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  • Gaming to boost mental health: 5 tips from a psychologist

    Gaming to boost mental health: 5 tips from a psychologist

    Video games are an undeniably good way to unwind, escape reality, and have some fun — but they’re also a double-edged sword. Beneath specified conditions, actively playing video clip online games can easily morph from a exciting and lighthearted action to a problematic actions that qualified prospects to irritability, dependancy, and social isolation. So what’s the best way to navigate this slippery slope? Is there a way to enjoy all the mental health and fitness rewards of gaming whilst averting the pitfalls?

    To get some steerage, we bought in touch with Dr. Kelli Dunlap, a scientific psychologist, match designer, and educator with a enthusiasm for all points gaming and mental well being. In this article are a handful of suggestions and tidbits that will help you make certain that gaming is helpful to your mental, emotional, and social perfectly-becoming.

    young woman playing video games on a PC

    Digital Trends: Most of the conversation about “positive” gaming hinges on the “right” sorts of video games — e.g., tame, cutesy online games like Stardew Valley or Mario Kart. But what if you don’t like people kinds of games? What if you are into battling online games, shooters, or survival horror? If you appreciate actively playing game titles with rivalry, gore, violence, and so on, what can you do to be certain you’re receiving beneficial psychological wellness gains in that variety of atmosphere?

    Dr. Dunlap: That is the amazing factor about games, there are practically limitless prospects to select from. Our mental wellbeing rewards most when we’re engaged in a little something that we both appreciate or discover meaningful. If you enjoy planting crops, that is wonderful. If you get pleasure from explosions, that is also magnificent. Enjoying games is about attending to people elements of oneself that recharge your batteries and there’s no one particular activity or style of video game that matches the monthly bill for everybody. As my mother normally claims, “do what tends to make your heart pleased.”

    Is there any a single type or genre of activity that gives much more mental wellness benefits than other people? Likewise, are sure forms of online games greater for precise age groups? For instance, puzzle online games for more mature adults?

    No one match or style of video game is heading to be effective for each individual man or woman. When searching at game titles to provide psychological health advantages, it is a little bit like a health care provider composing a prescription. You need to know about the particular person, their historical past, and their requires, as very well as their passions and capabilities. It can be valuable to think about the psychological positive aspects of gaming as psychological weightlifting. Want to function on your innovative challenge-resolving? Attempt a puzzle video game! Is the earth emotion stressful and out of control? Try a simulation video game, like The Sims, to convey a sense of peace and manage.

    With several online games explicitly designed to keep us hooked and in-game, actively playing into the brain’s natural reward technique to make certain we continue to keep participating in for as extended as achievable, how can we prevent addictive behavior? What steps can we consider when the sport we’re playing is crafted for habit?

    Some online games use “dark design patterns,” a design and style of designing that preys on vulnerabilities in our processing of details, social relationships, and thoughts. Celia Hodent has completed brilliant operate in this space. In terms of what gamers can do, the simplest reply is to test in with you and make absolutely sure that you’re even now savoring what you are executing. Gaming can be a deeply engaging action and, from the exterior, it can be really challenging to convey to the difference amongst significant engagement and problematic perform.

    But 1 of the vital dissimilarities is that engagement makes us feel “The Superior Feels,” factors like a feeling of accomplishment or leisure. A signal of problematic enjoy is that the perform is not pleasant any longer — it feels like do the job, or a grind, or that if you do not log on, that some thing terrible will take place (e.g., development lost, lacking an possibility, allowing other folks down). Often game titles are frustrating, and there can be a perception of grind or drudgery, but if that is the bulk of your practical experience, it’s possibly a excellent plan to reevaluate your romantic relationship to the video game.

    man playing video games

    In purchase to reap the most mental wellness positive aspects from gaming, is there an the best possible gaming session time we really should be aiming for? We hear a ton in the media about the destructive effects of gaming for way too prolonged and too often. Do we continue on to reap the same beneficial psychological well being rewards in the course of prolonged engage in sessions, or is limited and sweet far better?

    There’s no a person-dimension-suits-all prescription for time spent gaming. A new research by the Royal Culture in essence states time invested participating in does not subject. Typically it’s why you engage in that issues, not for how extensive.

    Are you actively playing since you are obtaining exciting, hanging out with close friends, preserving the world, or proving your capabilities? Or are you enjoying due to the fact you come to feel like you will need to, mainly because you require to grind for that future stage, or the raid crew is counting on you? Taking part in for satisfaction, enjoyment, leisure, and relationship is a way we get our basic desires fulfilled. But if we’re playing out of a feeling of obligation — participate in feels like function or a chore — then it’s time to reevaluate our marriage with the recreation.”

    In an era of on-line MMORPGs, co-op shooters, struggle royale games, and VR, how can we shield our mental wellness when gaming co-operatively on the web with strangers? Do these games offer diverse positive aspects or threats to our mental wellness?

    I’ve manufactured some remarkable friendships by on the web gaming. Some I have had the opportunity to meet up with in man or woman at conventions or occasions, and some I only know the seem of their voice. On the web friendships are “real” friendships, regardless of what lots of headlines may well explain to you. Having said that, most persons, when they video game on the net in social settings, are taking part in with people today they previously know. Variety of like a club. And, comparable to a club, it is not seriously about the activity or exercise itself, but instead the tradition and social norms in just that club.

