FDA gets Scared by Tea
After my post on Ritalin, I’m feeling a little guilty about reporting on “medical breakthroughs”. So, I’ll admit right from the start: this is not entirely new. But, it is very interesting and could be important to you.
Catechins in green tea are 20 times stronger in their antioxidant properties than vitamin E. Here is the useful part. Green tea has been shown to protect the skin against direct damage to the cell and moderates inflammation. The fascinating thing about green tea is that it helps [the skin] whether it is applied topically or when consumed as a beverage.
New York’s Columbia University, Department of Dermatology did the lead research here, but its only one of many such studies that point in the same direction. There are plenty of claims and some supporting data suggesting green tea is also helpful in preventing cancer, but the official FDA take is that green tea and cancer prevention is bunk (June 30 2005)
Once again it is my nature to question all sides of the sphere, but I cannot help but focus on the FDA at this moment. “Do we believe them because they are looking out for our interest?” or “Should we not believe them because they get it wrong more often than the National Weather Service. Perhaps, we should not believe them simply because they are looking out for our interest!
What a country. Ever wonder where you sign up for a job you can get paid for not showing up, then, when you do show up, they encourage you to not care about the people you serve, and then you get to keep your job even if you’re correct only half the time?* Try our Government at USA JOBS.
*sick days, antiquated holidays, “personal health” days, family leave…“Take a number and wait.” “Sit here.” “Fill out this.” “We’re closing now.” “That’s not my department.” “Payment is due before we give you an application”….government efficiency; and it only gets more so.
Sour grapes or computer envy?
Right now I’m kind of hating the media. I know that’s a sweeping statement and I apologize for being so general. A couple weeks ago I came across an article about a subject I posted in May; If I Were King, which was about education concepts. I highlighted the efforts of Nicholas Negroponte, the former MIT Media Lab director and founder of the One Laptop Per Child project.
Quickly (actually too quickly), huge amounts of disparaging news items and lots of opinions flooded the presses. Mostly about Negroponte’s efforts and his ineffectiveness in delivering the goods for the price that he named. They ranged from a “raised eyebrow” about his inability to make a quality laptop for under $100 (Ever try it?), to making the whole project out to be a complete failure. Finally, I came across a fare minded article written in the Boston Globe.
Progress is always saddled with resistance and hurdles and the people who write about it, in the media, are not the ones who must overcome. Often the visionary never even gets to see the results, (but they sure get the criticism) and seldom are they the ones that end up carrying the project to a point of flourishing. Yet they are the ones that start the process.
Q: How can you tell a leader?
A: He’s the one with the arrows in his back.
The One Laptop Per Child project seems to be going through one of these inevitable rough times. I for one am enjoying the view and learning about innovation and creative efforts as they persevere (Be assured that if they don’t, someone will. Probably by standing on their shoulders). Lets keep an eye on the concepts and see what we can learn about perseverance (never a popular topic in a time of war). In the end let the Project be it’s own judge.
Compare the V-22 Osprey. Time Magazine just trashed it in it’s article called A Flying Shame. Come on! I have high hope’s for this amazing aircraft. It might be many years, but the non-military applications are what will be really exciting. Like the “laptop problem” we are assaulted with a catchy title and a stated failure with no mention of the future other than doom (Brings back memories of global warming).
History is full of examples of enormous successes which look like failures at many (sometimes any) points along the way. Navigation, Medicine, Engineering, Politics….
Sounds like the Media is on a rampage of judge-it-now-pessimism. Guess they always have been.
I’m reading The Four Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss. Mostly, I love it. He details avenues to totally eliminate unnecessary outside information from the world the Media shows us. If things continue, I might just have to join him in his well-thought-out approach to eliminating negative media input.
Perhaps we all can take a lesson from HappyNews.com.
Energy Medicine
Things that we give little thought to when we are young often have a way of creeping into focus later in life. For instance, there is a certain age (you must fill in the number yourself) when healthcare all of a sudden become a valid topic of discussion.
