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Outcomes of Covid-19 patients treated with hydroxychloroquine / azithromycin

Background: In our institute in Marseille, France, we initiated early and massive screening for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Hospitalization and early treatment with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin (HCQ-AZ) was proposed for the positive cases. [...] Although this is a retrospective analysis, results suggest that early diagnosis, early isolation and early treatment of COVID-19 patients, with at least 3 days of HCQ-AZ lead to a significantly better clinical outcome and a faster viral load reduction than other treatments.

Alabama man may have nearly died from COVID-19… the first week in January

On January 4, Tim McCain – a 38-year-old father of two from Sylacauga, Alabama – nearly lost his life in a medical drama that began in late December. “It’s a miracle he survived,” says McCain’s wife, Brandie McCain, 39. Her husband did survive, but if he had not Tim McCain might today be considered the first COVID-19 fatality in the world. At the moment, a 61-year-old man from Wuhan, China – who died January 9th, five days after Tim McCain’s near-death experience – is considered the world’s first known COVID-19 fatality. Patricia Dowd, a 57-year-old California woman who passed away February 6th, is considered America’s first known COVID-19 death. Mrs. Dowd’s death occurred 33 days after Tim McCain was admitted to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at Grandview Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama in critical condition [...] Until last month, the Alabama couple believed they might be the first confirmed, or likely, COVID-19 patients in the country. However, stories in The Seattle Times and The Palm Beach Post have identified at least 13 other people who had COVID-19 symptoms as early as November and December. Like the McCains, all 13 tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies. But none of these individuals came close to dying.

Initial COVID-19 infection rate may be 80 times greater than originally reported

Many epidemiologists believe that the initial COVID-19 infection rate was undercounted due to testing issues, asymptomatic and alternatively symptomatic individuals, and a failure to identify early cases. Now, a new study from Penn State estimates that the number of early COVID-19 cases in the U.S. may have been more than 80 times greater and doubled nearly twice as fast as originally believed. In a paper published today (June 22) in the journal Science Translational Medicine, researchers estimated the detection rate of symptomatic COVID-19 cases using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s influenza-like illnesses (ILI) surveillance data over a three week period in March 2020. “We analyzed each state’s ILI cases to estimate the number that could not be attributed to influenza and were in excess of seasonal baseline levels,” said Justin Silverman, assistant professor in Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology and Department of Medicine. “When you subtract these out, you’re left with what we're calling excess ILI – cases that can't be explained by either influenza or the typical seasonal variation of respiratory pathogens.”

Black Lives Matter is a state-backed religion

‘Protest’ often feels inadequate as a characterization for the public exhibitions that have erupted nationwide over the past several weeks. The term ‘protest’ carries a connotation of actions carried out in opposition to existing structures of power; hence, you ‘protest’ against forces that are arrayed against you (even if some municipal bureaucrat might have reluctantly granted you a permit). However, at least in many jurisdictions, events which were presented as ‘protests’ should more rightly be labeled as something along the lines of ‘state-backed demonstrations.’ For instance, in my otherwise sleepy hometown of Caldwell/West Caldwell, New Jersey, high-school students organized what turned out to be an astonishingly large protest march. Notably, the students accomplished this feat with the complete cooperation and participation of community authorities, against which the ‘the youth’ of a previous era presumably would have rebelled: parents, elected officials, school administrators, and even the police. It thus took on the appearance of an authorized civic gathering, almost like a Fourth of July celebration or a Christmas tree lighting. [...] Many so-called protests took on features highly reminiscent of religion: collective worship, public confession and requests for salvation, devotional poses and gestures, group prayer, the creation of a new pantheon of martyr figures to revere, and the adoption of liturgical rites and rituals. 

The Heart of Being Helpful: Empathy and the Creation of a Healing Presence

By Peter R. Breggin, MD

Dr. Breggin illustrates the importance of developing a therapeutic bond, or healing presence, between helping professionals and their clients. He provides useful vignettes, case studies, and personal insights to help beginning and experienced therapists develop more empathy in therapeutic relationships. 

3 health benefits of body scan meditation, and how to practice it

Body scan meditation is a component of the 8-week mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program, which is often used to treat chronic pain and other long-term illnesses. Jon Kabat-Zinn, the creator of MBSR, specifically recommends body scans as an important form of meditation for dealing with pain. And, even on its own, research has found that body scan meditation can help manage pain. For example, a randomized, controlled study published in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine found that a 10-minute body scan can help adults with chronic pain. The 55 participants were asked to report their pain before and after listening to a recording of either a body scan or a natural history reading. The group that listened to the body scan reported reduced pain after just one session. [...] A body scan can help release tension you don't even realize you are holding in your body, which often comes from stress or anxiety. Wing says if you can learn to recognize your body's physical signals and sensations, you'll improve your ability to deal with this anxiety.  A 2019 study of 47 healthy students found that those who listened to a recorded guided body scan had lower levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, after 8 weeks. In another study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 93 adults with generalized anxiety disorder participated in either MBSR or stress management education. The MBSR group had reduced symptoms of the anxiety disorder, based on a medically approved anxiety test. 

Recovered Covid-19 patients may be defenceless against new mutation

Recovered Covid-19 patients in China may still be vulnerable to a mutant form of the pathogen spreading overseas, a new study says. According to Professor Huang Ailong from Chongqing Medical University, there is an urgent need to determine what threat the mutation, known as D614G, poses to people who have recovered from a different form of the virus. D614G began spreading in Europe in early February and by May was the dominant strain around the world, presenting in 70 per cent of sequenced samples in Europe and North America. Antibodies found in patients who had been infected with earlier forms of the pathogen failed to neutralise the mutant strain, the scientists said in paper published on Biorxiv.org, a preprint website, which means it has not been peer-reviewed.

‘Recovered’ COVID-19 patients suffer major ongoing physical, cognitive problems

As coronavirus patients recover from the illness, doctors and patients are discovering that COVID-19 is leaving the “recovered” with long-term debilitating physical, cognitive and psychiatric damage, sometimes even in people who only suffered mild symptoms. Patients are suffering from phantom pains, memory loss, personality changes, psychological issues and extreme fatigue, along with lungs that won’t heal, even months after being discharged from hospital, according to an investigation by Israel’s Channel 12 TV. [...] The long term effects of COVID-19 are not just cognitive and mental, the TV report highlighted, but also include debilitating physical damage. [...] “We are used to seeing pneumonia patients recovering at a certain rate, from day to day they get better,” said Dr. Amir Onn, head of the Pulmonology Department at Sheba Medical Center. “Here we are seeing people at a status quo: They are stuck in a situation where they can’t do what they could previously.”

The CDC lost control of the coronavirus pandemic. Then the agency disappeared.

On January 17, the world’s most trusted public health agency, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, announced it was screening travelers from Wuhan, China, because of a new infectious respiratory illness striking that city. It was the CDC’s first public briefing on the outbreak, coming as China reported 45 cases of the illness and two deaths linked to a seafood and meat market in Wuhan. Chinese health officials had not yet confirmed that the new illness was transmitted from person to person. But there was reason to believe that it might be: four days earlier, officials in Thailand confirmed their first case, a traveler from Wuhan who had not visited the seafood market. “Based on the information that CDC has today, we believe the current risk from this virus to the general public is low,” said Nancy Messonnier, the CDC’s director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Messonnier, 54, was a veteran of the CDC’s renowned Epidemiological Intelligence Service, where she had risen through the ranks during the national responses to the anthrax attacks and the previous decade’s swine flu pandemic to eventually head the agency’s vaccines center.

Talking Back To Ritalin, What Doctors Aren’t Telling You About Stimulants and ADHD,  by Peter R Breggin, MD

This book of Dr. Breggin's details the side effects and potential problems with Ritalin and other stimulants. It also thoroughly and critically examines the condition and diagnosis of ADHD and ADD, explores the economics and who profits from the diagnosis and the prescribing of stimulants for children, and offers six chapters for parents and other adults on how to help children in their care without resorting to Ritalin or other psychiatric drugs.

Today the US added 36K more cases, up 40% from last Tuesday (26K). It is likely that we will see 40K/day by this weekend. We are now in an exponential surge, with daily cases doubling every 2-3 weeks. Deaths will eventually reverse course and increase. Please take care! pic.twitter.com/8BqNo0PNLZ

— Qijun Hong (@hongqijun) June 24, 2020

Professor Hong's modeling precisely predicted the upsurge of U.S. cases, see his twitter feed.

Indian Railways coaches are now used for treating coronavirus patients

Amid rising cases of coronavirus in the country, the state governments have started using the railway coaches converted into isolation units for coronavirus patients. At least 59 patients were admitted into Indian Railway's COVID-care coaches in last one week. On June 20, 42 suspected patients were admitted in COVID coaches deployed at Mau Junction in Varanasi division, the Indian Railways said in a statement. As many as 17 people came to railway's isolation units for treatment on June 21. Eight of them were discharged later, the railway ministry said. Till now, the national transporter has deployed 960 COVID-care coaches in five states — Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh. Over 500 railway coaches have been allotted in Delhi, 372 in Uttar Pradesh, 20 in Andhra Pradesh, 60 in Telangana and five in Madhya Pradesh. Following the health ministry guidelines, the state governments have urged the railways to allocate isolation coaches for COVID-19 treatment.

Saudi Arabia restricts annual Hajj to 'small, limited' number due to Covid-19

Saudi Arabia says the annual hajj pilgrimage, which usually draws more than 2 million Muslims from around the world, will be limited this year to a few thousand from within the kingdom due to COVID-19. “The number, God willing, may be in the thousands,” the hajj minister Muhammad Benten said Tuesday. “We are in the process of reviewing so it could be 1,000 or less, or a little more”. All Muslims from outside Saudi Arabia are barred from attending the pilgrimage and Benten said that a strict health criteria will be used to select eligible pilgrims from among citizens and residents to take part in this year’s hajj. No one over the age of 65 will be allowed to attend the holy pilgrimage.  [...] The restrictions by the Saudi government are a first of its kind in modern times. Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and is considered a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim. Countries with significant Muslim populations around the world have largely been accepting of this decision. Egypt's top Muslim cleric, Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, praised the decision as wise, and said it showcased Riyadh's awareness of the dangers posed by the virus.  

