It has been long suspected that stress can accelerate aging. We certainly know it can make one look haggard. This observation is now supported by scientific research. A study of women with high levels of stress from caring for a chronically ill child showed that psychological stress (both perceived and actual) was associated with genetic aging, equivalent to at least an extra ten years. Another recent study published in the Journal of Immunology reported that the chronic stress experienced by children and spouses who care for Alzheimer's disease patients might cause an earlier death. The caregivers, studied over a period of 30 years, had their lifespan shortened on average by 4 to 8 years.

Just how does stress experienced by the brain result in biological changes in the heart? A clue may come from centuries of accumulated medical wisdom on relaxation. For thousands of years, cultures have developed and perfected ways of inducing a calm state of mind and physical relaxation. Practices such as meditation, yoga, deep breathing, chanting, and prayer all elicit the so-called "relaxation response," which can create a state of deep rest. Individuals who regularly practice such relaxation methods suffer less from anxiety and depression, and have a healthier heart, lower blood pressure, and better brain function.

While Justin Bieber was getting hauled off for drag racing, DUI, and egging a house… or football fans determine they will no longer root for the Seahawks because all of a sudden it's classless to talk smack to your opponents… other things were happening.

So, I bring you, a brief run-down of events… as I assume those reading this are not so easily lulled into the coma of the masses

This past month I met a mother, a very sad mother who lost her daughter to the lies of the big pharmaceutical companies. Karen Langhart's daughter was only 24 when the contraceptive she was using killed her. The drug companies are weaving and bobbing, but when a healthy young woman dies because of the side effects of a "safe" drug, there is something very, very wrong.

Karen's story is better said in her own words and here is what she wrote to me about her daughter. She also provides a link to an article in Vanity Fair Magazine. Let's pray for Karen and her family and be sure that we pass the word along about this dangerous drug being passed off as safe.

When Dr. Jerry Nadler of the Gonda Diabetes Center at the City of Hope Medical Center in Duarte, California and his colleagues placed 16 healthy people on magnesium-deficient diets, their insulin became less effective at getting sugar from their blood into their cells where it’s burned or stored as fuel.  In other words, they became less insulin sensitive, or what is called “insulin resistant.”  And that’s the first step on the road to both diabetes and heart disease.

Health Matters                                                  

Because of the importance of this topic, I have dedicated most of this newsletter to this article.
Heart Surgeon Speaks Out On What Really Causes Heart Disease
Dr. Dwight Lundell
Prevent Disease, Thu, 01 Mar 2012 21:58 EST

We physicians with all our training, knowledge and authority often acquire a rather large ego that tends to make it difficult to admit we are wrong. So, here it is. I freely admit to being wrong. As a heart surgeon with 25 years experience, having performed over 5,000 open-heart surgeries, today is my day to right the wrong with medical and scientific fact.