What is reality?

Response to Michael Pollan | Terry Wahls MD | Defeating Progressive MS | Terry Wahls MD | Defeating Progressive Multiple Sclerosis without Drugs | MS Recovery | Food As Medicine: "...all these diets have some commonalities, and this is the notion which the modern Paleo diet works with. Traditional diets are all packed with many more vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids because they rely on natural whole foods. The typical westernized diet is filled with processed foods, like white flour, high fructose corn syrup, and other refined sugars. It contains minimal vegetables and fruits, as well as far fewer vitamins and minerals in comparison 1-5. It is not a “natural diet” because most of the foods in it have been processed and are no longer in whole-food form. Many critics of Paleo-style diets miss this point. Modern Paleo diets are not meant to replicate ancient diets. They are meant to emulate ancient diets, and this is a critical difference—it is what takes the Paleo diet from the realm of theory into a practice in reality.  The Paleo diet emulates as closely as possible in our contemporary world the foodstuffs and manner of eating practiced by our Paleolithic ancestors, and this in itself, apart from quibbling about how accurate it may or may not be, is a great improvement over what most people are doing now. Accuracy is not the point. Health is the point.

...another common criticism is that people didn’t live very long in the Paleolithic era. This is also true, but shortened lifespans of our ancient ancestors had nothing to do with their diets. In the Paleolithic era, the mean age of death was somewhere in the mid-30s, but this is because there was a 38% to 45% mortality rate for those under the age of 15. Those who survived childhood actually did quite well. Gurven and Kaplan studied this question extensively and published their findings in 2007. The results might surprise you. Hunter-gathers historically (and now in the current hunter-gatherer societies that have not yet adopted western lifestyles) often lived past 60 years of age6. These people were and are physically and mentally fit without medication, and many thrive into their 70s and even 80s. The transition from hunter-gatherer societies was associated with loss of height, increased risk for degenerative arthritis of the spine, and tuberculosis. Fertility increased, leading to an increase in population, but it was a less healthy one..."

Chris Pratt, still winning everything.

“Fantasy is sometimes dismissed as childish, or escapist, but I take what I am doing very, very seriously. For me fantasy isn’t about escaping from reality, it’s about re-encountering the challenges of the real world, but externalized and transformed." - Lev Grossman

Weekend Link Love – Edition 309 | Mark's Daily Apple: "Antiperspirants change your pit flora and probably make you smell even worse. Also, go ahead and avoid antibacterial soaps while you’re at it. They cross the placenta, show up in fetal blood, produce antibiotic resistant bacteria, and just make things worse overall."

'Text Neck’ Epidemic Stems from Hunching Over Devices : Discovery News: "The way we text and use technology is having a negative effect on our health, warn experts. “The problem is the posture,” Dr. Dean Fishman, a chiropractic physician who created and trademarked the phrase “text neck,” told FoxNews.com. The Plantation, Florida-based doctor believes text neck is a global epidemic that is literally changing the way our bodies should grow. Fishman says the phenomenon is most apparent in X-ray images. In patients who suffer from "text neck," the first few bones of the cervical spine perch forward. This would be considered abnormal, according to Fishman, noting that neck pain, headaches, arm and shoulder pain and arthritis are all side effects of text neck...

Anything that puts you in that posture, whether it’s reading, typing, or texting -- everything on your backside is getting stretched out. Over time, the ligaments get weak. This leads to bulging discs, nerve compression, burning and tingling down the arms,” said Sparkville, Mississippi-based physical therapist Dr. Brian Kirby...

Fishman adds that it’s not just a texting problem. “This is also a gaming issue. Fifty-two percent of kids from 0 to 8 years old spend about 43 minutes a day on these mobile devices that mimic our cell phones. And that equates to five extra hours a week in this ‘text neck’ posture putting pressure on back of the head and neck.”"

Why Liberia can't have nice things.  Ebola facility in Liberia attacked, police say - CNN.com: "Ebola patients fled during an attack at a health care facility in Monrovia, Liberia, on Saturday, said Liberian National Police spokesman Sam Collins told CNN Sunday. All patients who ran away had Ebola, and some chose to stay at the facility, Collins said. The assailants stole mattresses and equipment, he said, adding that no one was injured in the incident and the attackers "were not trying to free the patients." The assailants were using weapons but not wielding guns, according to Collins. "It was an attack from people afraid of Ebola," Collins told CNN. "Everybody is afraid.""