It has been decided to make teaching of the evolutionary theory compulsory in primary schools through the UK. It is a move that has understandably been applauded by scientists, but which is bound to rile those opposed to evolution as a theory.
Recently I was stopped in the street by man dressed in a suit who I assumed was about to ask for directions. He asked me if I would mind answering a question for him, and I said that depending on the question I would of course be happy to oblige. The question was this: Do you believe in God? Read more »
As an avid football fan and someone who has sustained their fair share of injuries, I have often been jealous of professional footballers who have unlimited access to the best medical treatment money can buy. Having just spent a number of months on the NHS waiting list for key hole surgery on my knee I am always a little jealous when a footballer who has been injured that day is able to go for a scan that evening and if necessary have a surgery the following day, and then be treated to the best possible after care and rehabilitation available to them. Yet despite access to world renowned surgeons, the best physiotherapists, and world class medical facilities it appears that this is not enough for some footballers, who feel that they can get better treatment elsewhere. Read more »
Do they fail to see the irony? This week The Daily Mail reported on a new book that dispels a number of health myths (the book is called “Don’t Swallow Your Gum: and Other Medical Myths Debunked”). They open with: “Every day you hear or read things about your body and health that are simply not true. In many cases they’ve been scientifically discredited, yet these medical myths endure.” They point out classic myths such as the one that claims we only use 10 per cent of our brains (although if this were true it may help explain why The Daily Mail is still around…), or the misconception that the flu jab can cause the flu.
The Mail seems rather bemused at the level of belief in these medical myths: as if they are not quite sure why it would be that people would believe such nonsense. Naturally, they would never be so foolish as to make any such claims that the flu jab causes the flu it is designed to prevent, although they did get pretty close just last month.
Whilst I am all for The Mail helping to dispel these sorts of things, and if they really are so clueless as to why people believe such myths, perhaps they should start by taking a good look through their own archives. A good place to start would be here, although a book debunking all of the rubbish The Mail has given us could make “War and Peace” look like a light read.
It had been a while since the newspapers told us to drink red wine in order to receive a health benefit. There has been plenty of reporting in recent years suggesting that a glass of red wine a day can reduce the risk of heart problems; articles talking of the virtues of the Mediterranean diet and how it’s the red wine causing the lower rates of heart disease in a very specific population, and nothing to do with any other aspects of lifestyle, and so on.
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The Daily Mail has reported on the stress busting properties of milk. It seems a protein in milk known as Lactium could be the answer. The protein they are actually talking about is called casein (also mentioned in the article as a stress relieving protein), whereas Lactium is the compound that has been created from casein by French company Ingredia, who are promoting it as a way to “manage chronic daily stress as well as occasional stress”, apparently with no toxic side effects. This sounds pretty good.
Apparently there is scientific evidence in animals and in humans demonstrating the effects of Lactium in stress. According to the article Lactium has only been tested on 190 volunteers but one theory of how it works is that it “acts on receptors in the brain that help control anxiety and stress”. It is not mentioned which receptors or why this might be the case. A search of pubmed quickly reveals, well, very little. There are no articles about Lactium or casein in relation to use in combating stress in humans. From searching through Google it looks like the 190 volunteers who have been tested came from 5 studies that are not easy to get hold of. One such paper by Dr Marta Santuré tested Lactium against placebo. It is not clear which journal this study is published in, or if it is published at all. It measured the effects of stress in 63 women who were suffering from at least 1 symptom of stress, measured by an unnamed questionnaire that is not described. Somewhat unsurprisingly it has favourable results showing that in 5 out of 8 areas of stress (remember that the participants had to have at least 1 symptom, and since no further participant information is given, it is unclear how many participants fell into each group) Lactium was significantly better than placebo. The researcher even suggests that the insignificant results such as in locomotive symptoms could have been significant if they hadn’t been masked by the troublesome placebo effect. Interestingly, despite giving a ringing endorsement for Lactium, showing positive results at a dosage of 150mg/day the LactiumUSA website where this research is linked from claims that Lactium has been proven effective in humans at 167mg/day.
So how did this little known effect of Lactium find its way to the Daily Mail? It may just be coincidence, but at the bottom of the article is the answer to the question of where to find this remarkable product in the UK: Boots. They are selling “Equilibrium” containing Lactium at a price of £9.99 for a 14 day supply. The boots website has this to say about it “This product contains Lactium a unique ingredient which is proven to help with the stresses of every day life, helping you through a stressful day” and “This one a day supplement contains the patented ingredient Lactium. All Boots vitamins and suppliers are checked to ensure they meet our high quality and safety standards”. Presumably Boots had more luck tracking down the other 4 studies showing safety and efficacy data.
Evan | Friday, 11 December, 2009
