038 - Ice Cream, Understanding Animal Communication, and Circadian Immunity - HealthHippieMD Week In Review

Wait, Ice Cream Might be Healthy?

I enjoyed the article, Could Ice Cream Possibly Be Good for You?. The report not only discusses the controversial, non-spurious outcome that won't go away but also demonstrates what happens in the scientific world when a new finding bucks traditional thinking. And the article contains puns.....

How Generative AI Will Change the Music Industry

Generative AI is not just for text and image creation. AI-Generated Music Is About to Flood Streaming Platforms discusses how AI is changing the music industry and music itself.....

Amyloidosis

The same misfolded proteins found in Alzheimer's Disease can also be found in other organs. Alzheimer's-Like Diseases Can Affect the Body — Scientists Are Working to Find Out Why is an overview of Amyloidosis and its treatment.

Chartreuse Shortage

For my 21st birthday, some friends bought me Chartreuse, a bright green herbal liqueur. That was the only time I tasted it. But now, even if I wanted more, it might not be possible. Chartreuse is getting more difficult to find. Why Is There a Chartreuse Shortage? Ask the Monks Who Make It.

Altered States of Memory

"Memory is "reconstructive." People actively alter the information they remember according to their biases and expectations." Short-term memories were thought to be less subject to alteration, but a recent study demonstrates otherwise: Our expectations can create fake short-term memories. If you'd like to learn more about the fragility/malleability of memory, take a listen to one of my favorite Revisionist History episodes: Free Brian Williams.

How Ultra-processed Food Starves the Microbiome

Another article on how processing alters food--and not in healthy ways: You Could Be Unknowingly Starving Your Gut Bacteria — But The Fix Is Surprisingly Simple. I feel like a broken record....

Is "Non-Communicable Disease" a Misnomer?

Human ailments such as heart disease were thought to be non-communicable. But findings from microbiome research call that belief into question: The Biggest Microbiome Study Sheds New Light on Shared Health Risks.

Covid, Population Risk, and Personal Risk

There is a 1% mortality rate from COVID. If 1% of COVID-19 cases result in death, does that mean you have a 1% chance of dying if you catch it?

FDA Approves Second Bivalent COVID Booster

"Federal health officials will not formally urge that people get a second booster. Instead, the "permissive" policy says they may get a second dose if they want." FDA okays second omicron booster for people at high risk from covid

Why Does Hair Turn Grey?

"A new study suggests stem cells may get stuck as hair ages and lose their ability to mature and maintain hair color." Scientists may have discovered why hair turns grey._

Belated Happy Waldo Day!

This week marked 4/20. In honor of the day, Longreads compiled a list of cannabis-related stories: Weed Between the Lines: A Longreads Cannabis Collection.

Talking to the Animals

I've often joked that I wish Theodore, a six-year-old Labradoodle, could talk. Now, thanks to AI and bioacoustics, my wish may become a reality: How Scientists Are Using AI to Talk to Animals.

Food and Hot Flashes

We don't understand the physiology of hot flashes, but it appears food can influence the severity of this common occurrence: Could Certain Foods Help With Hot Flashes? (gift article)

Us versus Them

"It's been said, "There are two kinds of people in the world: those who divide the world into two kinds of people and those who don't." In reality, there are lots more of the former. And it can be vastly consequential when people are divided into Us and Them, ingroup and outgroup, "the people" (i.e., our kind) and the Others." An stimulating article in Nautilus about us/them dichotomies: Why Your Brain Hates Other People.

Reinvent Yourself According to Experts

Giving credence to your "possible selves" is an evidence-based way to reinvent yourself. How to Reinvent Yourself, According to the Experts tells you how. See also the fantastic podcast: zigzag project.

A Key Character Trait for Happiness

Enthusiasm Is Key to Happiness is an interesting article that touches on psychology and finishes with ways of improving your happiness, regardless of personality type.

Huge Umbrella Analysis of Dietary Sugar

The British Medical Journal published an article that aggregated a huge (8600+) studies on the effects of sugar on health outcomes: Dietary sugar consumption and health: an umbrella review. Read the synopsis here: Study Offers Dozens of Reasons to Cut Sugar

Circadian Rhythms and Immunity

How Circadian Rhythms and Time of Day Control the Immune System describes recent breakthroughs into how our body's internal clock seems to regulate immunity and susceptibility to disease.