Church violates Covid-19 restrictions triggering local epidemic 

A church in a small eastern Oregon county linked to the state’s largest coronavirus outbreak held worship services in the weeks before hundreds fell ill. At least 236 coronavirus cases are tied to Lighthouse Pentecostal Church, near La Grande in Union County. The number of cases in Union County increased tenfold, from 22 to 240, in three days after the outbreak came to light. The outbreak led Union County to voluntarily return to Phase 1 of Gov. Kate Brown’s phased reopening plan — the county had been at Phase 2 when the outbreak happened. There are now 258 coronavirus cases in the county of 27,000 people. [...] The church, which operates in Island City near La Grande, has held several gatherings since May that appear to have violated Brown’s restrictions to limit the spread of coronavirus.

Guilt, Shame and Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming Negative Emotions

Dr. Breggin’s new book will show you how to identify, to reject and to triumph over your self-defeating, painful emotions and to transcend them with more positive feelings and better approaches to life. Imagine your life when you leave guilt, shame, anxiety, chronic anger or emotional numbness behind and exercise your emotional freedom! 

Acne increases risk of anxiety and depression, finds study

People with acne are at increased risk for anxiety and depression, finds a recent study in the journal Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. Due to this clinicians are advised to pursue aggressive acne management and consider psychiatric screening or referrals. Acne is an inflammatory skin condition caused by the plugging of hair follicles with dead skin cells and oil. It is most common in teenagers and young adults and is often associated with psychosocial problems. It often causes whiteheads, blackheads, or pimples. It usually appears on the face, forehead, chest, upper back, and shoulders. Several previous studies have demonstrated an association between acne vulgaris with depression and anxiety, but there is no quantitative review evaluating the same.

Land of the worried: 83% of Americans very stressed over nation’s future

The year 2020 feels like a crossroads for the United States. With a pivotal election just around the corner, protests in the streets, and a deadly virus that refuses to disappear, our nation hasn’t felt this vulnerable and divided in ages. You don’t have to be genius or a scientist to guess that Americans are probably feeling on edge these days. The results of a new piece of research from the American Psychological Association reveals the shocking extent of that stress. Across two polls, more than 5,000 adult U.S. residents were recently surveyed on the state of America right now. A staggering 83% say that worrying about the future of the United States is a big source of personal stress. Also, 72% believe this is the lowest point in the country’s history that they’ve ever been alive to see.

Black-owned clothing store in Milwaukee had just re-opened from the virus when the rioting broke out. “They took everything.... You think you’re getting justice, but you’re just tearing up your own community,” black lady who operates a nearby business told me pic.twitter.com/xHp2IBxktn

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 23, 2020

Tony in Milwaukee describes escaping the riots https://t.co/bLmCOqSv7x

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 23, 2020

Guilt, Shame and Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming Negative Emotions

Dr. Breggin’s new book will show you how to identify, to reject and to triumph over your self-defeating, painful emotions and to transcend them with more positive feelings and better approaches to life. Imagine your life when you leave guilt, shame, anxiety, chronic anger or emotional numbness behind and exercise your emotional freedom! 

Global variation in the prevalence of suicidal ideation

Suicidal ideation and anxiety are common among adolescents although their prevalence has predominantly been studied in high income countries. This study estimated the population prevalence of suicidal ideation and anxiety and their correlates with peer support, parent-adolescent relationship, peer victimization, conflict, isolation and loneliness across a range of low-income, lower-middle-income, upper-middle-income countries and high-income countries (LMIC HICs). [...] Interpretations Suicidal ideation and anxiety are prevalent among adolescents although there is significant global variation. Parental and peer supports are protective factors against suicidal ideation and anxiety. Peer based interventions to enhance social connectedness and parent skills training to improve parent-child relationships may reduce suicidal ideation and anxiety. Research to inform the factors that influence country and regional level differences in adolescent mental health problems may inform preventative strategies.

California schools turn to mindfulness to help students cope with stress

As students face cascading uncertainties about school, the pandemic, racial unrest and their futures, some school districts are turning to a simple practice to help young people deal with stress: mindfulness. The exercise of quiet breathing and focusing on the present moment, mindfulness is a way to become aware of one’s emotional state and usher in a sense of calm. It can be particularly helpful for young people as a means to boost attention skills and cope with stress, according to a 2019 report published by researchers at Harvard’s Center for Education Policy Research. Districts across the state in recent years have begun experimenting with the practice. In Los Angeles Unified, almost 1,000 teachers have undergone training — and hundreds more are on the waiting list — to learn mindfulness, yoga, tai chi and other techniques to improve students’ mental health.

The picture above shows speech droplets, which are believed to be the key transmission vector for COVID-19, with vs without a paper towel face cover. As you see, nearly all droplets are blocked.

Here's a video with a cloth covering, from this NEJM paper: https://t.co/QoGBBZpQEa pic.twitter.com/HGqz3U7NQU

— Jeremy #Masks4All Howard (@jeremyphoward) June 19, 2020

See this thread @ https://twitter.com/jeremyphoward/status/1274036544387477504

Community use of face masks and Covid-19: Evidence from U.S. State mandates

The study provides direct evidence on the effectiveness of widespread community use of face masks from a natural experiment that evaluates effects of state government mandates in the US for face mask use in public on COVID-19 spread. Fifteen states plus DC in the US have mandated this use between April 8 and May 5. Using an event study that examines daily changes in county-level COVID-19 growth rates, the study finds that mandating public use of face masks is associated with a reduction in the COVID-19 daily growth rate. Specifically, we find that the average daily county-level growth rate decreases by 0.9, 1.1, 1.4, 1.7, and 2.0 percentage-points in 1–5, 6–10, 11–15, 16–20, and 21+ days after signing, respectively. [...] By May 22, the estimates suggest that as many as 230,000–450,000 COVID-19 cases may have been averted based on when states passed these mandates. 

Darryl in Chicago gives his thoughts on the situation in the city -- would recommend watching this one https://t.co/EzXllMgrco

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 21, 2020

Exploring your own town can be good for your mental health

Any frequent traveler can tell you that exploring a new place can bring about an immense sense of joy. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, our travel perimeters have gotten much, much smaller. But, as this study proves, it’s still important to get out and explore the world around, even if that means rediscovering what’s so special about your own hometown. In a new study published in Nature Neuroscience, researchers found that experiencing new things on a daily basis led to more positive emotions every day. [...] "New and varied experiences are broadly beneficial for the brain and for humans in general," Aaron Heller, a co-author of the study and psychologist at the University of Miami, told Inverse. "Even if you may not tend towards exploring, there are probably benefits to doing so, regardless of your past experiences."

Talking Back To Ritalin, What Doctors Aren’t Telling You About Stimulants and ADHD,  by Peter R Breggin, MD

This book of Dr. Breggin's details the side effects and potential problems with Ritalin and other stimulants. It also thoroughly and critically examines the condition and diagnosis of ADHD and ADD, explores the economics and who profits from the diagnosis and the prescribing of stimulants for children, and offers six chapters for parents and other adults on how to help children in their care without resorting to Ritalin or other psychiatric drugs.

We abandoned national testing.
We abandoned contact tracing.
We have made not wearing a mask a symbol of freedom.
World renowned epidemiologists are receiving violent threats. https://t.co/FkoNxmknRe

— Andy Slavitt @ ? (@ASlavitt) June 19, 2020

Mexico City faces COVID-19 by trying to move father’s day

Coronavirus cases in Mexico City are still on the rise, and most businesses are closed or limited to home delivery. And the city’s government and businesses have an unusual strategy to lower the risks this weekend, which has to do with parental festivities. Mexico City’s Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum agreed with the local chamber of restaurants to postpone this year’s Father’s Day celebration to the third Sunday of August. The festivity is traditionally held on the third Sunday of June. Sheinbaum said she trusts the city’s inhabitants' exemplary behavior, just like they showed during Mother’s Day. But back then, the mayor proposed to move the mother's celebration from May to July, and yet thousands of people went out and held parties. Many bakeries, markets and flower shops had to shut down or be supervised by the police, as they became high-risk areas for spreading the coronavirus.  

Daily new known Covid-19 deaths in Brazil and Mexico... so much for a summer reprieve

The oldest African-American owned and operated nursing home in the state has had no infections from coronavirus among its residents and employees, @DanRodricks writes, because its director took immediate action. https://t.co/8SeMehrgNm

— The Baltimore Sun (@baltimoresun) June 19, 2020

Liberal elites shred their credibility, mass gatherings only allowed for them

Given the robust state-backing of these mass gatherings, expect their role in spreading the virus to be obscured. In NYC contract tracers have already been forbidden to ask whether people attended protests. There's a political incentive to hide (or just not collect) relevant data

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 19, 2020

Talking Back To Ritalin, What Doctors Aren’t Telling You About Stimulants and ADHD,  by Peter R Breggin, MD

This book of Dr. Breggin's details the side effects and potential problems with Ritalin and other stimulants. It also thoroughly and critically examines the condition and diagnosis of ADHD and ADD, explores the economics and who profits from the diagnosis and the prescribing of stimulants for children, and offers six chapters for parents and other adults on how to help children in their care without resorting to Ritalin or other psychiatric drugs.

Poor sleep quality may increase depression risk in teenagers: study

Feeling depressed at a young age? Read this carefully. Researchers have found that teenagers who experience very poor sleep are more likely to experience poor mental health in later life. For the findings, published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, the research team analysed self-reported sleep quality and quantity from teenagers and found that there was a significant relationship between poor sleep and mental health issues. The study found that among the 4,790 participants, those who experienced depression reported both poor quality and quantity of sleep, while those with anxiety had poor quality of sleep only, compared to those teenagers who took part who didn't report anxiety or depression. "This latest research is another piece of evidence to show that there is a significant link between sleep and mental health for teenagers," said study researcher Faith Orchard from the University of Reading in the UK. This study highlights that those young people who have experienced depression and anxiety had overwhelmingly experienced poor sleep during their teens.

