High Energy Drink Display

A recent study by Melanie Heckman and Dr. Elvira Gonzales de Mejia has found that Yerba mate tea and green coffee may contribute to the prevention of obesity and aid in “long-term weight maintenance.” Their detailed study of energy drinks, published in May 2010 on Wiley.com’s Online Library, uncovered some interesting data regarding the health benefits of their ingredients. The drinks are touted for their energy boosting properties which supposedly “improve mood, enhance physical endurance, reduce mental fatigue, and increase reaction time,” all of which are affect the growing sleep deprived population. The secondary perk of obesity prevention and long term weight maintenance should certainly stimulate increased sales for their growing market.

The energy drink market has experienced exponential growth in the last few years. Energy drinks now comprise 62.6% of the functional beverage overall market. In 2008 the US accounted for $7.6 billion of the $26.9 billion worldwide market. The energy drink segment amounted to $4.8 billion in 2008 and it is expected to reach $19.7 billion by 2013. The popularity of the market has expanded from the initially targeted 18-34 year old age group using the drinks to compensate for a lack of sleep to drinks designed for women, drinks designed for athletes, and drinks in powdered form to be added to water for travelers and people constantly “on the go.” More health conscious people are being drawn to more natural alternatives, gluten-free, diabetic, and vegetarian friendly versions.

A growing concern is the use of energy drinks mixed with alcohol which effectively masks the signs of intoxication. The typical drowsiness seen when intoxicated is hidden by the stimulation prompted by the caffeine. Further research in this area needs to be done.

Caffeine, of course, is the primary ingredient in the majority of the energy drinks. It is used to stimulate the central nervous system. It is supplied by brewed coffee, yerba mate, and green tea. Caffeine has been confirmed by many studies to increase the secretion of epinephrine, the power booster of the body. It is responsible for the heightened alertness of the “flight or fight” response to danger. The “fight or flight” response increases the brain’s information processing system speeding awareness, attention, and reaction times. Caffeine has also been shown to reduce the effects of sleep deprivation.

Taurine is another concentrated ingredient found in 21% of energy drinks. It is the “most abundant amino acid found naturally in our bodies.” Taurine aids in the digestion of lipids. It is important to brain, nervous system, and cardiac functions. It is an antioxidant, an immune function regulator of white blood cell production, a calming influence on the brain, and a performance enhancer for athletes.

Guarana, from the Paullinia cupana plant, is another ingredient rich in caffeine that has been shown to increase mental alertness, fight fatigue, and increase endurance. It contains up to three times the amount of caffeine as coffee, but is much slower to release its effects. It is a “timed release capsule” of caffeine. It is also a popular ingredient of herbal weight loss pills due to its lipid metabolism or fat burning capabilities.

Ginseng is an ingredient used as a stress fighter, a fatigue fighter, and an immune function stimulator. A Southern Illinois University study in 2002 helps to explain the popularity of energy drinks containing ginseng. The study found that it increases libido and copulatory performance in male mice, greatly increasing its desirability as an aphrodisiac for the 18-60 year old male market.

Yerba mate, from the Ilex paraguariensis plant, is the main ingredient of yerba mate tea which has been consumed in South American countries for centuries. Its rich assortment of amino acids, minerals, vitamins, and other phytochemicals play roles in inhibiting inflammation, diabetic reactions, and oxidative stress. It has also been shown to help control obesity and to reduce LDL-cholesterol in individuals under statin therapy. Yerba mate’s high caffeine content, as a central nervous system stimulant, provides the main reason for its inclusion in many energy drinks. One 8 oz cup of yerba mate tea delivers the equivalent (78mg) of caffeine to an 8 oz cup of Red Bull.

B vitamins are the vitamins that play essential roles in cellular processes. The regular diet of an average person will contain the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of these water soluble vitamins as they are found in many popular foods. A typical energy drink container (250ml) “may contain 360% of the RDA of B6, 120% of B12, and 120% of B3 (niacin).” “Drinks like 5-Hour Energy contain 8333% of the RDA for B12 and 2000% of the RDA for B6.” The B vitamins act as coenzymes in the metabolism of carbohydrates, in fat synthesis, and in fat breakdown. All excess B vitamins beyond the RDA are flushed out of the system since they are water soluble.

More and more, high energy drinks are incorporating other antioxidants like pomegranate and acai to the already mentioned yerba mate, green tea, and ginseng in order to attract more health conscious consumers. They can also be expected to add more vitamins and minerals, weight control formulations, and low sugar options to expand their dynamic market.

I have not been a fan of energy drinks in the past, but the Heckman and Gonzales de Mejia study has convinced me to give them a try. Our increasingly sleep deprived populace will certainly be happy to hear that their high energy elixirs also assist in the prevention of obesity and long term weight maintenance. “Hmmm…these taste pretty good. I thought they would be much more syrupy.” The sleepless and tired are already sold. Soon there will be countless others reaching for the magic in the cans.

Energy Vending Machine

Will the school pop machines, recently emptied of non-diet type soft drinks, be replaced by Red Bulls, Rockstars, Sambazons, Sobes, Venoms, Monsters, Full Throttles, Zolas, NOSs, and Java Monster Mean Beans? We’ll know in a few months…no make that days…no make that hours…no make that minutes…doesn’t matter…gotta get going…no, I am going! CHARGE!

"Red Bull Elevation Charge"

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

MQ-8B

A renegade U.S. Navy MQ-8B Fire Scout Vertical Takeoff and Landing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) invaded the restricted…and sleeping…airspace of Washington, D.C. last week. Most of the nation is still unaware of the most recent incursion into the highly restricted airspace because few media sources covered the dangerous invasion, probably in response to government requests. Where was the protection assigned to this critical airspace? Why are we flying drones over densely populated civilian airspace when the FAA has supposedly not yet approved their use? How was this drone able to evade the sleeping radar protecting our capitol’s skies? Where was our Department of Homeland Security? Was the department in bed with the FAA, sound asleep, as the drone approached? Many questions regarding this invasion need to be asked of both Homeland Security and the FAA.

