Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 3 Issue 88 i The Art of Healing

The study randomly assigned 51 people in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease to either stick to their usual routines for 20 weeks or make intensive changes to adopt four new habits: • Eat a minimally processed, plant-based diet with lots of whole foods and limited refined carbohydrates, alcohol, and sweeteners • Practise moderate intensity aerobic exercise and strength training for at least 30 minutes daily • Devote one hour daily to stress management activities like meditation, stretching, and breathing exercises • Attend three hour-long group therapy sessions per week At the start of the study, and again at the end, participants completed four different cognitive function tests. Overall, the intervention group (those who overhauled their lifestyle) significantly improved their cognitive function on three tests, and made gains on the…

Cameron Burgess, National Director at the Mackillop Institute, describes the unique burden borne by aged care staff “emotional labour”. These workers carry the emotional weight of their job, which can lead to vicarious trauma. “Vicarious trauma is exposure to other people’s trauma,” Burgess explained. “This could be hearing stories or witnessing events that have the same harmful effect on an aged care staff member as if they had experienced that trauma directly.” Aged care staff are particularly vulnerable to vicarious trauma due to the nature of their work. “The end destination point for anyone in aged care is death. So that, in and of itself, is a traumatic event for anybody,” Burgess says. He further noted that aged care environments often bring unresolved personal traumas to the surface for residents,…

Published in Nature Mental Health, the researchers developed the predictive test by analysing functional MRI (fMRI) scans to detect changes in the brain’s ‘default mode network’ (DMN). The DMN connects regions of the brain to perform specific cognitive functions and is the first neural network to be affected by Alzheimer’s disease. Study co-author, Associate Professor Adeel Razi from Monash University’s School of Psychological Sciences and the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, said previous attempts at curing Alzheimer’s disease have failed because clinical trials often focus on advanced stages of the disease, where the damage to brain cells is irreversible. “Our new method for predicting who will develop dementia well in advance will be a game changer, enabling the development of therapies earlier in the disease process.” “By leveraging…

WELLNESS | Retreat/Spa Reviews in Bali Where is this destination? Located in the hills of Nusa Dua in Bali, the mission of Revivo is to provide a beautiful, safe and supportive environment to visitors and assist them through their selected program on a journey of selfdiscovery, healing and mind-body harmony. Programs The wellness programs crafted for Revivo have been inspired by local and ancient healing traditions, and designed to maintain or improve specific emotional, physical and mental health by combining elements of spa, movement, nutrition, and sleep. (At the time of writing) retreats available at Revivo included: • Detox & Cleanse • Destress & Relax • Vitality & Longevity • Mindfulness & Emotional Balance • Sleep Well & Reset • Organic Weight Loss & Reshaping I chose to experience the…

Gua Sha, which translates to “scraping fever or pathogen, “has its roots in ancient China. It is believed to have been practised as far back as the Paleolithic Age, where early humans used stones and animal bones to scrape the skin and relieve pain. Over time, Gua Sha became an integral part of traditional Chinese medicine. Ancient Chinese texts, such as the Shang Han Lun (Treatise on Cold Damage Disorders), mention techniques similar to Gua Sha to treat fever and other illnesses like cough or flu. Gua Sha has a proud tradition throughout its history of being of the people. It was passed down from generation-to-generation within families and communities in China and East Asia to preserve their health and well being. In Vietnam, it is known as “cao gió,”…

SERVES 6 (AS A SIDE) You can use the pilaf base of this salad with any vegetable combination. Sometimes I use roast carrots and red grapes instead of cauliflower or serve the base plain with currants and almonds stirred through. If you don’t have any stock, you can cook the freekeh in water—it just won’t be as rich. INGREDIENTS 2 heads cauliflower, broken into florets 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to finish 1 brown onion, diced 1 tbsp butter 2 cups (400 g) freekeh 2 cups (500 ml) hot vegetable or chicken stock 1 cup (40-60 g) chopped mixed parsley, mint, dill and spring onion (scallion) 1/4 cup (35 g) chopped hazelnuts, roasted flake salt, freshly ground black pepper and lemon to taste Dressing: ½ cup (130…

The Royal Australian College of GPs President Dr Nicole Higgins said: “Nearly half of all Australians have one or more chronic diseases - we need to invest more in prevention and management in primary care, so people don’t end up in hospital. The RACGP is calling for higher patient Medicare rebates for longer consultations to better support Australians with chronic disease. This care is complex, and GPs need more time to spend with patients. The rebate is the amount the government pays to subsidise healthcare for Australians. And in the current cost-of-living crisis it’s more important than ever that the government subsidies cover the cost of providing care, so it’s affordable for everyone. But after decades of underfunding of general practice care, including the 10-year Medicare freeze, the recent rebates…

