Could computers run on Spinach?

"The latest study, however, is especially important because it is the largest study to date. It tracked the health of the men participating for up to 13 years. The duration of the study is significant because prostate cancer is usually a slow growing cancer, influenced by diet and lifestyle over decades as it develops. In this recent study, men with the highest levels of selenium in their blood were about half as likely to develop advanced prostate cancer as the men with the lowest blood selenium. Similarly, two past studies show that those with the lowest blood selenium have a moderately increased risk of prostate cancer."

Read the details here.

I particularly enjoyed this edition, from which I have excerpted the following:

ELDER ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Counteracting the prevailing cultural bias that creativity
is the provenance of the young, many periodicals now mention
the great accomplishments achieved by those 60 and over.
Here is a sample of some of the achievements of older people
we have recently discovered:
*Sophocles wrote Oedipus Rex at 70 and Electra at 90.
*Michaelangelo began work on St. Peter's Basilica in Rome at 70.
*"Grandma Moses" took up painting as a hobby at 76.
*Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of Little House on the
Prairie, published her first book at 65.
*Benjamin Franklin helped write the Declaration of
Independence at 70 and was named CEO of Pennsylvania at 79.
*Mother Teresa continued her missionary work until her death at 87.
*Arthur Rubinstein gave one of his greatest piano
performances at New York's Carnegie Hall at 89.
*Golda Meir was named prime minister of Israel at 71 and
held that office for 5 years.
*Mahatma Gandhi led India's opposition to British rule at 77.
*Frank Lloyd Wright completed New York's Guggenheim Museum at 89.

Read about the McDonald's counter attack here.

An affected person becomes weak and has joint pain. Internal hemorrhages cause black-and-blue marks to appear on the skin. At the first visible signs of scurvy, raised red spots appear on the skin around the hair follicles of the legs, buttocks, arms and back. When the tiny capillaries of the hair follicles hemorrhage, the hair-producing cells do not receive the nourishment needed for the hairs to grow normally. Consequently, the skin becomes flecked with small lesions that begin to appear on the body after about five months on a diet deficient in vitamin C. These lesions were the "spots" that James Lind observed on the skin of his sick men. Gums hemorrhage and their tissue becomes weak and spongy. Dentin, which lies below the enamel and is part of the root of teeth, breaks down. Teeth loosen and eating becomes difficult and painful.

(Thanks for this information to Robert J. Huskey)

After many years of seeing sailors die from this problem, a Captain Lind made the connection between fruits and vegetables and scurvy - we now know the connection is Vitamin C.  British ships thenceforth set to sea with a supply of limes, hence the old term for the British, "Limies".

As ever, extreme conditions have created a possible problem.  I have long advocated rational discipline in our dietary approach to carbohydrates, but taking it to extremes is unwise.  WebMD is now asking Is a low-carb diet leading to an increase in scurvy?  And the answer would appear to be YES.

Read the research here.

Definitely worth reading.

My mind boggles at the thought of capitulating to a demand from a teenage daughter to have her breasts enhanced.  Why?  Because first,  at that age she would have no idea of the meaning of permanence.  Second, this is major surgery with its attendant risks.  Fourth, what is it teaching her about being a person and a woman? And fifth  - what if a 21st century equivalent of the flapper era were to return, and large breasts were suddenly unfashionable again. Not to mention sixth, one day she will be old, and these breasts will be an albatross around her neck.  Forgive the imagery!

Read a report here.

Perhaps I would have changed my mind if some advertisements touched on subjects of interest, such as promoting a cause particularly dear to my heart - breastfeeding.   Oh, they were planned by the Government ...

BUT WE ARE NOT GOING TO SEE THEM!

Red wine is certainly a way to go, but grapes themselves, or a good grape juice, will also provide protection.  Or there are the two patented supplements, Resveratrol and Activin to choose from, if you wish to avoid the concomitant calories.

The full report here.

Read the report here: Live fast, die old

More good news about the power of vegetables to fight disease.  I don't think we really needed studies to prove that they do just that, but it is interesting now to find out HOW they do what they do! 

Details here.