The Navy’s Fire Scout MQ-8B is a Schweitzer 333 helicopter developed by Northrop Grumman-Ryan Aeronautical of San Diego. It is capable of traveling up to 110 nautical miles, remain airborne (up to 20,000 ft) for more than 5 hours, and can carry a payload of up to 270kg (594 lbs). It can take off and land on its own. The MQ-8B is radar and laser equipped and can be armed with two four-packs of 2.75in laser-guided rocket launchers. The UAV is not small enough to easily evade radar systems. It is 31.7 ft long and 9.8 ft tall and weighs 3,150 lbs loaded with fuel. A Rolls-Royce 250C20W heavy fuel turboshaft engine powers the aircraft. The UAV has already undergone extensive testing onboard the USS McInerney. How was an unmanned aerial vehicle of this size able to evade Department of Defense, Homeland Security, NSA, and FAA security measures long enough to get within 40 miles of the capitol?

The invasion of the renegade drone is not expected to delay further testing, development, and integration of the MQ-8B systems into littoral combat ships for operational use. The Navy awarded a $32.9 million dollar second year contract to Northrop Grumman-Ryan to build the systems. The renegade UAV incident was described as “learning experience” by Capt. Tim Dunigan, the Fire Scout’s program manager. The “software anomaly” which allowed the UAV to drift away from the control of its ground station has already been corrected. Rob Murphy, a team leader for the Scout program, said the incident helps people to understand the safeguards that are in place. “The operators did lose communication, but they were able to regain it. The system operated like it was supposed to,” he said. Flights of the MQ-8B, grounded for a couple of weeks, were expected to resume this month.

David Vos, senior director of unmanned aerial systems for Rockwell Collins and a member of AUVSI’s UAV Advocacy Committee, was quoted in DefenseNews.com saying, “I’m pretty confident that despite these little hiccups, that this decade is when unmanned aerial systems really begin to find their way into commercial airspace.” He said the industry needs “all the cultural elements and different groups involved to stop being fearful and start moving along” on the commercial airspace issue.

Our fears are apparently as misguided as are the systems controlling Mr. Vos’ UAV and as misguided as Homeland Security, the NSA, and the FAA in their security protection systems. We should just petition the FAA to approve the use of UAVs in civilian airspace? I have no doubt that President Obama is already on the verge of doing so since he is so enamored by UAVs that he suggested (in jest, of course, at a recent Washington Formal Prom) using them on the Jonas Brothers if they came after any of his daughters. Imagine our commercial civilian skies invaded by UAVs being operated by law enforcement agencies, by weather research agencies, by energy companies tracking pipelines, by businesses spying on their competitors. Randy Babbitt (FAA Administrator), who “brilliantly” stated recently that “landing is one of the most critical phases of flight,” will certainly succumb to the pressures of a President who loves his “predator drones.” His concerns for safe landings and take offs of civilian aircraft in cluttered air space will die in a crash with this President’s arrogance of power.

Civilian safety in the air, the stated mission of the FAA, pales in comparison to the threat of UAVs in the hands of terrorists. Less than two weeks ago, Iran President Ahmadinejad unveiled their first domestically built UAV bomber, the “Karrar,” which Iranian media claims to be capable of “long-range attacks up to 1,000 kilometers carrying a 200-kilogram bomb.” He called it “a symbol of death to Iran’s enemies.” His next words then described the drone as “a messenger of salvation and dignity for humanity.”

Drones over civilian skies in America are nothing more than a threat to our liberty. Jerome Whitehead, in  “Drones Over America: Tyranny at Home,” reminds us of James Madison’s words:

 “A standing military force, with an overgrown Executive will not long be safe companions to liberty. The means of defence against foreign danger, have always been the instruments of tyranny at home.”

We still have time to launch a defense against this attack on our liberty as well as our safety. Petition our legislators to deny the use of drones in civilian airspace. Do not allow our government another “instrument of tyranny” at home. Drones are not our “messengers of  salvation and dignity,” as some would have them take that “role.” Remember our liberty in November.

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Click HERE for a video on the MQ-8B.

See additonal postings for drones: 

           “Insomniac Spies in the Sky – Friendly or Enemy Eyes Lurking?”

           “Sleepless Drones Flying U.S. Skies Pose Threat to Public Safety”

Comments are encouraged below.

Bedbug

The headlines across the U.S. today are screaming the resurgence of bedbugs:

• “Anguish: US Grapples With Bedbugs As EPA Limits Options”
• “When bedbugs attack, homeowners get desperate”
• “Bedbugs Attack Woman for Nearly a Year”
• “Eeek! Are Bedbugs Becoming National Security Issue?”

In January of this year I posted an article entitled “Mattress Outlet Poker: ‘Buy In’ is Cheap, but Stakes are High!” In it I discussed the risks involved with buying used mattresses which are often labeled by unscrupulous dealers as “manufacturer’s seconds.”  The hitchhikers and stowaways hiding in used mattresses and in used furniture have launched a monumental troop surge attacking primarily the Midwestern and the Eastern fronts of the U.S.. Their victims are being left sleepless, tired, and scratching. Their victims are being displaced to living rooms, family rooms, and porches as their bedrooms are being besieged by the pesticide resistant strains of the attackers. Not only are the victims of these tiny pests being forced from their bedrooms, they are left sleep deprived and scratching 24 hours a day as they attempt to find a strategy to counterattack the bedroom terrorists. Victims are being subjected to the life endangering side effects of sleep deprivation.