Children learn much about selfregulation - that is affective, mental, and behavioural responses to certain situations - during their first few years of life. Some of these behaviours are about their ability to choose a deliberate response over an automatic one. This is known as effortful control, which is learned from the environment, first and foremost through children’s relationship with their parents. Now a team of researchers in Hungary and Canada has investigated to see if parental digital emotion regulation leads to the inability of children to effectively regulate their emotions later in life. “We found that if parents regularly offer a digital device to their child to calm them or to stop a tantrum, the child won’t learn to regulate their emotions,” said Dr Veronika Konok, the study’s first…

For the study, scientists tested levels of 12 different types of plastic in 23 testes taken from male cadavers that ranged in age from 16 to 88 years old at the time of death. The average concentration of microplastics in testicular tissue taken was 329.44 micrograms per gram of human testicular tissue. “Microplastics and nanoplastics are everywhere,” says a co-author of the study, Matthew Campen, PhD, a Professor and the Director of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque who studies environmental toxins. Scientists found that the most common plastic found in both human testicular tissue was polyethylene, which is used to make plastic bags and bottles. “We do not have solid data linking the plastics to health outcomes yet,” Dr. Campen adds. “But the declining global…

Clinical practice guidelines contain recommendations on how health practitioners should both diagnose and treat medical conditions, as well as prescribe medicines. As the potential benefits and harms of medicines can change for each individual over time, medication reviews and deprescribing guidance should be considered an essential part of the prescribing process. Instead, the research team found only 29 per cent of guidelines contained a deprescribing recommendation. Of the 80 guidelines they found which included deprescribing recommendations, most did not have detailed information on how to deprescribe. The study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) Quality and Safety and led by the Centre for Medicine Use and Safety (CMUS) within the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, identified guidelines from Europe, North America, Australia, Asia and Africa published in the last…

The analysis shows Australia has surpassed the U.S. as the world’s biggest consumer of textiles per capita, much of which is fast fashion that ends up in landfill. Key Findings ■ Australians buy an average of 56 new clothing items a year, more than the U.S. (53), U.K. (33 items) and China (30). ■ The average value per item purchased by Australians is AUD $13, far lower than the U.K. ($40), U.S. ($24), Japan ($30) or even Brazil ($16). ■ More than 200,000 tonnes of clothing end up in landfill each year, the equivalent weight of almost four Sydney Harbour Bridges. Fast fashion waste could be curbed through policies including: ■ A French-style fast fashion tax ■ Banning the export of textile waste within five years ■ Government-funded discounts for…

More than 300 million children a year are victims of online sexual abuse and exploitation, according to an estimate of the global scale of online sexual abuse. Around one in eight children worldwide (approximately 302 million children) have been victims of non-consensual taking, sharing and exposure to sexual images and videos in the past year. Furthermore, one in eight children globally is estimated to have been subject in the past year to online solicitation, such as unwanted sexual talk, which can include non-consensual sexting, unwanted sexual questions, and unwanted sexual act requests by adults or other youths. Offences can also take the form of “sextortion”, where predators demand money from victims to keep images private to abuse AI deepfake technology. The findings have been published in a report released by…

WELLNESS | Retreat/Spa Reviews in Bali THE FOUNDER MARYAM PUTU DOLIVECK (PUTU) Putu is from The Balinese Royal Family of Karangasm and was raised learning the traditional dances, healing arts and the culture of Bali. She has a deep connection to the island and its people, and brings these influences into Floating Leaf’s Melati Spa which incorporates centuries-old royal Balinese secret treatments. She also lets her guests know when religious and cultural events are taking place such as ceremonies, palace visits and other ‘little-known’ experiences and tours you are unlikely to find elsewhere. Where is this destination? The Floating Leaf is located on the east coast of Bali, about 18kms north of Denpasar airport among the rice fields of Bali’s Gianvar region. The land for the Floating Leaf was initially…

Firstly Gretchen, how would you describe neuro-associative art therapy? Neuro-associative art therapy (NAT) is a form of psychotherapy which uses visual art as the medium of expression to support behavioural change. NAT is really good for people processing trauma, or for people who haven’t had much success with traditional talking therapies. What led you down the path of neuroassociative art therapy? I’ve always been interested in people and aesthetics. I originally studied psychology before doing a fine arts degree. And because I love seeing people do well and also being good at what I do, I chose a neuro-associative path of study so I could become a more effective mentor and coach. Seven years later I emerged as a neuro-associative clinician. Covid then impacted my decision to move to the…

