The history of smoking: scary documents held at UCSF.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Pauling, 1968: Small substances may control sanity
Science 19 April 1968:
Vol. 160. no. 3825, pp. 265 - 271
DOI: 10.1126/science.160.3825.265
Orthomolecular Psychiatry
VARYING THE CONCENTRATIONS OF SUBSTANCES NORMALLY PRESENT IN THE HUMAN BODY MAY CONTROL MENTAL DISEASE
Linus Pauling
1 The University of California, San Diego, P.O. Box 109, La Jolla, California 92037
The functioning of the brain is affected by the molecular concentrations of many substances that are normally present in the brain. The optimum concentrations of these substances for a person may differ greatly from the concentrations provided by his normal diet and genetic machinery. Biochemical and genetic arguments support the idea that orthomolecular therapy, the provision for the individual person of the optimum concentrations of important normal constituents of the brain, may be the preferred treatment for many mentally ill patients. Mental symptoms of avitaminosis sometimes are observed long before any physical symptoms appear. It is likely that the brain is more sensitive to changes in concentration of vital substances than are other organs and tissues. Moreover, there is the possibility that for some persons the cerebrospinal concentration of a vital substance may be grossly low at the same time that the concentration in the blood and lymph is essentially normal. A physiological abnormality such as decreased permeability of the blood-brain barrier for the vital substance or increased rate of metabolism of the substance in the brain may lead to a cerebral deficiency and to a mental disease. Diseases of this sort may be called localized cerebral deficiency diseases. It is suggested that the genes responsible for abnormalities (deficiencies) in the concentration of vital substances in the brain may be responsible for increased penetrance of the postulated gene for schizophrenia, and that the so-called gene for schizophrenia may itself be a gene that leads to a localized cerebral deficiency in one or more vital substances.
When will we act on this information?
Vol. 160. no. 3825, pp. 265 - 271
DOI: 10.1126/science.160.3825.265
Orthomolecular Psychiatry
VARYING THE CONCENTRATIONS OF SUBSTANCES NORMALLY PRESENT IN THE HUMAN BODY MAY CONTROL MENTAL DISEASE
Linus Pauling
1 The University of California, San Diego, P.O. Box 109, La Jolla, California 92037
The functioning of the brain is affected by the molecular concentrations of many substances that are normally present in the brain. The optimum concentrations of these substances for a person may differ greatly from the concentrations provided by his normal diet and genetic machinery. Biochemical and genetic arguments support the idea that orthomolecular therapy, the provision for the individual person of the optimum concentrations of important normal constituents of the brain, may be the preferred treatment for many mentally ill patients. Mental symptoms of avitaminosis sometimes are observed long before any physical symptoms appear. It is likely that the brain is more sensitive to changes in concentration of vital substances than are other organs and tissues. Moreover, there is the possibility that for some persons the cerebrospinal concentration of a vital substance may be grossly low at the same time that the concentration in the blood and lymph is essentially normal. A physiological abnormality such as decreased permeability of the blood-brain barrier for the vital substance or increased rate of metabolism of the substance in the brain may lead to a cerebral deficiency and to a mental disease. Diseases of this sort may be called localized cerebral deficiency diseases. It is suggested that the genes responsible for abnormalities (deficiencies) in the concentration of vital substances in the brain may be responsible for increased penetrance of the postulated gene for schizophrenia, and that the so-called gene for schizophrenia may itself be a gene that leads to a localized cerebral deficiency in one or more vital substances.
When will we act on this information?
Friday, April 25, 2008
Mr. Bean and Nutrition for the Brain
Video: Mr. Bean Meets The Queen
"Mr. Bean", a character created by British comedian Rowan Atkinson, lends a name to a memorable mental health site by Australian Walter Last. Visit MR. BEAN where you can enjoy Last's clear and thought-provoking writing about improving and healing your brain with nutrition.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Video: Biological Causes of Depression
Presents information on biological causes of depression, which can include adverse effects from antidepressants, and natural help with nutrition.
Pharma 2020: The Vision~Which Path Will You Take?
Read the entire 52 page report here (pdf)
By PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
that the market could be worth as much as $42 billion by 2015. Five major players –
But oncology is by far the most significant new therapeutic area; according to IMS, there are 90 therapeutic (as distinct from prophylactic) vaccines for cancer in the pipeline, and more than two-thirds of them are in late-stage development.
However, conventional vaccines are very different from other therapies in several respects. They usually require very large safety and efficacy trials using healthy volunteers; long-term surveillance to ensure the persistence of the antibodies they induce; and strict control of live materials in the manufacturing process (although new technologies are emerging, which should help to stabilise production).
More importantly still, any therapy aimed at the healthy carries a higher risk than one that treats the sick. This is not an insuperable obstacle, but it does suggest that Pharma may have to assume some
sort of underwriting role. It could, for example, guarantee to cover the medical costs of any patient
unfortunate enough to develop a disease against which he or she has been inoculated, where the patient has shown signs of a positive immune response after vaccination and the normal period of immunity still applies, in much the same way that insurance companies provide cover against accidents and thefts.
By PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
Introduction:
Demand for effective medicines is rising, as the population ages, new medical needs emerge and the disease burden of the developing world increasingly resembles that of the developed world. The E7 countries – Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Russia and Turkey are also becoming much more prosperous, with real gross domestic product (GDP) projected to triple over the next 13 years.
By 2020, the E7 could account for as much as one-fifth of global sales.
Yet the biopharmaceutical sector (Pharma) will find it hard to capitalize on these opportunities unless it can change the way in which it functions.