    For example, some recreation communities are amazingly toxic though other folks are gosh-darn wholesome. Safeguarding your mental wellbeing would imply having into consideration the tone and tradition of a game’s community and, if that local community has some toxicity, getting actions to guard oneself. For example, I’m a substantial Halo supporter and adore enjoying online multiplayer. On the other hand, I remain in a occasion chat (non-public voice chat) with my good friends even though I enjoy and really do not interact with the “randoms” on my group or on the other crew. I wish I didn’t have to choose the extra ways, but executing so minimizes the probability of encountering harassment or abuse when allowing me to hold out with my friends.

    young woman with hands on head frustrated at game

    What about if you now have mental wellbeing challenges such as despair or anxiousness? Can gaming help? Is there a specific type or style of recreation that, say, anyone with stress would profit more from taking part in (and equally, any recreation genres to prevent)?

    Game titles are not a replacement for mental wellness therapy, but they can be a tool in recovering from or controlling mental wellness difficulties. Lots of people today use game titles as a way to aid them manage hard circumstances or occasions in their life, and this incorporates handling psychological difficulties like despair and panic. There are plenty of private stories from players about how video games served them by offering them a little something to glimpse ahead to, [making them] feel connected to some others, or [allowing] them to really feel in control or capable.

    What sort of online games generate these positive aspects is deeply individualized and individual. Some folks with depression favor game titles that enable them to escape, to exist someplace else wherever depression can not get them. Some others may possibly delight in playing online games about depression or with depressive themes simply because it assists them feel validated to hear and see their knowledge acknowledged. In the same way, somebody with panic may well avoid horror game titles (like me!), while some others could possibly get pleasure from horror games for the reason that those people games create a sort of nervousness they are in regulate of.

    A lot of mother and father don’t allow their young children to perform violent, gory, or creepy video games as they stress it’s harmful to mental well being. Is there basically any proof to assistance this? Could these types of game titles have their individual unique rewards or deserves?

    Study on violent video clip video games has discovered time and time once more that there’s no connection between violent video clip game play and violent behavior. Taking part in violent online video game titles does not make an individual act in violent means. There is, nonetheless, one thing to be reported about the developmental appropriateness of a sport. For case in point, I really do not permit my 6-calendar year-old son enjoy Contact of Duty — not simply because I stress that a violent activity will cause violent behavior, but simply because it’s not appropriate material for a 6-calendar year-previous.

    I also don’t permit my 6-year-previous see R-rated films or look at mature-rated television reveals. Getting uncovered to information which is not developmentally suitable, no issue the medium, can have negative impacts. If a dad or mum thinks their kid is not completely ready to enjoy a individual form of match, that’s a wonderful prospect for parent and little one to sit down and have a discussion about gaming, maturity, and safety.”

    With your a long time of knowledge as a scientific psychologist and game designer, what would be your prime 5 suggestions to increase mental wellbeing with gaming, using into thing to consider the previously mentioned and something else you think is significant? 

    1. Make guaranteed you’re getting a superior time! I made use of to participate in competitively, and I acquired to the issue where by I was worn down, burned out, and not making the most of my gaming. If you are not getting what you want from your gaming (e.g.,relaxation, hanging out with good friends, sense of accomplishment), consider a second to replicate and reevaluate.
    2. Have a diversified enjoy diet. I like trying new games and various styles of game titles. Movie game titles, board games, card video games, role-playing games … there’s so considerably out there to working experience.
    3. If you are a parent, participate in with your kiddo. My crew does Pokémon Go alongside one another as a way to get out of the property. We also play Sonic and Mario and other games that my 6-year-aged can engage in, and it’s a great way for bonding as a spouse and children, as well as teaching items like persistence (it’s Okay, kiddo, try once more!), teamwork, and creativity.
    4. It’s Okay to like what you like, even if no just one else does. Gaming has some problems with gatekeeping all-around terms like “casual gamer” or “hardcore gamer,” signaling that some game titles aren’t Actual video games. Participate in what you like and ignore the haters.
    5. Make time for enjoy in your lifetime. Just due to the fact we grow older doesn’t necessarily mean we expand out of our need for engage in and recreation. Your worth is not dependent on your productiveness, so make time for frivolity, silliness, and playfulness.

    Follow Dr. Kelli Dunlap on Twitter for additional gaming written content with a mental wellbeing slant.

    Editors’ Tips






  • Fitness tips – which exercise is best for overall health?

    Fitness tips – which exercise is best for overall health?

    Whether or not it’s the perception that you have to surrender your physique to circuit schooling in buy to get a ‘real’ workout or the declare that yoga assists you snooze, people have solid beliefs when it will come to performing out for your wellness.

    And even with staying a exercise session polyamorist, having fun with numerous varieties of workout, I have hardly ever actually bothered to observe what every single a single does to my system and intellect.

    In a bid to do just that, I armed myself with the Samsung Galaxy View5, ready to choose a holistic appear at how distinct exercise sessions occur into enjoy and no matter if I can alter my life-style accordingly. 

    Here’s how I acquired on… 

    1. Boxing

    Scrolling by ClassPass, I determined to kick issues off with a baptism of hearth.

    Signing myself up for a substantial influence boxing class (the working day after a boozy dinner, no considerably less) I determined I essential more than sheer willpower to get me via this a person.

    Disregarding my mother’s warnings, I grabbed an energy consume and got heading.

    Apparently, my heart amount elevated by five beats between that time and likely into the studio. Whether that was nerves or the caffeine and sugar spike is up for discussion.