033 - Coulrophobia, Lucid Dreaming, and Cowless Dairy - HealthHippieMD Week In Review

The Calorie Hunter

Science had an interesting article on Duke scientist Herman Pontzer, whose work has challenged some of the most fundamental beliefs on weight management. "Exercise prevents you from getting sick, but diet is your best tool for weight management." This scientist busts myths about how humans burn calories—and why

SAD Myth

These scientists think Seasonal Affective Disorder is not what we thought it was. The Surprising Truth About Seasonal Depression "The seasons do affect our lives, although a growing body of research shows that major psychological effects such as depression and cognitive slowdown are likely not what most of us are experiencing during winter."

Step-by-Step Guide to Lucid Dreaming

I've not yet had a lucid dream. Using this guide, I am going to try: How to Lucid Dream (Even if You Think You Can't)

Aggressive End-of-Life Care

An article in the NY Times about how care escalates for many (most?) patients, frequently beyond what they desire: Aggressive Medical Care Remains Common at Life's End (gift article)

Health Worker's Mental Health

Healthcare workers suffer from sleep deprivation, exhaustion, and stress. All these factors contribute to poor mental health. "In our study, about half of the healthcare workers we surveyed reported that their work interfered with their family life, while about 30% experienced family life interfering with work. Importantly, these conflicts were linked to poor mental health, such as depression." Health care workers are frazzled – and poor sleep may turn stress into poor mental health See also a blog post I wrote about Mindfulness and Medicine

Introverts and Friendship

I'm an extreme introvert. I found this article insightful and interesting: How to Make Friends as an Introvert(gift article)

AI and Cancer

The article, An AI Told Me I Had Cancer, bothered me. Although I share the author's frustration with accessing one's medical information, I found the author's opinions pretty naive (about AI, medicine, research, and the accuracy of data models). I can think of few better uses of AI than as a tool to augment a physician's terminal disease diagnosis. The author ignores the many types of AI--the article lumps them all together (I suspect the piece was meant to capitalize on the recent popularity of Chat GPT), and the author's premise of requiring consent to have a UI aid in their diagnosis seems ludicrous. I could go on.....

American vs. European Medical Training

As we pass through another Match Week, where medical students find out where they'll do their residency training, Mother Jones published an interesting article, Bone Tired. Underpaid. Performing Surgery. What Could Go Wrong? about differences between American and European medical training.

Mediterranean Diet Associated with Lower Risk of Dementia

A new study revealed that eating a Mediterranean-type diet – rich in seafood, fruit, and nuts – may help significantly lower dementia risk later in life. Mediterranean Diet Associated With Decreased Risk of Dementia

Cowless Dairy

Are you ready for dairy made from yeast? It's already here: Milk, cheese, and ice cream without the cow have entered the marketplace.

Coulrophobia

Afraid of clowns? You're not alone. The Psychological Reason You're Afraid of Clowns attempts to explain the phenomenon.

"Open"- AI

The arms race for artificial intelligence continues. Companies are throwing all caution to the wind in the pursuit of massive profits. "_Big tech companies like Google, Microsoft, and Meta are racing to create new AI technologies as fast as possible, often sidestepping or shrugging off ethical concerns. _"OpenAI's GPT-4 Is Closed Source and Shrouded in Secrecy

Lunchables Served in School Cafeterias

I find this hard to believe, but Kraft has developed a version of its Lunchables product that meets Federal school lunch specifications. Kraft hopes the product will be adopted by underfunded schools that can't afford (or find) the staff to cook fresh meals. "Offering branded packaged food to children through the National School Lunch Program essentially allows food companies to market directly to children with the added credibility that comes with associating their product with schools..." Lunchables in school cafeterias have child nutrition experts concerned

How to Fix a Broken Sleep Cycle

Wired has some good advice to improve your sleep habits: How to Fix a Broken Sleep Schedule

Narcissism

Narcissism exists on a spectrum. We all have some of this trait, but about 8% of the population is pathological. A little bit of narcissism is normal and healthy – here's how to tell when it becomes pathological

Music-Evoked Autobiographical Memory

Music can involuntarily bring back memories of events, people, and places from our past. This article explains why: Why Does Music Bring Back Memories?