There is the joke about the organ recital at the local nursing home. “My stomach hurts so much I…blah blah, blah”, “Oh I should be so lucky. My heart….blah blah, blah.” and on and on….
A friend of mine, (Let’s just say he listened to Winston Churchill’s radio addresses during WWII) sent me an email asking my opinion on energy medicine.  It was a good question.
Here was my response:
As for energy medicine, that all depends. Our bodies and actually the entire universe is energy (ie. atoms are not exactly solid stuff), MRI’s read energy, drugs effect change through energy and chiropractic restores energy flow to and from the nerves. That said “energy medicine” has become a “code word” for some occult practices that really are no more energy related than more traditional therapies.
Please avoid things like New Age Healing, Reiki and Pendulums as any power they have to heal is not universal (at best it’s psychological and at worse it’s demonic).
On the other hand, there are subtle healing techniques that could be classified as energy medicine that should not be discounted. Some interesting and legitimate examples are cold laser, infrared (and other light energies) some massage therapy, some acupuncture, and some magnetic devices (beware of some multilevel vendors).
I hope this will help you. I might write a post on this. It’s a good topic and we are always learning the value of energy in healthcare practice. But if our minds are too open our brain falls out…something to avoid.”
God’s Quiet Shout
Not many things will cause me to get up at three in the morning. Even fewer will cause me to set my alarm.
An awesome celestial event is usually one of those things. First, before I wake up the household, I always check the night sky to make certain we’re not socked in with cloud cover. Then around I go in a hushed excited voice, “Wow, you need to see this. It’s amazing!”
Like the pied piper I amass a dependable following. Our blanket wrapped bodies press tightly together on the back deck. “It’s so still and quiet out.” My daughter remarks as she huddles down content to hang in there until she’s seen it all.
If “eager to see” and “craving sleep” can be used in the same sentence it would explain why our youngest son quietly repeats my wakeup call of, “It’s amazing!” (read: conservation of thought). Like my wife, he doesn’t want to miss out on the experience, but is willing to grab it in a sleepish state and get back to bed.
Seconds before the total eclipse of the moon our daughter says, “I thought animals go crazy and do strange things before an eclipse.” Pulling from my knowledge on such matters, I explain that solar eclipses do that. When the moon is eclipsed by the earth it’s just slow and subtle. Probably doesn’t disturb the natural instincts of any animals. Just then the coyotes in the woods below our house erupt into eerie howls and yelps. We had to laugh at their timing. They humble me and correct my assumption on the spot. We both smile armed with our new knowledge that coyotes are like druids announcing signs they cannot understand.
Our dogs stir uncomfortably, a lone car drives by and for an instant we forget about the moon as it continues its majestic dance with the Earth. We comment on the lights around our rural neighborhood. “Do you remember how dark it used to be when we first moved here?” I ask her. “Kind of.” She says.
The kids were very little when I woke them to see their first meteor shower. She admits little recollection of those early nighttime events. It’s not surprising; she was usually snuggled in my arms more asleep than awake.
Many years have passed since it was really dark at night around our Island home. Next month she’ll start her junior year in college and I have the bitter-sweet realization that she’ll be moving away soon. She must be thinking that too as she begins to reminisce about family, camp fires and points out new homes that have been built around us as she has grown up.
The stillness returns and our gaze is drawn back to the spectacle of the orange-red disc that looks too unreal to be our moon. Truly amazing! The event is not fully over, in many ways it never will be, but we decide to call it good and return to our warm beds.
At first I cannot sleep, but I’m happy I set my alarm. There’s a peace which fills my heart as I’m willing to accept the predictable order and infinite magnitude of the heavens. I’m happy to be allowed to hear God’s quiet shout with my own eyes…
This is my tapestry. I am the creator. I made this for you and all of mankind.