    As for the boxing alone, my heart fee ongoing to climb and my smartwatch explained to me I experienced burnt above 400 energy, which was all information that I utilized to prepare a sizeable put up-workout dinner to rebuild muscle mass and strength.  

    2. Yoga

    Time for a transform of tack.

    I’ve generally uncovered it hard to dismiss my far better judgement and go to bed at a realistic hour alternatively of observing random women’s skincare routines and storytimes on TikTok for hrs.

    A main draw of the Galaxy View5 is its sophisticated slumber tracking options*, which search at everything from your snoring to time expended in REM to calculate how effectively you slept by way of a Slumber Score measured out of 100.

    After a normally unsatisfying weeknight sleep, registering as a really average 62 Sleep Rating, I decided to see if yoga seriously was the sleep saviour many claim it to be.

    I opted for yin yoga, a gradual-paced design and style of the observe that encourages deep stretching and holding poses for minutes at a time, to see if it could give me a decent night’s rest.

    I chose an evening class to support kick off my bedtime regimen and heeded each piece of snooze tips we’ve heard hundreds of instances, placing my screens absent effectively in advance of I hit the pillow.

    The consequence? I undoubtedly felt sharper the upcoming morning with out the need to have for chain coffees and my Sleep Score experienced indeed crept up to 70.

    Although it is ambitious to commit to a whole-time yin yoga and scrolling-no cost nighttime routine, I’m absolutely heading to preserve it in my arsenal for those people evenings I’m experience significantly slumber-deprived.

    3. Reformer pilates

    I’ve constantly been intrigued in reformer pilates and the machines that resembles some variety of medieval torture machine, but have normally opted out in favour of a thing extra cardio-weighty, experience as nevertheless it’s extra of a workout.

    Fifty minutes later on, with my muscular tissues throbbing and my package drenched in sweat, it’s honest to say my pilates snobbery has been place to bed.

    The mix of the reformer platform’s weighted springs and the repetition of actions helps make it remarkably complicated, even though the follow by itself is meant to lengthen the muscles and make you a lot more adaptable.

    If I maintain it up, I’ll also be capable to get a read on precisely what sort of very good it’s doing, many thanks to the Galaxy Watch5’s element for measuring physique composition**. With a sensor that can evaluate anything from physique extra fat to skeletal muscle, I’ll be ready to retain an eye on how these classes on the reformer are impacting my stats around time.

    If it is something like as successful as it feels although you’re executing it, I’ll surely be trying to keep it as part of my regime heading forwards. 

    4. Walking

    I have always viewed strolling as a lot more of a means to an close.

    With out a place, what is the stage? But in the curiosity of study, I place the complete ‘Go for a stroll, it’ll make you experience better’ idea into motion.

    With a midway croissant halt as inspiration, I established out on a Sunday early morning stroll, choosing the greenest, leafiest solution possible.

    My smartwatch automatically detected that I was executing some really serious walking soon after 10 minutes and though I might not have built any really serious gains in phrases of muscle mass, the act alone helped me gather my feelings and manufactured for a gentle rest working day exercise.

    I also noticed that I invested for a longer period in the deep sleep stage that night time, which could point out my afternoon wander benefited my thoughts as well as my physique.

    In a globe of unyielding stimulation and all fashion of things to do on my doorstep, the circumstance for altering my exercises to produce the excellent holistic mix is very strong.

    Although I can not adjust my entire way of life, I’ll unquestionably be slotting more light workout into my regime when I need a better sleep.

    I’m also searching forward to viewing how distinctive kinds of routines I’d formerly composed off can affect my entire body composition in the extensive operate. For now, I’ll be working on that 100 Rest Score…

    Equipment up with the view that knows you finest and use the Galaxy Observe5 to track your nutrition, physical exercise, coronary heart level***, slumber and far more all in 1 put.     

    * Compatible Smartphone required.

    ** Intended for standard wellness and health and fitness reasons. Not supposed for use in detection, diagnoses, remedy of any healthcare issue or disorder. Do not measure your body composition if you are expecting, have an implanted pacemaker or other implanted health care products.

    *** ECG and BP aspect only to be made use of by 22 a long time+. For correct BP readings, monthly calibration required by GP or BP keep track of & arm cuff.

    samsung galaxy watch
  • Reducing the Gun Violence Threat to Kids and Teens | Health News

    Reducing the Gun Violence Threat to Kids and Teens | Health News

    “I just want you all to assume about that for a next,” stated Dr. Joseph V. Sakran, director of crisis basic surgical treatment, associate professor of medical procedures and vice chair of medical operations at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Maryland. “It’s not car or truck crashes. It’s not cancer. It is not poisonings. It’s gun-relevant personal injury.”

    Sakran, a panelist for a latest webinar on the pediatric wellness menace of gun violence hosted by U.S. Information and Earth Report, was in fact impressed to turn into a trauma surgeon immediately after he was a target himself. In 1994, he was shot in the throat as a bystander at a Burke, Virginia, playground exterior Washington, D.C. “I left that early morning as a healthier higher college scholar, and then I was collateral damage just after approximately being killed,” he reported all through the webinar.

    Firearm-associated incidents and suicides, as very well as shootings among the younger persons, have only increased since then. The devastating toll this is getting on people, faculties and society at large is also presenting challenges for the hospitals and trauma centers managing these youthful sufferers, lots of of whom will have to have not just lifesaving but lifelong treatment.