Study: Without adequate rest, caregivers struggle to aid family members with dementia

Family caregivers often experience fatigue and sleep problems, which can negatively influence the effectiveness of the care they provide to people with dementia, according to a University at Buffalo study. “Family caregiver fatigue is significantly influenced by sleep quality,” says study lead author Yu-Ping Chang, Patricia H. and Richard E. Garman Endowed Professor and associate dean for research and scholarship in the School of Nursing. “Nurses should routinely assess caregivers’ level of fatigue and provide advice on monitoring fatigue and sleep quality on a regular basis.” [...] “Often caregivers are so immersed in providing care that they are unable to see that their own well-being is declining, leading to both a decline in health on the part of the caregiver and a decline in the quality of care they are able to provide, which also negatively impacts the recipient.”

Indian capital's crematoriums overwhelmed with virus dead

When Raj Singh’s 70-year-old mother died from the coronavirus in India's capital, he took comfort in the prospect of a proper cremation, the funeral rite that Hindus believe releases the soul from the cycle of rebirth. But instead of chanting sacred Vedic hymns and sprinkling holy water from the Ganges River, all Singh could do was place his mother's wrapped corpse on a wooden pyre and along with a handful of relatives watch it burn. “I never thought I would watch my mother go like this,” he said. Like elsewhere in the world, the novel coronavirus has made honoring the dead in New Delhi a hurried affair, largely devoid of the rituals that give it meaning for mourners. Cemeteries and crematoriums are overwhelmed, so there isn’t much time for ceremony, and even if there were, the government limits the number of people allowed at funerals and those in attendance must maintain distance and wear masks. “The whole grieving process has been interrupted,” said Pappu, who goes by only one name and lights the funeral pyres at Nigambodh Ghat, New Delhi’s biggest crematorium.

COVID-19 has overwhelmed India’s ability to dispose of its dead

The corpses of coronavirus victims are piling up in Delhi, as India's health infrastructure struggles to manage the hundreds of people who are currently dying from COVID-19 every day. Last week, the Indian Supreme Court described the city’s handling of bodies during the outbreak as “horrific.” Several media reports had highlighted the issue’s urgency before the court intervened. Justices Ashok Bhushan, S K Kaul and M R Shah used the court order to condemn the “very sorry state of affairs in Delhi and inside its hospitals.” [...] “Look at the treatment meted out to patients,” reads the order. “The patients are crying and no one is looking after them. Relatives are not even informed, as reported by the media, after the death of patients.” Much of this information has come from the city’s burial services. Three municipal corporations in Delhi attribute a total of 2,098 funerals to COVID-19, while the state’s official death toll stands at only 1,085. 

Coronavirus takes ‘shocking’ toll on health: patient survey

People who have been infected with coronavisrus but were not admitted to hospital are struggling with severe effects on their health months after first falling ill, a survey by the respiratory disease organisation Longfonds has shown. Some 95% of the 1,600 respondents, of whom 91% were not admitted to hospital and 43% were never officially diagnosed, said they have trouble with normal day to day activities three months after being infected. Persisting symptoms include tiredness, shortness of breath, headaches, muscle pain and heart palpitations. The average age of the respondents is 53. Most of the respondents, some 85%, said they had no health problems before the infection. That number dropped to 6%, with almost half of the respondents unable to resume physical activities like sport. Longfonds spokesman Michael Rutgers said the results are shocking. ‘This is a large group of corona patients who are sitting at home and who really need help. They are in a terrible state. (..) Six in 10 people even have trouble walking. These are normal, healthy people who are now wondering if they will ever be well again.’

The War Against Children of Color, Psychiatry Targets Inner City Youth

By Dr. Peter Breggin

In 1992, Dr. Peter Breggin and Ginger Ross Breggin inspired a national campaign against the proposed federal “Violence Initiative,” that aimed at identifying inner-city children with alleged defects that would make them violent when they reached adulthood. Many of the research plans, which are still in operation, involve searching for a “violence gene,” finding “biochemical imbalances,” and intervening in the lives of schoolchildren with psychiatric drugs.

The Dr. Peter Breggin Hour - June 17, 2020

New study says Americans are unhappiest they've been in 50 years

 As the pandemic continues to take both a financial and mental toll on people, a new study says Americans are the unhappiest they’ve been in 50 years. However, mental health experts say knowing what you’re feeling and understanding those struggles can help you get back to finding happiness. The COVID Response Tracking Study by NORC at the University of Chicago found that just 14% of adults say they’re happy, down from 31% in 2018 and the lowest number since the study began in 1972. Now, 50% say they often or sometimes feel isolated, compared to 23% in 2018. Dr. John Delony is a Mental Health Expert and Ramsey Personality and says there are three pillars of poor mental health: One is Uncertainty. “When you don’t know what tomorrow is going to look like, when you don’t know if you feel safe, you don’t know where threats are coming from. Yeah, that’s the bedrock of mental illness and wellness challenges,” Dr. Delony explains.

493 cases of coronavirus in Israel's schools and preschools

Approximately 12% of new cases (21 of 177) around Israel are in the educational system. Most of the new cases (41%) are in Jerusalem, mostly in the Hebrew Gymnasium, in Tel Aviv (15.4%) in schools in Jaffa, and in Bnei Brak (4%). In other areas of Israel, the number of cases is small and not concentrated in any one area. A total of 493 cases have been diagnosed in the educational system, out of a total of approximately 2,300,000 students and 200,000 teaching staff. Currently, 177 educational institutions have been closed, out of a total of 5,200 schools and 20,000 preschools. Over the course of the week, 15 schools and preschools reopened after being closed due to coronavirus infections. In the coming week, another 46 institutions - 26 schools and 20 preschools - are expected to reopen. A total of 25,821 teaching staff and students are currently in preventive quarantine, as part of the educational system's preventive efforts to stop the spread of the virus.

Israel now has 177 schools closed due to SARS-CoV-2 #coronavirus, up from 144 closed schools a few days ago. https://t.co/yAkmT8a6mG

— Seth Bordenstein (@Symbionticism) June 16, 2020

Household pesticide exposure associated with increased risk of depression

Residential exposure to household pesticide products increases the risk of developing symptoms associated with depression, according to a study published in Environmental Research by researchers at Medical College of Georgia—Augusta University, School of Medicine—Jinan University, and Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), China. Research on pesticide-induced diseases commonly investigates pesticide exposure concerning the development of various physical illnesses, and previous studies show there are occupational risks of developing depression, especially in agriculture where pesticide use is rampant. However, there is a lack of information connecting pesticide exposure to the subsequent psychological (psychiatric) effects on the general population. Additionally, household pesticide exposure varies from occupational exposure via exposure frequency, duration, intensity, and type. This research highlights the significance of researching potential mental health effects resulting from pesticide exposure, especially as society tends to rank mental health risks second to physical health. The study’s scientists note, “Our results highlight the importance of the cautious use of household pesticides because the chronic effects of poisoning may contribute to an elevated risk of depression.” 

The Heart of Being Helpful: Empathy and the Creation of a Healing Presence

By Peter R. Breggin, MD

Dr. Breggin illustrates the importance of developing a therapeutic bond, or healing presence, between helping professionals and their clients. He provides useful vignettes, case studies, and personal insights to help beginning and experienced therapists develop more empathy in therapeutic relationships. 

9 activity types that can relieve depression

WHEN YOU'RE FEELING depressed, making an effort to be active is easier said than done. Even so, activity can go a long way toward easing negative moods or living well with a depression diagnosis. Sometimes, the challenge is finding pastimes that appeal to you. Different activities satisfy different aspects of emotional wellness. Many overlap to fill multiple needs. Qualities of helpful activities typically fall into one or more of these categories: (1) Physical, (2) Mindful, (3) Restful, (4) Structured/task-oriented, (5) Social, (6) Spiritual, (7) Nature-related, (8) Creative or artistic, and (9) Therapeutic. "We do not ever have to be passive or lose our sense of agency," says Anita Gadhia-Smith, a psychotherapist [...] "There's always something we can do for our lives that is constructive and that will bear fruit." Read More...

Multiple Scientists: Coronavirus Altered in Lab to Attack Humans

A cheap steroid is shown to reduce death in COVID-19 patients

After months of dire news about the spread of the novel coronavirus and a mounting global death toll, a glimmer of hope arrived today: Researchers announced that dexamethasone, a cheap, widely available corticosteroid, significantly reduced deaths of severely sick COVID-19 patients in a major clinical trial. Although full trial data have not yet been released, several outside commentators hailed the result as a “breakthrough.” “These are really surprising, but really very convincing results,” says Martin Landray of the University of Oxford, one of the principal investigators of the Recovery trial in the United Kingdom that evaluated the steroid. If they hold up, adds Devi Sridhar, an expert on global public health at the University of Edinburgh, they could be a game-changer for critical patients, as the drugs are accessible even in lower-income countries.  [...] But she and others expressed disappointment that the Recovery team did not release additional information. “More detailed data would help us identify which subset of COVID-19 patients would benefit from steroids,” Bhadelia says.

Research reveals people’s mental health is negatively impacted by COVID-19

New research out of Australia published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research indicates that individuals living during the coronavirus pandemic had significantly worse mental health outcomes than their peers measured before the pandemic. The study used an online mental health-measurement platform to compare the mental health of people before and during the pandemic. Researchers also looked at the feasibility of using a tool like this for future studies. "Although further research is needed, our findings support the serious mental health implications of the pandemic and highlight the utility of internet-based data collection tools in providing evidence to innovate and strengthen practice and policy during and after the pandemic,” researchers wrote in the report.

Is temperament predictive of COVID-19 stress?

