New Research on the Placebo Effect

Friday, December 4th, 2009 at 15:24 
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You have probably heard about the Placebo effect. We know new drugs are measured against the placebo effect because a good percentage of people get better just by taking sugar
pills.

I think a lot of us don’t take the time to consider how crazy this is. Some pretty major health conditions are “cured” by basically the belief that the pill or injection will work.

This is obviously power of the mind stuff, but until recently scientists had never been able to actually “see” the placebo effect actually working in the brain.

Thanks to Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (f MRI) and PET scans, researchers can now see the brain work in real time.

The Placebo Research

A researcher named Jon-Kar Zubieta, a neurologist at the University of Michigan, used some amazing trickery in order to discover that the driver of placebo effect in the brain is an area called the nucleus accumbens (NAcc).

What is interesting, (and actually makes sense) is that this area of the brain is responsible for our expectancy of reward.

I won’t go into too much detail about the actual study (it involved researchers sticking subjects in the jaw with a needle to cause pain – OUCH!!!), and then giving them an intravenous pain cure.

The cure of course was just plain old saline solution (a placebo).

The PET scans revealed that the placebo caused an actual dopamine boost with highest dopamine release coming from the nucleus accumbens (NAcc).

All the subjects experienced some relief, but some more than others.

So the researchers used fMRI on the same subjects to see if there was a correlation between those who got the best placebo effect with those who potentially had the mostactive nucleus accumbens (NAcc).

Scientists are tricky! Here is how they pulled it off.

While using f MRI to monitor brain activity, they had the subjects play a game where they could receive monetary rewards. The anticipation of reward intensified the activity in the nucleus accumbens.

The cool part is that the people who had the highest activity in the NAcc during the game are the same people who had the most profound placebo effect in the pain part of the study.

The Take Home

So it seems that it pays to have an NAcc that hums if you want to get cured by a sugar pill.

I have been thinking about this study a lot and it begs this question.

Could we actually train ourselves to enhance our expectancy of reward, thus strengthening the NA? If so, this might mean we could develop some ability for self healing. Or it just might be genetic – nobody knows right now

Here is the citation for the study I just summarized.

Scott et al.: Individual Differences in Reward Responding
Explain Placebo-Induced Expectations and Effects
Publishing in Neuron 55, 325–336, July 19, 2007. DOI
10.1016/j.neuron.2007.06.028.

The research is still in its early stages and I would curious if any of you have any other real research on the subject (not new age mumbo jumbo, but real peer reviewedresearch).

If you do, just post it below.

Here are some other cool facts about the placebo effect:

  • Orange, Red and other hot colored tablets work better as stimulants.
  • Cool colored ones (blue, green, purple) work better as depressants.
  • Big pills generally work better than small pills!
  • Higher priced pills work better than lower priced pills.
  • Injections work better than tablets
  • And “branded” tablets work better than unbranded tablets!

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SparkPeople – Excellent Weight Loss Solutions

Friday, October 30th, 2009 at 13:38 
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The weight loss and fitness industry have been booming for decades, and there is no sign of them slowing down. Books, magazines and DVDs all are equally obsessed weight loss solutions.

With various support programs such as Weight Watchers, Weigh Less, and Jenny Craig this trend has grown massively over the years. Even online, there are many sites dedicated to weight loss and exercise to help dieters in their weight loss battle.

Most weight loss sites are asking a membership fee. Therefore, for a long time those who needed personalized guidance to a healthy weight loss diet, but unable to pay the membership fees, were out in the cold.

There is however one site that threw open their doors for all to benefit in their quest to healthy weight loss solutions.  SparkPeople is a 100% free online program that offers features that rival those of expensive weight loss websites.

Their credentials speak for themselves. Named as the Best Health Website by Business Week in 2006, 2007 and 2008, SparkPeople is one of the most visited diet websites in the world.

In 2001, SparkPeople.com began as a goal-setting website. However, when the owners realized that the majority of members’ goals were related to nutrition and fitness, they switched the site’s focus.

With premium tools, added SparkPeople became a subscription site. However, in 2005, a decision was made to offer all of the tools and resources free!

How SparkPeople Works

As a new user, you are ask to declare your goals. The body mass index (BMI) is calculated. They also provide further assistance in setting safe and achievable weight loss goals to lose a certain amount of weight in a certain time. Next, the user sets his “Fast Break” goals, which consist of small changes toward a healthier lifestyle.

Create your own personalized “SparkPage” and join “SparkTeams” geared toward different interests and goals. A message board let you interact with other members and get support.

A variety of tools will help you in your quest to conquer the battle of the bulges.

Nutrition Tracker
This tool helps you to plan your meals, check the calories and the nutritional value of food. The healthy eating plans allocate a certain number of calories, carbs, fat and protein each day. As you add your food during the day, their values are subtracted, showing how much more calories you may consume.

Fitness Tracker
Use this tool to assists you to build a fitness plan especially for you. A standard plan automatically generate according to each member’s needs. However, feel free to alter it to suit your preferences.

I learned that if I must do something, which clashes with my personality, I usually do not follow it through. You need to do stuff that inspires you to do it even more.

Weigh-In
This tool helps members keep track of progress by recording weight and measurements.

Blog and articles
SparkPeople features a motivational blog and thousands of articles about weight loss and fitness.

The SparkPeople website supports itself with an online fitness store. Items available include fitness equipment, DVDs and apparel. However, unlike many programs, SparkPeople does not require members to purchase anything.