Bedbug Bites

Bedbugs are a ruthless and resilient species. Their life cycle inspires fear in anyone who has ever experienced their bite. A good video on how to identify bedbug bites can be found HERE. A UC Davis article describes the bed bug lifecycle as follows:

“Female bed bugs lay 200 to 500 tiny, white eggs in batches of 10 to 50 on rough surfaces such as wood or paper. Glue-like material covers the eggs, which hatch in about 10 days. After hatching occurs, the eggshells frequently remain stuck in place. There are five progressively larger nymphal stages, each requiring a single blood meal before molting to the next stage. The entire life cycle from egg to adult requires anywhere from 5 weeks to 4 months, depending on temperature and availability of food (blood). When temperatures are in the range of 70° to 82°F, development occurs most rapidly.

 Nymphs and adults generally feed at night and hide in crevices during the day. Common hiding places include seams in mattresses and box springs, cracks in bed frames, under loose wallpaper, behind picture frames, and inside furniture and upholstery. Occasionally people pick up bed bugs in theaters or on buses and trains. They also can bring them into their home on clothing, bedding, luggage, or firewood.

 Bed bugs can go without feeding for 80 to 140 days. Older stages of nymphs can survive longer without feeding than younger ones, and adults have survived without food for as long as 550 days. A bed bug can take six times its weight in blood, and feeding can take 3 to 10 minutes. Adults live about 10 months, and there can be up to 3 to 4 generations of bed bugs per year.”

Further reading reveals that the most effective technique for eliminating bed bugs is to hire a professional heating service that can heat the room to very high temperatures. Heating the room for two hours at 140°F, or three hours at 130°F “will kill most bed bugs and eggs.”  Other techniques involve insecticides, boric acid, diatomaceous earth, fumed silica, etc. Most of them need to be combined with frequent monitoring, as they are not totally effective. Meticulous laundering of bedding, high temperature drying, and thorough vacuuming are all necessary.

In early February I posted “Update on Bed Bugs” in which I described a dry ice trap designed by a Rutgers University duo: Changlu Wang and Vincenzo Avarello. Their inexpensive alternative to professional pest control services is described here:

The dry ice trap is constructed with  a 64 ounce double bowl cat feeder, a 1/3 gallon insulated container, and bottle of talc powder. The jug is used to hold the dry ice. As the dry ice warms to room temperature it, it releases carbon dioxide gas which attracts the bed bugs. The 1/3 gallon container is capable of releasing the gas for 10 to 12 hours. The cat feeder dish needs to be wrapped very tightly with a white cloth to allow a surface for the bed bugs to easily crawl up. The inside bottom surfaces of the inverted cat feeder are then coated with a thin layer of talc. The powder will prevent the bed bugs from escaping the trap. The filled dry ice container is then placed on top of the dressed and treated inverted cat feeder with the lid of the container left slightly open. Some warm water should be barely cover the bottom of the trap to kill the bed bugs that become trapped.

The trap should now be placed in or around the suspected bed or sofa. Late afternoon is best for set-up as bed bug activity begins at night. Use one trap per room, and check the traps in the morning. One trap can catch as many as a thousand bugs per night, “depending on infestation levels.”

I have yet to receive any comments as to the effectiveness of this inexpensive alternative to the high costs of professional services. If anyone has tried this trap and found it to be effective, your comments would be welcomed by all who are plagued by these unwelcome attackers. A complete construction plan can be found  in an article by Barb Ogg at the University of Nebraska, Lancaster.

The bedbug attacks have prompted at least five states to call in the Department of Defense to request money to combat the bloodsucking terrorists. Ohio petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to allow the use of the pesticide Propoxur to defeat the enemy, but the EPA denied the request based upon concern for its effect on children. The EPA set up a meeting with representatives of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Defense to discuss the attack which is “not yet a national security issue.”

Bedbugs, nearly eradicated from the U.S. in the 40s and 50s through the use of DDT, have developed a resistance to the weaker pesticides that replaced it. Pest control companies are limited by EPA regulations and their approved substitutes. While the EPA searches for newer, more potent chemicals to kill the bloodsucking terrorists, the victims continue to scratch their arms, their faces, their backs, their breasts, their buttocks, and their legs.

Hopes for a quick solution to this war on the bedroom terrorists appear dim in light of the other wars our government is currently battling. The costs to fight this battle will, no doubt, be borne by the victims of this war. As they “scratch” around for the money to pay the exterminators, the doctors, and the retailers to salve the itching, we hope they don’t fall victim to the often fatal ravages of sleep deprivation.

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Click HERE for an Emmy Award winning documentary on bedbugs.

For an interesting National Geographic video on bedbugs click HERE.

Comments are welcomed below.

Awaken Your Sleeping Giant

It’s been almost a year now since I retired from the grinding schedule of retail sales. I’ll never miss the mandatory work on weekends and holidays. I’ll never miss the ten to twelve hour days during the week. The missed ball games, the missed school functions, and the missed quiet free time to just “be there” for my wife and for my three sons will always haunt me. The past week’s joyous celebration of my youngest son’s wedding, the time gifted to me in my retirement, and Glenn Beck’s inspirational “Restore the Honor” gathering in Washington, D.C. today have awakened my sleeping giant. I have, after sixty-two years, done an instant replay of my life. It’s the kind of review that people usually see when they have a near death experience. That sleeping giant, your inner true self, once found, releases an amazing inner calm. The inner calm empowers your mind to focus, to love life, to relax, and to sleep like a baby.

Society today teaches us to disguise our inner selves. We are taught to hide our true feelings and to mask them with a hardened, defensive body armor. We are taught in our early childhood by our parents and our teachers that the world is a cruel place. The bullies are everywhere. They will make fun of our weaknesses and our mistakes. They will step on us in their efforts to promote themselves as more powerful, more intelligent, or more privileged. The more we expose our inner selves the more vulnerable we become. We are taught that “white lies” are okay as long as they are used to protect ourselves or our loved ones. Once the “white lies” begin, the telling of them becomes easy. The truth is stretched further and further until the “white lies” begin to darken. The magic of the “white lies” grows with the realization of their power. The power of the lie soon darkens its color. We realize quickly that the lie can be used to gain power, to defeat the competition, to hold others in our grasp. The lies told by others soon define us. Their criticism eventually defines us. We identify with and believe the negative feedback. Our true self, our inner soul, tunnels further and further beneath the surface of our increasingly hardened armor.