    In reaction, hospitals and wellbeing units are taking concrete steps to lessen the toll in their communities by employing general public awareness packages, advertising and marketing gun protection, ramping up psychological health solutions and much more. Sakran, a board member with the Brady Campaign that works to reduce gun violence, mentioned that 8 youngsters and teenagers are unintentionally shot every single working day “in situations of what we connect with household fireplace, which is a phrase basically to describe a capturing that consists of an improperly stored or misused gun identified in the property.” That doesn’t contain the victims of mass university shootings, avenue shootings and other tragedies, Sakran observed. “People generally inquire what is the a person remedy. And the actuality is, there is no a person resolution,” he explained. “It requires a multifaceted strategy.”

    At Le Bonheur Children’s Medical center in Memphis, Tennessee, researchers tracked 15 several years of gun-relevant injuries and identified that about fifty percent have been connected to unsafe firearm storage and 50 {fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} to neighborhood violence, with an improve in the latter through the pandemic. “How can we instruct households and communities to retailer their guns securely?” explained Dr. Regan Williams, professional medical director of trauma and affiliate main of workers at Le Bonheur. “We’re truly shifting to glimpse far more into local community violence simply because that’s the largest driver [of gun violence] in our neighborhood appropriate now.”

    Dr. Sandra McKay, director of populace health and fitness and advocacy, affiliate professor of pediatrics with the McGovern Professional medical University at UTHealth Houston and a pediatrician with Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital, mentioned that, in Texas, “we have a distinctive marriage and society all-around firearm ownership.” Medical professionals are usually trusted by clients for “what to do with a cold,” as an case in point, she mentioned, but for thoughts on safely and securely storing firearms, “we were not the major-ranked man or woman they would go to.” Rather, it was “law enforcement, family members and pals, and firearm retailers. And so, what we’ve carried out is we’ve taken a little bit of a distinctive technique, partnering with our firearms retailing community” on messaging, particularly with regards to suicide prevention and secure storage counseling.

    They “really do want to lover with us for the reason that when it arrives to security,” she explained, “they see them selves as the industry experts. And they are.” At the exact same time, sellers say, “ ‘We would adore to get some schooling from you and overall health treatment to understand about what are the pink flags when someone’s battling that we ought to be wanting for in that place of sale.’ ”

    Just one idea is obtaining extra suppliers offer non permanent out-of-property, voluntary firearm storage for a small rate. That can be an alternative, say, for firearms homeowners who are possessing grandkids over for the 7 days or who have an individual in the house who is struggling. Her workforce is hoping to call each firearm retailer in Texas to interact them, simply because when people were surveyed, 40{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of persons stated they would not know what to do if they experienced to get rid of a firearm for basic safety factors, “and that’s a massive issue for us as pediatricians,” McKay stated.

    Sakran emphasised the need to have to extend schooling of upcoming clinicians. “A ton of us in this article and across the country believe that that we have a part in firearm damage prevention that cuts across the concentration of scientific care,” he stated, and involves educational, investigate and local community engagement elements.

    McKay, who is also Huffington Fellow with the Baker Institute for General public Plan at Rice College, agreed noting the benefit of workshops for pediatric doctors who are frequently not comfortable owning discussions all over firearms with people. More than 80{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} are not firearm proprietors themselves, and so she focuses on supporting them feel empowered to inquire important questions in a culturally delicate way and then to get the job done on a hurt-reduction tactic.

    Northwell Wellbeing equally has included firearms questions to its universal affected person screening. “Every one client who will come into our [emergency department is asked] queries about firearm damage, threat, like access-related chance and violence-linked risk,” claimed Sathya, who is also assistant professor of surgical procedure and pediatrics at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Drugs at Hofstra/Northwell. By “integrating screening and intervention into your scientific workflows” and having “a extensive, group-dependent approach, not only does it increase your successive implementation since you have various individuals associated,” he famous, but it makes sure the whole staff is educated and engaged.

    Sakran also emphasised nonmedical interventions to address the root results in of gun violence, which includes the social determinants of well being that include the ailments in which persons are living and expand, like economic and housing stability and access to high quality overall health and trauma treatment. He also stressed the need to have for the medical community to advocate for modify. “I assume for a lengthy time, we appeared at advocacy as a filthy term, but genuinely, it is not. As persons that are at the heart of having care of these people, we have both equally the chance and the accountability to advocate for evidence-centered policies that we consider are going to not just impression the results of our individuals but protect against them from ever starting to be our clients.”

    A further source of problem is that little ones and teenagers are not just victims they are also perpetrators of gun violence. “I don’t think we thoroughly know what works” in addressing this essential dynamic, Williams claimed. But just one issue is acquiring aid to children prior to their teen many years,” she mentioned. “I definitely believe that by [age] 14” due to the fact their scars and their adverse childhood ordeals are so critical, “it’s really challenging to rehabilitate them,” she famous, “so we actually want to focus on [ages] 8 to 12” and figuring out how to assist little ones in disenfranchised communities “to continue to keep them out of that cycle of violence.”

    McKay agreed on the need for early intervention: “We’ve applied a universal screening procedure for social determinants of wellbeing for all little ones at all effectively-baby visits” starting off when they are 12 and 18 months old, she famous. In the course of screening, family members are asked if they are having difficulties monetarily, or with housing or transportation protection. If they are, pediatricians are inspired to link them with local community-centered sources. “That is where by pediatrics requires to proceed to go to, so that we can assistance help youngsters and families,” she reported.

    Sathya pointed out yet another screening instrument identified as Basic safety Score “that has been demonstrated to forecast gun violence in at-possibility, compound-utilizing youth.” It involves issues about frequency of listening to gunshots and possessing a gun pulled. “These are inquiries that are highly predictive of foreseeable future gun violence” and give the opportunity, he mentioned, to offer you assets ahead of a individual will come in with a gun personal injury.

    Sathya emphasised the need to have for more centers for gun violence avoidance to be established equivalent to those for most cancers or coronary heart ailment prevention so not just frontline workers are engaged but the full tradition of the institution.

    “It undoubtedly takes a neighborhood,” added Williams, who is also president-elect of the healthcare personnel at Le Bonheur Children’s and associate professor of medical procedures at the College of Tennessee Wellness Science Centre. She sees hospitals as a collecting put. “We essentially experienced a local community summit exactly where we introduced all people alongside one another,” she reported. “Everybody uncovered a good deal about just about every other, which was seriously critical,” notably in acquiring the most helpful plans targeting members of the neighborhood. “I really do not know the very best way to instruct them about firearms basic safety, and I you should not know how to deal with all their social determinants of health and to guidance them. But the individuals that dwell in the group, they do.”

    This commonality of goal “often won’t get witnessed, simply because you see all the type of divisiveness that’s going on on social media or on the night information,” Sakran stated, but most Us residents never want to see kids remaining shot and killed. No one particular wishes to see these faculty shootings or the urban violence. It is not just about the appropriate idea, but it can be also about getting the correct tactic and approach.”

    Williams when compared firearm protection with vehicle security. “In the 1970s, dying was definitely popular for motor cars. We didn’t choose automobiles absent,” she noted. “We started out amassing data on why individuals had been obtaining killed and injured … then we labored systematically to make them safer.” Now, guns are the No, 1 bring about of demise in kids, “but we haven’t done the very same matter,” she said. However by hunting at “why individuals get shot, how they get shot, and then also approaches to make guns safer, we really can make the local community and the entire world safer for our small children.”

  • Mental health experts share tips on processing recent spike in gun violence

    Mental health experts share tips on processing recent spike in gun violence

    RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) -It is no question that the earlier 7 days has been rough to approach for numerous following a 7 days of fatal gun violence internationally and regionally.

    On Sunday, a nightclub shooting in Colorado Springs killed five men and women and injured numerous some others. A 7 days prior, a few UVA soccer gamers were being shot to loss of life just after a course discipline journey and the violence seems not to cease.

    Mental wellbeing gurus say that these gun violence occurrences are occurring much more regularly, creating it even extra essential to know what methods are readily available to offer with sophisticated emotions stemming from these tragic situations.

    Dr. Bela Sood with VCU Overall health said that while it’s crucial to know what is likely on in the globe, you ought to be very careful about seeing these tragic functions on repeat, which can normally retraumatize or keep on to weigh on persons. Getting loved ones conversations or talks with beloved types can also support.

    “The far more we are ready to delve into it and to recognize the causes for some of these shootings, the additional your thoughts commences to wrap itself all over rational alternatives,” Sood stated.

    If you are beginning to have feelings of unhappiness, it is encouraged to test to do items you delight in and fall back into your frequent regime. If feelings of anxiousness and depression persist, it may possibly be time to get experienced assistance from a licensed therapist or health care provider.

    “If you are not sleeping, you are fatigued throughout the day. If you’re not eating, you really don’t have the strength, if you don’t want to chat with your pals or you really don’t want to have interaction in matters that you get pleasure from undertaking, individuals are a clear notation to us or our own form of selves that something is distinct,” Sood mentioned.

    Industry experts also recommend contacting the suicide lifeline at 988 or likely to the unexpected emergency room to search for help if you are emotion suicidal or in crisis.

    These in the LGBTQIA+ neighborhood may really feel unsafe or frustrated as they course of action what occurred in the nightclub capturing in Colorado Springs, particularly because the capturing is becoming investigated as a loathe criminal offense.

    James Millner of Variety Richmond desires the neighborhood to know that assets are obtainable and that the assistance of allies is desired now far more than ever.

    “Let them know that you are thankful that they are here. Permit them know that they are welcome and celebrated parts of your life. That is what we require to hear right now that these functions of dislike and violence are exterior the norm, that they are the fringe features,” reported Millner.

    As we head into Thanksgiving, UGRC and Black Satisfaction RVA will present extra community help by internet hosting a Thanksgiving collecting. The celebration will be from 12:30 p.m. -3:30 p.m. at Diversity Richmond on Sherwood Avenue.

    Copyright 2022 WWBT. All rights reserved.

  • Private equity’s stealthy health care takeover

    Private equity’s stealthy health care takeover

    By Fred Schulte

    Kaiser Health News

    Two-year-old Zion Gastelum died just days after dentists performed root canals and put crowns on six baby teeth at a clinic affiliated with a private equity firm.

    His parents sued the Kool Smiles dental clinic in Yuma, Arizona, and its private equity investor, FFL Partners. They argued the procedures were done needlessly, in keeping with a corporate strategy to maximize profits by overtreating kids from lower-income families enrolled in Medicaid. Zion died after being diagnosed with “brain damage caused by a lack of oxygen,” according to the lawsuit.

    Kool Smiles “overtreats, underperforms and overbills,” the family alleged in the suit, which was settled last year under confidential terms. FFL Partners and Kool Smiles had no comment but denied liability in court filings.

    Private equity is rapidly moving to reshape health care in America, coming off a banner year in 2021, when the deep-pocketed firms plowed $206 billion into more than 1,400 health care acquisitions, according to industry tracker PitchBook.