Faux Self-Care

"If you think of self-care as a goal, it becomes another task to check off the list. But when you consider it as values and decisions that inform all of your different roles and activities, it can deeply impact the quality of your life." Although written with women in mind, How Women Can Avoid 'Faux Self-Care' and Beat Burnout (gift article) has useful information for everyone.

027 - Wise-Selfishness, Horvath's Clock and GrimAge - HealthHippieMD Week In Review

Wise Selfishness

"....a truly enlightened self-interest also means recognizing that acting in great and altruistic ways makes you happier than solely being out for yourself." I enjoyed reading The Benefits of Being Selfish.

Nobody Has My Condition But Me

We often think that in modern medicine all maladies have been cataloged. That is far from the truth. Nobody Has My Condition But Me is about the trials and tribulations of a woman with a unique condition.

Recycling Plastic

More on recycling of plastic: Is plastic recycling a scam? Here's the truth about the common practice. We have a long way to go....

David Crosby's 15 Essential Songs

Another rock icon passed away last week. The NY Times published a list of David Crosby's best songs: David Crosby's 15 Essential Songs. (gift article)

10 Myths in Nutrition

An interesting article for both the myth-busting and the experts consulted: 10 Nutrition Myths Experts Wish Would Die (gift article)

The Microbiome and Thermoregulation

This summary article had a wealth of provocative information:

1. The presence or absence of certain bacteria was associated with the body's temperature response in sepsis (in both humans and mice).
2. Mice without a microbiome have a lower basal body temperature than conventional mice.
3. The administration of antibiotics lowers basal body temperature.

The authors of the study opine that changes in the microbiome may account for the reduction in basal body temperatures of humans over the last 150 years: Gut Microbes Control the Body's Thermostat

Mixed Feelings

Feeling conflicted can feel worse than feeling bad and can bring with them a great deal of distress. Mixed Feelings Can Be Worse Than Bad Ones offers advice on how to overcome the distress.

Amazon is Happy to be Your Pharmacy

Here's an article on Amazon's RxPass, the newest service from Amazon. With a Prime Membership, you can receive as many of the 80 generic medications the service offers for a flat fee of $5 (assuming you have insurance and are not on Medicare or Medicaid). Amazon Will Now Be Your Pharmacist, If You Subscribe to Prime

Food Compass

A relatively new system aims to demystify identifying healthy and unhealthy foods. Parsing which foods are healthy and which are less so isn't always straightforward – a new rating system aims to demystify the process explains.

Gene Snippets from Mother Shape a Baby's Microbiome

A recent study published in Cell demonstrated that it's not just pure bacterial transfer between mother and baby that's important in developing a newborn's microbiome. Small pieces of DNA called mobile genetic elements hop between maternal and newborn bacteria and ultimately influence the baby's microbial development: Mobile Genes From the Mother Shape the Baby's Microbiome.

Odors Change Purchasing Decisions

I did not realize there was a body of research on the sense of smell and consumerism. How body odors influence your buying behavior explains the latest research.

Yerba Mate

Although Yerba Mate is a staple of South American dietary traditions, traction in the U.S. has slowly evolved. The recurrent description of the taste, "like freshly cut green grass," will not help to stimulate demand. The Coffee Alternative Americans Just Can't Get Behind

The Universal Aging Clock and GrimAge

Aging research is all the rage. Here is an interesting article on Horvath's Clock, GrimAge, and the effects of umbilical and young blood plasma transfusion: The Universal Clock of Aging. I learned about the GrimAge metric. I'm continuing to keep a close eye on this body of research.

The Benefits of Yoga

Another article on the benefits of yoga: Yoga: Modern research shows a variety of benefits to both body and mind from the ancient practice. For the latest science: Yoga: What You Need To Know | NCCIH

Adding New Life to Friendships and Relationships

TED had an article with helpful information on how to revitalize interactions with the people most important to you: How to add new life to your relationships (even your best ones!) |

Neurocognitive Testing for Aging Physicians

An interesting interview tackling the subject of competency exams for physicians: Age Competency Exams for Physicians -- Yes or No? For the record, I think it's a good idea.

Physicians Open Notes

Being able to read what your physician writes about you in your chart is a good thing, right? Not so fast. Why Reading Your Doctor's Notes Can Be Painful covers some of the issues.