The cynicism displayed by the electorate today, the tea party movement, and the dissatisfaction with Congress and the President reflected in the polls today are all direct results of the lies we hear coming from their mouths. The electronic age has given us the recording tools we need to hold them accountable for what they have said vs. what they have done. We see now how they have gained their power. We hear them referring to us as the “regular” people or the “general public.” Some have even referred to us as the “little” people. The elite media has joined the people in power in Washington. They try to tell us how we should think. The politicians tell us that they know what is best for us and that they will do it regardless of what we think. Judges are increasingly joining their ranks in defying the referendums approved by the electorate, many of which have been repeatedly approved by the electorate. Our legislators, in Washington and in the states, have forgotten what inspired our Founders to declare our independence from Great Britain. The following phrases from our Declaration of Independence may be worth reading (a skill missing from most legislators today) and remembering:

• “HE (the King of England) has combined with others to subject us to a Jurisdiction foreign to our Constitution, and unacknowledged by our Laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:”
• “FOR suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with Power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.”
• “That to secure these Rights (Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness) Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government…”
• “—And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”

We have accepted the lies of our legislators for too long. We have accepted their lies for so long that finding the truth has taken way too much time. We are in the process of awakening the sleeping giant of truth. The hundreds of thousands who gathered at the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial reflected upon truth, honor, and the virtues of Faith, Hope, and Charity. Medals of Honor were awarded to heroes who have exemplified those virtues.  The Medal for Faith went to Houston Minister C.L. Jackson. The Medal for Hope went to Albert Pujols whose foundation is dedicated to the victims of Down’s syndrome. The Medal for Charity was given to Jon Huntsman, a billionaire philanthropist who has dedicated himself to the eradication of cancer, to the homeless, to the ill, and to the underprivileged. His lifetime contributions to his causes have well exceeded 1.2 billion. His book, “Winners Never Cheat: Everyday Values We Learned as Children (But May Have Forgotten)” and the second edition, entitled “Winners Never Cheat: Even in Difficult Times,” are both best sellers. Mr. Huntsman’s intention is “to die broke” as he has donated his fortune to cancer research.

 Honor was also given by Sarah Palin to military heroes present at the rally. Marcus Luttrell, Navy Cross for Heroism awardee and author of “Lone Survivor” was there. He, along with his fellow Navy Seals decided to release a couple of Afghan goat herders despite fears of Taliban attacks on their observation post. Their “honor” resulted in the largest loss of life in Navy Seal history. Another hero lost his hands in Fallujah and still guided his men to safety. Another had endured five years of torture and imprisonment at the Hanoi Hilton prison.

The time has come for all of us to return to the truth and heroism of “thine own self.” As Shakespeare said in Hamlet:

“This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.”
              –Polonius’ last advice to his son, Laertes

In order to accept truth we need to become the masters of our thoughts. We need to recognize our weaknesses and appreciate our strengths. Yes, we will risk the exposure of our vulnerabilities, but truth will bring forth new life and forge new strengths. When we become honest with ourselves, we do not need the approval of others. Our emotions can free their bonds of suppression, releasing a freedom that exhilarates the soul; a freedom that allows us to walk in love, to relax in peace, and to sleep like a baby.

Once we find our own “sleeping giant” we can demand the truth from others. Only then can we restore the honor envisioned by our Founders for our Government.

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. Proving "Muscles Remember" after 2nd round knockout in 1st match after 21 mo. retirement

J. C. Bruusgaard and Kristian Gundersen and fellow researchers at the University of Oslo in Norway bring great news to the physical fitness world. Sports professionals, novices, and the rest of us who jump in and out of various fitness routines will be cheered by their findings. The research may pose future problems for athletes who have been boosted by steroid usage in the past. Bruusgaard and Gundersen, along with their associates, have found that previously trained (hypertrophied) muscles retain their memories of past strengths long after they have fallen asleep (temporary laziness) or gone into hibernation (quit). The muscles, once atrophied and shrunken due to their lack of exercise, are quick to awaken and to recover their lost mass and strength.

The researchers reported in the August 16^th issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that “in one study on elderly individuals who had strength-trained, force was still 9-14% higher even after 2 years of detraining.” They also reported that “during 30-32 wk of detraining, a group of women lost a considerable part of the extra strength obtained by 20 wk of previous training but regained the strength after only 6 wk of retraining.” This is great news for all of us who fade into and out of regular exercise programs. Distractions, work issues, sickness, sleep problems, and other happenings in our busy world offer quick and easy excuses for us to put off temporarily (hopefully) or permanently (regrettably) the benefits gained from regular exercise.

The mechanism of how muscles remember is quite simple. When the muscles are newly trained they form many new myonuclei in the fibers. The myonuclei then stimulate an increase in the cytoplasmic volume of the cells. The cross-sectional area (CSA) of the muscle fibers correspondingly increases. During the 21 day period of training the study found that “the number of nuclei started to rise after 6 days and seemed to stabilize after 11 days.”  The CSA “increased only after 9 days and stabilized after 14 days.”  CSA increased 35% and the number of myonuclei increased by 54%. Subsequent disuse for 14 days resulted in a decrease of 40% CSA but a statistically insignificant drop in myonuclei. The myonuclei enable higher protein synthesis capacity. When retraining resumes the step during which the myonuclei are formed is quickly bypassed, saving time and effort. In effect, the sleeping muscles awake and quickly “pump up” to their previously achieved volumes. New, previously unattained levels of achievement will result in the formation of new myonuclei and new CSA.