    Seeking quick returns, these investors are buying into eye care clinics, dental management chains, physician practices, hospices, pet care providers, and thousands of other companies that render medical care nearly from cradle to grave. Private equity-backed groups have even set up special “obstetric emergency departments” at some hospitals, which can charge expectant mothers hundreds of dollars extra for routine perinatal care.

    As private equity extends its reach into health care, evidence is mounting that the penetration has led to higher prices and diminished quality of care, a KHN investigation has found. KHN found that companies owned or managed by private equity firms have agreed to pay fines of more than $500 million since 2014 to settle at least 34 lawsuits filed under the False Claims Act, a federal law that punishes false billing submissions to the federal government with fines. Most of the time, the private equity owners have avoided liability.

    New research by the University of California-Berkeley has identified “hot spots” where private equity firms have quietly moved from having a small foothold to controlling more than two-thirds of the market for physician services such as anesthesiology and gastroenterology in 2021. And KHN found that in San Antonio, more than two dozen gastroenterology offices are controlled by a private equity-backed group that billed a patient $1,100 for her share of a colonoscopy charge — about three times what she paid in another state.

    It’s not just prices that are drawing scrutiny.

    Whistleblowers and injured patients are turning to the courts to press allegations of misconduct or other improper business dealings. The lawsuits allege that some private equity firms, or companies they invested in, have boosted the bottom line by violating federal false claims and anti-kickback laws or through other profit-boosting strategies that could harm patients.

    “Their model is to deliver short-term financial goals and in order to do that you have to cut corners,” said Mary Inman, an attorney who represents whistleblowers.

    Federal regulators, meanwhile, are almost blind to the incursion, since private equity typically acquires practices and hospitals below the regulatory radar. KHN found that more than 90{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of private equity takeovers or investments fall below the $101 million threshold that triggers an antitrust review by the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Justice Department.

    Spurring growth

    Private equity firms pool money from investors, ranging from wealthy people to college endowments and pension funds. They use that money to buy into businesses they hope to flip at a sizable profit, usually within three to seven years, by making them more efficient and lucrative.

    Private equity has poured nearly $1 trillion into nearly 8,000 health care transactions during the past decade, according to PitchBook.

    Fund managers who back the deals often say they have the expertise to reduce waste and turn around inefficient, or moribund, businesses, and they tout their role in helping to finance new drugs and technologies expected to benefit patients in years to come.

    Critics see a far less rosy picture. They argue that private equity’s playbook, while it may work in some industries, is ill suited for health care, when people’s lives are on the line.

    In the health care sphere, private equity has tended to find legal ways to bill more for medical services: trimming services that don’t turn a profit, cutting staff, or employing personnel with less training to perform skilled jobs — actions that may put patients at risk, critics say.

    KHN, in a series of articles published this year, has examined a range of private equity forays into health care, from its marketing of America’s top-selling emergency contraception pill to buying up whole chains of ophthalmology and gastroenterology practices and investing in the booming hospice care industry and even funeral homes.

    These deals happened on top of well-publicized takeovers of hospital emergency room staffing firms that led to outrageous “surprise” medical bills for some patients, as well as the buying up of entire rural hospital systems.

    “Their only goal is to make outsize profits,” said Laura Olson, a political science professor at Lehigh University and a critic of the industry.

    Hot spots

    When it comes to acquisitions, private equity firms have similar appetites, according to a KHN analysis of 600 deals by the 25 firms that PitchBook says have most frequently invested in health care.

    Eighteen of the firms have dental companies listed in their portfolios, and 16 list centers that offer treatment of cataracts, eye surgery, or other vision care, KHN found.

    Fourteen have bought stakes in animal hospitals or pet care clinics, a market in which rapid consolidation led to a recent antitrust action by the FTC. The agency reportedly also is investigating whether U.S. Anesthesia Partners, which operates anesthesia practices in nine states, has grown too dominant in some areas.

    Private equity has flocked to companies that treat autism, drug addiction, and other behavioral health conditions. The firms have made inroads into ancillary services such as diagnostic and urine-testing and software for managing billing and other aspects of medical practice.

    Private equity has done so much buying that it now dominates several specialized medical services, such as anesthesiology and gastroenterology, in a few metropolitan areas, according to new research made available to KHN by the Nicholas C. Petris Center at UC-Berkeley.

    Although private equity plays a role in just 14{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of gastroenterology practices nationwide, it controls nearly three-quarters of the market in at least five metropolitan areas across five states, including Texas and North Carolina, according to the Petris Center research.

    Similarly, anesthesiology practices tied to private equity hold 12{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of the market nationwide but have swallowed up more than two-thirds of it in parts of five states, including the Orlando, Florida, area, according to the data.

    These expansions can lead to higher prices for patients, said Yashaswini Singh, a researcher at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University.

    In a study of 578 physician practices in dermatology, ophthalmology, and gastroenterology published in JAMA Health Forum in September, Singh and her team tied private equity takeovers to an average increase of $71 per medical claim filed and a 9{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} increase in lengthy, more costly, patient visits.

    Singh said in an interview that private equity may develop protocols that bring patients back to see physicians more often than in the past, which can drive up costs, or order more lucrative medical services, whether needed or not, that boost profits.

    “There are more questions than answers,” Singh said. “It really is a black hole.”