A recent study of psychological stress at the end of the first month of strict COVID-19 containment measures in Italy analyzes temperament and attachment style as potential mediators and predictors of the developing COVID-19 mental health burden. The study, “Affective temperament, attachment style, and the psychological impact of the COVID-19 outbreak: An early report on the Italian general population” by Lorenzo Moccia, et al. and published in Brain, Behavior, and Immunity is the first sizeable sample (500) of the early psychological impact of COVID-19 on the Italian population. In addition to assessing the scope of the mental health burden, the study investigated respondents’ temperament and attachment characteristics relative to their psychological response in an effort to identify potential intervention strategies. Adverse psychological impact in response to the COVID-19 pandemic is expected. Psychological distress due to viral pandemic was first documented by Menniger in 1919 related to the Spanish flu epidemic. Studies released out of China, where the current pandemic originated, quantify evidence and patterns of psychological distress. In fact, findings in the Italian study indicate “that 38% of the general population is currently perceiving a form of psychological distress,” (Moccia et al., 2020) are similar to findings of online surveys of the Chinese population (Li et al., 2020).

Guilt, Shame and Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming Negative Emotions

Dr. Breggin’s new book will show you how to identify, to reject and to triumph over your self-defeating, painful emotions and to transcend them with more positive feelings and better approaches to life. Imagine your life when you leave guilt, shame, anxiety, chronic anger or emotional numbness behind and exercise your emotional freedom! 

Mindfulness with hypnotherapy calms the highly stressed, study finds

A new treatment for stress which combines mindfulness with hypnotherapy has shown positive results in a Baylor University pilot study. The intervention is called mindful hypnotherapy. "Mindfulness is a type of meditation that involves focusing attention on present moment awareness. It can help people cope with stress, but can require months of practice and training," said researcher Gary Elkins, Ph.D., director of the Mind-Body Medicine Research Laboratory at Baylor University. "Hypnosis also involves focusing attention, but it includes mental imagery, relaxation and suggestions for symptom reduction." Hypnosis interventions are typically brief and have been used in pain and symptom management in clinical practice. The study's basic premise is that using hypnosis to deliver mindfulness goals could have many advantages, Elkins said. "Combining mindfulness and hypnotherapy in a single session is a novel intervention that may be equal to or better than existing treatments, with the advantage of being more time-effective, less daunting and easier to use," he said. "This could be a valuable option for treating anxiety and stress reduction."

Fish oil for depression? Stem cell study shows supplement may be effective treatment

Stem cell technology provides scientists with a research tool of seemingly limitless capacity. A new study by scientists from the University of Illinois at Chicago shows just that. Using “depressed” human stem cells, researchers find that fish oil can add “antidepressant” to its list of potential health benefits. The study shows that fish oil produces an antidepressant effect in stem cells taken from adults who have been clinically diagnosed as depressed. Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder, but currently available treatments are ineffective in about one third of patients. Researchers hope their stem cell model will give researchers a new avenue to study how depression affects the brain and possibly discover more effective ways to treat depression.

After endorsing mass protests, Gov Cuomo threatens New Yorkers congregating

How the media has covered the BLM protests versus any other public activity is quite a study in contrasts. While they have by and large not chastised any protesters for marching in huge groups, some without masks, they have said that cause is so important that it trumps the concerns.  By contrast the lockdown, other constitutional rights, your jobs and feeding your families were not important, deemed essential or something the state was going to ‘allow’ you to do. Here’s Gov. Andrew Cuomo demonstrating that very dynamic. He didn’t do anything to stop rioters and looters. But now here he is on Saturday, threatening people for congregating on the street on Friday in NYC, in the Village, mostly without masks in video from the East Village Grieve blog.

Look at these tweets. Even if health officials lied to the public about masks not working with good motives -- to avoid hoarding so health-care workers had them -- it's still scandalous. Knowing masks helped would've saved lives: industry could've been commandeered to make more: https://t.co/XxT9TH5ZxC

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) June 15, 2020

Yuri Deigin & Bret Weinstein discuss SARS-CoV-2 lab-leak hypothesis

pic.twitter.com/YojRUDQUoY

— Swordfishtrombone (@TheyCallMeRyols) June 15, 2020

Hypocrisy at its worst!

Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal, A Guide for Prescribers, Therapists, Patients and their Families

Nothing in the field of mental health will do more good and reduce more harm than encouraging withdrawal from psychiatric drugs. The time is past when the focus in mental health was on what drugs to take for what disorders. Now we need to focus on how to stop taking psychiatric drugs and to replace them with more person-centered, empathic approaches. The goal is no longer drug maintenance and stagnation; the goal is recovery and achieving well-being.

Did the coronavirus come from a Chinese laboratory? Very possibly.

Documentary evidence indicates that the novel-bat-virus projects at Wuhan CDC and the Wuhan Institute of Virology used personal protective equipment and biosafety standards that would pose high risk of accidental infection of a lab worker upon contact with a virus having the transmission properties of the outbreak virus. In assessing the possibility of a lab accident, one must take into consideration each of the following eight elements of circumstantial evidence: Documentary evidence indicates that the novel-bat-virus projects at Wuhan CDC and the Wuhan Institute of Virology used personal protective equipment and biosafety standards that would pose high risk of accidental infection of a lab worker upon contact with a virus having the transmission properties of the outbreak virus. [...]

What does this all mean at the present time? We have in China:

• a record of laboratory escape of the SARS virus in 2004 from a premier Chinese research institute.
• a record of poor biosafety in some of its high-containment facilities, including in the Wuhan institutes.
• a record of suppression of information in general, and in the case of SARS-CoV-2 in particular.
• the initiation of a disinformation campaign in regard to the origin of SARS-CoV-2, targeting US biological laboratories.
• a record of gain of function research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, including passage of a bat coronavirus construct through experimental animals.

Writing in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists before the WHO governing board was convened, Filippa Lentzos advocated for a forensic investigation and described what it would entail:

Local physician has 100% survival rate with early hydroxychloroquine

Spain: "we implemented a ... treatment outside the hospital with hydroxychloroquine plus azithromycin ... associated with a reduction in the burden of hospital ... successful in terms of the number of patients who have developed serious complications." https://t.co/YXRBuVuzJu

— AssocAmerPhys&Surg (@AAPSonline) June 12, 2020

Therapeutic regimen based on hydroxychloroquine plus azithromycin for the treatment of COVID-19

The new SARS-CoV-2 infection named COVID-19 has severely hit our Health System. At the time of writing this paper no medical therapy is officially recommended or has shown results in improving the outcomes in COVID-19 patients. With the aim of diminishing the impact in Hospital admissions and reducing the number of medical complications, we implemented a strategy based on a Hospital Home-Care Unit (HHCU) using an easy-to-use treatment based on an oral administration regimen outside the hospital with hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) plus azithromycin (AZM) for a short period of 5 days. [...] Conclusions: Our strategy has been associated with a reduction in the burden of hospital pressure, and it seems to be successful in terms of the number of patients who have developed serious complications and / or death. None of the patients died in the studied period and only 6 have to be admitted in conventional hospitalization area.

COVID-19 pandemic continues to take a toll on mental health in Colorado

The pandemic is certainly taking a mental toll on us all and in return, causing a strain on mental health professionals. According to the Census Bureau, the need for mental health care is extraordinary right now, with a third of Americans now showing signs of major depression or anxiety. In Colorado, the same study says 32% of adults are showing symptoms of depression and anxiety. The number factor reported by participants was the change in our education system as we now carry the responsibility of being a teacher at home while also adapting to working from home, if possible. More on the reported causes can be found at the bottom of this article. Mental health care workers say many of their clients are struggling to navigate life in this pandemic. They also say many of their patients are waiting until things settle back to normal before scheduling an appointment, which can cause financial problems for counselors trying to keep their practices afloat. [...] "People who have never really had anxiety or depression before, are now having those symptoms and seeking help and speaking out about it," said Billie Ratliff, Director of Behavior Health at UCHealth's Southern Region. "The systems are trying to adapt as fast as possible to try to meet those needs."

"Contract tracers" in NYC have been "instructed" not to ask people if they've attended recent protests. Which will of course limit our understanding of how much these mass gatherings contributed to virus spread. Probably by design: they don't WANT to knowhttps://t.co/LfbAp9LfMs

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 15, 2020

This is from San Francisco. So disingenuous and harmful, especially coming from nurses who are relied upon to provide accurate, factual, scientific information about the actual BIOLOGICAL virus that the entire country had upended their lives in order to curtail pic.twitter.com/tNc9EH210L

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 15, 2020

Talking Back To Ritalin, What Doctors Aren’t Telling You About Stimulants and ADHD,  by Peter R Breggin, MD

This book of Dr. Breggin's details the side effects and potential problems with Ritalin and other stimulants. It also thoroughly and critically examines the condition and diagnosis of ADHD and ADD, explores the economics and who profits from the diagnosis and the prescribing of stimulants for children, and offers six chapters for parents and other adults on how to help children in their care without resorting to Ritalin or other psychiatric drugs.