This phenomenon can be confirmed by almost anyone who has focused on a rigorous physical training program, dropped it for a while, and then returned to seek its welcome benefits. It helps psychologically to have the reasons explained by science and then to rationalize a break from the boredom of sticking with the “program.” The far better alternative is to “stick with the program” and continue building your myonuclei for increased CSA. People nearing senescence would be well advised to “fill up” your muscle fibers with nuclei now in order to reduce muscle problems in the future. “Sleeping muscles remember their better times!”

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Comments are encouraged below.

The Brain after REM Sleep

Having spent nearly twenty years in the retail mattress world, I used to hate to hear the words, well, I think we’ll have to sleep on it.” The “ha, ha” that followed for the pun on “sleep” in a mattress store was humor wasted on a salesperson who had heard the phrase at least a couple of times a day, every day for the last twenty years. The words usually meant that the customer was too confused by the choices or too fearful of making the wrong decision. The wrong decision on a mattress purchase can definitely impact one’s “quality of life.” Sleep deprivation is a growing problem in today’s increasingly stressful world even with a good mattress set to sleep on. The fear of making a decision usually results in procrastination. Delays often stretch into years beyond the knowledge that action needs to be taken. Many critical decisions in life suffer the same thought processes, the same fears, and the same delays. It’s easy to say, “Let’s just sleep on it,” and delay the decision for another day. With each day of indecision the problem intensifies. We lose more and more sleep and the problem persists. Recent scientific experiments have found that “sleeping on it” and “dreaming about it” will actually help to solve the problem, enabling us to find the solution and to conquer the problem.

Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep is the answer. Sarah Mednick, PhD., and assistant professor of psychiatry at UC San Diego, has shown in her studies that REM “directly enhances creative processing more than any other sleep or wake state.” ScienceDaily.com reports that her findings show that REM sleep fosters the formation of associative networks in the brain.” Dr. Mednick says that “for new problems, only REM sleep enhances creativity.”

Dr. Mednick used a Remote Associates Test (RAT) to test for creativity in her participants. They were shown multiple groups of three words (such as: cookies, heart, and sixteen) and were then asked to come up with a fourth word that could be associated with all three (sweet was a good answer). Participants were tested in the morning and again in the afternoon. Some were allowed a nap with REM sleep, some without REM sleep, and some with only a quiet rest period. Memory tests were done on all three to test for prior exposure to this problem, but none were detected, eliminating memory biases. The participants with non-REM sleep and those with a quiet rest period showed no improvement in the afternoon test. The REM sleep group showed an almost 40% improvement over the others in their afternoon tests. Dr. Mednick hypothesizes that REM sleep alters the neurotransmitter systems to allow for new associative networks from previously unassociated information. The new associative networks lead to “creative problem-solving.”

Dr. Robert Stickgold, PhD., and assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, has done similar experiments proving that people who “sleep on it…feel less cluttered in the morning. Much of the excess detail is gone, and the important facts seem clearer.” William Cromie from the Harvard Gazette reported on Dr. Stickgold’s experiment with the computer game Tetris. In it players must position falling blocks and place them into filled lines. Gaps in the lines lose the game. Players going to sleep on game days were woken up every few minutes during the first hour of dozing to ask them about their dreams. Most players dreamt of images falling or rotating. Some of the dreams went from the colored experiments to black and white images, from the experiments conducted with musical background to silent ones. There were no memories of the room, the chairs, the desk, or the keyboard; only the falling, rotating pieces. Less relevant information seems to get discarded by the brain during the dream processing period. “Your memory isn’t large enough to store all the minor things you experience every day,” according to Dr. Stickgold. The participants who improved the most after their sleep were those who had slept for eight hours, time enough for ample sessions of both slow-wave and REM sleep. Those who didn’t dream at all about the game did not improve at all. More details can be found in Scientific American.

What seemed most amazing to Dr. Stickgold was the fact that the amnesiacs in his experiments also reported Tetris images in their dreams. Amnesiacs supposedly cannot remember anything due to damage to the hippocampus, the area of the brain where memories first form. He concluded that sleep-onset images don’t come through the hippocampus, as previously thought. He believes they go directly to the cortex where associations form.

Dr. Stickgold suggests that during dreams, “communications between the hippocampus and the cortex are cut off. Bits of memory float around…the brain attempts to paste them together to form some sort of coherent “story.” Sometimes that story provides a valuable insight or association.”  He thinks that “these dreams involve a search for new and creative ways to put memories and ideas together. They can make associations that we wouldn’t make when we’re awake.”

Dr. Mednick, Dr. Stickgold, their associates, and other researchers continue to seek more answers as to why we should “sleep on it” before making our decisions. The “pun” expressed to a mattress salesperson will certainly not elicit many laughs, but we can now understand why “sleeping on it,” “dreaming about it,” and, subsequently,”conquering it” makes a lot of sense.

Sleep tight, dream well, and have fun with your decisions!

Copyright 2010.  All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Sleeping (left) vs. awake (right) synaptic protein brain cell images of fruit fly. Credit: Courtesy of UW Health Public Affairs

The scientific world studying the relationship between sleep and the brain is wrapped in a cloud of controversy. The discussion and the experiments continue in the effort to clarify the exact roles played by REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep and non-REM sleep in the learning processes of the brain. One side of the argument asserts that REM sleep is the VCR that records and re-records the important details of the day’s waking hours. The other side argues that REM sleep is when the hippocampus and the pre-frontal cortex disconnect allowing for free association, new connections, creativity, and solutions to complex problems. It will probably be years before we know which theory is correct, but we do know that sleep deprivation inhibits the learning process. Ask a student whether he would stay up all night tonight studying for a final if he had another final to study for the following night. The answer would probably be something like, “Are you nuts? I’d be brain dead tomorrow. There’s no way!” Sleep is the synaptic protein burner. It is the critical catalyst to new learning. While science attempts to discover where and when the burning occurs, we can rest assured that “sleep allows the brain to regroup after a hard day of learning.”

