The Placebo Effect And How We Can Use It

The placebo effect is a very interesting Phenomena.

It is the basis of any double blind clinical trial that is used to determine if a new drug is actually effective in treating a physical condition.

A placebo is a substance that contains no active ingredients that is administered to a group of people that think that they are actually taking a drug. 

“How Does the Placebo Effect Work?

Research on the placebo effect has focused on the relationship of mind and body. One of the most common theories is that the placebo effect is due to a person's expectations. If a person expects a pill to do something, then it's possible that the body's own chemistry can cause effects similar to what a medication might have caused.”

pubmed.com

In my opinion this is a perfect example of how our thoughts create our reality.

It goes to show us that what we expect to happen will very well manifest itself and become a reality. 

You may think that I am pulling this out of perspective, but if you look at the world of positive thinking philosophy you will see that I am far from the first to make this suggestion. 

What if we would just change what we want to what we expect?

The point that I am trying to make is that if we expect what we want then perhaps we will be able to create the future that we want. 

Easier said than done, yes. But the method is that simple. 

My suggestion is to feel the way you would if you were garounted that the future that you want was going to happen. 

This is what I have been working on doing in my life and I have found it to be effective. 

I hope that this can help you as well. 

Bacopa Monnieri - Nootropics - Brain Food

So I started taking this NOOTROPIC (just a fancy name for a food supplement aimed to help brain function) and I thought I would do a little bit of blogging about the stuff that it has inside the vegan capsules. 

It was actually interesting I felt like they helped me even the first time that I took them but my wife who took them as well said they were totally bogus and did not do anything. So who knows maybe it was just the placebo effect. 

What I really wanted to write about were the herbs that it has in it.

But maybe I'll get to the other stuff as well.

But I am always drawn to the botanicals.

Because Herbal Medicine was the first thing that really caught my interest  about this whole world of complementary medicine.

The first Herb written in the ingredients is Bacopa monnieri which is a herb that comes to us from ayurvedic medicine. 

I actually feel like a lot of the herbs that have a traditional use for strengthening brain function come to us from ayurvedic medicine but I am going to have to look into that further before I can say anything.

Ok let us cut to the chase here. 

Bacopa monnieri

There is a significant amount of research out there to show that this plant MAY BE helpful for the following six things. 

• Contains powerful antioxidants
• May reduce inflammation
• may boost brain function
• may help reduce adhd symptoms
• May prevent anxiety and stress
• May help lower blood pressure levels

I am not going to go and cite all the research but if you are interested here is the link.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/bacopa-monnieri-benefits#section5

The one thing amongst the above list that I do want to touch upon is the first.

Why would the fact that it contains powerful antioxidants be helpful for brain function?

And why do we want antioxidants anyways?

I don't have the answer to these questions but I think it is important to ask the question.

The Good, Bad & Ugly of Natural Medicine

This is my second time working on this post, mainly the reason I trashed my first draft was because I got too sidetracked and lost focus.

My goal here is really to have a spot where I can refer to people where I have summed up in short my view on Natural Medicine. 

The way I got to this final draft was by recording myself speaking it out in less than five minutes, just in case that might help some-one I thought I would put it out there.

Staying focused now

Here are the bullet points.

The Good

• Focused on overall health
• Strengthening the body
• Medicine that is from nature and not a laboratory

The Bad

• Incorrect use of herbs and vitamins
• Not seeking proper medical care

The Ugly

• The big food supplement companies who focus on sales and not health

If you just read them you should be able to get the picture but I will expand on them shortly anyway.

The Good

Natural medicine is focused on the overall health of a person and not just the current issue that a person may be suffering from at the very moment. 

Health is not just the lack of disease but vibrance and energy that is balanced in all ways. 

A well trained practitioner will go through a lengthy questionnaire in order to properly judge a clients health. 

This should very well include blood test results.

Then a treatment plan is put together which would include dietary changes, exercises and possibly herbal and supplement prescriptions if needed. 

But the focus should not be just to solve the one thing that caused the client to seek the help of the practitioner but to move toward a state of health and well being.

The Bad

The bad side of natural medicine is usually the result of people who do not seek out the advice of a practitioner or the person that they are looking to for help is not properly trained. 

This is also why the whole world of natural medicine has such a bad name, because there are a lot of people who have very good intentions but not enough training.

Besides the possible bad side effects of certain herbs and vitamins, someone can be taking too much or even too little and not be getting the proper treatment.

