Monthly Archives: August 2013

Cocoa and chocolate in human health and disease – Science/News

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Hot drink

“Cocoa and chocolate in human health and disease.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21470061

“Cocoa and human health.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23642199

“Chocolate/cocoa and human health: a review.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23462053

“Chocolate in history: food, medicine, medi-food.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3708337/

“Food of the gods: cure for humanity? A cultural history of the medicinal and ritual use of chocolate.” http://jn.nutrition.org/content/130/8/2057S.long

“Theobroma cacao L., the Food of the Gods: a scientific approach beyond myths and claims.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19735732

“Polyphenols as cancer chemopreventive agents.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8538195

“Cocoa polyphenols and their potential benefits for human health.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3488419/

“High cocoa polyphenol rich chocolate may reduce the burden of the symptoms in chronic fatigue syndrome.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3001690/

“Chocolate consumption in relation to blood pressure and risk of cardiovascular disease in German adults” http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/31/13/1616.long

“Effect of cocoa on blood pressure.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22895979

“Effects of low habitual cocoa intake on blood pressure and bioactive nitric oxide: a randomized controlled trial.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17609490

“Cocoa Products May Help Fight Hypertension” http://www.medpagetoday.com/Cardiology/Hypertension/34209

“Flavonol-rich dark chocolate may help reduce blood pressure” http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-57494718-10391704/flavonol-rich-dark-chocolate-may-help-reduce-blood-pressure/

“Benefits in cognitive function, blood pressure, and insulin resistance through cocoa flavanol consumption in elderly subjects with mild cognitive impairment: the Cocoa, Cognition, and Aging (CoCoA) study.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22892813

“Cocoa powder triggers neuroprotective and preventive effects in a human Alzheimer’s Disease model by modulating BDNF signaling pathway.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23554028

“Cocoa Does a World of Good to Prevent Alzheimer’s” http://www.medindia.net/news/cocoa-does-a-world-of-good-to-prevent-alzheimers-117438-1.htm

“Neuroinflammation: modulation by flavonoids and mechanisms of action.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22107709

“Short-term supplementation with plant extracts rich in flavonoids protect nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons in a rat model of Parkinson’s disease.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17906186

“How cocoa polyphenols fight against Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s” http://in.news.yahoo.com/cocoa-polyphenols-fight-against-alzheimers-parkinsons-064418084.html

“Consuming cocoa could improve brain function” http://www.webmd.boots.com/alzheimers/news/20120814/consuming-cocoa-could-improve-brain-function

“Cocoa ‘might prevent memory decline'” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-23607879

“Cocoa May Sharpen Aging Brain: Cocoa-Rich Drink May Help Brain Health in Older People” http://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/news/20120813/cocoa-may-help-sharpen-aging-brain

raw cocoa powder

“Hot chocolate may prevent memory decline” http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/264551.php

Chocolate Fights Cancer – News/Science

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“Dark Chocolate Fights Cancer”

http://cancerdirectory.com/cancer-nutrition/dark-chocolate-fights-cancer/

“Chocolate: food as medicine/medicine as food.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11603654

“Dark chocolate will help ward off pancreatic cancer”  http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/dark-chocolate-ward-pancreatic-cancer-article-1.2484620

“Modulatory effects of polyphenols on apoptosis induction: relevance for cancer prevention.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2635670/

“Effects of dark chocolate on azoxymethane-induced colonic aberrant crypt foci.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23859035

“Cancer protective properties of cocoa: a review of the epidemiologic evidence.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19838930

“Flavanols and procyanidins of cocoa and chocolate inhibit growth and polyamine biosynthesis of human colonic cancer cells.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11741742

“Potential for preventive effects of cocoa and cocoa polyphenols in cancer.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23439478

“In-vitro effects of polyphenols from cocoa and beta-sitosterol on the growth of human prostate cancer and normal cells.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16835506

“In Vitro and In Vivo Effects of Water Extract of White Cocoa Tea (Camellia ptilophylla) Against Human Prostate Cancer” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2992824/

“Inhibitory effects of cocoa tea (Camellia ptilophylla) in human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 in vitro and in vivo through apoptosis.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22018604