With all my Love, God
Memorial Day — Just a vacation? Rememebering the cost of freedom.
Jim emailed me a special tribute to his shipmates and friends who gave their lives so we could live free. Their sacrifice was the ultimate. I’d like to take this time to add a moving comment that he wrote, which you might have missed. But first, I’d like to challenge you to ask yourself two very important questions:
- “Do I appreciate the men and women of our Armed Forces?”
- “Do I understand that they are willing to give their life to secure and further the freedoms that are outlined within the Constitution and Bill of Rights of the USA?”
If the answer is, “Yes and yes!” then we will continue to make Memorial Day and the sacrifice of those who have fallen; significant and meaningful, otherwise it’s just another day off of work.
Jim’s comment found in Moths, Man and Mao on May 7th, 2007 at 9:03 pm
A long time ago, I sat in a tiny room in the bowels of an aircraft carrier and wrote four letters to the families of squadronmates who had just been killed fighting in a war.
I felt a mass of warring emotions; Sorrow, shock, guilt and anger.
As I thought of the families of my fallen comrades I felt how deeply they would mourn the loss of their loved ones. How young wives, small children, and aged parents would cling to one another and search for causes of their pain. Yes, there was sorrow.
That morning they had flown off the ship on a mission. Something we did everyday. And that night………..they were no longer with us. The shock of such sudden death strikes deep in the core of your being. You know the risks, you know it can happen, but you push it to the back of your mind. But you are still………..shocked!
You wonder why. Why them? I’ve flown the same type missions. I’ve seen the black smudges of ack, ack. I knew they were aiming for me……..for us all. Why did I survive? What does it mean? Why them….all better men than I. So, there was guilt writ large.
Thank you Jim for your service and for your continued commitment to freedom. Your comrades will not be forgotten.
Memorial Day, 2007. Gone, but not forgotten. Shipmates, friends, and family who died while doing their duty. They are in my thoughts, particularly on this day. Join me in remembering them and honoring all who died in service to this wonderful country.
LTJG M. D. McMican
LTJG. Gerry Romano
AE-3 Bill Amspacher
ATN-2 Tom Plants
LCDR Gerry Roberts
LCDR Hal Gray
LCDR Dave Monroe
LT. Jim Owenby
1st LT Larry Goreski
“A Veteran’s Eulogy”
Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the Gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the mornings hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight,
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there, I did not die.
~ Author Unknown ~
Carbon Neutral Pawprint
This first video clip has been on YouTube for a while, but it is so delightful I never get tired of having people send it to me.
Then while the music is still fresh in your mind check out a second video production which is a fine parody on a subject that warms my heart.
Finally, I hope you give some equal time to the other side and have a laugh at George W Bush’s expense.
Note: Laugh now because in twenty years he will be considered one of our great presidents. Jimmy Carter will not be on that list. (I was wrong to vote against Reagan…please accept my apologies….I’m reformed now.)
Enjoy!
Jeep Questions About Global Warming and the New Math
There is a phenomenon that is taking over the hearts and minds of many people. It’s very big with those who feel that mankind’s presence on Earth is the cause of global warming.
There is a lot of concern out there; I know this, because of my connection to young adults. Over the last year, my wife and I have had five college students living with us at various times. Then there are their friends, who come over for assorted activities such as movie nights, jam sessions, pizza parties, ultimate games, the occasional bonfire, two back yard weddings (no shotguns) and just to hangout.
Never shrinking from my quest to learn more, I ask lots of questions. Also, I hear about the class assignments and read many of the term papers “my kids” write. There are two consistent themes which come up more-than-often in class after class, regardless of department. One is immigration and the other is global warming.
One thing that I keep hearing about is “carbon balance.” And since the internet allows us to undo ignorance quickly and sometimes even accurately, I decided to learn more. I was certain last time I sat in a class room; carbon dioxide (CO2) was NOT on the, “Oh my God! This is a bad thing,” list.