The Dr. Peter Breggin Hour - June 10, 2020

Learn about the dangers of benzodiazepines. The annual World Benzodiazepine Awareness Day or W-BAD is coming up again on July 11. My guest is Wayne Douglas, co-founder of the event, whose life was overwhelmed by these drugs, which include Valium, Xanax, Ativan, Klonopin and Serax. Even when taken as prescribed, the benzodiazepines can ruin individual lives and the lives of their family. They can lead to abuse and dependence, cause withdrawal reactions, and leave individuals with lifelong emotional and cognitive problems. We also discuss the broader implications for every class of psychiatric drug, all of which can lead to cognitive decline and loss of quality of life, with many causing or contributing to suicide or violence. Wayne has been a remarkably effective advocate for awareness of harms caused by these drugs, even addressing the Japanese Parliament, the country in which he received the medications. The show also includes an amazing description of Wayne experiencing the Fukushima earthquake and the subsequent damage to the nuclear power plant. Wayne Douglas may inspire you to find a group in your city to join in spreading life-saving information about these drugs. If you have been harmed by the “BZs” you will find companionship and inspiration through joining the reform movement. You can connect @ https://w-bad.org

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Just a reminder- wearing a face covering is a small inconvenience that provides big benefits, and gives us our best chance for an effective and lasting reopening of America. If everyone does their part to slow the spread, then everyone wins!https://t.co/p9quSwl3rE

— U.S. Surgeon General (@Surgeon_General) June 13, 2020

 

 

 

 

 

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Be mindful of social distancing this #MemorialDay weekend. If you choose to visit a park, beach, or recreational facility that is open for public use, practice social distancing to slow the spread of #COVID19. Stay at least six feet from others and wear cloth face coverings. If visiting public spaces, avoid crowded areas. www.cdc.gov/coronavirus #MemorialDay2020 #CDC #PublicHealth

A post shared by Centers for Disease Control (@cdcgov) on May 24, 2020 at 12:57pm PDT

COVID-19 Cases Rebound Across the South and West

June 12, 2020 -- Almost a month after many states began to roll back lockdowns and nearly 3 weeks after Memorial Day celebrations drew more Americans out of their homes to celebrate with friends and family, COVID-19 cases are rising in more than a dozen states across the southern and western regions of the U.S. In some areas, those increases may be linked to increased testing, but in others, states are seeing spikes even though their testing numbers have been relatively flat, indicating true increases. Some states are also reporting growing numbers of COVID-19 patients needing time in a hospital and intensive care. While many are calling this a second wave of COVID-19 infections, infectious disease experts say there’s no accepted definition for what a second wave would be. Instead, they say, since the U.S. never eliminated the virus to begin with, it’s probably better to think of the recent increases in some cities and states as a second peak in an ongoing epidemic. Texas is seeing record numbers of COVID hospitalizations in some of its largest cities, including Dallas, Austin, and Houston. “I’m growing increasingly concerned that we may be approaching the precipice of a disaster,” Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said in a news conference in Houston on Thursday. Since May 1, Texas has reopened in phases, lifting more restrictions every few weeks.

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— Scott Gottlieb, MD (@ScottGottliebMD) June 11, 2020

Covid-19 case are increasing in many earliest re-opened states, both by numbers and test positivity.

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Wow, I'm An American,  by Peter R Breggin, MD

Celebrate being an American and help others to do so as well. Wow, I’m an American: How to Live Like Our Nation’s Heroic Founders inspires us to live by principles of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” in a responsible and loving manner.Wow, I’m an American! captures the essence of what makes America great, while showing how to apply these principles to living our everyday lives. A resource for those of us who want to share our values with upcoming generations while reaffirming for ourselves what America really stands for—freedom and responsibility under God!

High Fructose, Vitamin D, & Oxidative Stress in COVID-19

Face masks are key to preventing second wave of Covid-19

Face masks significantly reduce the transmission of the coronavirus - and we should all be encouraged to wear them, according to University of Cambridge researchers. Their study shows even basic homemade masks could have a major impact if worn by enough people, regardless of whether they are displaying symptoms. They say that lockdowns alone will not stop the resurgence of Covid-19, but further waves of the virus can be prevented if restrictions and physical distancing are also combined with population-wide use of face masks. Critically, their modelling suggests that R or reproduction number - which measures the average number of people that a person with the virus infects - can be kept below the critical figure of 1.0, if enough people wear masks [...] “Our analyses support the immediate and universal adoption of face masks by the public. If widespread face mask use by the public is combined with physical distancing and some lockdown, it may offer an acceptable way of managing the pandemic and reopening economic activity long before there is a working vaccine.” Dr Renata Retkute, co-author and Cambridge team member, added: “The UK government can help by issuing clear instructions on how to make and safely use homemade masks. “We have little to lose from the widespread adoption of facemasks, but the gains could be significant.”

The Conscience of Psychiatry - The Reform Work of Peter R. Breggin, MD

The Conscience of Psychiatry is a biographical tribute to Dr. Breggin’s professional career that draws on more than fifty years of media excerpts and more than seventy new contributions from professionals in the field. The result is not only the story of his principled, courageous confrontations with organized psychiatry, drug companies, and government agencies —it is also a probing critique of the psycho-pharmaceutical complex.

Connections between personality traits and pre-dementia syndromes

A study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society claims there’s a relationship between personality traits such as neuroticism, anxiety and depression and the development of certain pre‐dementia syndromes. In Southwest Florida, Dan Moser’s wife, Maria, has frontotemporal degeneration dementia “She’s a beautiful woman … very artistic, doing all kinds of art,” Moser said. “We met running. She’s an athlete … She is extremely competitive.” After 30 years of marriage, Moser can tell you all about his wife. And, as the years have gone by, he’s had to because Maria’s dementia is wearing away her ability to communicate. Moser says nothing in his wife’s history or background warned them she might develop dementia. The new research hopes to give more families whose loved ones are developing dementia an early warning.

People who ignore social distancing may have psychopathic traits

a peer-reviewed pre-print that will soon be published in the journal Social Psychology and Personality Science, asked 502 people to answer questions online about how often they followed coronavirus pandemic health guidelines, if they planned to follow guidelines going forward, and what they'd do if they were diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The researchers also asked personality-related questions to determine where survey participants fell on scales for conscientiousness, cooperativeness, neuroticism, tendency to take risks, meanness, and lack of restraint. If participants answered questions in a manner that suggested they had low levels of neuroticism, tendency to take risks, meanness, and lack of restraint, they were more likely to follow social distancing guidelines, but if they scored high in these traits, they were less likely to follow guidelines. Study author Pavel Blagov said these traits are also common psychopathic traits. "I knew that traits from the so-called Dark Triad (narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy), as well as the traits subsumed within psychopathy, are linked to health risk behavior and health problems, and I expected them to be implicated in health behaviors during the pandemic," Blagov told PsyPost.

Effectiveness of facemasks with ‘lock-down’ versus COVID-19 pandemic

Even if facemask use began after the start of the first lock-down period, our results show that benefits could still accrue by reducing the risk of the occurrence of further COVID-19 waves. We examine the effects of different rates of facemask adoption without lock-down periods and show that, even at lower levels of adoption, benefits accrue to the facemask wearers. These analyses may explain why some countries, where adoption of facemask use by the public is around 100%, have experienced significantly lower rates of COVID-19 spread and associated deaths. We conclude that facemask use by the public, when used in combination with physical distancing or periods of lock-down, may provide an acceptable way of managing the COVID-19 pandemic and re-opening economic activity. These results are relevant to the developed as well as the developing world, where large numbers of people are resource poor, but fabrication of home-made, effective facemasks is possible. A key message from our analyses to aid the widespread adoption of facemasks would be: ‘my mask protects you, your mask protects me’.

LaVision imaging technique shows how masks restrict the spread of exhaled air

The primary way of person-to-person corona virus transmission is via aerosols or small droplets created by breathing, sneezing or coughing. The reach of exhaled air can be effectively reduced using a face mask as shown in our video. A simple Schlieren imaging technique is applied to visualize the air flow caused by a person breathing and coughing. Using a face mask the exhaled air flow is blocked reducing effectively the risk of infection. Also nicely shown is the heat transfer from the body to the cooler ambient air. More information about the Schlieren imaging technique is given here.

Study links pandemic, civil unrest to increases in mental health issues

A recently released study shows mental health disorders are rising due to the coronavirus pandemic and ongoing unrest in America, and Oklahoma now ranks 14th for the most mental health disorders in the country. The study, Mental Health Incidents in 2020 by State, released by PSYDPrograms.org, is based on data from the nonprofit Mental Health America on anxiety, depression, substance abuse and suicidal thoughts. Authors of the study point to stay-at-home orders and fear over the coronavirus and riots, and ensuing increases in substance use, as a cause of the rise in mental health disorders. "Isolation, temptation for substance abuse, extreme anxiety and lack of access to mental health professionals provide all the makings of a mental health crisis," they wrote. [...] "So far, the data supports the view that the coronavirus outbreak will exacerbate mental health and substance abuse problems across the country," according to the report. "For example, a one percentage point increase in the unemployment rate has been shown to increase opioid addiction by 3.5%."

Guilt, Shame and Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming Negative Emotions

Dr. Breggin’s new book will show you how to identify, to reject and to triumph over your self-defeating, painful emotions and to transcend them with more positive feelings and better approaches to life. Imagine your life when you leave guilt, shame, anxiety, chronic anger or emotional numbness behind and exercise your emotional freedom! 

Growing number of scientists say COVID-19 may have been created in a lab

Leading immunologists and geneticists have told The Daily Telegraph there are two unusual aspects of COVID-19 that raise the possibility it was man-made rather than a naturally-occurring virus. The first is that the virus binds to human ACE2 receptor cells more strongly than it does to any other animal, including bats. The second is that it has a “furin cleavage site” that its closest genetic bat-coronavirus relative, RaTG-13, does not have. This site makes it significantly more infectious. Israeli geneticist, Dr Ronen Shemesh, who is working on treatment for COVID-19, said in his opinion the virus was more likely created in a laboratory than evolved naturally in nature. “There are many reasons to believe that the COVID-19 generating SARS-CoV-2 was generated in a lab. Most probably by methods of genetic engineering,” he said. “I believe that this is the only way an insertion like the FURIN protease cleavage site could have been introduced directly at the right place and become effective.”

2/ Watch @CNEWS’ 38min interview of Nobel Laureate Prof Montagnier stating #SARSCoV2 is “not natural” & “manipulation” of #coronavirus done “professionally..a very meticulous job. I am exposing the facts.” He said political pressure silencing scientists.
▶️https://t.co/mTeuOqQwHV

— Kulvinder Kaur MD (@dockaurG) June 8, 2020

Influence of conflicts of interest target 'Trump's drug', the case of Gilead Sciences

Fundings and gifts from the pharmaceutical industry have an influence on the decisions made by physicians and medical experts. In the context of the COVID-19 epidemic, several treatments are available to treat patients infected with the virus. Some are protected by patents, such as remdesivir, others are not, such as hydroxychloroquine. We wanted to observe the possible correlation between the fact, for an academic doctor in infectious diseases, of having benefited from funding by Gilead Sciences, producer of remdesivir, and the public positions taken by this doctor towards hydroxychloroquine. Our results show a correlation (correlation coefficient = 1) between the amount received from the Gilead Sciences company and public opposition to the use of hydroxychloroquine in France. This should open up the debate on the role of the interest links of doctors with pharmaceutical companies in the medical and scientific public debate.

