in the development of each species in terms of language, technology, philosophy, the arts and agriculture etc. I'm not necessarily saying that chimps are necessarily inferior, but there are enough significant distinctions in development that lead me to think that humans and chimps should still be placed in their own genus.

On Darwinism and Evo Devo

When I examine the world around me, I cannot find anything that is fixed and permanent. When I look at my own mind and body I also find this to be true. Everything I can think of is made up of other components, and therefore has a beginning, a middle and an end. Since there is evidence all around me that everything is subject to change, Darwin's theory of evolution makes complete sense. As we discussed in this week's class, it is interesting to observe the physical aspects of our human body which are slowly becoming unnecessary such as the appendix, wisdom teeth and the tail bone. I started to think about the future impact of current technology on the evolution of our minds and bodies. If the term Survival of the Fittest implies that the species that continues on is not necessarily the strongest, but the most fit for its surrounding environment, where does that leave all of us who are living life in this modern technological age? In general we are living so much more in our minds and less in our bodies. Our need to hunt and gather is now less in the form of being out in nature, being in touch with the plants and animals and more in the form of going to the supermarket and buying food out of packages. As our technology develops at such a rapid rate, it seems to open up a world of new possibilities for us, but we are also becoming more disconnected with nature which has been such a key part of our survival. Surely this will effect on the way our minds and bodies will develop. Will we become more isolated from each other? Will our muscles become less powerful and will we become fatter from being so sedentary? How will our eyes develop as a result of all these screens? Will we be hairless? Here are some examples I found on what other people imagine humans of the future might look like- all a bit creepy no?

My Bio

I was born on April 4th, 1980 in Los Angeles but we moved to Australia when I was a few months old. After graduating high school, I took a gap year to work and travel and then went on to Bard College in upstate New York, where I majored in Asian Studies. I graduated in 2003 and was invited to film The Dalai Lama inaugurating the first Tibetan Buddhist monastic college in India. I then decided that I wanted to pursue a career in cinematography. I moved to L.A. and began to work as a camera assistant. I finally felt that I had found my calling but then I fell ill and could no longer handle the physical intensity of the job. I was out of commission for a year or more but thanks to acupuncture I was able to get back on my feet. In the meantime, I fell in love with someone who lived in Berkeley, which is how I wound up here. After taking the Medical Qi Gong Program with Suzanne Friedman, I was inspired to learn more about Chinese Medicine so I finally took the leap and applied to AIMC. This is my first trimester.

Week 1 Discussion

After considering the article “Boys like blue, girls like pink- it’s in our genes” I am not at all convinced that our color preferences are defined by our genes- I feel that color preference is way more affected by psychological factors and cultural conditioning. What we see in our homes, in nature and the cultural context in which we are born, all make a huge impression on the way we perceive things. As a result, distinctions between good and bad, like and dislike, seem to develop quite early on. Before children learn to verbally communicate, colors are a primary form of language. I think that when children begin to socialize with their peers, color preference develops as a way of relating to the people and environment one is surrounded by. The notion that pink is feminine and blue is masculine is so heavily perpetuated by product manufacturers of clothing and toys. It seems like such an absurd brainwash to see the color segregation that is displayed in kid’s stores. It makes me wonder on a broader scale, how many of us truly know what we prefer when so many of our inclinations and beliefs are influenced by other people’s opinions whether it be family, media, culture or otherwise.




I guess this man didn't get his genetic memo