Erin's Spin

It doesn’t take a research study to tell us that the typical American diet is crap. We eat foods full of saturated fats, which are difficult to break down, and way too much of most foods.   Over 25% of the American population is estimated to be obese, according to the Center for Disease Control(CDC).   Obesity can lead to severe health problems including diabetes, heart disease and stroke.But somehow our diet stays the same. However, changing our eating habits to resemble a more Mediterranean Diet can help prevent some of these health problems, according to a wave of studies over the last year.

I am a firm believer in the possibility and promise of embryonic stem cells. In a politically, religiously and even scientifically charged climate, this is a risky thing to announce. But as a journalist, I must divorce myself from my own personal opinions and biases and present the facts.  That being said, it is still satisfying writing upon a topic that you believe in. This was the case when I wrote an article about Geron Pharmaceuticals recently launched human clinical trials using embryonic stem cell research to repair spinal cord damage.

Physicians have known for years that there exists a link between cardiac surgery and a subsequent decline in cognitive function of patients.  According to recent research, “previous studies have reported an 11% to 75% incidence of postoperative cognitive decline among cardiac surgery patients” (Slater et. al). However, until recently, the cause for this link was largely unknown.  Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) surgery, continues to produce clinical results demonstrating cognitive decline in some patients despite improved surgery practices.

Oramed Pharmaceuticals, a drug development company aiming to make alternative delivery systems to injectable medication, has dedicated research to finding a solution to make oral insulin, thus making managing diabetes easier and painless. Parallel to developing an effective oral medication, they have come upon another delivery method, bypassing the harsh portion of the gastrointestinal system altogether. Oramed recently announced that they have concluded proof of concept on their other alternative to injectable insulin: insulin suppositories. Based on their research, the insulin suppositories showed rapid insulin absorption and actively lowered blood glucose levels. These results were well tolerated by participants and no adverse symptoms were seen.

In recent decades, viral epidemics have risen in ferocity and quantity in continents around the globe. More and more people in not only places like Africa and South America, but also in Asia and parts of Europe have been affected by the spread of emergent and prolific viral diseases.

The use of stem cell research in medical therapies has been hotly debated by the political, scientific, ethical and religious communities alike. Ethical considerations are weighed against the potential of life-saving therapies offered through the development of stem cell research. But the debate over stem cells is no longer between adamant pro-lifers and research scientists anymore, it has grown into multiple debates over the efficacy, ethical implications, and overall viability of the different types of stem cells available.

Mold is icky. However, it has yielded one of the most important advances in medicine: antibiotics. There was a time when penicillin was the cure-all antibiotic, capable of quelling almost any one-celled invader.However, today this is not the case. Today’s bacteria are getting faster, stronger and more resistant to even our most aggressive antibiotics. This has prompted scientists to look in other nooks and crannies of our world to find the next solution to our growing resistant population of angry bacteria.

As children, we grow up with the notion that vitamins provide the key to thriving bodies. Without the proper vitamins, we wouldn’t grow up to be “big and strong,” and would instead be weak and useless versions of ourselves. Carrying this need for vitamins into adulthood, we can now buy vitamins in bulk, and consume them in pill form whenever we need to.  It seems that every other week, we are told another miracle that is carried out by vitamins. Vitamin C will stave off colds; vitamin E will help prevent Alzheimer’s, and Vitamin D will treat cancer.

Stem cells are today’s panacea. They are greater than penicillin and vaccines combined, or so we hear. Research scientists have been touting the benefits and limitless medical possibilities of stem cells, and we have yet to see the real applications. After what seems like decades of waiting, embryonic stem cell research is finally ready for human testing. 

New information has shed light upon those mushrooms in your dinner, proving that they may add more to your health than just nutrition.  

Cocaine is one of the most abused illicit substances in the United States. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), there are 35.3 million people in the US age 12 or older that have used cocaine and there were 977,000 new users of cocaine in 2006.

Today the world faces countless obstacles and afflictions; AIDS, cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer’s are a few of the widespread conditions that significantly affect the global population. But what about less serious diseases?  In the US, most of us can live without fear of contracting malaria or dying from the flu, but we are still plagued by chronic illnesses that earn less attention from the scientific, medical and public community because their “threat level” is low. Asthma is one of these illnesses, without a cure but still a prevalent problem both in the US and worldwide.