A Periodic Look at Elements
It’s National Chemistry Week! To celebrate, we’re looking back at a few recent blog posts highlighting elements important for human health and scientific research. Check out the posts and tell us what your favorite element is in the comments section!
Credit: Adapted from Compound Interest. CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
Got Calcium?
Calcium is the most abundant mineral in our bodies. It’s essential for lots of important functions—including keeping bones strong and allowing muscles to move. Even clicking on this post to learn more about its many roles requires calcium!
Credit: Adapted from Compound...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - October 18, 2023 Category: Research Authors: Chrissa Chverchko Tags: Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmacology Element Source Type: blogs
Science Snippet: Antioxidants Explained
Many types of fruits, vegetables, and legumes are rich in antioxidants. Credit: iStock.
While at the grocery store, you’ve likely noticed foods with labels saying they contain antioxidants, but what does that mean? In short, antioxidants are substances that may prevent or delay some types of cell damage. Many foods, including fruits and vegetables, naturally produce antioxidants like vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, and selenium. Our bodies also naturally produce antioxidant molecules such as alpha-lipoic acid, glutathione, and coenzyme Q10.
Antioxidants are united by their ability to donate electrons, whi...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - July 5, 2023 Category: Research Authors: Chrissa Chverchko Tags: Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmacology Science Snippet Source Type: blogs
Got Calcium?
Someone’s hand moving to scroll through this blog post is possible because of a mineral that both gives bones their strength and allows muscles to move: calcium. As the most abundant mineral in our bodies, it’s essential for lots of important functions. It’s found in many foods, medicines, and dietary supplements.
Calcium keeps your bones strong, allows your muscles to move, and is important for many other bodily functions. The element is found in foods, medicines, and the world around us. Credit: Compound Interest CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Click to enlarge.
Committed to Critical Duties
For athletes, calc...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - February 1, 2023 Category: Research Authors: Chrissa Chverchko Tags: Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmacology Molecular Structures Cellular Processes Diseases Proteins Source Type: blogs
So Much to Do, So Little Selenium Needed
You may know that antioxidants can help protect your cells from oxidative damage, but do you know about selenium—an element often found in special proteins called antioxidant enzymes? Selenium is essential to your body, which means you must get it from the food you eat. But it’s a trace element so you only need a small amount to benefit from its effects. In addition to its antioxidant properties, it’s also important for reproduction, DNA synthesis, and hormone metabolism.
In our bodies, selenium works in antioxidant enzymes to help protect us from oxidative damage. The element is also found in antidandruf...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - December 21, 2022 Category: Research Authors: Chrissa Chverchko Tags: Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmacology Molecular Structures Cellular Processes Proteins Source Type: blogs
A New Method for Calculating Selenium Content and Determining Appropriate Selenium Levels in Foods
Abed Forouzesh (University of Tehran), Fatemeh Forouzesh (Islamic Azad University), Sadegh Samadi Foroushani (University of Tehran), Abolfazl Forouzesh (Islamic Azad University), A New Method for Calculating Selenium Content and Determining Appropriate Selenium Levels in Foods, SSRN (2022): Calculating the selenium... (Source: HealthLawProf Blog)
Source: HealthLawProf Blog - August 23, 2022 Category: Medical Law Authors: Katharine Van Tassel Source Type: blogs
8 Foods I ’ve Added to My Diet to Enhance My Health
Some nutritionists believe that food is medicine. I’m not sure if I want to go through life taking nothing but chicken soup every time I get sick, but I pay attention to what I put in my mouth and its effects on my body.
As a result, I’ve eliminated many products from my meals over the years, but what I gave up, I made up for in healthier additions. Here are eight foods I’ve added to my diet to enhance my health and why.
1. Beets
Your thoughts might not turn to this root vegetable until it’s time to make red beet eggs for your next picnic. However, including more of them in your weekly diet could help your...
Source: PickTheBrain | Motivation and Self Improvement - March 11, 2021 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Kara Reynolds Tags: diet featured health and fitness self-improvement food mental health pickthebrain Source Type: blogs
Strengthen Your Immune System! Your Guide to The Ultimate 2021 New Year ’s Resolution
Optimizing your immune system has perhaps never felt as critical as it does going into 2021. In 2020, we saw the emergence of the novel pathogen SARS-CoV-2, and the spread of its resulting disease, COVID-19. While this virus is novel, your immune system is anything but. In fact, your immune system has evolved over millions of years into an extremely complex and intricate network of cells and molecules that keep you alive on a daily basis. And, fortunately, there are steps you can take to help it function to the best of its ability.
Immune System Basics
All immunity can be broken down into two categories: innate and...
Source: GIDEON blog - January 5, 2021 Category: Databases & Libraries Authors: Kristina Symes Tags: News Tips Source Type: blogs
Whole grains or no grains? Food labels can be misleading
Food labels contain a wealth of information: calories, serving size, and the amounts of fat, sugar, vitamins, and fiber contained in a food, among other things. But do consumers know how to effectively use this information? A recent study showed that some consumers are struggling, especially when it comes to understanding whole grains.
