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Mark Hyman, MD recently wrote an article which can be found on Huffingtonpost.com, which outlined how Americans have been convinced by skewed scientific research to believe that antidepressant medications are an effective treatment for depression. Here is what he had to say: "Here's some depressing recent medical news: Antidepressants don't work. What's even more depressing is that the pharmaceutical industry and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have deliberately deceived us into believing that they DO work. As a physician, this is frightening to me. Depression is among the most common problems seen in primary-care medicine and soon will be the second leading cause of disability in this country. The study I'm talking about was published in The New England Journal of Medicine. It found that drug companies selectively publish studies on antidepressants. They have published nearly all the studies that show benefit -- but almost none of the studies that show these d...

Most of us have had that "OH NO! I think I have that!" moment, after poking around online, trying to figure out the cause of our vague physical symptoms. A 2004 study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project found that 79 percent of Internet users -- roughly 95 million Americans -- have researched health information online. People now have access to incredibly complex medical information, with little ability to sift through it or interpret it accurately. The abundance of health information available online, valid or not, has contributed to what the media have coined ‘cyberchondria’ (researching diseases on the internet, and then worrying that you have the symptoms of that disease.) These people are often frustrated when their self-diagnosis does not prompt their doctor to order the tests and/or medications they feel necessary. Yet after getting checked out by a doctor and getting a clean bill of health, most of us feel reassured, and are then ready to move on. For hypoch...

Berkeley AC Transit Bus Rapid Transit The latest phase of the AC Transit Bus Rapid Transit issue is that Berkeley's City Council's 4-2-2 vote that effectively reject the kind of study that AC Transit wanted to do in connection with the environmental report for a dedicated-lane Bus Rapid Transit Route was confusing. The vote, which got 4 yes decisions, just one less than five needed, reflected Berkeley's overall lack of understanding of what Bus Rapid Transit was and the many ways that it could be done. There was concern about a hypothetical loss of parking spaces when BRT becomes a reality. However, AC Transit did make it very clear that any parking spaces that are displaced to mark off the dedicated bus - only lane would be mitigated. AC Transit told the East Bay Express that it is ready to build parking lots and to work closely with these people who are concerned to find solutions that work for them. Rebecca Kaplan, Oakland’s At-Large member of the City Counc...

WIth more and more celebrities adopting children from different racial and/or cultural backgrounds than themselves, some of you may be wondering what experts say on inter-racial, or 'transracial' adoption, and what laws pertain to this issue. This article serves to briefly summarize key points on this issue. "What is transracial adoption? Transracial adoption is the placement of infants and children of one race with parents of another race. Black children are more likely to be in foster care than white children, stay in foster care longer, and thus, are more likely to undergo multiple placements. Due to the developmental risks associated with long-term residence in foster care, a few strategies have been attempted to reduce the number of children in the welfare system (Taylor&Thornton, 1996). Transracial adoption is one of the most controversial methods currently being utilized to improve the welfare of black children" (from Issues in Transracial Adoption, Mauree...

Last week this blogger wrote that Chevron and Richmond needed to "kiss, make up, and think. Well, it seems all the time both parties were doing just that. Communications from the Richmond Progressive Alliance and from Chevron report the completion of an amicable agreement that stops the chance that Richmond will lose millions due to a June ballot measure that looked like it was going to pass, and Chevron stopped paying out $15 million more than it had annually given to the City of Richmond. The Chevron press release neatly bullet-points the resolved issues: • Chevron will pay an additional $114 million to The City of Richmond over the next 14 years. • The City of Richmond will stop its ballot measure to change the Utility Tax and Chevron will remove its proposal. • The City of Richmond will drop its appeal of the Measure T Ballot measure, which was ruled unconstitutional. • Chevron would wave $1.2 million it sought from the City related to Measure T. • Chevron will ma...

Dallas Braden  The Oakland Athletics Dallas Braden became the 14th player in Oakland A's history to throw a no-hitter or a perfect game, and just the second A's player to pitch a perfect game - the other being Catfish Hunter in 1968. Braden led the A's to a 4-0 win against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Oakland on Mother's Day. Now lost in all the celebration is what a "perfect game" in baseball is. It's not a "no-hitter"; it's beyond that. It's a game where no player from the opposing team gains a hit or gets on base in any way, even by a walk or a hit batter. Nothing.  Nada.  Zip. Here's the video : That's what Dallas Braden did today. Braden's the first Oakland A's pitcher to throw a perfect game in 42 years. That's incredible. Much has been made of Braden's feud with The New York Yankees' Alex Rodriquez, who's behavior has been rather salty since he was dumped by Kate Hudson afte...

Suburban Atlanta, GA - Happy Mother's Day everyone! I can't remember missing celebrating Mother's Day and it was vitally important for me to give my Mom the gift of my help here in Georgia. See, my Mom still insists on working, and I see that as a personal failure on my part because I believe if I made enough money she would not have to work. I give her money each month, as of this writing it helps but not enough to compel her to just stay at home. Yet as I write this, i'm not sure that would keep her at home cooking and tending garden. While she does do that - tend garden and cook - I really think working around people is Mom's way of staying connected. She's a United Airline retiree but if United called, she'd answer it in a heart beat. Mom's tried working for me but following Internet trends can be boring if you really like being out and about with folks. Not that I don't, but that's my Mom. It's good therapy for the passing of ...