Leaked meeting between editors-in-chief of Lancet & NEJM show pressures from big pharma...described as "criminal."

Of course, shortly after the meeting, papers by both NEJM & Lancet with outcomes favorable to big pharma were retracted for fraudulent data.https://t.co/BKMjOgGTdK

— James Todaro, MD (@JamesTodaroMD) June 9, 2020

Politicized Science: Lancet, NEJM retract studies on HCQ

Medical Scandal of the Decade Erupts as Lancet and NEJM Both Retract Studies Finding Hydroxychloriquine Deadly and Ineffective. At 3:15 pm on June 4, I got a text from my friend Josh in Los Angeles that stopped me in my tracks. The text read: “The fake Lancet Hydroxychloroquine study has been retracted.” I called Josh. “Are you serious?” He’d already texted me the retraction, but still I could barely believe it. Turns out NEJM had also retracted. This was huge. Dr. James Todaro, who runs a website, MedicineUncensored, which publishes the results of HCQ studies, tweeted yesterday: “This is exploding into one of the most twisted and unbelievable medical scandals of the decade.” Todaro (and social media “sleuths”) were the first to expose the truth, in late May on his site.

Bret Weinstein and Yuri Deigin: Did Covid-19 leak From a Lab?

There is a huge spike in COVID cases happening right now in North Carolina and Arizona. I know it's considered passé to find this alarming and to discourage mass gatherings as a result, but the pandemic hasn't gone away just because some new political cause arose that you favor

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 10, 2020

Arizona's state health director has ordered hospitals to "fully activate" emergency procedures because COVID cases in the state are surging, with ventilated patients having quadrupled since May 15. Meanwhile here was the scene in Phoenix a few days agohttps://t.co/CgrOFczkYt

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 9, 2020

New Jersey beachgoers are now being threatened with “MAX FINES” for failing to uphold social distancing, meanwhile New Jersey elected officials actively encourage and participate in mass protest gatherings at which social distancing is 100% impossible pic.twitter.com/05FVxbEvW3

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 10, 2020

The Heart of Being Helpful: Empathy and the Creation of a Healing Presence

By Peter R. Breggin, MD

Dr. Breggin illustrates the importance of developing a therapeutic bond, or healing presence, between helping professionals and their clients. He provides useful vignettes, case studies, and personal insights to help beginning and experienced therapists develop more empathy in therapeutic relationships. 

Lancet hydroxychloroquine study retracted

Taking antidepressants during pregnancy may pose another risk to newborns

New research from UC San Diego suggests taking antidepressants during pregnancy may pose some risks to newborns. The study looked at more than 15,000 pregnancies in which the mother took antidepressants. It showed babies born to these women had an increased risk for respiratory distress. And women who took higher doses were more likely to have a preterm birth than those on lower doses. Experts said depression or anxiety may partially explain these findings, but do encourage women to discuss the risks of antidepressants with their ob-gyn. The study showed between 7% and 13% of women use antidepressants during pregnancy.

If sex isn’t real, there’s no same-sex attraction. If sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased. I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn’t hate to speak the truth.

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) June 6, 2020

Yes we do love her back. Trans people appreciate @jk_rowling';s courage in speaking out against an authoritarian ideology that oppresses women, gay people and trans people.

We need to return to reality. Sex is real and it is immutable.

— Dr Debbie Hayton ?️‍⚧️?️‍? (@DebbieHayton) June 6, 2020

Repetitive negative thinking linked to higher risk of Alzheimer’s

Persistent negative thinking patterns may raise the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study. In a study of people over the age of 55, researchers found repetitive negative thinking (RNT) is linked to subsequent cognitive decline, as well as the deposition of harmful brain proteins linked to Alzheimer’s. [...] “Here, we found that certain thinking patterns implicated in depression and anxiety could be an underlying reason why people with those disorders are more likely to develop dementia.” [...] “We propose that repetitive negative thinking may be a new risk factor for dementia as it could contribute to dementia in a unique way,” said Marchant. The researchers suggest that RNT may contribute to Alzheimer’s risk via its impact on indicators of stress, such as high blood pressure, as other studies have found that physiological stress can contribute to amyloid and tau deposition.

I love how they just threw up a George Floyd sign, which now magically enables them to hold mass gatherings https://t.co/eXbRfjeQYU

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 7, 2020

Politicians Shutter Churches and Synagogues, Then Tolerate Riots

'‘Are we in a pandemic or not?” a reporter from the Orthodox Jewish newspaper Hamodia asked New York Mayor Bill de Blasio Tuesday. “And do we have one set of rules for protesters and another for everyone else?” Good questions [and the answer to both is yes]. For nearly three months, the country founded to guarantee religious freedom has seen its houses of worship shut down. Following local and state executive orders, Catholic churches held no Mass. Communion wasn't taken, confessions weren’t heard, and Catholics went to their final rest without the comfort of the sacraments. Jewish prayer services, which require a quorum, were broken up by city governments or banned by state executive orders. New York City police were dispatched to break up a Jewish funeral and close down a yeshiva where Jews teach their children Torah. “My message to the Jewish community, and all communities, is this simple,” Mr. de Blasio thundered in an infamous tweet, after having dispatched police to break up a funeral: “The time for warnings has passed. I have instructed the NYPD to proceed immediately to summons or even arrest those who gather in large groups. This is about stopping this disease and saving lives. Period.” All this seems a little odd now. Protesters in New York and across the U.S. have gone unmolested while gathering in “large groups,” even as rioters smashed and looted and set fire to public and private property. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who not long ago said keeping houses of worship shut was essential to save lives, marched on Tuesday with protesters, his mask and his lockdown suddenly forgotten.

Protesters violating health rules risk undoing our progress against Covid-19

Like everyone who read about it or watched the news coverage, I was sickened at George Floyd’s death. His treatment at the hands of US police was appalling and speaks to the sense of injustice experienced by minority communities around the world. I know that it is this sense of injustice that has driven people to take to the UK’s streets to protest. This Government understands the importance of the right to protest. In normal circumstances, a large (and largely peaceful) protest of this kind would not be of concern to the authorities. But these are not normal times. To protect us all, and to stop the spread of coronavirus, any large gatherings of people are unlawful. The severe public health risk forces me to continue to urge the public not to attend further protests. To add to this, some protesters regrettably turned violent and abusive this weekend. These scenes of lawlessness are completely unacceptable. [...] Those protesting in flagrant breach of the rules are risking further lives – not just their own, but their families, friends and those in their communities. Remember, even if you consider yourself a fit young person, the family member you could bring Coronavirus home to may not be. We know that the virus will affect them more than you – which is why we must be selfless. I urge protestors to follow the rules like everyone else. It is only fair.

Reclaiming Our Children - A Healing Plan for a Nation in Crisis, by Peter Breggin, MD

Reclaiming Our Children discusses the overall situation of children in America, including the stresses on their lives in the family, school, and community. The author urges parents, teachers, and other concerned citizens to retake responsibility for all our children. He sees the necessity of transforming ourselves and our society in order to meet the needs of all of our children for meaningful relationships with adults, as well as for unconditional love, rational discipline, inspiring education, and play. He makes specific recommendations for improving family and school life based on sound psychological and ethical principles.

The Dr. Peter Breggin Hour - June 3, 2020

An illuminating discussion of the dark side of the coronavirus controversies. Jefferey Jaxen is a science and health journalist who regularly appears on HighWire with Del Bigtree. Dr. Breggin begins with a summary of his own insights into the coronavirus epidemic and then Jefferey adds his accurate and yet disturbing observations, including why we cannot trust current claims for a safe and effective vaccine.

★ Lancet retracts fraudulent study designed to trash "Trump's drug" hydroxychloroquine 

The Lancet, one of the world’s top medical journals, on Thursday retracted an influential study that raised alarms about the safety of the experimental Covid-19 treatments chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine amid scrutiny of the data underlying the paper. Just over an hour later, the New England Journal of Medicine retracted a separate study, focused on blood pressure medications in Covid-19, that relied on data from the same company. The retractions came at the request of the authors of the studies, published last month, who were not directly involved with the data collection and sources, the journals said. “We can no longer vouch for the veracity of the primary data sources,” Mandeep Mehra of Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Frank Ruschitzka of University Hospital Zurich, and Amit Patel of University of Utah said in a statement issued by the Lancet. “Due to this unfortunate development, the authors request that the paper be retracted.”

Dr. Breggin exposed that Lancet study as agenda-driven junk science weeks before it was retracted (see). 

Unreliable data: how the fraudulent Lancet study was proven fake

A vast database from a little-known company called Surgisphere has influenced rapid policy shifts as the world seeks treatments for Covid-19. But as researchers began to examine it more closely, they became increasingly concerned. Dr Carlos Chaccour had just woken up in Barcelona when he opened his laptop to read the latest Covid-19 research. Usually, he would start the day by meditating, but that was proving difficult in the middle of a global pandemic. Overnight, several colleagues had emailed him a large study that had just been published online which examined the effect of the anti-parasite drug ivermectin on Covid-19 hospital patients around the world. [...] The database sounded incredible. But as Chaccour and other researchers began to look more closely, they quickly found some concerning anomalies. Over the next weeks those doubts would only increase. Surgisphere itself came under greater scrutiny, culminating in two of the world’s most prestigious medical journals reconsidering studies based on its data, an about-turn from the World Health Organization on research into a potential Covid-19 treatment, and a Guardian investigation that uncovered worrying inconsistencies in the Surgisphere story.

1,200 of the country's most renowned public health "experts" have signed a letter calling outdoor mass gatherings "vital to the national public health and to the threatened health specifically of Black people." We are in the midst of a mass psychotic break https://t.co/Ka57iiu4PO

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) June 5, 2020

this makes me so happy pic.twitter.com/29h9g6FWuN

— adrien (@rubyiscoming) June 2, 2020

It makes Covid-19 so happy too!

