Optimal Being

Horny Goat Weed, aka  Epimedium brevicornum , contains the flavonol icariin, a substance that has been shown to boost testosterone levels in animal studies. According to researchers at Nanjing University, this same icariin prevents the cortisol level from rising under conditions of stress. Study Studies have shown that Horny Goat Weed enhances stamina in lab animals, and reduces cortisol produced as a result of exertion. The researchers wanted to know whether icariin can also reduce the rise in cortisol level during chronic stress. They decided to expose rats to chronic, but not extreme, stress for a week. Every day the Chinese hung a stroboscope above the rats' cage, tilted their cage, introduced a strange animal into the cage, wet their sawdust, took away their food and drink, and exposed them to noise. Half of the rats were given a placebo daily [vehicle] and the other half were given a small amount of icariin. Administration started 5 weeks before the stress week bega...

A high intake of dairy may increase the risk of depression. At least, when it comes to non-fermented forms of dairy. Fermented dairy varieties such as yogurt, buttermilk and kefir actually lower the risk of depression. Study Australian epidemiologists at Deakin University analyzed data from 2,603 Finnish men collected in the Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study. That study began in the 1980s. The study participants were 42-60 years old at the time. The men had kept a record of what they ate, on the basis of which the researchers determined their intake of dairy. They distinguished between non-fermented dairy, such as milk and custard, and fermented dairy, such as buttermilk, yogurt, kefir and cheese. Based on their intake, the researchers divided the men into 3 groups or tertiles of approximately equal size. The men in the first tertile had the lowest intake, the men in the third tertile had the highest intake. The researchers followed the men for 26 years. They had access ...

The colossal advancements in science & technology in the 21st century have not only made us immensely dependent on mechanized gadgets but also ensured that our physical activity gets restricted to a minimal level. Moreover, our modern lifestyle is typically deskbound, tending towards untimely working hours, inadequate rest and unhealthy food habits. This sedentary lifestyle ensures that we fall prey to lifestyle diseases. Non-communicable diseases or lifestyle diseases as they are commonly termed characterize those diseases whose occurrence is primarily based on the daily habits of people and are a result of an incongruous relationship of people with their environment. The key factors responsible for lifestyle diseases include wrong food habits coupled with increased smoking and alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, obesity, raised blood sugar, raised cholesterol level, wrong body posture and disturbed biological clock. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), non-comm...

The accumulation of  senescent cells  in aged tissues is an important contributing cause of aging, but it is only one cause of many. Nonetheless, removing even just a third of lingering senescent cells in some tissues produces  a degree of rejuvenation in old mice  that is large enough to be very interesting. Much of this effect appears mediated by a reduction in inflammatory signaling and thus in the  chronic inflammation  that disrupts tissue function in later life. We can hope that clinical trials and the ongoing development of first and second generation  senolytic therapies  to clear senescent cells will demonstrate similar benefits to health in humans.   Chronic inflammation, one of the major  hallmarks of aging , is thought to be partly caused by senescent cells that may accumulate in older individuals. As we age, a small number of cells in tissues throughout our body become senescent. These cells undergo irreversible  cell c...

A   common weed uses uncommon types of photosynthesis. Higher temperatures, more severe droughts, and the other effects of climate change are now threatening crop yields.  Genetic engineering techniques, such as CRISPR, can give crops characteristics that help them withstand the effects of climate change.    Purslane uses two rare types of photosynthesis that help the plant survive heat and drought. This knowledge could help scientists engineer hardier crops . Yale researchers have  uncovered  new details on how a common weed is able to thrive under hot, dry conditions — potentially a roadmap to engineering crops that are resistant to the effects of climate change.  The challenge:  Higher temperatures, more severe droughts, and the other effects of  climate change  are now threatening  crop yields , imperiling progress in feeding the world made since the Green Revolution. While corn yields have nearly tripled worldwid...