  • 6 Medicinal Mushrooms for Health and Wellness

    6 Medicinal Mushrooms for Health and Wellness

    Medicinal mushrooms are defined as macroscopic fungi used in the form of powder or extracts for the prevention, alleviation, or healing of multiple diseases, and for balancing a healthy diet.

    It’s well known that medicinal mushrooms were a key treatment modality in ancient medicine. Centuries-old treatment plans included medicinal mushrooms as antibacterial agents, remedies to combat metabolic conditions, fatigue, and inflammation, and as immune-boosters. No longer a method of treatment for ancient medicine alone, supplementing current care plans with medicinal mushroom compounds has recently gained momentum here in the West.

    Although research and clinical trials are still in their infancy, there have been numerous human clinical trials published and over 600 studies conducted worldwide. While the majority of  the recent studies have been geared towards medicinal mushrooms’ effect on various cancers, the preliminary results on overall health and wellness are encouraging.

    Medicinal mushrooms are functional fungi that are believed to have around 130 medicinal functions. Medicinal mushrooms contain multiple nutrients with health benefits, including beta-glucans and antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds called ergothioneine. They are also a great source of fibers, vitamin D, B, and C, and minerals like iron, zinc, magnesium, copper, potassium, selenium, and many other biologically active compounds.

    While there is some scientific evidence to suggest they can help manage diabetes, promote liver and lung health, reduce inflammation, and support the immune system, they are mostly known for their potential to fight cancer.

    Scientists have explored numerous types of functional fungi, and though many species remain unstudied, others have increased in popularity.

    1. Lion’s Mane

    Found in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, Lion’s manes are best known for their potential to support brain health. They have antidepressant qualities that could be beneficial in reducing brain damage following stroke, and they may be helpful in preventing brain degeneration.

    The active components in lion’s mane are Hericenones and erinacines. Hericenones are known to help the brain produce more Nerve Growth factors while erinacines are said to boost neuron production.

    lion's mane mushroom
    (Fotografiecor.nl/Shutterstock)

    Two placebo-controlled trials suggest that lion’s mane may improve cognition. In one small study, patients with mild cognitive impairment took 3 grams of lion’s mane over a four-month period. Research showed improved performance on cognitive tests; however, cognitive performance diminished when the treatment period ended.

    Preclinical findings indicate that lion’s mane may reduce inflammation and biological markers of Alzheimer’s disease, improve cognition and increase the release of nerve growth factor.

    A small, 49-week clinical study in patients with Alzheimer’s disease suggested that lion’s mane treatment improved activities of daily living. There were no significant improvements in cognition when compared to the placebo group, but the author noted that may be due to the low number of patients who participated in the study.

    The clinical trials performed have been small in participation and have not yet determined if lion’s mane is beneficial for Alzheimer’s disease in humans; however, the mushroom appears to enhance mental functioning. Further study is needed to properly evaluate its effectiveness in supporting Alzheimer’s disease.

    2. Reishi

    Most commonly found in Asia, reishi is best known for its immune-boosting and anti-cancer properties. While the reishi mushroom remains popular in Eastern medicine, there are few human studies on the effects of this mushroom.

    The clinical trials that have been performed have occurred on animals or in labs. These studies have not produced similar outcomes, which may indicate that the mushroom is not as beneficial to humans.

    Investigation and clinical trials continue in an effort to better understand these functional fungi and their benefit to human health. While there is some test tube evidence to suggest that reishi may be effective in fighting cancer and shrinking tumors, high-quality human studies are necessary before scientists can fully understand its benefit.

    3. Turkey Tail

    Routinely used by doctors in Japan and China, turkey tail is best known for its use in traditional Chinese medicine as an anti-cancer agent.

    T. versicolor extract (i.e., PSK), extracted from turkey tail, has been approved in Japan as a pharmaceutical grade medication used to treat cancer. PSK has been used as an accessory to chemotherapy to support management of gastric, colon, and colorectal cancer, while turkey tail’s  PSP extract has been beneficial in treating late-stage lung cancer and as a prebiotic.

    This mushroom is also commonly used in China to treat lung disease and has the potential to help manage colds and flu.

    4. Shiitake

    Native to Southeast Asia, shiitake is broadly used in Japan for the treatment of cancers, particularly stomach cancer. Evidence supports that Lentinan, a polysaccharide extracted from the mushroom, may support some cancers when used in conjunction with chemotherapy.

    Laboratory testing indicates that lentinan improves a number of aspects of the immune system, which may help slow tumor growth. Research through clinical trials demonstrated that lentinan was effective in extending survival in patients with stomach, pancreatic, colorectal, and liver cancers.

    Shiitake,Mushroom,On,Wooden,Table
    Shiitake mushrooms have been a part of
    many medical traditions for centuries.
    Now researchers are uncovering why.(Amarita/Shutterstock)

    Another study showed that dried shiitake extract caused apoptosis in human hepatocellular carcinoma, which is cancer cell death. This finding seems promising, but more studies are needed to determine effectiveness.

    5. Maitake

    Routinely used by doctors in Japan and China, maitake is best known for its effects on the immune system.

    This mushroom is known as an adaptogen. Adaptogens help the body fight chemical, physical, or biological stress. In other words, they stimulate your body’s immune system.

    Epoch Times Photo
    Maitake mushroom is like a hen’s ruffled feathers. (Ken Lucas/Visuals Unlimited, Inc.)

    Maitake has also been studied for its anti-cancer effects. When compared to other mushrooms, maitake has shown better outcomes in preventing and treating cancer and other chronic conditions. A previous study demonstrated suppressed tumor growth in mice and an increased number in the cells fighting against the tumor. These findings suggest that oral maitake could be effective in managing cancer in humans, but further research is needed.

