WeirdMedical™

Here’s a heart stopper – bad for you but oh so yummy…

Today is good ol’ Pennsylvania Dutch Fastnacht Day or Shrove Tuesday. The PA Dutch ladies could sure cook and bake even better! And just less than 2 weeks after Go Red for Women Day, February 5. But these lovely ladies of German decent came long before the American Heart Association,  the American College of Cardiology and our First Ladies of our nation teamed up to make us feel guilty… or worse being scared out of our whits… for being a few pounds over-weight.

But that’s fine – we Americans can endure. So let’s take February, this month of dichotomies, and throw caution to the wind…let’s eat a fastnacht or three…

This Fastnachts image was taken from the website – BellaOnline -
Sandy Moyer, BellaOnline’s Home Cooking Editor.
…then let’s go for a 10-mile run!

Who would have thought that avoiding osteoporosis would be such yummy fun?

We now have new evidence that beer is more of a health food than originally thought. It’s been discovered that silicon found in commercially produced beer promotes strong bone development.

Researchers from the Department of Food Science & Technology at the University of California, Davis have proven there is a relationship between commercial beer production methods and producing a final end product rich in silicon essential for greater bone mineral density.

According to the lead author of the study, Dr. Charles Bamforth, “The factors in brewing that influence silicon levels in beer have not been extensively studied. We have examined a wide range of beer styles for their silicon content and have also studied the impact of raw materials and the brewing process on the quantities of silicon that enter wort and beer.”

“Beers containing high levels of malted barley and hops are richest in silicon,” Dr. Bamforth concluded.   [See February 2010 issue - Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Society of Chemical Industry.]

So beer once again is king...and ounce-for-ounce it’s easier on our budgets than wine!

picture courtesy Sirtified’s Blog

No more wine for our cardiovascular systems…let’s drink a few beers to our skeletal health!

Ready for a 6 hour journey of the emotions?

Funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, a three episode PBS series is exploring research into human emotion. Want to know the secret to happiness? This third episode in the series promises to offer insight provided by cutting edge science on happiness. It will most assuredly provide less weird but more interesting answers…

Source: The Seattle Times

TONIGHT’S EPISODE? –>

“Rethinking Happiness”

‘Tis the season for merriment!

One of the most popular consumables used for bringing in the New Year is alcoholic beverages. As we all know, the effects of alcohol are governed by metabolism and drink composition. However, many of us are more concerned about the morning after a night of heavy drinking than the caloric effect.

To the rescue!…a toxicology expert and professor, Wayne Jones, of the University of Health Sciences in Linkˆping, Sweden. In this article he details all the pros and cons of drink options. Some of his suggestions may seem a bit weird but a little preplanning can not only help you remember Dec 31, 2009 but enjoy January 1, 2010…

Source: Daily Mail, UK

So if you plan to imbibe on December 31, try one of professor’s remedies!

Time to take notes from your great grandma!

In these troubled times people will find that they are required to be more resourceful with their lives. Home remedies offer an economical option for many ailments. From Netty pots to Epsom salt soaks there are many weird options that can save a trip to the doctor, and may also protect you from MRSA or H1N1. Who wouldn’t want a peppermint oil rub for a headache?

Here’ are some from the blog “Forgotten Medical Cures” to improve the iron deficiencies in your blood…

Wish to try:

– iron nails soaked in water?
– using iron utensils as well as skillets and pans?
– even viscous black strap molasses?

And only for the bold…spinach cooked with ox blood and silver beets…an acquired taste! Read more…

More than weird…yummy!

In a new 614 patient study at the University of Rochester in New York, doctors treated cancer patients who previously received chemotherapy and standard anti-nausea medication with either a placebo or three different doses of ginger (1/2 gram, 1 gram, 1.5 grams). The doctors found that ginger was effective in treating nausea and that the lowest two doses (1/2 gram and 1 gram) were the most effective out the three doses.

Although the physicians were not clear on how this weird phenomenon actually occurs in a biological sense, they do know that ginger has been reported to reduce inflammation in the stomach. The principle investigator in the study, Dr. Julie Ryan, went on to state that it is possible that with the right amount of ginger, even ginger cookies could reduce nausea. (Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE54D68I20090515)

In an earlier post we also highlighted the fact that ginger can be used to temporarily raise your IQ by as many as 10 points.

This is good news for everyone who loves ginger cookies and feels a little under the weather – eat up* for your health!

Ginger Cookies (Source: Allrecipes.com)

*Only 1/2 a gram is needed to achieve the full effect, but we won’t tell if you eat a few more just to make sure!