“Chemopreventive effects of cocoa polyphenols on chronic diseases.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11682694

“Cocoa-rich diet prevents azoxymethane-induced colonic preneoplastic lesions in rats by restraining oxidative stress and cell proliferation and inducing apoptosis.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21953728

“Antitumor activity against murine lymphoma L5178Y model of proteins from cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) seeds in relation with in vitro antioxidant activity” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2974655/

“Protective activity of Theobroma cacao L. phenolic extract on AML12 and MLP29 liver cells by preventing apoptosis and inducing autophagy.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19883072

“Effect of cacao liquor extract on tumor marker enzymes during chemical hepatocarcinogenesis in rats.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15117546

“Pentameric procyanidin from Theobroma cacao selectively inhibits growth of human breast cancer cells.” http://mct.aacrjournals.org/content/4/4/537.long

“Chemoprevention of lung carcinogenesis by cacao liquor proanthocyanidins in a male rat multi-organ carcinogenesis model.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12609709

“Effects of cacao liquor proanthocyanidins on PhIP-induced mutagenesis in vitro, and in vivo mammary and pancreatic tumorigenesis in female Sprague-Dawley rats.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12169385

“Antimutagenesis and anticarcinogenesis, from the past to the future.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11506796

“Chronic toxicity/carcinogenicity studies of cocoa powder in rats.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1999308

“Cocoa Froths With Cancer-Preventing Compounds” http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/11/031119080419.htm

“Cancer-Fighting Organic Cocoa” http://www.organicauthority.com/blog/organic/cancer-fighting-organic-cocoa/

“Cocoa is loaded with anti-cancer phytochemicals and compounds, says research” http://www.naturalnews.com/000132.html

“Potential Role of Naturally Derived Polyphenols and Their Nanotechnology Delivery in Cancer.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23371307

“Natural polyphenols that display anticancer properties through inhibition of kinase activity.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20156174

 

Medical marijuana stopped girl’s seizures when nothing else would – msn

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Photo of Charlotte Figi - Realm of Caring via Facebook

 

“Charlotte Figi had her first seizure in 2006, when she was 3 months old. Her parents, Matt and Paige Figi, had every test conducted, yet no cause could be found. Years passed, and the seizures continued. Charlotte took medications, but she stopped developing cognitively. She was finally diagnosed with a severe form of epilepsy, Dravet Syndrome. Matt discovered the case of a boy with Dravet who’d been helped by low-level THC medical marijuana. By that point, Charlotte couldn’t walk, talk or eat, and she was having up to 300 grand mal seizures a week.

Desperate to find a solution, Matt and Paige applied for a medical marijuana card, making Charlotte, then 5, the youngest applicant in Colorado. They gave her a small amount of cannabis oil. The seizures stopped. Now Charlotte takes the oil twice daily with food, has only a few seizures a week, and is walking, talking and riding her bike. “My thought now is why were we the ones that had to go out and find this cure? This natural cure?” says Matt. “How come [a doctor] didn’t make me aware of this?””

http://now.msn.com/charlotte-figi-colorado-girl-has-seizures-treated-by-medical-marijuana

“Meet the first 6-year-old medical marijuana user” http://fox2now.com/2013/08/12/meet-the-first-6-year-old-medical-marijuana-user/

Marijuana stops child’s severe seizures – CNN

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“…Charlotte gets a dose of the cannabis oil twice a day in her food.

Gedde found three to four milligrams of oil per pound of the girl’s body weight stopped the seizures.

Today, Charlotte, 6, is thriving. Her seizures only happen two to three times per month, almost solely in her sleep. Not only is she walking, she can ride her bicycle. She feeds herself and is talking more and more each day.

“I literally see Charlotte’s brain making connections that haven’t been made in years,” Matt said. “My thought now is, why were we the ones that had to go out and find this cure? This natural cure? How come a doctor didn’t know about this? How come they didn’t make me aware of this?”

The marijuana strain Charlotte and now 41 other patients use to ease painful symptoms of diseases such as epilepsy and cancer has been named after the little girl who is getting her life back one day at a time.