For a $40 billion industry, weight loss programs are surprisingly horrible at giving you the whole picture. In fact, hardly anyone even mentions how to overcome the most common dieting roadblock – weight loss motivation.

Sick and tired of your overweight body? Give yourself a gift – the gift of loving you enough to decide today to join a safe weight loss program and enjoy a healthy lifestyle full of vitality.

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Dining Out on Fat Burning Diets

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009 at 12:02 
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There is nothing as exciting as dining out. However, when one is on a fat burning diet it may present you with some serious choices. Eating out is about pleasure!

One can look at it in two ways, the pleasure of the company or the pleasure of treating your taste buds to a new adventure. I, however treasure the company as well as great healthy food. What is more enriching than the company of loved ones and a treat on tantalizing healthy food?

Back to reality one sit with the dilemma of safe weight loss and on the other hand, one wants to be great company.  So let us get one thing straight “I want to lose weight, but I want to do it in a joyful spirit. I do not want to be a spoil sport!”

What can we do then to make dining out a joyful affair without long faces and feelings of guilt afterwards?

1 Do Some Homework

Most Restaurants are on the Internet. Have a look beforehand at their menu’s and phone and make sure how they prepare their food.  By deciding beforehand what to order one is not tempted by the sight of other choices.

2 Be Drink wary

I’m very wary of drinks when dining out. It is very easy to consume many empty calories without realizing it. Therefore, I choose to drink cold water with lemon or lime wedges. This way I make sure, I do not consume empty calories and after three glasses of water I’m also not that hungry and tend to order smaller portions

3 Don’t Be Fooled By These Buzz Words

The following add-ons are unnecessary and may make your dining out experience unpleasant. Just for the record, they may taste delicious but the taste is going to sit around your waist because they are real fattening. Stay clear of cream sauce, oil, butter, battered, gravy, smothered, au gratin, Alfredo.

4. Make your own menu

Politely request that no sauce, oil or butter be used in your dish. Also, ask the waiter to replace the starch with extra vegetables. This is a great way to save on calories and to ensure that you fill up with more healthy food, without any guilt feelings afterwards.

5 Enjoy the company

Eat slowly and concentrate on the taste of the food. Analyze the taste sensations try to establish new tastes that you aren’t familiar with. Enjoy the conversation and give special attention to your dining partner.

If you can remember that the eating part is NOT why you are dining out you have come a long way. Dining out, for me, is about excellent conversation, enjoyment of my surroundings and relaxation away from home.

Dining out successfully on your fat burning diet is what you are making of it. You can choose what you want, but staying on a healthy weight loss diet and achieving your weight loss goals are far more satisfying than a one night eating out spree. Enjoy your life by living your dream!

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Fat Burning Diets – The Best Life Diet

Thursday, October 15th, 2009 at 12:34 
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Have you tried every fat burning diet under the sun, only to find that they just don’t work? Fast weight loss diets often encourage dramatic changes in your eating habits, and while these diets may aid in weight loss, if you can stick to them, it is only temporary.

Fast weight loss diets are extremely difficult to maintain for the long haul, and when you resume your usual unhealthy diet, the pounds come back.

Many nutritionists recommend a different approach. Healthy eating plans are far more sustainable. Try to remember that you put on weight over a long period.

Therefore, a healthy fat burning diet, together with loads of healthy weight loss foods and motivation, one can achieve weight loss at a more reasonable pace and reduce the chances of regaining it.

This is the idea behind Bob Greene’s Best Life Diet.

Greene has been Oprah Winfrey’s personal trainer since the 1990s. He has written numerous books on diet and fitness, including The Best Life Diet. Published in 2006, the book outlines a healthy diet plan for safe weight loss and keeping it off.

Phases of the Best Life Diet

The Best Life Diet consists of three phases. Unlike many fat burning diets with such phases, however, the Best Life Diet starts with minor changes and works up to the most difficult ones.

Here’s how it works:

* Phase 1 – This is an introductory phase. It introduces changes such as eating three meals and one snack per day, increasing the activity level and not eating late at night. This phase should last 4 weeks at most.

* Phase 2 - Phase 2 steps things up a notch. It focuses on controlling hunger, eliminating problem foods and learning portion control. Physical activity is increased, and dieters are encouraged to weigh in weekly. This phase lasts a minimum of 4 weeks.

* Phase 3 – The final phase introduces a few more changes. It eliminates more unhealthy foods from the diet, but it also introduces the concept of “anything goes” calories. This allows dieters to treat themselves to small portions of their favorite foods, especially when they are very active. This phase lasts for the rest of the dieter’s life.

Many fat burning diets also encourage making changes in phases. With the first phase the most restrictive and then become less restrictive as the diet progresses. While this may result in more initial weight loss, it may not as sustainable as the Best Life Diet’s approach. By easing into the healthy eating plans and lifestyle changes, we stand a better chance of making them permanent.

The Best Life Diet ranked No. 1 in the Consumer Reports magazine in their review of seven weight-loss books. You will find sensible, sensitive fitness and diet advice combined with generous calorie counts and weight loss motivation on this healthy weight loss diet.

As a fat burning diet, the Best Life Diet contains all elements to help you to achieve your weight loss goals successfully. Start today with the Best Life Diet and change your unhealthy diet to healthy lifestyle for a life full of vitality and zest.

Get Your Own Copy Of The Best Life Diet Now!!!

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