 Giorgio Gilestro, Giulio Tononi, and Chiara Cirelli have found in their research at The University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health that synaptic protein levels “drop by 30 to 40% during sleep.” “The brain uses up to 80% of its energy to sustain the synaptic activity” of the day’s ever-changing impressions. Their studies have shown that four pre-synaptic proteins and one post-synaptic protein in the brains of both fruit flies and rats rise during waking hours and fall after sleep. ScienceDaily.com reports that the researchers believe “sleep—by allowing synaptic downscaling—saves energy, space and material, and clears away unnecessary “noise” from the previous day.” The refreshed brain “is then ready to learn again in the morning.” Tononi hypothesizes that the weakening progresses throughout the cycling in and out of REM and non-REM sleep, leaving only the strongest connections.

Paul Shaw, PhD., and assistant professor of neurobiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, supported Gilestro, Tononi, and Cirelli’s findings in his study of fruit fly brain cells. He found, according to ScienceDaily.com that new brain synapses form during learning experiences. When the fruit flies slept the new synapses deceased. When sleep deprived, the fruit flies did not show the decrease in new synapses. Shaw explained that “there are a number of reasons why the brain can’t indefinitely add synapses, including the spatial constraints of the skull.” His theory gave ScienceDaily.com the title for their article: “Sleep May Help Clear Brain for New Learning.”

The contrarian view is supported by data compiled by Marcos Frank of the University of Pennsylvania. ScienceNews.org reports that his experiments with kittens show that “sleep strengthens connections between brain cells rather than weakening them.” Ripple activity during sleep appears to replay the synaptic firing in the same sequence as the actual daytime experience when the kitten was exploring his new maze.

Matt Wilson from MIT found that rats and mice experienced replay of the day’s events during slow-wave or non-REM sleep, “but the timing is compressed.” REM sleep replays events “in real time, and not always in the same order as the way they actually happened.” He attributes the difference in timing to the hippocampus/cortex connection.

Sciencenews.org  reported in the same article a study by Robert Stickgold and Erin Wamsley at Harvard Medical School which found that humans who dreamt during a nap after playing with a virtual reality maze performed better than those who did not. More remarkable was the fact that those who thought of the maze as they were falling asleep or who dreamt of the maze before they awoke performed ten times better than other nappers. Stickgold postulates that REM sleep temporarily disconnects the hippocampus and the cortex. The interrupt frees the cortex for disparate associations and solutions. “What your brain is leaving you with in the morning is a memory which is less accurate, but more useful,” he says.

The arguments over strengthening connections and weakening connections during sleep and REM vs. non-REM sleep benefits will continue to be studied and debated for years. Gilestro, Tononi, Cerelli, and Shaw have proven that synaptic proteins decrease during sleep and increase while we’re awake. Sleep, we know, is an indispensable catalyst to learning. Our body needs to drink of its refreshment. Our brain needs to consume its food for survival. Dr. Shaw says, “Right now a lot of people are worried about their jobs and the economy, and some are no doubt losing sleep over these concerns. But these data suggest the best thing you can do to make sure you stay sharp and increase your chances of keeping your jobis to make getting enough sleep a top priority.”

Ready for a nap? Or, will you be going to bed early tonight?

May your dreams be “synaptic protein burners.” Shopping for Sleep? Please click HERE, or look for it at Amazon.com

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Antidepressants/SSRIs

The FAA announced in April ( see previous post) that its pilots could be permitted to fly while under the influence of certain antidepressants and SSRIs. The reversal of its own long established (70 year) ban against their use shocked pilots, passengers, and psychiatrists across the globe. As antidepressant/SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) use has decreased due to negative publicity, the manufacturers of Prozac, Zoloft, Celexa, and Lexapro cheered the move by Randy Babbbitt (FAA Administrator). The FAA, despite an increasing flood of calls to reconsider its ruling, appears to be sleeping through the irritating clamor; tired of hearing about their fatigued, sleepless pilots.

The Citizens Commission on Human Rights International / Mental Health Watchdog recently reprinted an article by Evelyn Pringle who described the FAA’s reversal as a “marketing coup” by the drug manufacturers who are “desperate to find new customers.” Her well documented article details the growing concerns of many experts that the “SSRIs Render Unfriendly Skies.”

The Citizens Commission on Human Rights called on the FAA to rethink its policy based on a recent finding by the NTSB that the February 1, 2008 plane crash in North Carolina, killing all six aboard, was caused by “a crazy acting pilot on Zoloft.” The cockpit voice recorder recorded the pilot singing: “Save my life I’m going down for the last time.” He then told his passengers, “If anybody back there believes in the good Lord, I believe now would be a good time to hit your knees.” The pilot descended below the minimum descent altitude, stalled, and crashed while circling after an aborted landing. The pilot, according to the NTSB report, had been on Zoloft for over a year and had been treated previously by other antidepressants for “anxiety and depression” and a history of “impatience” and “compulsiveness.”

The NTSB also blamed a 2003 crash killing two in Kingsport, Tennessee on a flight instructor found with Zoloft in his blood and liver.

Dr. Peter Breggin, a psychiatrist and an SSRI expert, in a Huffington Post article on April 10, 2010 said, “The FAA should reverse its ruling before it’s too late and hundreds of lives are lost when a pilot becomes impulsive, suicidal, or violent – or just loses his sharpness – under the influence of antidepressant medication.”

Bob Fiddaman, author of the website and blog “Seroxat Sufferers,” requested the FAA provide information on its change in policy just after the change in April. In 58 pages of reply the FAA made no mention of any prominent SSRI expert testimony of contrary views. The FAA supported their own views with copies of documents from a variety of sources. One of them actually showed consideration of a 2003 study of aviation accidents where “SSRIs were found in 61 pilot fatalities between 1990 and 2001.”  “Psychological condition and/or the drug use was determined to be the cause, or a factor in 16 of the accidents, or 31%.”