    6. Chaga

    Native to the cooler northern regions of Europe, Asia, and North America, chaga is best known for its anti-cancer and immunity boosting properties.  Grown on birch trees, chaga pulls the nutrients and extracts from the inner layers of the bark, which are thought to be betulinic acid, sterols, and polysaccharides and which have demonstrated repressive effects against colon cancer and hepatoma cells.

    A study performed in Ireland found that chaga slowed the growth of breast, lung, and cervical cancers, while also reducing toxicity associated with radiation and tumor cell growth in animal models.

    Top,View,Healing,Chaga,Mushroom,On,Old,Birch,Trunk,Close
    Chaga mushrooms are very nutritionally dense mushrooms, and contain an immense amount of melanin, and it was known by the Siberians as the “gift from God” and the “mushroom of immortality,” by the Japanese as  “the diamond of the forest,” and by the Chinese as the “king of plants.” (exebiche/Shutterstock)

    In some studies, chaga reveals selective apoptosis in tumor cells with no impact on healthy cells. No clinical trials have been performed to assess chaga’s safety and effectiveness for disease prevention or for the treatment of cancer.

    Is there a difference between regular and medicinal mushrooms?

    There’s no clear division between the two. Culinary mushrooms, such as portobello and shiitake, are mainly used in cooking because they have a pleasant taste. Many medicinal mushrooms, on the other hand, are known to have a more bitter taste and are predominantly used as a supplement to achieve various health benefits.

    You probably noticed that the shiitake mushroom is considered both a medicinal mushroom and a culinary mushroom. So, does that mean all culinary mushrooms contain immune-boosting compounds too? Research suggests that they do. But it’s important to remember that each mushroom varies in their dosing ratio and their individual effect on human health and wellness.

    As with any other supplement, it’s critical that you seek the advice of your primary care provider, especially the ones with a background in herbal medicine or medicinal mushrooms, before adding any supplement to your daily routine. Your physician will evaluate your personal health and help you determine if you could benefit from medicinal mushrooms and if so, which ones would best support your personal health goals.

    References

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    Wasser SP. Medicinal mushroom science: Current perspectives, advances, evidences, and challenges. Biomed J. 2014 Nov-Dec;37(6):345-56. doi: 10.4103/2319-4170.138318. PMID: 25179726.

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    Wong KH, Naidu M, David P, Abdulla MA, Abdullah N, Kuppusamy UR, Sabaratnam V. Peripheral Nerve Regeneration Following Crush Injury to Rat Peroneal Nerve by Aqueous Extract of Medicinal Mushroom Hericium erinaceus (Bull.: Fr) Pers. (Aphyllophoromycetideae). Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2011; 2011:580752. doi: 10.1093/ecam/neq062. Epub 2011 Aug 11. Erratum in: Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2018 Dec 16; 2018:9820769. PMID: 21941586; PMCID: PMC3176599.

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    Lai PL, Naidu M, Sabaratnam V, Wong KH, David RP, Kuppusamy UR, Abdullah N, Malek SN. Neurotrophic properties of the Lion’s mane medicinal mushroom, Hericium erinaceus (Higher Basidiomycetes) from Malaysia. Int J Med Mushrooms. 2013;15(6):539-54. doi: 10.1615/intjmedmushr. v15.i6.30. PMID: 24266378.

    Ahmad R, Riaz M, Khan A, Aljamea A, Algheryafi M, Sewaket D, Alqathama A. Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi) an edible mushroom; a comprehensive and critical review of its nutritional, cosmeceutical, mycochemical, pharmacological, clinical, and toxicological properties. Phytother Res. 2021 Nov;35(11):6030-6062. doi: 10.1002/ptr.7215. Epub 2021 Aug 19. PMID: 34411377.

    Benson KF, Stamets P, Davis R, Nally R, Taylor A, Slater S, Jensen GS. The mycelium of the Trametes versicolor (Turkey tail) mushroom and its fermented substrate each show potent and complementary immune activating properties in vitro. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2019 Dec 2;19(1):342. doi: 10.1186/s12906-019-2681-7. PMID: 31791317; PMCID: PMC6889544.

    Dai X, Stanilka JM, Rowe CA, Esteves EA, Nieves C Jr, Spaiser SJ, Christman MC, Langkamp-Henken B, Percival SS. Consuming Lentinula edodes (Shiitake) Mushrooms Daily Improves Human Immunity: A Randomized Dietary Intervention in Healthy Young Adults. J Am Coll Nutr. 2015;34(6):478-87. doi: 10.1080/07315724.2014.950391. Epub 2015 Apr 11. PMID: 25866155.

    Soares R, Meireles M, Rocha A, Pirraco A, Obiol D, Alonso E, Joos G, Balogh G. Maitake (D fraction) mushroom extract induces apoptosis in breast cancer cells by BAK-1 gene activation. J Med Food. 2011 Jun;14(6):563-72. doi: 10.1089/jmf.2010.0095. Epub 2011 Apr 11. PMID: 21480800.

    Park YK, Lee HB, Jeon EJ, Jung HS, Kang MH. Chaga mushroom extract inhibits oxidative DNA damage in human lymphocytes as assessed by comet assay. Biofactors. 2004;21(1-4):109-12. doi: 10.1002/biof.552210120. PMID: 15630179.

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    Stacy Swartz

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