Seattle Black Lives Matter warns of Covid-19 spread by protests

Just a couple weeks ago, it would have been the stuff of public health professionals’ nightmares: Thousands of people clustered together amid a pandemic, chanting, shouting, and, after police hit them with tear gas, coughing. [...] “Despite the fact that we’re in a pandemic, it’s critical to be talking about these issues and acting on these issues and speaking out and people gathering for protests are an important way to effect change,” Balkus said. But as epidemiologists and public health experts are supporting the protests, the local branch of Black Lives Matter is being far more cautious. “Do not underestimate how dangerous the virus is. At the time of this writing, it has killed more than 100,000 people in the United States,” the guide says. “Situations where people are shouting or singing can spread more of the virus into the air.” “Ultimately, we decided that the situation is too dangerous for us to encourage greater attendance at these in-person protests,” said Marlon Brown, a board member of Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County. “While we have not led or organized direct protests at this time, we understand why people are marching for Black lives. We see you. We hear you. We appreciate you.” [...] Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, said the sheer number of personal exposures in some places could push infections beyond what contact tracers at local health departments can handle. “A mass gathering is a mass gathering,” Adalja said. “When people are socially interacting and unable to social distance, shouting, and being sprayed with agents that caused them to cough, it is a simple biological fact the transmission events are going to occur.”

There's a shortage of antidepressant zoloft amid coronavirus, FDA says

The FDA announced a shortage of the antidepressant Zoloft and its generic version, sertraline, as the coronavirus pandemic has led to an increase in reports of depression and anxiety in the U.S. The FDA posted the announcement of the shortage to its website Friday, estimating that it will last about 60 days. The short supply of the commonly used antidepressant comes just days after researchers at Johns Hopkins University found an increase in psychological distress reported among U.S. adults during the pandemic. The survey, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found that 13.6 percent of U.S. adults reported symptoms of psychological distress in April 2020, compared to 3.9 percent in 2018. The increase in symptoms of psychological distress is most severe in younger adults aged 18 to 29 — going from 3.7 percent in 2018 to 24 percent in 2020 — and in Hispanic adults (18.3 percent in 2020 compared to 4.4 in 2018). Adults with an annual household income of less than $35,000 also showed a significant increase — 19.3 percent reported psychological distress in 2020, up from 7.9 percent in 2018. "We need to prepare for higher rates of mental illness among U.S. adults post-COVID," Dr. Emma McGinty, one of the report’s co-authors, told Science Daily.

Dr Fauci: path to justice is minority research subjects

The War Against Children of Color, Psychiatry Targets Inner City Youth

By Dr. Peter Breggin

In 1992, Dr. Peter Breggin and Ginger Ross Breggin inspired a national campaign against the proposed federal “Violence Initiative,” that aimed at identifying inner-city children with alleged defects that would make them violent when they reached adulthood. Many of the research plans, which are still in operation, involve searching for a “violence gene,” finding “biochemical imbalances,” and intervening in the lives of schoolchildren with psychiatric drugs.

Seniors Implore Governors: Open Up Our World Again

By Ginger Ross Breggin and Peter Breggin M.D.

Some things are more precious than life itself.  The awkward hug from a grandson.  Holding your baby granddaughter. Laughing with your own beloved adult child.  Visiting with fellow church members after service. Going to the grave of your spouse of 60 years with your children. Sitting around the dining room table sharing stories of those camping adventures you had as a family when your kids were small.  Knowing that in just 3 days you will be visited again by your daughter.  Having coffee with your best friend.  All of us in society were told we needed to isolate in our homes, first to “flatten the curve” and then to “protect the most vulnerable among us.” Well, we are some of the most vulnerable. We are seniors.  Ginger Breggin is 69 years old, Peter Breggin is 84 years old and Ginger’s 93 year old mother Jean lives with us.  We have spent three months literally locked down, with no one in or out of the house until last week. Read more...

Public-health professionals advocate for mass gatherings during pandemic

Ramesh alluded to an open letter signed by over 1,000 “public health professionals, infectious diseases professionals, and community stakeholders.” The letter argues that it’s okay if the current protests/riots spread COVID-19 because racism is itself a public-health issue that needs to be addressed. Let’s take that argument seriously for a moment and ask a follow-up question: Why, then, was there so much criticism of the anti-lockdown protests? The premise of those protests was that continuing lockdowns caused far more economic damage than was necessary. If anything is a public-health issue, surely record unemployment, social isolation, and bans on people going to hospitals for non-urgent care should count. 

Well, here is how the letter distinguishes between anti-racism protests and anti-lockdown protests:

. . . [W]e do not condemn these [anti-racism] gatherings as risky for COVID-19 transmission. We support them as vital to the national public health and to the threatened health specifically of Black people in the United States . . . . This should not be confused with a permissive stance on all gatherings, particularly protests against stay-home orders. Those actions not only oppose public health interventions, but are also rooted in white nationalism and run contrary to respect for Black lives.

It’s difficult to understand how any reasonable person could have committed those words to print. Even just, “Yeah, we’re hypocrites, so what?” would have been a more satisfying response. Ironically, the signatories do say they have “privately mourned the widening rift between leaders in science and a subset of the communities that they serve.” That rift is now a chasm. If these leaders do have any real expertise, how sad that it’s been lost within the all-consuming political correctness of our age.

Anxiety and depression levels are falling as lockdown eased, finds study

Levels of anxiety and depression in the UK have both fallen in the past week but remain above the usual reported averages, according to a study monitoring the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The study, involving 90,000 adults, found depression levels had decreased particularly amongst those aged under 60. However, depression and anxiety were still highest in young people, people living alone, those with lower income, a diagnosed mental illness, who were living with children, and living in urban areas. The figures also show that life satisfaction – measured on a scale from 0 to 10 – has risen from under 5.5 when lockdown was first announced to over 6, but is still lower than usually-reported averages. In addition, thoughts of death and self-harm, experience of self-harm, and loneliness also remained relatively stable, said the researchers behind the study.

STUDY: Parents aren't monitoring their kids screen time

A new study suggests that parents are not keeping up with how much time kids spend looking at screens. In a study that followed 350 three and four-year-olds for nine months, researchers found that two-thirds of the parents either thought their child spent more time using mobile devices or less time. Only a third of the parents got their kid's screen time correct. Researchers also found that young kids tended to use apps intended for teens and adults.

Talking Back To Ritalin, What Doctors Aren’t Telling You About Stimulants and ADHD,  by Peter R Breggin, MD

This book of Dr. Breggin's details the side effects and potential problems with Ritalin and other stimulants. It also thoroughly and critically examines the condition and diagnosis of ADHD and ADD, explores the economics and who profits from the diagnosis and the prescribing of stimulants for children, and offers six chapters for parents and other adults on how to help children in their care without resorting to Ritalin or other psychiatric drugs.

★ Anti-anxiety drugs increase risk of ectopic pregnancy by 50%, study finds

Women who use a class of tranquilisers called benzodiazepines before becoming pregnant are at greater risk of ectopic pregnancies, according to a study of nearly 1.7 million women. The study, which is published today (Wednesday) in Human Reproduction, one of the world's leading reproductive medicine journals, found that the risk of an ectopic pregnancy, where the embryo starts developing outside the womb, usually in a fallopian tube, was 50% higher in women who had filled out a prescription for benzodiazepines in the 90 days before conception. Ectopic pregnancies occur in one to two percent of pregnancies each year and are a serious health emergency for women. They are responsible for 6-13% of pregnancy-related deaths, and deaths from haemorrhaging is the leading cause of pregnancy-related death in the first trimester of pregnancy. They can also lead to serious complications and infertility.

Study rebuking "Trump's drug" based on fake data from sham company

The World Health Organization and a number of national governments have changed their Covid-19 policies and treatments on the basis of flawed data from a little-known US healthcare analytics company, also calling into question the integrity of key studies published in some of the world’s most prestigious medical journals. A Guardian investigation can reveal the US-based company Surgisphere, whose handful of employees appear to include a science fiction writer and an adult-content model, has provided data for multiple studies on Covid-19 co-authored by its chief executive, but has so far failed to adequately explain its data or methodology. Data it claims to have legitimately obtained from more than a thousand hospitals worldwide formed the basis of scientific articles that have led to changes in Covid-19 treatment policies in Latin American countries. It was also behind a decision by the WHO and research institutes around the world to halt trials of the controversial drug hydroxychloroquine. On Wednesday, the WHO announced those trials would now resume.

So where did the virus come from?

New research has deepened, rather than dispelled, the mystery surrounding the origin of the coronavirus responsible for Covid-19. Bats, wildlife markets, possibly pangolins and perhaps laboratories may all have played some role, but the simple story of an animal in a market infected by a bat that then infected several human beings no longer looks credible. A study [...] has uncovered an unusual feature of the virus’s recent development: It has evolved too slowly. The genomes of viruses sampled from cases during the SARS epidemic of 2002-2003 showed rapid evolutionary change during the early months of the epidemic, as the virus adapted to its new host, followed by much slower change later. By contrast, samples taken from recent cases of the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, have comparatively few genetic substitutions compared with an early case from December. The authors [...] write: “We were surprised to find that SARS-CoV-2 exhibits low genetic diversity in contrast to SARS-CoV, which harbored considerable genetic diversity in its early-to-mid epidemic phase.” This implies, they argue, that “by the time SARS-CoV-2 was first detected in late 2019, it was already pre-adapted to human transmission to an extent similar to late epidemic SARS-CoV.”

People who use high-potency cannabis could have a higher risk of anxiety

Many people use cannabis to cope with anxiety. But a new study suggests that regular use of cannabis products containing a high concentration of THC, the substance's psychoactive ingredient, could lead to heightened anxiety. The study, published on May 27 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, looked at data from 1,087 people that was collected between June 2015 and October 2017. All study participants were from the United Kingdom, were 24 years old, and reported using cannabis in the past year. [...] After controlling for socioeconomic status and conditions like anxiety and depression that participants were diagnosed with prior to starting a cannabis-use habit, the researchers found that people who used high-potency cannabis were both more likely to use the substance often and more likely to have generalized anxiety disorder than low-potency users.

Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal, A Guide for Prescribers, Therapists, Patients and their Families

Nothing in the field of mental health will do more good and reduce more harm than encouraging withdrawal from psychiatric drugs. The time is past when the focus in mental health was on what drugs to take for what disorders. Now we need to focus on how to stop taking psychiatric drugs and to replace them with more person-centered, empathic approaches. The goal is no longer drug maintenance and stagnation; the goal is recovery and achieving well-being.

Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin as a treatment of COVID-19: results of an open-label non-randomized clinical trial

Background Chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have been found to be efficient on SARS-CoV-2, and reported to be efficient in Chinese COV-19 patients. We evaluate the role of hydroxychloroquine on respiratory viral loads. [...] Results Six patients were asymptomatic, 22 had upper respiratory tract infection symptoms and eight had lower respiratory tract infection symptoms. Twenty cases were treated in this study and showed a significant reduction of the viral carriage at D6-post inclusion compared to controls, and much lower average carrying duration than reported of untreated patients in the literature. Azithromycin added to hydroxychloroquine was significantly more efficient for virus elimination. Conclusion Despite its small sample size our survey shows that hydroxychloroquine treatment is significantly associated with viral load reduction/disappearance in COVID-19 patients and its effect is reinforced by azithromycin.

We have published an Expression of Concern on the paper by Mehra et al on hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine published on May 22, 2020 https://t.co/yQ9irhRHxx pic.twitter.com/5I1NXTKTjo

— The Lancet (@TheLancet) June 2, 2020

Read this thread @ https://twitter.com/mtracey/status/1268936285441359872

5 natural ways to boost your mental health during stressful times

Life today is razor's-edge tense. If your regular coping methods aren't measuring up, there are science-backed actions we can add on our own to ease anxiety, depression and stress — all done naturally, no doctor's note required. Get enough exercise If you had to choose just one thing to do to better your mental and physical health, choose to exercise on a regular basis. Scientists believe exercise increases blood circulation to the brain, especially areas like the amygdala and hippocampus — which both have roles in controlling motivation, mood and response to stress. For one thing, it releases endorphins, the body's feel-good hormones. [...] Focus on sleep There's another benefit of exercise — it will improve your sleep quality, one of the best things you can do to ease stress and boost your mood. There's an additional benefit to a better snooze. You'll be protecting your heart, improving your brain and reducing your desire to snack. [...] Deep breathing Something as simple as taking deep, slow breaths can do amazing things to our brain and therefore our stress, experts said. "Learning breathwork lets you know that you have an ability to physiologically calm yourself," said stress management expert Dr. Cynthia Ackrill, an editor for Contentment magazine, produced by the American Institute of Stress. "When you physiologically calm yourself, you actually change your brainwaves," Ackrill said. "I used to do neurofeedback, which is brainwave training, and I would have people hooked up to all kinds of machines. And after doing breathwork with them you could see these massive changes in the brain. It also lowered blood pressure." [...] Take up yoga, tai chi or qi gong Yoga, of course, is a form of physical exercise. In additon to releasing endorphins, yoga can regulate the body's central stress response system, called the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, and improves sleep quality, said Jacinta Brinsley, a doctoral candidate at the University of South Australia who recently published a study on yoga. [...] Meditation Meditation and mindfulness are two excellent ways to lower stress. At the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, researchers studied the brains of Tibetan Buddhist monks recruited by the Dali Lama and found startling results: Tens of thousands of hours of compassionate meditation had permanently altered the structure and function of the monks' brains. One 41-year-old monk had the brain of a 33-year-old.

What Measures Can You Take to Help Prevent COVID-19?

Information surrounding the transmission and spread of COVID-19 can sometimes seem confusing, and figuring out how to protect yourself can feel overwhelming. A comprehensive report published Monday in The Lancet compiled evidence-based guidance based on 172 studies and available data to help clarify risk-reduction recommendations like face masks, social distancing measures and eye protection. The findings show that the risk of contracting COVID-19 is reduced by 82% when a physical distance of one meter is maintained. Every additional one meter of separation more than doubled the protection. The study also found that masks and respirators reduced the risk of infection by 85%. N95 masks, which have a respirator function that filters airborne particles, were 96% effective, compared with other masks, which were 77% effective. Additionally, eye protection resulted in a 78% reduction in infection. The study recommends universal mask-wearing and maintaining a distance of one meter from others, but stresses that none of these practices offer complete protection.

Blue light from phone screens at night ‘linked to depression’

Modern habits such as working late into the night and ‘unwinding’ by staring at a phone screen could increase the risk of depression, a study has found.  Researchers found that exposure to blue light during the night led to mice becoming less active and eating less, after exposure to just two hours of blue light.  The researchers believe that light sensitive cells in the retina affect areas in the brain linked to negative emotions. Previous studies have linked blue light emitted from technology to anxiety and depression in humans. The latest research was published in Nature. Corresponding author Dr Huan Zhao, of Hefei University, said: "Besides generating vision, light modulates various physiological functions, including mood. "While light therapy applied in the daytime is known to have anti-depressive properties, excessive light exposure at night has been reportedly associated with depressive symptoms."

Anti-inflammatories fail to reduce depressive symptoms in bipolar disorder

Adjunctive anti-inflammatory therapy was not superior to placebo for the treatment of depression in patients with bipolar disorder, according to results from a clinical trial published in Lancet Psychiatry. When combined with treatment as usual, minocycline and celecoxib did not outperform placebo in reducing patients’ depressive symptoms. Muhammad Ishrat Husain, MRCPsych, of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and colleagues designed a 12-week, randomized, placebo-controlled trial to test the effect of minocycline and/or celecoxib added to usual treatment in patients with bipolar disorder. The study was performed at 4 outpatient psychiatric clinics in Pakistan. Eligible participants were adults aged 18 to 65 years with bipolar disorder type I or II. All participants were experiencing a major depressive episode at the time of enrollment.

Moderna executives claimed their Covid-19 vaccine works then sold $89M of their shares as stock price soared

The top five executives at the biotech company Moderna have sold more than $89 million of stock so far this year — initiating nearly three times as many stock transactions than in all of 2019 — as the company’s share price has soared on hopes for its Covid-19 vaccine. The trades, which led to about $80 million in profits, were prescheduled through a legal program that allows company insiders to buy and sell shares at a later date. But the volume and timing might prove alarming to Moderna’s shareholders, especially in light of the company’s May decision to raise more than $1 billion in a stock offering. If Moderna’s early-stage vaccine can one day prevent coronavirus infection and the company’s best days lay ahead, why are insiders selling?

Guilt, Shame and Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming Negative Emotions

Dr. Breggin’s new book will show you how to identify, to reject and to triumph over your self-defeating, painful emotions and to transcend them with more positive feelings and better approaches to life. Imagine your life when you leave guilt, shame, anxiety, chronic anger or emotional numbness behind and exercise your emotional freedom! 

Coronavirus may have been a 'cell-culture experiment' gone wrong

SKY NEWS EXCLUSIVE: The coronavirus that has become a world-wide pandemic may have been created in a “cell-culture experiment” in a laboratory, according to prominent scientists who have conducted ground-breaking research into the origins of the virus. Flinders University Professor Nikolai Petrovsky has completed a scientific study, currently undergoing peer review, in conjunction with La Trobe University in Victoria, which found COVID-19 was uniquely adapted for transmission to humans, far more than any other animal, including bats. Professor Petrovsky, from the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University who has spent the past 20 years developing vaccines against pandemic influenza, Ebola and animal SARS, said this highly unusual finding left open the possibility that the virus leaked from a laboratory. “The two possibilities which I think are both still open is that it was a chance transmission of a virus from an as yet unidentified animal to human. The other possibility is that it was an accidental release of the virus from a laboratory,” he said.

Coronavirus may be a blood vessel disease, which explains everything

April, blood clots emerged as one of the many mysterious symptoms attributed to Covid-19, a disease that had initially been thought to largely affect the lungs in the form of pneumonia. Quickly after came reports of young people dying due to coronavirus-related strokes. Next it was Covid toes — painful red or purple digits. What do all of these symptoms have in common? An impairment in blood circulation. Add in the fact that 40% of deaths from Covid-19 are related to cardiovascular complications, and the disease starts to look like a vascular infection instead of a purely respiratory one. Months into the pandemic, there is now a growing body of evidence to support the theory that the novel coronavirus can infect blood vessels, which could explain not only the high prevalence of blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks, but also provide an answer for the diverse set of head-to-toe symptoms that have emerged. “All these Covid-associated complications were a mystery. We see blood clotting, we see kidney damage, we see inflammation of the heart, we see stroke, we see encephalitis [swelling of the brain],” says William Li, MD, president of the Angiogenesis Foundation. “A whole myriad of seemingly unconnected phenomena that you do not normally see with SARS or H1N1 or, frankly, most infectious diseases.”

Lancet study corrected after more than 200 scientists question findings

Medical journal The Lancet on May 29 issued a correction to a recent study which found that antimalarial drugs Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine were linked with an increased risk of mortality in hospitals, and an increased frequency of irregular heart rhythms. [...] However, more than a hundred scientists and medical professionals raised questions about integrity of data analyzed in the study and subsequently wrote an open letter to its authors and the editor of The Lancet, listing 10 major concerns. These included the fact that there was “no ethics review,” and “unusually small reported variances in baseline variables, interventions and outcomes,” as well as “no mention of the countries or hospitals that contributed to the data source and no acknowledgments to their contributions.” A request to the authors for information on the contributing centers was denied, the letter said. Among the scientists other concerns were that the average daily doses of hydroxychloroquine were higher than the FDA-recommended amounts and that data reportedly from Australian patients did not seem to match data from the Australian government.

The Conscience of Psychiatry - The Reform Work of Peter R. Breggin, MD

The Conscience of Psychiatry is a biographical tribute to Dr. Breggin’s professional career that draws on more than fifty years of media excerpts and more than seventy new contributions from professionals in the field. The result is not only the story of his principled, courageous confrontations with organized psychiatry, drug companies, and government agencies —it is also a probing critique of the psycho-pharmaceutical complex.