In addition to all this because natural medicines are easy to get your hands on, some of them even growing wild in your yard, many people seem to take a DIY approach and try to treat themselves. 

While this may or may not be effective, problems arise when people are not seeking proper medical care as a result of this. 

The Ugly

Now that I am finally finishing this up I remembered that this is why I thought of this post to begin with.

The big vitamin companies that are just looking to make sales.

I am sure that no single person working for them thinks that way but the result is the same. 

Advertising gets put all over the internet that this herb, vitamin, mineral or whatever else is good for some thing and the fact is that most of the time just this one thing is not going to get the results. It has to be a combination of healthy habits as well as proper diet and perhaps if needed supplementation but that is only a small part of the equation but you will never hear that from a company that is trying to sell vitamins and herbal supplements*. 

*only when it's written like this if you are lucky.

Watch What You Think

It is not a new age theory that what we think and believe affects our health, just writing that I know that I have written it before but I guess a good statement is worth repeating. 

The physiological effects of stress on our health, such as high blood pressure and lower functioning of our immune system, are well known. 

I don't even feel the need to bring sources for these. Any internet search can show you documented proof of this and one can even do their own research by talking to people and observing to come to the same conclusion. 

What is even more interesting though is the fact that also our beliefs have such a strong effect on our health that in order for a drug to be officially recognized as being an effective cure for certain illness it needs to be tested with a double blind placebo test. 

This means that it has to be proved that it works in significantly more cases than a placebo, which is nothing more than a sugar pill. Because the fact that these people even just think that they are taking medicine causes their body to produce the desired results in some cases. 

The reason that I bring this up is because I feel like many of us are in need of a serious mental diet these days.

While the world is starting to ride the second wave of the so-called Covid-19, the fear and anxiety are more contagious than the virus itself. 

And it is my belief that they can be causing more of a health crisis as well.

But the situation is what it is and we are all in it. What is important is to be very aware of your mind and what you are letting it dwell upon.

Like I said - Watch What You Think

A few years ago I wrote a short article about the seven habits that I have used to stay healthy, I even paid a good friend to edit it for me so it would sound nicer than all of the run-on sentences in this blog post. 

For some reason though I never finished it off, it is kind of strange now that I think of it. I worked on it for so long, actually put money into it and left it 98% finished, but not all the way there. 

Anyway, here is the supper short version.

The Seven Habits For Staying Healthy And Young

• Eat fresh garlic
• Drink lots of water
• Eat leafy greens
• Drink fresh lemon juice in water first thing in the morning
• Take a multivitamin
• Get lots of exercise
• Think positive

In the full article I went into detailed clinical proof that these things work and also gave tips and examples on how they can be done. 

If you want to actually read it just let me know and maybe that will motivate me to finish it off and put it out there. 

For free don't worry. 

Spirulina - What it is And What it is Not

Spirulina - What it is And What it is Not

When the world is going through a health crisis it's important to understand what you can be doing to keep your body as best functioning as possible.

Even more so to understand what different supplements really are.

I will start with the bottom line:

Spirulina is like a natural multivitamin.

So there are so many food supplements out there that I'm sure it could get very confusing for most people to decide what to take or if to take anything at all.

The worst part of all of it is that the food supplement market has become so huge that you have all of these big companies trying to sell you their products.

I must have said it a thousand times but it's one of those things that need to always be repeated.

In a perfect world no one should need to take a pill to enjoy perfect health. We should be able to get everything that our body needs through our diet, but unfortunately so this is not the case.

You could blame it on our eating habits or the modern day food production, however you want to explain it does not change the fact. For the most part in western society we are not getting everything we need for optimal health from our daily diet.

Back to the spirulina

This stuff is a form of blue green algae that is known as superfood.

It is packed with vitamins and minerals that are not found in high concentrations in most regular diets. 

Spirulina is NOT FOR EVERYONE

There are certain people who should not take Spirulina, if you suffer from any chronic illness you should most definitely consult your healthcare provider before taking Spirulina, as well as any food supplement. 

For example you should not take Spirulina if:

• you take medication for blood clotting problems
• you take medication for immune system problems
• you suffer from Phenylketonuria

The fact is that like all food supplements Spirulina has its own triple face that I have just (this very moment while writing this) decided to call

I feel like it's being pawned out as a cure for many things that have no real clinical backing.

Don't get me wrong it is really great stuff, but...

Bottom line: Spirulina is like a natural multi-vitamin and that is why I take it.