023 - Aspartame Anxiety, Psychedelic Spirituality, and Hopewashing - HealthHippieMD Week In Review
Nutritional Psychiatry
An emerging body of literature shows that what we eat impacts our mood. The Economist published an article on the emerging field of nutritional psychiatry: How food affects the mind, as well as the body.
Aspartame and Anxiety
A pre-clinical study (in rodents) demonstrated that the non-nutritive sweetener, Aspartame, at a fraction of the maximum allowable amount suggested by the FDA, may raise the risk of anxiety: Transgenerational transmission of aspartame-induced anxiety and changes in glutamate-GABA signaling and gene expression in the amygdala. The food industry has pitched non-nutritive sweeteners as being inert. But recent studies show a link between artificial sweeteners and diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and cancer. Can a Common Artificial Sweetener Fuel Anxiety?
Silicon Valley Focuses on Gut Health
Silicon Valley is always looking for the next investment opportunity. Silicon Valley is coming for your gut biome, discusses the burgeoning investment opportunities focused on gut health, supplements, and the microbiome.
+Another article about the future use of microbial therapeutics: Prescription poop could be the future of medicine
Sleep, Phases of Life, and Cognition
A study of 730,000 adults recently published in Nature Communications titled "Reported sleep duration reveals segmentation of the adult life-course into three phases" demonstrated a link between sleep duration and cognitive performance later in life. Sleep duration divides adult lifespan into 3 phases discusses the findings.
Psychedelics and Spirituality
A recent study, Belief changes associated with psychedelic use, found that using psychedelics increased belief in God and the afterlife and altered people's understanding of consciousness. Psychedelics alter beliefs about God, reality, superstition discusses the findings.
Thinking about the future
As each year ends, we spend more time contemplating the future. The Case Against Hopewashing and How to Live on the Precipice of Tomorrow are the first two of three featured articles in Wired Magazine.
Synthetic Brain Cells Taught to Play Pong
Earlier this year, an Australian neuroscientist taught lab-grown neurons to play the video game Pong. The article This neuroscientist taught brain cells to play Pong — and shifted how we view human intelligence forever discusses the implications.
You Can't Unsee This
Public restrooms are just as dirty as you imagine. I've seen many articles about "fecal patinas" caused by aerosolizing toilet water. Of course, scientists had to capture the process on film: Toilets spew invisible aerosol plumes with every flush – here's the proof, captured by high-powered lasers
Toxic Self-Talk Toolkit
We constantly talk to ourselves, and most self-talk is negative. Here is a toolkit to combat the negativity: How to stop toxic self-talk, explained in 6 minutes
Drugs to Fight Aging
Scientists are looking for ways to slow aging and age-related combat diseases like cancer and neurodegeneration. Wired had a short article on new pharmaceuticals based upon the biology of aging: A Drug to Treat Aging May Not Be a Pipe Dream.
The Most Important Thing About Exercise
Slate has a new column, Good Fit, focused on exercise. The first article of the series, Fitness Goals: In 2023, weight loss and even health aren't the most important things about exercise, describes society's movement toward "healthism," and the mixed messages we receive.
New Year's Seven-Day Relationship Challenge
One of the most potent predictors of happiness is the quality of one's relationships. To this end, How to Have a Happier New Year, (gift article) describes a seven-day program to bolster your relationships.
Step-By-Step Guide to Breaking Bad Habits and Starting New Ones
The beginning of the year is a time to reflect on our behavior. Do you have a habit you want to break but have struggled to do so? Wired has a step-by-step guide to aid in your success: How to (Finally) Break That Bad Habit | WIRED +On setting goals: You've Been Choosing Your Goals All Wrong | WIRED
Happy New Year!