Dennis Canfield’s study “Pilot Medical History and Medications Found in Post Mortem Specimens for Aviation Accidents” was totally ignored by the FAA. His study was conducted in 2006 and was published in the “Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine” journal. 4,143 pilots involved in fatal accidents between 1993 and 2003 were toxicologically examined for medications. One hundred of the dead pilots were found “with SSRIs in their systems including forty with Prozac, twenty-six with Zoloft, twenty-one with Paxil, and thirteen with Celexa.”

Matt Thurber, after citing many examples of accidents involving antidepressant usage, suggests that “pilots who use antidepressants without telling their medical examiners are willing to take greater risks when flying.” The FAA believes that SSRIs help “restore the balance of serotonin.” The FAA believes that their approval for use will result in truthful admissions by pilots; more vigilant tracking; and safer use, with fewer side effects than previous generations of antidepressants. The labels on the prescription bottles argue otherwise with warnings of “anxiety, agitation, panic attacks, insomnia, irritability, hostility, aggressiveness, impulsivity, and akathisia (psychomotor restlessness).

Dr. Breggin asks why pilots shouldn’t give up their airplanes since doctors are supposed to encourage their depressed patients to give away their guns. How can the FAA expect us to believe that we are safer in planes being piloted by depressed pilots on psychoactive drugs? They are dangerous enough when used alone. When combined with alcohol and benzodiazepines to counteract the insomnia side effects of the antidepressants, the elixir will inevitably cause a disaster.

Millions of innocent lives are at risk every day with sleepless and tired, or medicated and drowsy pilots at the stick. It is time for frequent drug testing of pilots. It is time once again to ground the pilots on antidepressants. A pre-flight test for alertness should also be mandatory. It is time for the FAA to turn off the “machine” and to answer the calls for repeal.

For related posts see:

• Sleepless and Tired Pilots Given Okay for Antidepressants on the Job!
• Tired, Sleepless, And Antidepressant Medicated Pilots Spell Human Error Disasters?
• Pilot Fatigue/Sleep Monitoring Program Largely Ignored by FAA/NTSB
• Air India Crash Leaves Smoking Hole at the End of the Runway
• FAA and NTSB Sound Asleep. Pilot Fatigue Screams the Alarm Again!
• Pakistan Air Lines President Blames Sleepless, Tired Pilots for Crash

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Ping Fan Memorial in Manchukuo, China

Rumors were rampant yesterday that President Obama through U.S. Ambassador John Roos was going to apologize to the Japanese for the bombing of Hiroshima. Mr. Roos headed the American delegation sent to the Hiroshima Memorial on its 65^th Anniversary. Representatives from 75 countries were scheduled to attend the ceremony. President Obama is expected to visit Japan in November. Terumi Tenaka, a survivor of the 1945 bombing and now Secretary General of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Associations, said “the best thing they (U.S.) could do would be to apologize. But I doubt that is going to happen.”  President Clinton today weighed in on the subject saying that the U.S. owed no apology to Japan for dropping the bombs and that President Truman made the right decision to use them. He is absolutely correct in his opinion. No, we should not apologize to Japan. Not in your wildest dreams, Ms. Tenaka and Mr. Tadatoshi Akiba (Mayor of Hiroshima)! We should NEVER apologize nor ever consider doing so until:

• Japan apologizes for the unprovoked attack on Pearl Harbor killing 2350 Americans
• Japan apologizes for the Rape of Nanking in 1937 killing 300,000 civilians. The raping of 20,000 to 80,000 women went along with the unconscionable murders.
• Japan apologizes for the vivisections performed on thousands of men, women and children at Zhong Ma Prison Camp and later at Unit 731 in Ping Fan. Unit 731 called their human victims “maruta” or “logs” since the facility was disguised as a lumber mill.
• Japan apologizes for Yoshio Tachibana’s cannibalism and torture of POW’s at Chichi-Jima.
• Japan apologizes for the unrepentant General Shiro Ishii and Dr. Masaji Kitano for their grotesque human experiments on unsuspecting captives.
• Japan apologizes for Dr. Ishiyama Fukujiro, Dr. Hiroko Goichi, Miss Tsutsui Shizuko, and Komori, and their fellow faculty of “medicine” members at Kyushu Imperial University in Fukuoka where in 1945 they practiced vivisections on captured American flyers. Cannibalism was mentioned, but there were no convictions.
• Japan apologizes for the Kempeitai soldiers who brutally raped and sexually tortured their captive “comfort women” at night after torturing their male captives by day.
• Japan apologizes for 400,000 or more Chinese deaths in villages intentionally afflicted by clothing and food drops infected with cholera, anthrax, or the plague.
• Japan apologizes for General Ishii’s plans to use “balloon bombs loaded with biological weapons to carry cattle plague and anthrax on the jet stream to the west coast of America. And for his plan to use a submarine and a light plane carried on board to launch a kamikaze mission against San Diego.
• Japan apologizes for the “regular injections of infectious diseases, disguised as harmless vaccinations,” which were given by visiting doctors from Unit 731 to POW’s at Mukden. Major Robert Peaty, senior British officer at Mukden, recorded in his diary on January 30, 1943 that “everyone received a 5cc typhoid-paratyphoid A inoculation. On February 23, his entry read: “Funeral service for 142 dead. 186 have died in 5 days, all Americans.” More inoculations followed.
• America apologizes to her WWII veterans for the cover-up of these details as part of the negotiations for the Japanese to surrender. “General MacArthur granted immunity to members of Unit 731 in exchange for research data on biological warfare,” according to an alarming story by Christopher Hudson in dailymail.co.uk. The data disappeared after it was given to President Truman.
• President Obama tells the world that our bombs “saved” the lives of millions of Americans, Brits, Aussies, Russians, Chinese, Filipinos, Mongolians, Koreans, and, yes, even Japanese lives. He needs to do so with the same conviction he displays when talking about the jobs he has “saved.”