No, the environmental science nerds of thirty years ago were concerned with human introduced stuff like: dioxins, lead and other heavy metals, things like sulfur dioxide, spurious radioactive isotopes along with stuff in the wrong place like ozone at street level, heck, we even were troubled by chlorofluorocarbons.
Now I’m learning that we should have shelved all that, and been terrified by mans release of CO2 into the atmosphere.
As I’ve mentioned, I’m always willing to learn new things, so I went to the heart of the problem and learned that indeed, you and I are personally responsible for destroying the world.
But there are things we can do to redeem ourselves. Thank God! All we must do is create a carbon neutral footprint.
Step one: Identify how big a footprint you have.
Step two: Stop everything you do which creates that footprint (Unless you can affort to buy your way out: Carbon Credits)
Step three: Give a copy of Al Gore’s movie “An Inconvenient Truth” to everyone you know.
For more information, go to Zerofootprint.net. It is a very important (and popular) website which helps polluters people figure out how they can personally and corporately stop destroying the planet with dangerous CO2 emissions.
No, they don’t seem to be calling for mass suicide — yet, but they have some stated objectives which are consistent with the anti-CO2 agenda: First they make it clear they are not-for-profit. They wish to employ:
- “the best of financial engineering”
- “the best of …environmental engineering”
- “the best of …social networking tools”
- “the best of … business intelligence”
Doing this will, “…provide products and services that help” the following “…significantly reduce their environmental footprint.”
- “large corporations”
- “organizations”
- “individuals”
(Note: I shared that with you because I love mission statements and engineering. When I see the two together I cannot resist.)
In the last two days I’ve found out a lot about myself. After finding out my carbon footprint is a little over 12 tonnes. I did some math and was very confused. Here is just one of the many questions which have bounced around my addled brain.
Seems there is a new math thing going on and it is beyond the scope of this post to go into it. However, my first question that I cannot find an answer for is fair game.
I live 1.5 miles from the office and I work four days a week. The rest of the time I’m in a vehicle filled with other people heading somewhere fun or gardening in my back yard.
I recently sold my Jeep. Big, powerful, fun and a certified gas guzzler. Here is my problem. I got 14 miles to the gallon with that vehicle when I drove it sensibly. With the pedal to the metal, the big 360 V-8 would rocket all 3,200 pound of the beast forward at incredible acceleration and I could watch the gas gauge drop as if flushing the toilet. It was fun, irresponsible and hard on the wallet.
My Question: Since I only put about 3,000 miles a year on that Jeep. What is my carbon debt now that I sold it to a guy that lives over 10 miles from his work, intends to use it as his daily driver and on weekend too?
As I look at it, conservatively, he will probably put about 12,000 miles a year on my old Jeep. Let’s pretend he gets the same sensible 14 mpg I did (he wont). Now, I would think that I must take some of the responsibility for the extra carbon footprint created by the addition of 9,000 extra miles per year. I’m I right?
Not About
This is a brief post of what EarthSuit 101 is not. I just finished the book Blink. It was interesting, about rapid cognition, my only complaint was that it was too long. That’s why I’m going to spend the next minute or two telling you what EarthSuit 101 is not.
This way, it will be quicker for you. To find out what this blog is, you can read every post to date and decide for yourself. So, let me give you a gift. The following is what you wont find at EarthSuit 101.
- Anything Multilevel: I admire people who work at home and those who desire to help others succeed but give me a break!
- Fads: If it sells fast, on a wave of excitement, you won’t find it here. Life is to important to get caught up in such nonsense.
- Trendy followings: I’m not particularly charismatic. Flashy ideas and bling-things that lack substance are not of interest to me.
- Dietary regimes: We all do better when we face the facts. There is no magic diet or mystical food. If you want to lose fat; eat less, move more. Too simple? …find a more complicated blogger.
- Political Correctness: Truth is a constant; anyone who says truth is relative is either a fool or a despot.