Its core problem is lack of productivity in the lab. Several external factors have arguably exacerbated the industry’s difficulties, but the inescapable truth is that it now spends far more on research and development (R&D) and produces far fewer new molecules than it did 20 years ago.
The shortage of good medicines in the pipeline underlies many of the other challenges Pharma faces, including its increasing expenditure on sales and marketing, deteriorating financial performance and damaged reputation.
At the start of the decade, many people thought that science would come to the industry’s rescue and that molecular genetics would reveal numerous new biological targets, but the human genome has proved even more complex than anyone first envisaged.
It is no longer the speed at which scientific knowledge is advancing so much as it is the healthcare agenda that is dictating how Pharma evolves.
The first part of our report highlights a number of issues that will have a major bearing on the industry over the next 13 years. The second part covers the changes we believe will best help pharmaceutical companies:
~operate in this new milieu
~realise the potential the future holds; and
~enhance the value they provide shareholders and society alike.
Healthy habits and fab jabs!
By 2020, the E7 could account for as much as one-fifth of global sales.
Yet the biopharmaceutical sector (Pharma) will find it hard to capitalize on these opportunities unless it can change the way in which it functions.
Its core problem is lack of productivity in the lab. Several external factors have arguably exacerbated the industry’s difficulties, but the inescapable truth is that it now spends far more on research and development (R&D) and produces far fewer new molecules than it did 20 years ago.
The shortage of good medicines in the pipeline underlies many of the other challenges Pharma faces, including its increasing expenditure on sales and marketing, deteriorating financial performance and damaged reputation.
At the start of the decade, many people thought that science would come to the industry’s rescue and that molecular genetics would reveal numerous new biological targets, but the human genome has proved even more complex than anyone first envisaged.
It is no longer the speed at which scientific knowledge is advancing so much as it is the healthcare agenda that is dictating how Pharma evolves.
The first part of our report highlights a number of issues that will have a major bearing on the industry over the next 13 years. The second part covers the changes we believe will best help pharmaceutical companies:
~operate in this new milieu
~realise the potential the future holds; and
~enhance the value they provide shareholders and society alike.
Healthy habits and fab jabs!
The vaccines sector is growing rapidly, then; there are now 245 pure vaccines and 11 combination vaccines in clinical development and some industry experts estimate
that the market could be worth as much as $42 billion by 2015. Five major players –
- GlaxoSmithKline
- Merck
- Sanofi-Aventis
- Wyeth
- Novartis (via its acquisition of Chiron)
But oncology is by far the most significant new therapeutic area; according to IMS, there are 90 therapeutic (as distinct from prophylactic) vaccines for cancer in the pipeline, and more than two-thirds of them are in late-stage development.
However, conventional vaccines are very different from other therapies in several respects. They usually require very large safety and efficacy trials using healthy volunteers; long-term surveillance to ensure the persistence of the antibodies they induce; and strict control of live materials in the manufacturing process (although new technologies are emerging, which should help to stabilise production).
More importantly still, any therapy aimed at the healthy carries a higher risk than one that treats the sick. This is not an insuperable obstacle, but it does suggest that Pharma may have to assume some
sort of underwriting role. It could, for example, guarantee to cover the medical costs of any patient
unfortunate enough to develop a disease against which he or she has been inoculated, where the patient has shown signs of a positive immune response after vaccination and the normal period of immunity still applies, in much the same way that insurance companies provide cover against accidents and thefts.
"The bottom line:
Unless Pharma improves its
reputation, its political, commercial
and clinical credibility will be
eroded, with serious implications
for its future success."
You think?!?!?! Let's HOPE?!?!?
And what's with calling vaccinations "Fab Jabs"?
They're acting as if it's CHIC to get a vaccination!
Anyway, now we know where 'they' plan on going in the future.
It's like a road map to the insane asylum....egads.
Unless Pharma improves its
reputation, its political, commercial
and clinical credibility will be
eroded, with serious implications
for its future success."
You think?!?!?! Let's HOPE?!?!?
And what's with calling vaccinations "Fab Jabs"?
They're acting as if it's CHIC to get a vaccination!
Anyway, now we know where 'they' plan on going in the future.
It's like a road map to the insane asylum....egads.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
25 Shocking Facts About the Pharmaceutical Industry
Image: Valley of the Dolls, movie, 1960'sFrom the Nursing Online Education Database
25 Shocking Facts About the Pharmaceutical Industry
By Laura Milligan
Researching and snagging an adequate, wallet-friendly health care plan is tough these days, despite its high-profile presence in political debates. A large part of the controversy over expensive health costs stems from criticism of high-priced medications marketed by powerful pharmaceutical companies. From Medicare fraud to CEOs worth billions of dollars, big drug companies are accused of putting profits above patients, spinning false PR campaigns and more. We've uncovered 25 of the most shocking facts about the pharmaceutical industry in this list.
Some excerpts:
The price of drugs is increasing faster than anything else a patient pays for: Marcia Angell writes in her book The Truth About Drug Companies that "drugs are the fastest-growing part of the health care bill which itself is rising at an alarming rate."
Your doctor may have an ulterior motive behind your prescription: In 2007, the St. Petersburg Times reported that drug reps often give gifts to convince doctors to prescribe the medications that they represent.
Pharmaceutical companies spend more on marketing than research: According to ScienceDaily, a "new study by two York University researchers estimates the U.S. pharmaceutical industry spends almost twice as much on promotion as it does on research and development."
Brand name meds often have a 1,000% mark-up price: Many Americans are aware that brand name prescriptions cost more than generic meds.
Read the rest here
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