Many of the men who committed these crimes escaped punishment. Before fleeing after Japan’s surrender, General Ishii ordered the slaughter of the remaining 150 “logs” at Unit 731. General Ishii died at his home of throat cancer at the age of 67 after a prosperous life. Other members of Ishii’s team, granted immunity by MacArthur, advanced to prominent careers after the war. Masaji Kitano, commander of Unit 731 who succeeded Ishii, became head of Japan’s pharmaceutical giant, Green Cross. Only one building is left at Ping Fan. It serves as a grim reminder of the torture, the vivisection, and the brutal human experimentation that occurred there. The specimen jars are gone, including the six footer which once contained “the naked body of a Western man, cut vertically in two pieces.” The dark memories of those who knew will remain forever. Many Americans, to this very day, are unaware of Japan’s diabolical history. Its history had been locked away in our government vaults until 1993, when U.S. Defense Secretary, William Perry, “under pressure, promised to declassify records of the WWII experiments.” Despite the release of those records, most Americans have never heard the gory details. Will those who now know still support an American apology? I think not.

No, we are not likely to ever hear an apology from Japan. The unrepentant Dr. Ishiyama Fukujiro who committed suicide before facing his war crimes charges went to his grave with the words, “I do not know how to apologize. I bow and pray for the Emperor.”

Wars cost lives, but they should be fought to win. The hands of our military should never be bound by the shackles of politics. No, we should not; and, I hope, will not apologize to the Japanese for winning the war the Emperor provoked. Not now; not ever; at least, not until…

God Bless America! May our heart-felt thanks go to all who have served; and, especially, to those who have suffered or died as a result of Japanese atrocities.

Click here to visit an informative slideshow on the Ping Fan Memorial.

For readers requesting more information on this subject, the following books are suggested:

• "Factories of Death: Japanese Biological Warfare 1932-1945 and the American Cover-Up" by Sheldon Harris
• "Unit 731 Testimony" by Hal Gold
• "Prisoners of the Japanese: POWs of WWII in the Pacific" by Gavin Daws
• "A Plague Upon Humanity: The Hidden History of Japan’s Biological Warfare Program" by Daniel Barenblatt
• "Hidden Horrors: Japanese War Crimes in WWII" by Yuki Tanaka
• "The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of WWII" by Iris Chang

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.

Vaccine: Choice or Mandate for the Future?

Governments worldwide are anxiously awaiting further tests on a new vaccine announced yesterday by Rachel Quigley in her Mail Online article from the UK. Dr. Robert Sapolsky, a professor at Stanford University, is “on the path to a genetically engineered formula that would remove the need for relaxation therapies or prescription drugs.” His studies on glucocorticoids, the hormones chiefly responsible for our fear responses, have led him to the vaccine which works on rats. He admits that human trials are years away. Will the strong-armed governments of the world, seeking to calm the sleepless and sometimes angry public masses controlled by them, allow the tests on humans to wait that long?

Glucocorticoids are essential for life. They are present in the cells of almost all vertebrates. Cortisol is the most important human glucocorticoid. It “regulates or supports a variety of important cardiovascular, metabolic, immunologic, and homeostatic functions.” Cortisol, along with adrenalin, works to assist the brain in remembering stressful and dangerous situations. Those memories stimulate the fear and flight responses to dangerous situations that may confront us in the future. It is vital to the survival of the species.

Dr. Sapolsky thinks that the human species produces too many glucocorticoids and that man cannot turn them off after stressful situations. He claims, according to Quigley’s article, the hormone “becomes toxic both biologically, by destroying brain cells and weakening the immune system, and socially, when people continue to snap at their friends or family hours after the original cause of tension has vanished.”

The “Sapolsky shot” utilizes a herpes virus carrying genetically engineered “neuroprotective “genes to “neutralize the rogue hormones.” The shot supposedly short circuits the brain’s natural response to stress. Claims are that “It would leave you fresher and ready to deal with another threat, so you can maintain your drive, but with more focused calm.”

How will the short-circuited brain remember the stressful situation? Will a future similar threat be ignored by the chemically altered passive brain? Research in this important area must be done before human trials are initiated.

The FDA, with its quick approvals of fluoride additions to water supplies, aspartame and acesulfame potassium addition to foods, drinks, and medicines, despite studies proving their harmful effects, does not inspire confidence. Headlines across the internet already shout the “brain-eating” and “lobotomizing” effects of the “Sapolsky shot” as well as the conspiratorial applications of this vaccine as a secret additive to government required vaccinations worldwide.

Billions of dollars are being donated by the wealthy “elite” of the world in efforts to control population growth through vaccinations. Some nations refuse the donated vaccinations because of an increase in sterility among their female populations following their widespread use. It isn’t much of a stretch to suspect the ever-reaching arms of big governments everywhere to promote the “Sapolsky shot.” They are no doubt dreaming about the future populations of calm and sleepy subjects, no longer stress-filled, sleepless, and angry about the loss of their freedoms. FDA approvals for human testing will be quickly forthcoming.  The “Sapolsky shot” is coming to a clinic near you. It will be provided free of charge by your friendly government sponsor. There are no harmful side effects according to the Center for Disease Control, the FDA, and the Administration. The supply will be “unlimited” according to Health and Human Services Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius.

The stress-filled, sleep deprived masses are already lining up for their calm inducing injections. Yoga and meditation will become a relic of the past as our minds and bodies slumber into a passive stupor of paralytic responses. As our self-preserving survival responses to stress are neutralized the pandemic of sleep deprivation will probably disappear. At risk will be our doubting responses to the threats of government theft of our liberties.

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved to Ronald Czarnecki.