Caused by the body over-reacting to an infection, sepsis can damage vital organs, cause cognitive impairment and disability, and in the worst cases prove fatal. In the most extreme cases of sepsis, known as septic shock, vitamin C levels in plasma are severely reduced. So researchers from the University of Melbourne decided to trial animals (in this case sheep) on sizeable doses of the vitamin’s salt, sodium ascorbate. The changes seen in the experiments were huge. “I have never seen such a dramatic response to treatment as occurred after we intravenously administered a megadose of sodium ascorbate to our clinically relevant large animal model of sepsis,” says cardiovascular physiologist Clive May. Sepsis wreaks significant havoc in the brain’s frontal cortex, where the body’s movements, speech, and emotional expression are controlled.…

Need another reason to reach for olive oil when you cook? A new study suggests that having just a little bit each day might help reduce your chances of dying with dementia. Scientists examined data collected over almost three decades on about 93,000 middle-aged adults. At the start of the study, participants were 56 years old (on average) and had no history of cardiovascular disease, a major risk factor for dementia. Every four years, participants completed dietary questionnaires detailing what foods they typically ate and indicating how often they consumed olive oil: no more than once a month; up to 4.5 grams (g), or 1 teaspoon (tsp) daily; between 4.5 and 7g (1.5 tsp) daily; or more than 7g daily Compared with people who rarely if ever consumed olive oil,…

The trip, researchers claim, “is among the longest documented for individual insects, and is potentially the first verified transatlantic crossing.” The incredible discovery was made after more than a decade of mystery. It all started in 2013, when a flock of fatigued butterflies landed on the beaches of French Guiana. The entomologist, Gerard Talavera, who found the insects resting on the sand, was shocked. These were painted lady butterflies a common species with stable populations found on every continent except Antarctica and South America. For years Talavera was left wondering: how did the insects get to South America, and where did they come from? At last he has an answer. Analysing the DNA of pollen left on the butterflies, Talavera and his colleagues at the Botanical Institute of Barcelona have…

Six in ten Australians have reported that diet and fitness content on social media impacts their body image. Nearly two thirds have said they compare their image to what they see on social media, and over a thirda greed that social media has a ‘negative effect’ on their body image. Gen Z are most likely to be influenced by social media to change their eating habits or fitness routines; and almost half considered acting on health and fitness advice shared by a creator on social media. To combat the unintended impact of appearance-led content, Instagram and Butterfly have brought together six Australian creators for a social content series called ‘Enter the Chat’. Housed on Butterfly’s Instagram (@thebutterflyfoundation), the series considers the impact of social media on body image, and shares…

Results presented at the Digestive Disease Week 2024, an international gathering of gastroenterology professionals, showed a 500 percent increase in colon cancer cases among children ages 10 to 14 between 1999 and 2020. In the same timeframe, among teens aged 15 to 19, colon cancer has grown by 333 percent, while young adults aged 20 to 24 have seen a rise of 185 percent. “Our findings were unexpected, given the historical perception of colorectal cancer as primarily affecting older individuals,” says lead researcher Islam Mohamed, MD, an internal medicine resident physician at the University of Missouri in Kansas City. “The notable percentage change is alarming, signalling a need to address and mitigate this trend.” While the percentage shifts were remarkably high, Dr. Mohamed notes that the increase in the number…

WELLNESS | Retreat/Spa Reviews in Bali Where is this destination? The Bodhi Leaf Wellness is a new resort that opened in June 2024. It is also owned by Maryam Putu Doiveck (Putu) and is located about a kilometre away from The Floating Leaf. Programs The most popular programs that were being offered at The Bodhi Leaf during my stay were the Shamanic Healing with a traditional Balinese healer, Transformational Healing, and the Yoga Restore package. However as it is new, some programs are still being developed My experience and what makes this destination special? I was excited about my visit with the Balinese healer. My driver took me initially to his home about a 40 minute drive away from the retreat, where we sat on a small deck and he…

One day, many moons ago, I was travelling into the city on the train with a double pram. It was one of those prams that is like a bunk bed, so one kid gets all the view and the other one gets all the farts. My baby girl was in the top part of the pram, facing me so we could make ‘goo-goo’ eyes at each other, while my toddler kicked back in the bottom. Stuffed into the netted hammock underneath this beast of a contraption was the survival accoutrement required for parenting in the wild - snacks, toys, water, various bum-cleaning gear shoved in (I was never an organised, nappy-bag kind of Mum) and spare clothes in case a poonami hit. A tinny voice announced my impending stop and…