It’s called Charlotte’s Web.”

More: http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/07/health/charlotte-child-medical-marijuana/index.html

Medical Marijuana Returns Life To 6-Year-Old: Cannabis Oil Stopped Charlotte Figi’s Severe Seizures

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Medical Marijuana

“Medical marijuana changed everything for Charlotte Figi. CNN reports that after the six-year-old was started on daily doses of cannabis oil, her debilitating seizures subsided and her cognitive functions improved dramatically.

Thanks to a federally controlled substance, she is now living a normal life.”

 More: http://www.medicaldaily.com/medical-marijuana-returns-life-6-year-old-cannabis-oil-stopped-charlotte-figis-severe-seizures

Smokin’: Report finds marijuana has negligible effects on lungs

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“According to a new study, habitual use of marijuana alone doesn’t appear to lead to significant abnormalities in lung function, nor does it increase the risks of COPD or either lung or upper airway cancer.”

“The pulmonary consequences of regularly smoking marijuana are far less than for tobacco, according a review of the published evidence conducted by Dr. Donald P. Tashkin, emeritus professor of medicine and medical director of the pulmonary function laboratory at the University of California, Los Angeles. “

More: http://www.familypracticenews.com/single-view/smokin-report-finds-marijuana-has-negligible-effects-on-lungs/e06976673e7c44157d83649773e81193.html

 

 

GW Pharmaceuticals Announces Results of MS Spasticity Study Confirming Sativex Has No Long-Term Negative Effect on Cognition

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“-Provides Further Evidence of Long-term Efficacy-

GW Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel therapeutics from its proprietary cannabinoid product platform, announces top-line results from a 12 month placebo-controlled study of Sativex in patients with spasticity due to Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

The study results confirm the reassuring safety profile of Sativex and provide further evidence of long-term efficacy.”

More: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/gw-pharmaceuticals-announces-results-ms-060000735.html

Killing bacteria with cannabis

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“Pharmacists and chemists have found another use for the multipurpose cannabis as a source of antibacterial chemicals for multidrug resistant bacteria.”

 

“All five cannabinoids (THC, CBD, CBG, CBC, and CBN) were potent against bacteria. Notably, they performed well against bacteria that were known to be multidrug resistant, like the strains of MRSA…

CBD and CBG have the most potential for consumer use because they are nonpsychotropic…”

More: http://arstechnica.com/science/2008/08/killing-bacteria-with-cannabis/

“Antibacterial cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa: a structure-activity study.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18681481

Pot is good for you? Marijuana fights the superbugs

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Fact: Cannabis Kills MRSA, Disrupts Prion Diseases

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“Marijuana is a potent antibiotic that can kill methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and disrupt the progression of prion diseases such as Mad Cow disease and Creutzfeld-Jakob disease — just don’t expect the federal government to tell you any of this.”

A MRSA lesion

“Scientists from Italy and the United Kingdom reported in the August 2007 issue of the Journal of Natural Products that the main active ingredient in weed, THC, as well as four other pot molecules “showed potent antibacterial activity against six different strains of MRSA of clinical relevance.”

Pot also stops prions,  a type of protein that can cause neurodegenerative diseases that are invariably fatal. Once prions get into a brain they replicate rapidly and shred brain tissue “resulting in a ‘spongiform’ appearance on post-mortem histological examination of neural tissue.”

In 2007, American and French researchers reported that pot molecule cannabidiol “prevents prion accumulation and protects neurons against prion toxicity” in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Cannabidiol inhibited prion accumulation in mouse and sheep prion disease cell cultures and inhibited prion formation in the brain of infected mice given injections of CBD. “The authors conclude that CBD likely represents a new class of anti-prion drugs.””

More: http://www.eastbayexpress.com/LegalizationNation/archives/2013/07/29/fact-cannabis-kills-mrsa-disrupts-prion-diseases

“Antibacterial cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa: a structure-activity study.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18681481

“Nonpsychoactive Cannabidiol Prevents Prion Accumulation and Protects Neurons against Prion Toxicity” http://www.jneurosci.org/content/27/36/9537.full