Recent study highlights consumer confusion
For the study, published in Public Health Nutrition, researchers conducted two experiments to examine consumer understanding of whole grains on food labels. The research, which focused on food labels on bread, cereal, and crackers, was done online a...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - September 30, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Katherine D. McManus, MS, RD, LDN Tags: Health Healthy Eating Nutrition Source Type: blogs
Synthetic Melanin Protects from Radiation Damage
Researchers at Northwestern University have developed a new biomaterial, selenomelanin, that can help protect people from radiation. The new substance, chemically synthesized and produced by bacteria, helps protect cells from radiation more effectively than other forms of melanin. One day, it may be used in sunscreens, medical treatments, or for long-term spaceflight as a radioprotective material.
In medical imaging, air travel, and space travel, there is often unwanted exposure to radiation. Traditional radioprotective materials such as lead are heavy, making transportation and use difficult and in many cases unfea...
Source: Medgadget - July 14, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Siavash Parkhideh Tags: Cardiac Surgery Dentistry Dermatology Materials Nuclear Medicine Oncology Orthopedic Surgery Public Health Radiation Oncology Radiology Space Medicine Source Type: blogs
Will vitamin supplements make my hair grow? Episode 224
Welcome to the Beauty Brains, a show where real cosmetic chemists answer your beauty product questions and give you an insider’s look at the cosmetic industry.
Hosts: Perry Romanowski.
On today’s show we’re going to answer questions about…
Whether beauty supplements can make hair & skin look better
What exactly is skin pH
And whether you have to mix products exactly to get them to work?
Beauty Science News
Does SPF 100 work better than SPF 50?
CIR releases latest findings
Beauty Questions
Question 1 – Clare – I want to grow my hair longer – it’s taking too long – Vita gummy hair gr...
Source: thebeautybrains.com - June 19, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Perry Romanowski Tags: Podcast Source Type: blogs
COVID-19: Hidden Coinfections and Chain Reactions Parasitic Infectious Relationships within Us
By SIMON YU, MD, LT COL, USA (Ret)
Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), opened up a new front in the Coronavirus War by saying we don’t just need to treat the acute disease, we need to treat the underlying conditions that make people more susceptible to serious disease progression. He focused on heart disease, and managing mitigating risk factors such as CVD, diabetes, hypertension and smoking in order to increase people’s odds for recovery. The initial focus has been pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), with risk factors including asthma, chr...
Source: The Health Care Blog - April 15, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Christina Liu Tags: COVID-19 CDC chronic disease holistic care Pandemic SDoH Source Type: blogs
Hydrogen Suppression in Molfiles
ConclusionThe assignment of hydrogen counts to hydrogen-suppressed molecules is an important and error-prone step when reading or writing molfiles. Contrary to first appearances, the molfile format imposes very specific rules in this regard. The error-free exchange of chemical structure information requires that all of these rules be followed. (Source: Depth-First)
Source: Depth-First - April 14, 2020 Category: Chemistry Authors: Richard L. Apodaca Source Type: blogs
Eating to Heal the Mind
Generations of moms and grandmothers have gone to their gardens and cupboards to heal ailments of all kinds. Herbs, medicinal recipes (including chicken soup), and vegetables are gaining the attention of doctors and scientists, who rely on controlled studies rather than anecdotal evidence to prove what works in the body reliably and safely. Today, just as throughout history, in every culture, there are foods that can be used as medicine, but can what you eat affect your mental health as well? Is it possible to treat things like anxiety and depression with food?
Research is showing the Mediterranean Diet and the DASH Diet...
Source: World of Psychology - December 26, 2019 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Jan McDaniel Tags: Alternative and Nutritional Supplements Mental Health and Wellness Depression food Mood Disorder Mood Swings Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, July 22nd 2019
This study elucidates the potential to use mitochondria from different donors (PAMM) to treat UVR stress and possibly other types of damage or metabolic malfunctions in cells, resulting in not only in-vitro but also ex-vivo applications.
Gene Therapy in Mice Alters the Balance of Macrophage Phenotypes to Slow Atherosclerosis Progression
https://www.fightaging.org/archives/2019/07/gene-therapy-in-mice-alters-the-balance-of-macrophage-phenotypes-to-slow-atherosclerosis-progression/
Atherosclerosis causes a sizable fraction of all deaths in our species. It is the generation of fatty deposits in blood vesse...
Source: Fight Aging! - July 21, 2019 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Common Dietary Supplements Have Little to No Effect on Mortality
Yet another sizable study has shown that common dietary supplements have little to no effect on late life mortality. This finding of course has to compete with the wall to wall marketing deployed by the supplement market. Researchers have been presenting data on the ineffectiveness of near all supplements of years, but it doesn't seem to reduce the enthusiasm for these products. In the past it was fairly easy to dismiss all supplements as nonsense, or at the very least causing only marginal effects that were in no way comparable to the benefits of exercise and calorie restriction, but matters are now becoming more complex....
Source: Fight Aging! - July 19, 2019 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs
