1 Recent research found surges in daily positive tests during the fall of 2020 in 18 European countries linearly correlate with:
2 COVID-19 gene therapy "vaccines" are designed to:
3 Vaccine passports are ushering in an ever-increasing surveillance state, which many people are welcoming because they've been led to believe they're:
4 Cost-benefit analyses reveal the cost of lockdowns, in terms of Quality Adjusted Life Years and Wellbeing Years, in the U.S. and Canada are:
5 According to the World Health Organization's investigative commission, tasked with identifying the origin of SARS-CoV-2, the virus most likely originated from which of the following?
6 Which of the following has long-held ties to and deep influence over corporate media in the U.S. and elsewhere?
7 Red and near-infrared light therapy activates genes involved in which of the following?
from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/03/01/week-171-health-quiz.aspx
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Vitamin D regulates the expression of hundreds of genes and is integral to biological functions that affect every bodily system. As you’ll see in this short video, vitamin D insufficiency or deficiency can trigger several generalized symptoms that you may have associated with other health conditions. It is also called the sunshine vitamin since your skin makes vitamin D when exposed to ultraviolet light from the sun.1 Vitamin D performs many functions within the body, including maintaining adequate levels of calcium and phosphate, essential for normal bone mineralization.2 It helps reduce inflammation, which is necessary for the modulation of cell growth and immune function. Vitamin D also affects genes that help regulate cell differentiation and apoptosis. The main indicator of your vitamin D level is 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD). Data collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 2005-2006 showed a deficiency prevalence of 41.6% in the U.S. population.3 However, as I discuss later in this article, as many as 80% of people may be deficient in vitamin D. It’s important to note that how the measurement of insufficiency and deficiency is defined depends on the serum concentrations used. Some researchers use a level of 20 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL) or 50 nanomoles per liter (nmol/L); the ng/mL is used most frequently in the U.S. and nmol/L is the standard in Europe. However, GrassrootsHealth Nutrient Research Institute recommends vitamin D serum concentration levels from 40 ng/mL to 60 ng/mL or 100 nmol/L to 150 nmol/L.4 At this level, the number of people who are likely deficient in vitamin D would be significantly higher. 14 Signs You Might Have a Vitamin D DeficiencyDuring cold and flu season, and the COVID-19 pandemic, it is essential to maintain healthy levels of vitamin D to help reduce your risk of viral and bacterial illness.5,6 A blood test is the best way to determine your vitamin D levels, but here are some symptoms that may indicate your levels are low. 1. Aching muscles -- Nearly half of all adults are affected by muscle pain.7 Researchers believe most of those are deficient in vitamin D. Some studies have suggested that nerves have vitamin D receptors that affect the perception of pain. In one animal model, research demonstrated a vitamin D-deficient diet can induce deep muscle hypersensitivity that was not connected to low levels of calcium.8 2. Painful bones -- Vitamin D regulates the level of calcium in your body, necessary to protect bone health.9 Vitamin D deficiency can cause your bones to soften, called osteomalacia. This may be a precursor to osteoporosis. 3. Fatigue -- This is a common symptom of a variety of different health conditions, including sleep deprivation. Researchers have found that supplementing cancer patients suffering from fatigue can improve their symptoms.10 In one study11 using 174 adults with fatigue and stable medical conditions, the researchers found 77.2% were deficient in vitamin D. After normalizing their level, the fatigue symptoms improved significantly. 4. Reduced muscle performance -- Vitamin D deficiency is as common in athletes as in others. Vitamin D is crucial for muscle development, strength and performance. Older adults taking a vitamin D supplement have a reduced risk of falls and improved muscle performance.12 Correction through oral supplementation or sensible sun exposure may reduce symptoms of stress fractures, musculoskeletal pain and frequent illness. Vitamin D also has a direct effect on muscle performance. In one paper from the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the author wrote:13
5. Brain health -- Vitamin D is also essential for your brain health. Symptoms of deficiency can include dementia caused by an increase of soluble and insoluble beta-amyloid, a factor in Alzheimer's disease.14 Research has also found an association with depression15 that may be associated with the function of vitamin D buffering higher levels of calcium in the brain.16 Vitamin D deficiency in pregnant women can increase the risk of autism and schizophrenic-like disorders in the baby.17 One study of people with fibromyalgia found a vitamin D deficiency was more common in those who had anxiety and depression.18 Another looked at vitamin D deficiency in obese subjects and found a relationship between low levels of vitamin D and depression.19 6. Poor sleep -- The mechanism linking vitamin D and poor sleep quality has not been identified. But research has found people with low levels of vitamin D have poor quality sleep and a higher risk of sleep disorders.20 7. Sweaty head -- Excessive sweating, especially on your head, or a change in your pattern of sweating, can indicate a vitamin D deficiency.21 8. Hair loss -- Vitamin D is crucial to the proliferation of keratinocytes and plays an important role in your hair cycle. The vitamin D receptor appears to play a role in the anagen phase of hair growth, leading researchers to conclude, "Treatments that upregulate the vitamin D receptor may be successful in treating hair disorders and are a potential area of further study."22 9. Slow-healing wounds -- Chronic wounds are a major public health challenge.23 In the U.S. 2% of the population is affected by chronic wounds and it is estimated to account for 5.5% of the cost of health care in the U.K. NHS. Vitamin D promotes wound healing and the creation of cathelicidin, a peptide that fights wound infections.24 10. Dizziness -- Evidence from animal models suggests that vitamin D is critical in the development of the inner ear,25 which affects balance and coordination. Analysis of people with vestibular neuritis, characterized by vertigo, showed lower serum vitamin D levels than in people without vestibular neuritis.26 11. Heart problems -- Clinical studies have shown that vitamin D3 improves circulation and can help improve high blood pressure.27 In one study28 researchers discovered that vitamin D3 also has a significant effect on the endothelial cells that line your cardiovascular system. They found that it helped balance concentrations of nitric oxide and peroxynitrite, which improved endothelial function. 12. Excess weight -- How vitamin D affects obesity has not been identified. However, data do show there is a high probability of deficiency in people who are obese.29 13. Recurring infections -- There have been multiple epidemiological studies that show vitamin D deficiency can increase the risk of infection and raise the severity, particularly in respiratory tract infections.30 Multiple studies have demonstrated that vitamin D deficiency increases the potential risk for severe disease and mortality, especially in those who are critically ill.31 14. Reduced cognitive function -- Data show that vitamin D deficiency increases your risk of dementia twofold32 and raises your risk of impaired cognitive function.33 80% of People With COVID-19 Are Deficient in Vitamin DVitamin D plays an important role in the development and severity of many diseases. This is why, from the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, I suspected that optimizing vitamin D levels would significantly lower the incidence of infection and death in the general population. Since then, mounting evidence has revealed this is indeed the case as researchers have repeatedly found that higher levels of vitamin D reduce the rate of positive tests, hospitalizations and mortality related to this infection. One study,34 released in late 2020, assessed the serum 25OHD levels of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 to evaluate the influence it might have on the severity of the disease. The researchers found 82.2% of those with COVID-19 were vitamin D deficient (levels lower than 20 ng/mL). Interestingly, they also found those who were deficient had a greater prevalence of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, high iron levels and longer hospital stays. A second study35 found similar results for people who only tested positive for COVID-19. In other words, these patients were tested for the illness using the PCR test, which gives notoriously high false-positive results, and did not necessarily have symptoms of the illness. Yet, those who were "likely deficient" in vitamin D also had an increased risk of testing positive. Recently, data showed people who received supplemental vitamin D3 while hospitalized with COVID-19 had reduced admissions to the ICU by 82% and reduced mortality by 64%.36 Editor’s note: This preprint study has since been pulled due to “concerns about the description of the research in this paper,”37 but an archived version is still available. You can read more about the study, from information published before being pulled, at “Vitamin D Supplementation Reduces COVID-19 Deaths by 64%.” Before the paper was removed, this information triggered British MP David Davis to call for a reevaluation of the official recommendations for vitamin D. He tweeted, “The findings of this large and well-conducted study should result in this therapy being administered to every COVID patient in every hospital in the temperate latitudes."38 He added that the demonstration of the "clear relationship between vitamin D and COVID mortality is causal," and his government should raise the availability of free vitamin D supplements to vulnerable populations. Other experts also called for official vitamin D recommendations.39 It's important to remember the data showing people who are deficient in vitamin D have a higher risk of severe disease has been available long before the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, information that may suggest the other side of the same coin — namely supplementing with vitamin D — may have a positive effect on disease severity, can come under attack. It isn’t a big leap to understand that if simple and inexpensive solutions, such a vitamin D, hydroxychloroquine and zinc, may reduce the potential risk of severe disease and death, the billions of dollars the pharmaceutical companies stand to make by vaccinating the world would be lost. Unlike the painful reports of vaccine adverse events received by the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), supplementing with vitamin D, magnesium and vitamin K2 have been studied for years and found to be “well tolerated.”40,41 Added to which, the studies on vitamin D have demonstrated insufficiency and deficiency are associated with a number of health conditions, which you can find more information about in “Are You Ready for the Darkest Day of the Year?” and “Health Conditions in Which Vitamin D Plays an Important Role.” Magnesium and Vitamin K2 Optimize Your Vitamin D3 SupplementIn the past, I've written about the importance of taking vitamin K2 MK-7 and magnesium with your vitamin D3 supplement. Both play an important role in your overall health and in the bioavailability and application of vitamin D in your body. If you're not using magnesium and vitamin K2, you could need nearly 2.5 times more vitamin D, which GrassrootsHealth discovered in its D*action project.42 Over 10,000 individuals provided information about supplement use and overall health status to GrassrootsHealth since they began conducting large-scale population-based nutrient research in 2007.43 That information has led to the recommendation that vitamin D blood levels between 40 ng/ml and 60 ng/ml (100 nmol/L to 150 nmol/L) are safe, effective and lower overall disease incidence and health care costs. As reported by GrassrootsHealth from their data:44
In practical terms, this means when you take vitamin K2 and magnesium with vitamin D, you need far less vitamin D to achieve a healthy level. You’ll find more about the relationship between these supplements, how they can improve cognitive function and the impact on mortality at “Magnesium and K2 Optimize Your Vitamin D Supplementation.” from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/03/01/14-signs-of-vitamin-d-deficiency.aspx A number of medical professionals and occupational respirator experts, including Chris Schaefer, featured in the video above, have warned that wearing of face masks may have adverse health effects and that people really should not be forced to wear them on a regular basis. Aside from that, there’s a glaring lack of evidence proving they actually prevent viral illness. On the contrary, the evidence overwhelmingly shows they have little to no impact on viral spread. Research1 also shows asymptomatic individuals pose virtually no risk, as they rarely ever spread live virus, thereby undermining the idea that everyone must be masked simply because you don’t know who’s infectious and who’s not. Despite all of that, government officials insist that universal mask wearing is an essential strategy to combat COVID-19, now even recommending wearing two,2 three3,4 or even four5 layers of face masks. And, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci, Americans may have to wear masks all the way through 2022.6 Is Wearing a Wet Mask Good for You?Just when you thought mainstream propaganda could not propose a greater irrational perversion of the truth, a new study7 from the National Institutes of Health claims wearing a moist mask — which is a breeding ground for harmful bacteria — is actually good for you because inhaling through the wet mask hydrates your lungs and boosts your immune system. As reported by Healthing.ca, February 16, 2021:8
However, it’s important to realize that the humidity inside the mask will allow pathogenic bacteria to rapidly grow and multiply — a documented fact not addressed by the NIH — and since the mask makes it more difficult to breathe, you’re likely to breathe heavier, thereby risking inhaling the microbes deep inside your lungs. As you’ll see below, this can have significant health risks that vastly outweigh any benefit you might get from breathing more humid air. Occupational Respirator Testing Expert Speaks OutIn June 2020, Schaefer wrote an open letter9 addressed to the chief medical officer in Alberta, Canada, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, pointing out the errors of recommending universal wearing of N95 masks, surgical masks or nonmedical masks as protection against SARS-CoV-2. In it, he writes:10
1. Viruses in the fluid envelopes that surround them can be very small, so small in fact that you would need an electron microscope to see them. N95 masks filter 95% of particles with a diameter of 0.3 microns or larger. COVID-19 particles are .08 – .12 microns. 2. Viruses don’t just enter us through our mouth and nose, but can also enter through our eyes and even the pores of our skin. The only effective barrier one can wear to protect against virus exposure would be a fully encapsulated hazmat suit with cuffs by ankles taped to boots and cuffs by wrists taped to gloves, while receiving breathing air from a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). This barrier is standard gear to protect against a biohazard (viruses) and would have to be worn in a possible virus hazard environment 24/7 and you wouldn’t be able to remove any part of it even to have a sip of water, eat or use the washroom while in the virus environment. If you did, you would become exposed and would negate all the prior precautions you had taken.” Face Masks Pose Several Health HazardsIn his letter, and in the video above, Schaefer also stresses that these kinds of face masks pose “very real risks and possible serious threats to a wearer’s health” for a number of reasons, including the following: 1. Wearing a face mask increases breathing resistance, and since it makes both inhaling and exhaling more difficult, individuals with pre-existing medical conditions need to be screened by a medical professional to make sure they won’t be at risk of a medical emergency if wearing a face mask. This includes those with shortness of breath, lung disease, panic attacks, breathing difficulties, chest pain on exertion, cardiovascular disease, fainting spells, claustrophobia, chronic bronchitis, heart problems, asthma, allergies, diabetes, seizures, high blood pressure and those with pacemakers. The impact of wearing a face mask during pregnancy is also wholly unknown. 2. Face masks can reduce oxygen intake, leading to potentially hazardous oxygen deficiency (hypoxia). 3. They also cause rapid accumulation of harmful carbon dioxide, which can have significant cognitive and physical impacts. That said, there is some evidence to support that this may be one of the few benefits of mask wearing, as slightly elevated CO2 levels can also contribute to health benefits as per my interview with Patrick McKeown. (We’re not talking about dangerously high levels, however.) 4. Wearing a face mask increases your body temperature and physical stress, which could result in an elevated temperature reading that is not related to infection. 5. All face masks can cause bacterial and fungal infections in the user as warm, moist air accumulates inside the mask. This is the perfect breeding ground for pathogens. “That is why N95 and other disposable masks were only designed to be short duration, specific task use and then immediately discarded,” Schaefer notes. Medical doctors have warned that bacterial pneumonia, facial rashes, fungal infections on the face,11 “mask mouth” (symptoms of which include bad breath, tooth decay and gum inflammation) and candida mouth infections12 are all on the rise. What’s worse, a study13,14 published in the February 2021 issue of the journal Cancer Discovery found that the presence of microbes in your lungs can worsen lung cancer pathogenesis and can contribute to advanced stage lung cancer. As reported by Global Research:15
6. With extended use, medical masks will begin to break down and release chemicals that are then inhaled. Tiny microfibers are also released, which can cause health problems when inhaled. This hazard was highlighted in a performance study16 being published in the June 2021 issue of Journal of Hazardous Materials. Schaefer also points out that to provide any benefit whatsoever, users must be fitted with the right type and size of respirator, and must undergo fit testing by a trained professional. However, N95 respirators, even when fitted properly, will not protect against viral exposures but can adequately protect against larger particles. Surgical masks, which do not seal to your face, “do not filter anything,” Schaefer notes. These types of masks are designed to prevent bacteria from the mouth, nose and face from entering the patient during surgical procedures, and researchers have warned that contaminated surgical masks actually pose an infection risk.17 After just two hours, a significant increase in bacterial load on the mask was observed. Nonmedical cloth masks are not only ineffective but also particularly dangerous as they’re not engineered for “easy inhalation and effective purging of exhaled carbon dioxide,” making them wholly unsuitable for use. In the video, Schaefer demonstrates the only type of mask that is actually safe to wear — the gas mask kind of respirator you’d use to protect yourself against painting fumes, organic vapors, smoke and dust. Real respirators are built to filter the air you breathe in, and get rid of the carbon dioxide and humidity from the air you breathe out, thereby ensuring there’s no dangerous buildup of carbon dioxide or reduction in oxygen inside the mask. Cochrane Review Gives Masks Thumbs DownI’ve written many articles detailing the evidence showing that face masks do not prevent viral illnesses. To these we can now add an updated Cochrane review,18 which summarizes randomized trial evidence from studies that looked at face masks, hand-washing and/or physical distancing as prevention against respiratory infections. There are many limitations to the included studies, including the facts that none was specific to COVID-19 and most had questionable adherence. They did not include the one COVID-19 specific trial that also included adherence parameters. With regard to medical and surgical masks, they found that:
Four health care studies and one small community study looked at the use of N95/P2 respirators. Here they found that:
COVID-19 Specific Mask Trial Failed to Prove BenefitCochrane’s review certainly would have been more complete had they included the only COVID-19-related study to date. Unfortunately, they only included studies published before April 1, 2020. The trial in question, which was done in Denmark, was published November 18, 2020. This COVID-19-specific randomized controlled surgical mask trial19,20 confirmed and strengthened previous findings, showing that mask wearing may either reduce your risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection by as much as 46%, or increase your risk by 23%. Either way, the vast majority — 97.9% of those who didn’t wear masks, and 98.2% of those who did — remained infection free. The study included 3,030 individuals assigned to wear a surgical face mask and 2,994 unmasked controls. Of them, 80.7% completed the study. Based on the adherence scores reported, 46% of participants always wore the mask as recommended, 47% predominantly as recommended and 7% failed to follow recommendations. Among mask wearers, 1.8% ended up testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, compared to 2.1% among controls. When they removed those who did not adhere to the recommendations for use, the results remained the same — 1.8%, which suggests adherence makes no difference. Among those who reported wearing their face mask “exactly as instructed,” 2% tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 compared to 2.1% of the controls. So, essentially, we’re destroying economies and lives around the world to protect a tiny minority from getting a positive PCR test result which, as detailed in “Asymptomatic ‘Casedemic’ Is a Perpetuation of Needless Fear,” means little to nothing. CDC Relies on Anecdotal Data to Promote Mask UseConsidering the dearth of evidence for universal mask use, just what is the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relying on to back up its recommendation?21 Believe it or not, their primary “evidence” is an anecdotal story about two symptomatic hair stylists who interacted with 139 clients during eight days. Sixty-seven of the clients agreed to be interviewed and tested. None tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. The fact that the stylists and all clients “universally wore masks in the salon” is therefore seen as evidence that the masks prevented the spread of infection. The Danish study reviewed above didn’t make it onto the CDC’s list of studies either. The CDC’s own data22,23,24 also show 70.6% of COVID-19 patients reported “always” wearing a cloth mask or face covering in the 14 days preceding their illness; 14.4% reported having worn a mask “often.” So, a total of 85% of people who came down with COVID-19 had “often” or “always” worn a mask. This too contradicts the idea that mask wearing will protect against the infection, and is probably a slightly more reliable indicator of effectiveness than the anecdotal hairdresser story. Another recent investigation25 revealed the same trend, showing that states with mask mandates had an average of 27 positive SARS-CoV-2 “cases” per 100,000 people, whereas states with no mask mandates had just 17 cases per 100,000. I reviewed these and other findings in my December 31, 2020, article, “Mask Mandates Are Absolutely Useless.” The CDC’s scientific backing for double-masking is equally flimsy. Using rubber dummy heads for their experiments, they claim wearing two tightly fitted masks could reduce exposure to aerosols by about 95%.26,27 However, there are several reasons to take these results with a grain of salt, starting with the fact that mannequins don’t breathe. The CDC even admits as much in its report, when they note that “double masking might impede breathing or obstruct peripheral vision for some wearers.” In the final analysis, it seems clear that the most effective ways to prevent the spread of viral illnesses, SARS-CoV-2 included, is frequent handwashing with mild soap and water, and staying home if you have symptoms of a respiratory infection. As for masking up when you’re healthy, let alone double, triple or quadruple masking, there’s simply no scientific consensus for that strategy. from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/03/01/moist-masks.aspx Dr. Mercola Interviews the Experts This article is part of a weekly series in which Dr. Mercola interviews various experts on a variety of health issues. To see more expert interviews, click here. In this interview, Stephanie Seneff, Ph.D., a senior research scientist at MIT, reviews the health impacts of glyphosate. She has just finished writing a book about glyphosate called “Toxic Legacy: How the Weedkiller Glyphosate is Destroying Our Health and the Environment,” which is expected to be published in June 2021. For years, glyphosate was assumed safe and claims of toxicity were vehemently denied. But in recent years, studies on glyphosate have been demonstrating toxicity even at very low levels. Seneff also believes glyphosate exposure may be a key player in cases of severe COVID-19, which we’ll unravel in this interview. Glyphosate’s Mechanism of ActionThe “gly” in glyphosate actually stands for the amino acid glycine. The glycine amino acid in glyphosate has a methylphosphonate group attached to its nitrogen atom, which is responsible for its effects and toxicity. After studying the research literature on glyphosate, Seneff has reached the conclusion that your body sometimes substitutes glyphosate for the amino acid glycine when it is constructing proteins, and this can have devastating consequences in some cases. The proteins created with glyphosate instead of glycine simply don’t work because glyphosate is much larger than glycine and also negatively charged, and as a result this alters important physical characteristics. Monsanto’s own research, dating back to the late 1980s, shows that glyphosate accumulates in various tissues, even though they claim it doesn’t.1 The Monsanto researchers proposed that it was “incorporated into” the proteins in the tissues. This is not widely appreciated, even in the natural health community. Now, if you have a distorted analog of glycine (in the form of glyphosate), the protein constructed from it is not going to work like it’s supposed to. In her book, Seneff details the amino acids in proteins that are most susceptible to damage because of what she calls a “glyphosate susceptible motif.”
An aromatic amino acid called EPSP synthase is a critical enzyme that almost surely gets disrupted by glyphosate through this mechanism of substituting for glycine. This gets a bit technical, but it is important. The plant version of EPSP synthase binds a phosphate group in its substrate phosphoenolpyruvate at a site where there is a highly-conserved glycine residue (highly conserved usually means that it is critical for proper function). It has been shown experimentally that, if you change the DNA code so that the glycine is substituted by an amino acid called alanine (one extra methyl group), the enzyme becomes completely insensitive to glyphosate at any concentration. It also takes a hit on phosphate binding because of the extra methyl group, but you can tweak another amino acid nearby to fix this problem, while still keeping its insensitivity to glyphosate. Researchers from Dow-Dupont did exactly this to a maize version of EPSP synthase using CRISPR technology and were able to create synthetically a version of the maize’s own EPSP synthase that was completely resistant to glyphosate. The title of this paper is: “Desensitizing Plant EPSP Synthase to Glyphosate: Optimized Global Sequence Context Accommodates a Glycine-to-Alanine Change in the Active Site.”2 The shikimate pathway is the pathway that produces aromatic amino acids, which are essential to humans as we cannot create these amino acids in our body. The argument is we're not susceptible to glyphosate because our cells don't have EPSP synthase — in fact, they don’t have the entire shikimate pathway. However, our gut microbes do have that pathway, and they use it to make essential amino acids for the host. So, our gut microbes are indeed affected by glyphosate, and when they’re damaged, our health can suffer in any number of ways. But what might be an even more devastating problem with glyphosate is the way it probably messes up a large number of proteins that bind phosphate at a site where there is at least one, and often three, highly conserved glycine residues. Glyphosate slips its methylphosphonate group into the spot that is supposed to be where phosphate from the substrate fits snugly. Phosphate can’t bind because glyphosate is in the way. The arguments for why glyphosate specifically disrupts proteins that depend on glycine for phosphate binding are described more fully in a paper Seneff published together with colleagues arguing that glyphosate is a major factor in kidney failure among young agricultural workers in Central America.3 The Importance of DeuteriumLaszlo Boros is a professor of pediatrics at UCLA and an expert on deutenomics, “the science of autonomic deuterium discrimination in nature.”4 After reading one of Seneff’s papers, he contacted her, suggesting she look into deuterium.
In normal physiology, your cells, specifically the mitochondria, function to help deplete your body of deuterium. Deuterium is a naturally occurring isotope of hydrogen. If you didn’t already know, deuterium is also known as heavy hydrogen, because it has a neutron in addition to the proton and electron in the hydrogen atom. Provided your cell is healthy, it has deuterium-depleting enzymes and organelles that help remove deuterium from your cells. If your mitochondria are damaged by glyphosate, they’re not going to be able to eliminate the deuterium properly. Deuterium is like iron in the way that it’s both essential in the right amounts and toxic in excess. Hydrogen is the smallest atom and by far the most common atom in your body. Deuterium, being a heavy hydrogen, has one extra neutron, in addition to the normal proton and electron that regular hydrogen has. Now, your cells are surrounded by structured water, which is negatively charged and contributes to your body’s energy production by supplying deuterium-depleted hydrogen to lysosomes and mitochondria. The structured water is maintained by sulfates, which makes sulfate extremely important for health. Sulfate is made dysfunctional by glyphosate, which in turn destroys structured water, resulting in impaired energy production in the cell.5
How Your Body Creates Deuterium-Depleted WaterEndothelial NOS (eNOS) makes nitric oxide (NO), and for every molecule of NO that it makes, it produces two molecules of water, which are deuterium depleted. Stephanie believes the NO created by eNOS may act as a signal that deuterium-depleted water has been created. Interestingly enough, deuterium-depleted water is also created during the inflammatory process.
For clarification, the ATP synthase pump works like a mini-motor. When a hydrogen atom with one proton goes through it, it works flawlessly and generates ATP. If deuterium enters it, which has one neutron and one proton, making it twice the weight of hydrogen, it breaks that motor. Interestingly, deuterium is everywhere, naturally, but your body has developed an intricate way to make it harmless by trapping it in the structured water, where it’s beneficial, as it actually supports the creation of structured water. Problems arise when you cannot make enough structured water to sequester it all. Then, the deuterium gets loose, causing mitochondrial dysfunction, impairing energy production and contributing to chronic disease. Glyphosate Damages Health in Many WaysAs noted by Seneff, glyphosate harms your health in a number of ways. For example, she cites a recent paper showing it causes endocrine disruption, which can lead to breast cancer, reproductive issues, obesity and thyroid problems.6 Another paper shows glyphosate sensitizes cells to be more receptive to cancer after exposure to other chemicals.7 “Glyphosate makes everything else more toxic than it would otherwise be,” Seneff says. “It disrupts your defense system against toxic chemicals.” Other research shows epigenetic and generational effects, even when no apparent problems can be found in the first generation exposed.8 Glyphosate also impairs flavoproteins — proteins that bind flavins. Many of these proteins play a crucial role in transferring hydrogen from NADH or NADPH to other molecules, essentially supporting the delivery of pure hydrogen to the mitochondria. Flavoproteins have a characteristic GxGxxG motif at the site where they bind phosphate in the flavins. The ‘G’ stands for glycine and the ‘x’ is a wildcard — any amino acid, including glycine. This means they have at least three susceptible glycines at this critical region of the protein. Flavoproteins are molecules that facilitate the transfer of protons and electrons, and know how to avoid deuterium, by exploiting a special feature of hydrogen called proton tunneling. All of them can be expected to be disrupted by glyphosate. A critical flavoprotein is succinate dehydrogenase, and several papers have shown it is adversely affected by glyphosate, Seneff says. It is the only enzyme that plays a role in both oxidative phosphorylation and the citric acid cycle in the mitochondria. In addition to aromatic amino acids, the shikimate pathway is essential for riboflavin synthesis, and riboflavin, a B vitamin, is the main precursor to flavins. This means that riboflavin deficiency can be triggered from glyphosate exposure as well. Glyphosate also causes damage by:
Deuterium-Depleted Water May Be Central to MetabolismAccording to Seneff, it appears deuterium-depleted water plays a central, hitherto unappreciated role in metabolism, as your body has so many ways to create it. For example, deuterium-depleted water is created through: • Fatty acid synthesis and metabolism — The enzymes that synthesize fatty acids incorporate hydrogen that is carried by NADPH. This hydrogen atom has been carefully selected to be assured not to be deuterium. Interestingly, lipoxygenase is a protein expressed during conditions of stress, and according to Seneff, it has the greatest ability to select protons over deuterons of any protein. It is highly upregulated in severe COVID-19 infection. It appears the virus triggers an increase in lipoxygenase because the virus captures linoleic acid (LA) in pockets in the viral membrane. However, lipoxygenase is not a flavoprotein, and it also doesn’t bind heme — this makes it resistant to damage from glyphosate. So, its activation becomes an alternative pathway to fix the mitochondrial deuterium problem. SARS-CoV-2 picks up the omega-6 LA as it crosses the cellular membrane, and the LA then triggers the production of lipoxygenase that modifies the LA into leukotrienes — signaling molecules that bring in damaging macrophages. But deuterium-depleted water is also produced in this process, by yanking two hydrogen atoms out of the fat and combining them with oxygen to make water. Note that this is just yet another way that excess LA damages your body, but with an ulterior motive that we often fail to appreciate. • Sterol synthesis and metabolism — including cholesterol, vitamin D, cortisol, and sex hormones. • Aromatic amino acid derivatives — including melatonin and neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, as well as thyroid hormone. “All these molecules that go through these complicated steps are all focused on delivering deuterium-depleted water to the mitochondria,” Seneff says. “I mean, it's an absolute obsession that the cell has.” She goes on to review how processes that may appear to have nothing but harmful effects are actually an effort to heal the body. This, for example, seems to be the case in COVID-19:
Glyphosate Damage May Be a Factor in Severe COVID-19As explained by Seneff, your immune cells are impaired by glyphosate, so the older you are, the more likely you’ve been exposed to glyphosate for decades and therefore have poorly functioning immune cells. Interestingly, Seneff points out that the comorbidities of COVID-19 — obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure — are also diseases whose prevalence is going up dramatically over time, exactly in step with glyphosate usage on core crops.
The key take-home message here is that this is yet another reason to clean up your diet to make sure you’re not exposed to glyphosate. It basically wrecks your immune cells, and the cascading damage that takes place in severe cases of COVID-19 appears to be your body’s response to salvage or repair those poorly functioning immune cells. Dietary RecommendationsThe answer to this problem is, first of all, to eat certified organic foods whenever possible. “We won't buy it if we can't find certified organic, and we've really seen health improvements since we've started doing that,” Seneff says. “I really swear by it, and I try to get all my friends to do the same. I think if you can eliminate glyphosate, you can really see great improvements in your health no matter what your problems are.” Other dietary recommendations include eating/drinking more:
To help “push” glyphosate out of your body and mitigate its toxicity, you can take an inexpensive glycine supplement. I take between 5 and 10 grams a day. It has a light, sweet taste, so you can actually use it as a sweetener.
from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/02/28/stephanie-seneff-glyphosate.aspx In this interview, Ari Whitten, author of "The Ultimate Guide to Red Light Therapy," reviews the mechanics and basic benefits of red light and infrared light. Whitten, who has a degree in kinesiology, exercise science and movement science, has studied natural health, fitness and nutrition for over 20 years. He's been a personal trainer, health coach and nutritionist for many years, and went on to do a Ph.D. program in clinical psychology. Light as NutritionRed and near-infrared light are, of course, a subset of natural sunlight, which actually acts and has value as a nutrient. Red light and near-infrared light therapies are ways to get some of those benefits. It may be particularly valuable and beneficial for people who aren't getting enough natural sunlight exposure, and that's a majority of people. As noted by Whitten:
One of the reasons for this is because indoor workers are exposed to fluorescent lighting, which is loaded with dirty electricity or high voltage transients that cause biological harm. So, not only do they not get sunlight exposure, but they also get harmful EMF exposure. But the biggest factor has to do with the frequency of exposure. Intermittent exposure – occasional exposure followed by many days or weeks of little to no exposure – tends to be more problematic than regular, frequent sun exposure, as you're more likely to burn and cause DNA damage in your skin. Regular exposure, on the other hand, ameliorates this risk, as it engages innate adaptive systems in your skin, your melanin in particular, that are explicitly designed to prevent DNA damage from UV light exposure.
Bioactive WavelengthsAs explained by Whitten, there are specific bioactive wavelengths, and they work through different mechanisms. One mechanism is through your eyes, which is why you're typically better off not wearing sunglasses on a regular basis. When you're outdoors on a sunny day, without sunglasses, blue and green wavelengths enter your eyeballs and feed through nerves into the circadian clock in your brain. Your circadian clock, in turn, regulates a variety of bodily systems, from neurotransmitters involved in mood regulation to hormones involved in immune function. A dysregulated circadian rhythm has been linked to dozens of diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular disease and neurological diseases. "I consider disrupted circadian rhythm and poor sleep to be probably the single most common cause of low energy levels and fatigue," Whitten says. Fatigue is the key focus of his Energy Blueprint brand, and in the interview, he reviews some of the other root causes for poor energy and fatigue, aside from light exposure. In summary, your body's resilience, i.e., your ability to tolerate environmental stressors, is directly dependent on the robustness, both in terms of quantity and quality, of your mitochondria. When your resilience threshold is exceeded, disease processes are activated, and fatigue can be viewed as the initial universal symptom prior to overt disease. For more information about this side topic, be sure to listen to the interview or read through the transcript. Red Light TherapyModern day red light and near-infrared light therapy is an extension of the original Helio therapy or sun-based therapy, which has a long and rich history of use for a number of diseases, including tuberculosis. Over the past few decades, more than 5,000 studies have been published about red and near-infrared light therapy, a.k.a, photobiomodulation, for a wide range of ailments, from combating wrinkles and cellulite to hair regrowth, sports performance, accelerated injury recovery, increased strength and much more.
There are also studies showing benefits for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's patients. The difficulty is getting the light to sufficiently penetrate the skull. According to Whitten, near-infrared at 800 to 900 nanometers will penetrate about 20% to 30% deeper than red wavelengths in the range of 600 to 700 nanometers.
More Is Not Necessarily BetterA common fallacy is that if something is beneficial, then the more the better. But this can be a hazardous assumption. As explained by Whitten, there is a bi-phasic dose response to red and near-infrared light therapy. Basically, you need to do enough of it to experience its effects, but if you overdo it, you can cause negative effects. So, it's all about finding the sweet spot. That said, as a general rule, your risk of exceeding the beneficial dose with light therapy is lower than it is with something like exercise. Meaning, it's much easier to overdo exercise and end up with tissue damage from that than it is to overdo red and near-infrared light therapy.
One potential reason for this is because, like exercise and fasting, light therapy is a type of hormetic stress, which works in part by transiently increasing free radicals or reactive oxygen species. People with extremely poor mitochondrial health will have a very low resilience threshold, so their capacity to tolerate that burst of reactive oxygen species will be low. At that point, they're simply creating damage, and their bodies don't have the resilience to effectively recover from it. Mechanisms of ActionAs noted by Whitten, there are several accepted mechanisms of action, and then there are more speculative mechanisms. One of the most well-known mechanism is cytochrome c oxidase, a photo receptor on your mitochondria that literally captures photons of red and near-infrared light. The most effective wavelengths that activate this system are in the 600 to 700 nanometer range, and the 800 to 1,000 nanometers range. In response to those light photons, your mitochondria will produce energy more efficiently. "In general, cells — whether it's skin cells, your thyroid gland, your muscle cells — they work better if mitochondria are producing more energy," Whitten explains. This is one general principle of how light therapy can help heal such a diverse range of tissues and conditions. Another mechanism is related to the benefits of hormesis and the transient spike in reactive oxygen species. That burst of reactive oxygen species creates a cascade of signaling effects that stimulate the NRF2 pathway and heat shock proteins, for example. As a result, your intracellular antioxidant response system is strengthened and your mitochondria are stimulated to grow bigger and stronger. It also stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis, the creation of new mitochondria. Ultimately, all of this increases your resistance to a broad range of environmental stressors.
Light Therapy Modulates Gene ExpressionA third mechanism of action involves retrograde signaling and the modulation of gene expression. Your mitochondria play a key role here as well. As explained by Whitten:
There's a specific set of genes that are expressed in response to red and near-infrared light therapy. In summary, it activates genes involved in cell repair, cell regeneration and cellular growth, depending on the tissue. For example, in your brain, it activates brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), in your skin, it increases expression of fibroblasts that synthesize collagen, in your muscles, it locally increases expression of IGF1 and factors involved in muscle protein synthesis. "So, you're getting these local effects in those specific tissues that upregulates genes involved in cell healing, growth and repair," Whitten says. Exposure to UVA, red light and near-infrared light also increases the release of nitric oxide (NO) which, while being a free radical, also has many metabolic benefits in optimal concentrations. Many of the benefits of sun exposure cannot be explained solely through the production of vitamin D, and the influence of NO may be part of the answer. There's also a speculative line of research suggesting that red and near-infrared light interact with chlorophyll metabolites in a way that helps recycle ubiquinol from ubiquinone (the reduced version of CoQ10). So, those specific wavelengths of light may help recycle reduced CoQ10, which also enhances energy production. "So, there may be this really interesting synergy between your diet and red and near-infrared light therapy were consuming more chlorophyll-rich compounds may enhance this effect," Whitten says. Light Structures WaterYet another mechanism of action has to do with the structuring the water that surrounds your cells. One of the best ways to build this structured water is through exposure to sunlight. Simply drinking structured water is ineffective. Whitten explains:
On SaunasWe cover far more in this 1.5-hour interview than I've summarized here, so for more information, be sure to listen to the interview in its entirety. For example, we delve into the benefits of sauna bathing and the hormetic response to heat stress, which helps repair misfolded proteins. We also discuss the different types of saunas, the problem posed by electromagnetic fields and why most near-infrared saunas really aren't. As a quick summary review, there are no pure near-infrared saunas, as part of the near-infrared spectrum is non-heating. Incandescent heat lamps, which is what most people are referring to when talking about near-infrared saunas, emit mostly mid- and far-infrared. Only about 14% of that light is in the near-infrared spectrum. That said, these kinds of incandescent heat lamps could potentially still deliver a therapeutic dose if you use them for about 20 minutes.
One way to get around this and eliminate the EMF problem, is to preheat your far-infrared sauna as high as it'll go, then turn it off and turn on your near-infrared bulbs. As for benefits, heat stress is known to:
More InformationTo learn more, be sure to pick up a copy of Whitten's book, "The Ultimate Guide to Red Light Therapy." On his website, TheEnergyBlueprint.com, you can also access his Energy Blueprint podcast, articles, programs and testimonials. In his book, Whitten provides specific recommendations for red- and near-infrared therapeutic devices, which can save you a lot of research time if you're considering this kind of therapy. As noted by Whitten:
from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/02/28/red-light-near-infrared-light-therapy-benefits.aspx A new study shows children have experienced great psychological, behavioral and physical harm from the mandates and lockdowns handed down during the COVID-19 pandemic. This harm affects the next generation of leaders and has dampened the spirits of people around the world. Yet, there is one place that appears to have side-stepped this damage. Throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, there have been events that have changed the world. They include the two World Wars, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the 9/11 attacks and the COVID-19 pandemic.1 The current pandemic has undoubtedly been the most traumatic period for many people. The devastation that has been wrought on the world is incalculable, including things that aren't easily measured like mental health, food insecurity and physical abuse. The harsh reality is that virtually none of it was necessary and the real damage has been the result of decisions made by global health and government officials who appear to have been acting in concert, according to some predetermined plan. The fallout from this event will be experienced by many for the remainder of their lives. Suicide rates,2 child abuse3 and drug deaths4 have risen dramatically. Prescriptions for anti-anxiety drugs had risen 31% and for antidepressants by up to 22% by mid-2020.5 But children, whose voices are not often heard, may be suffering the most. Children Show Physical, Behavioral and Psychological HarmA recent study6 has been published online using data from Germany's first registry recording the experience children are having wearing masks. Parents, doctors and others can enter their observations; the registry had recorded use by 20,353 people as of October 26, 2020. Using this data on 25,930 children, the researchers discovered interesting information. The average time children were wearing a mask was 270 minutes each day. There were 24 health issues reported that were associated with wearing masks that fell into the categories of physical, psychological and behavioral issues.7 Of the problems that children were having wearing masks, 68% of them were reported to the registry by parents. The researchers concluded the frequency of registry use and the variety of symptoms being reported indicated the importance of the subject. They recorded symptoms that:8
Added to these concerning symptoms, they also found 29.7% reported feeling short of breath, 26.4% being dizzy and 17.9% were unwilling to move or play.9 Hundreds more experienced “accelerated respiration, tightness in chest, weakness and short-term impairment of consciousness.” Measurements of anxiety or depressive disorder jumped dramatically for adults between January through June 2019 and January 2021. According to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,10 the percentage of adults reporting symptoms of anxiety disorder and/or depressive disorder was 11% in the first quarter of 2019 but jumped dramatically to 41.1% across the nation by January 2021.11 Evidence has shown that there is a positive relationship between a child's behavioral problems and mental health with maternal mental health12 and parental mental health.13 This means that independent of their own stress and physiological harm from mask-wearing and lockdowns, children will also respond negatively to the rising rate of anxiety and depression exhibited by adults. More Families Seeking Drugs to Manage Remote LearningIn spring 2020 began an unprecedented remote learning experiment for schools around the world. Suddenly, tens of millions of students were at home, plugged into their computer for their education. In one survey, Educators for Excellence14 reported 67% of teachers said their students’ homework or assignments were completed “somewhat worse” or “much worse” than before remote learning was mandatory. In another survey,15 teachers reported their sense of success dropped from 96.3% when teaching in the classroom to 73.1% teaching remotely. On average, the same teachers reported that only 60% of their students were engaged in learning activities. Remote learning has been especially challenging for young children and for the 20% of students living in the U.S. who do not have access to the necessary technology.16 According to Education Week, 80% of teachers believe their students are having trouble focusing during the shutdown.17 Each of these factors may contribute to the growing number of parents who are seeking treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) for their children. NBC News reports18 specialists are flooded with questions and requests for diagnosis and prescriptions for ADHD. Dr. Melvin Oatis from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry believes that the pandemic has “been a tipping point that has pushed some families to get help.”19 However, Dr. Arthur Lavin, who is a pediatrician with service on several national committees of the American Academy of Pediatrics, warns, "Our concern is that pediatricians and families be very careful to not simply list the symptoms of ADHD, but to look at the child's history and use differential diagnosis to make sure we have the best possible explanation for the symptoms."20 The fuzziness surrounding a diagnosis of ADHD has also led to some over-identification of these issues. University of Minnesota psychologist Stephanie Carlson finds that students are often misidentified as having deficits in executive functioning skills when the behavior is within normal limits.21 For example, younger students are more likely to be labeled with ADHD than their older peers. Boys are labeled more often than girls, and black and Latino students have a lower probability of being diagnosed or taking medicine. Schools Are Not Super SpreadersEarly data are now available from a study22 performed by the University of Warwick in the U.K. looking at information on school absences between September 2020 and December 2020. The researchers were interested in students who stayed home from school sick because of COVID-19 infections and how the number who became ill varied across time. The study evaluated pupils and teachers and how those absences changed during November lockdown and in December when the lockdown was lifted. What they found was that the infection rate in the schools matched the wider community, indicating there was no evidence that schools were a driver in producing more cases of COVID-19. As in the U.S., students in the U.K. have been offered remote learning options. Dr. Mike Tildesley is one of the researchers and a scientific adviser to the U.K. government. He suggests using a staggered approach as plans for reopening the schools are underway.23 While the rates of infection between the schools and community were the same, the researchers could not comment if the students and teachers who did have COVID-19 caught it in the school or the community.24 As would be expected with what is known about the virus, the rate of infection was lower in primary schools than secondary schools. When speaking to a BBC reporter, Tildesley had a telling comment about how decisions to reopen schools should be made: “You could potentially think about doing early years first. But this is a political decision."25 Face Masks Do Not Effectively Reduce COVID-19 InfectionsThe first randomized controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness of surgical face masks against SARS-CoV-2 was published in November 2020 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.26 During the trial, researchers evaluated more than 6,000 individuals and found that masks did not statistically significantly reduce the incidence of infection of COVID-19. Among the people who wore masks, 1.8% tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, compared to 2.1% among the control group. When the researchers removed those who did not adhere to proper mask-wearing, the results remained the same — 1.8%. This suggests that in this group of 6,000 individuals, wearing a mask made no significant difference as to whether they would acquire COVID-19. In the group that reportedly wore their masks “exactly as instructed,” 2% tested positive for the virus as compared to 2.1% of the controls. Despite a lack of evidence that mask-wearing in the general public was effective, widespread mask mandates were rolled out. At the end of December 2020, researchers from Rational Ground revealed results of data analysis evaluating the use of masks from all 50 U.S. states.27 It was completed by data analysts, computer scientists and actuaries, who divided the information into states that had mask mandates and those that did not. They evaluated data from May 1, 2020, through December 15, 2020, and calculated how many cases per day occurred by population with and without mask mandates. Among states without a mask mandate, 5,781,716 cases were counted over 5,772 days, which worked out to:28
In other words, the evidence does not support the use of masks and school lockdowns. And, there is powerful evidence that masks and school lockdowns are causing significant damage to the physical and psychological health of children. Yet, these mandates and lockdowns have garnered support from schools and parents, likely driven by fear of the virus. Countrywide Mandates Prove SuccessfulIn fact, fear seems to have been the force used to drive mandates the public would not have otherwise accepted — except, that is, in Sweden. In a 45-minute documentary, Claudia Nye shows how Sweden has approached COVID-19. Under the guidance of chief epidemiologist Anders Tegnell, Sweden did not institute a universal lockdown, close small businesses or schools, or enact mandatory mask mandates. Instead, they chose to use enough reasonable strategies to protect their citizens. According to Tegnell, "We don't want to hurt anyone unnecessarily, but we want to have as good effect as possible."29 Using this as the basis for their decision-making, only some schools were closed during certain periods of time and only office workers were asked to work from home to minimize crowding on public transportation. Retail shops, gyms and restaurants remained open, a vast difference from what happened in other countries around the world. Businesses recommended social distancing and masks, but it wasn't a strict rule. Around the globe, people were told to stay home or face jail time. Yet, in Sweden people were asked to take commonsense precautions based on their individual circumstances. It was recommended seniors and other high-risk individuals stay home, use social distancing and wear masks. All others were free to live as they normally would. Tegnell noted that in Sweden, “We have chosen a voluntary way and it’s proven to be sustainable and it’s proven also to be effective.”30 According to the Imperial College of London model, Sweden should have experienced a death toll of 80,000 by the end of June 2020 without a lockdown.31 However, the true number September 30, 2020, after no lockdowns, stood at 5,893,32 a vast majority of whom were elderly with comorbidities. In fact, of those, only 872 were a direct result of COVID-19. The rest had one or more conditions that contributed to the death.33 Nye tells more of this story in her engaging documentary that won the Outstanding Achievement Award in the Los Angeles International Indie Short Fest film festival in January 2021. I believe without being aware of how your behavior is being influenced, the world will continue to become decidedly different and more difficult. To protect our children, future generations and your finances, I encourage you to share “Public Health Officials Are Destroying Humanity.” It may seem like science fiction, but just one year ago you probably could not have imagined the world as it is today. Unless and until more people understand the direction that leadership is sending the world, it will only continue down the same path. from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/02/27/effects-of-mask-mandates-and-school-closures.aspx February 10, 2021, Instagram banned the account of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an attorney, founder of Children’s Health Defense, and co-founder and president of the environmental group, River Alliance. According to Instagram, his account was removed for “sharing debunked claims about the coronavirus or vaccines.”1 This comes as no surprise to anyone who has paid attention over the past year, when privately owned social media companies started censoring users in earnest, often at the request of government officials, thereby qualifying themselves as bona fide instruments of fascism. As described in “Fascism Definition With Examples,”2 a hallmark of fascism is an economic system in which government controls private corporations and where “a central planning authority directs company leaders to work in the national interest, which actively suppresses those who oppose it.” The welfare of the population at large is subjugated in such a system in order to achieve “imperative social goals.” This could, for example, be the goal to vaccinate the entire population against COVID-19, which will ensure the vaccine industry can profit rather than go bust. Public health be damned. Of course, the entire premise of a mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 is that it will protect people and prevent unnecessary deaths from the virus. But a hidden, underlying agenda is revealed by the fact that injuries and deaths from the vaccine are either suppressed or shrugged off as collateral damage in the name of the greater good. In other words, dying due to poor health is unacceptable and must be prevented with a vaccine, whereas dying in good health and at a young age due to vaccine injury is a perfectly acceptable price to protect the vulnerable. The end result is the same: People die. The only differences are how and why people die, and whether or not big business, which funds politicians, can profit in the process. Don’t Trust the Medical or National Security EstablishmentIn the August 2020 Ron Paul Liberty Report above,3,4 Kennedy talks about evidence suggesting his father, Robert Kennedy, was assassinated by a CIA agent hired as a security guard. He goes on to review some of the history of the CIA — how it was initially established as an espionage organization tasked solely with intelligence gathering, only to transform into a paramilitary agency engaged with the overthrowing of democracies around the world and other nefarious and antidemocratic activities. He also touches on the infamous CIA program called MK Ultra, in which individuals are brainwashed to carry out orders, including murders, against their own will. CIA and Corporate Media Are One and the SameThe CIA’s role in the current flood of censorship may be more significant than most people imagine. In the Off-Guardian article,5 “Opening the CIA’s Can of Worms,” Edward Curtin highlights the close ties between the CIA and corporate mainstream media. He cites Douglas Valentine’s book, “The CIA as Organized Crime,” in which Valentine states that “The CIA and the media are part of the same criminal conspiracy.” Curtin describes the media as “stenographers for the national security state’s ongoing psychological operations aimed at the American people,” adding that:
While information warfare and psyops have been par for the course for a long time, it’s only in recent years that more people have started really noticing it, and it’s only become blatantly obvious in the past year or so, thanks to the rapid expansion of individuals, groups and topics being silenced. In the past year, even licensed medical doctors and award-winning scientists have undergone the modern version of being tarred and feathered online, followed by expulsion from their web-based communities for the crime of asking commonsense questions and speaking truth to power. Guilt by HeadlineThe aim and purpose of the kind of information warfare we currently find ourselves embroiled in is to “win the hearts and minds of the American people and pacify them into victims of their own complicity,” Curtin writes. Again, with regard to COVID-19, the purpose is clearly to get everyone to buy into the necessity of getting vaccinated and to reject objections, no matter how logical. That the CIA-run media, medical establishment and national security apparatus are all working in tandem on this issue, and using classic propaganda tactics, is unmistakable. Curtin writes:6
Curtin disagrees with journalists like Glenn Greenwald, Matt Taibbi and Chris Hedges, who argue that social media companies really don’t want to censor but are pressured into it by hubris-filled, power- and control-hungry corporate media personalities. There’s more to it than that, Curtin says, pointing out that “These companies and their employees do what they are told, whether explicitly or implicitly, for they know it is in their financial interest to do so.” He argues that they’re all “part of a large interconnected intelligence apparatus — a system, a complex — whose purpose is power, wealth, and domination for the very few at the expense of the many,” and that, it is this that makes the CIA and media “parts of the same criminal conspiracy.” Who Pulls the Levers of Control?“To argue that the Silicon Valley companies do not want to censor but are being pressured by the legacy corporate media does not make sense,” Curtin says, because:
Indeed, many suspect Facebook is the public-friendly version of DARPA’s Lifelog, a database project aimed at tracking the minutiae of people’s entire existence for national security surveillance purposes.7 The Pentagon pulled the plug on Lifelog February 4, 2004, in response to backlash over privacy concerns.8 Yet that same day, Facebook was launched.9 Coincidence? Whether by fluke or pre-inception collaboration, there can be no doubt that Facebook now fulfills the Lifelog purpose of surveilling, tracking and data mining its users both on- and offline. Similarly, Google, Amazon, Twitter and other major tech companies are also tied to the “military-industrial-intelligence-media complex,” to quote Curtin’s term. All provide invaluable surveillance and censorship functions, and without them, the totalitarian control system we now find ourselves caught in wouldn’t be possible.
Operation Mockingbird: The Great ResetWhat Curtin is talking about is the same elite 0.001% of the global population I’ve written about before in articles such as “Oneness Versus the 1%,” “What You Need to Know About the Great Reset,” “The Global Takeover Is Underway,” “The Plan for a Global System of Slavery,” “The Pressing Dangers of Technocracy,” “Technocracy and the Great Reset” and many others. While the specific identities of the individual string-pullers are difficult to discern, what’s clear is that there is an international “deep state” whose plans are implemented in a coordinated fashion around the world, seemingly at a moment’s notice, as we saw when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out. Within days, all the world’s leaders sang the same tune. The same message was stated in dozens of languages, often verbatim, as if they were reading the same cue card. Looking at global nongovernmental agencies makes it easier to ascertain who these cue card writers might be, as they form a vast, intertwined web that keep circling back to each other. We can discern, then, that the core of this technocratic power structure includes entities such as the Trilateral Commission, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World Economic Forum, the Bilderberg Group, the Club of Rome, the Aspen Institute, the Atlantic Institute, the Brookings Institute and other think-tanks, just to name some of the most obvious. Members of these exclusive “clubs,” many of which are by invitation only, include leaders from major industries, corporate media, political offices and the military-industrial complex. As noted by Curtin, “They are the international overlords who are pushing hard to move the world toward a global dictatorship.” The CIA, as you might suspect by now, has also been part of this “deep state cabal” from the very beginning. And, if the CIA and corporate media are two sides of the same coin, we can deduce that the global psyop currently underway has the purpose of ensuring the successful implementation of the Great Reset and the Fourth Industrial Revolution — two terms that describe different aspects of the same agenda of enslavement. While it may seem unrelated to some, the vaccine agenda does play an important part in this scheme, especially long term, which is why anti-vaccine voices are now being slapped down at a furious pace. It’s not the sole reason for their silencing, however. The Real Threat Kennedy PosesAs Curtin points out in his article, Kennedy is not censored simply because he’s raising questions about vaccines, Bill Gates or the drug industry in general. No, it’s because he’s a direct threat to the highest echelon of this hidden global power structure that seeks to take control:11
According to Kennedy, the CIA murdered his father. The reason they did was because he was a powerful and popular politician who, like Curtin says, “could have … tamed the power of the CIA to control the narrative that has allowed for the plundering of the world and the country for the wealthy overlords.” In other words, he knew the CIA was the figurative center pole holding up the pole tent, and if you yank that out, the roof caves in. They couldn’t let that happen. Connecting the DotsKennedy discusses many of the same topics covered in the Ron Paul Report in his much longer interview with Patrick Bet-David, above. In both interviews, he reviews his family’s tragic yet heroic history, but he also gets into the topic of vaccine safety and the folly of ignoring published science showing there are significant problems — and the fact that the medical establishment refutes and denies these problems without ever presenting any actual counter-evidence. Kennedy also discusses data suggesting the COVID-19 lockdowns may have caused more deaths than the virus itself, as well as the civil rights issues involved. Like many other experts, he believes the lockdowns are scientifically indefensible and will kill far more people than COVID-19. Based on a recent cost-benefit analysis12 of global lockdowns, Kennedy is correct. Data suggest the cost for lockdowns in Canada — in terms of Quality Adjusted Life Years and Wellbeing Years — is at least 10 times greater than the benefit. In Australia, the minimum cost is 6.6 times higher, and in the U.S., the cost is estimated to be at least 5.2 times higher than the benefit of lockdowns. So, yes, pandemic measures are robbing the public of more life and fruitful years than this virus ever could. In his interview with Bet-David, Kennedy also delves into known side effects of vaccines that in turn drive a highly profitable chronic illness industry, the lack of safety studies for vaccines, the irresponsible practice of testing vaccines against false placebos such as another vaccine, and the vaccine industry’ indemnity agreement with Congress that further prevents safe vaccines from ever being developed. He also talks about the aggressive advertising of drugs and vaccines which, as a side effect, allows drug companies to influence media coverage of their products; the questionable integrity of Dr. Anthony Fauci; how mortality data are conflated to falsely inflate influenza deaths as a marketing ploy to sell flu vaccines; the dangers of 5G, modern-day electronic surveillance and social media’s data harvesting; and the detrimental influence of Bill Gates’ so-called philanthropy. As Curtin notes, Kennedy’s observations, which help people connect the dots, ultimately point people to the core problem of our day, which is a hidden control structure that is seeking to destroy the American Constitution and rob us of our rights and freedoms, if we let them. At the end of the day, that’s what all of this censorship is about. That hidden power structure does not want us to realize what’s being done to us, because then we might rebel. And, if that happens, the jig is up, since there are far more of us than there are of them. A Well-Informed Humanity United Is the AnswerThis is precisely why we must never stop seeking out and sharing this type of information. Those who buy into the propaganda are quite literally helping their soon-to-be jailers erect the prison bars around them. It’s self-destructive, which is why we need to help those we care about to understand the bigger picture and not get locked into details of differing opinions that don’t matter. As noted in Kennedy’s October 24, 2020, online speech,13 “International Message of Hope for Humanity” — which kicked off a day of protest against the coup d’état by the technocratic elite — we must shed our imaginary fears, reject media fearmongering, insist on freedom of speech and engage in the democratic process.
Kennedy also stressed another crucial point, namely the need to unify. We must put aside our quibbles over nonessential things like race, religion and political affiliations, and stay laser-focused on the real enemy.
And, that, right there, is why Kennedy, like his father and uncle before him, is a target for elimination by the technocratic-CIA-media-drug-industrial-political-military complex. The good news is that the more people know and understand who the real enemy is, the lower the risk is for those in the know. After all, the CIA cannot assassinate an entire country, or the entire world. At a certain point, silencing people becomes moot because too many people know the truth already. I believe this is the case with Kennedy at this point, which is why the worst they can do is try to limit his reach on social media. And with your help, even those efforts will ultimately fail. from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/02/27/rfk-jr-opens-cia-can-of-worms.aspx Hospitalization rates1 associated with COVID have dropped from a high of 132,500 Americans on January 6, 2021, to 71,500 on February 12, 2021. The U.S. had 920,000 staffed hospital beds in 2019,2 of which 14.4% harbored a COVID case in January 2021, and 7.8% do so far in February 2021. This tremendous drop was predicted. Every hospitalized patient is tested for COVID, often repeatedly, using PCR tests with high false positive rates. False positives are due in considerable part to exorbitant cycle thresholds. This refers to the maximum number of doublings that are allowed during the test. The problem caused by excessive cycle thresholds was well described in an August 2020 New York Times article,3 but has otherwise been ignored by the mass media. Dr. Sin Hang Lee, director of Connecticut-based Milford Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory, challenged4 the FDA's reliance on exorbitant cycle thresholds in its acceptance of efficacy claims for Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine in early December 2020. He and FDA remain engaged in this debate. The WHO instructed PCR test users and manufacturers on December 14, 2020,5 and again on January 20, 2021,6 that PCR cycle thresholds needed to come down. The December 14 guidance stated WHO's concern regarding "an elevated risk for false SARS-CoV-2 results" and pointed to "background noise which may lead to a specimen with a high cycle threshold value result being [incorrectly] interpreted as a positive result." The first instruction7 has been superseded by the second, which additionally advises on clinical use of the test:8 If the "test results do not correspond with the clinical presentation, a new specimen should be taken and retested ..." While this implies that the test should only be performed in those with symptoms, and its results should be interpreted with the clinical context in mind, most PCR tests in the U.S. are used very differently: to screen asymptomatics at work, at colleges and universities and to permit border crossings. No Caution Is Applied to the ResultsOne single positive test defines someone as a COVID case. Yet, it is well known,9 and was acknowledged in WHO's January 2021 guidance, that screening in low COVID prevalence situations, such as in the screening of asymptomatics, increases the risk of false positives. And, the risk increases as the prevalence of disease drops, such that in situations of low disease prevalence, it is common to find that most positives are actually false positives. For example, see this [referenced] BMJ chart and then the real-life example in the comment below it.10 Everyone in the field knew that the PCR test results were bogus. Even Dr. Anthony Fauci admitted11 in July 2020 that cycle thresholds above 35 were not measuring virus, and furthermore that virus could not be cultured from samples that required a high number of cycles to show positivity. But the drumbeat from the Coronavirus Task Force12 and some academics13 and others14 was "test all, test often" — despite the inordinate numbers of false positives and negatives. Congress repeatedly15 allocated16 many billions of dollars for testing (often free for the person being tested) and so testing quickly mushroomed. Nearly 2 million COVID tests a day17 were recorded in the U.S. between November 20, 2020, and January 19, 2021. Most of these have been PCR tests that, despite their problems, are still considered the most accurate. Most of the remaining tests performed were rapid antigen tests. These tests too suffer from high false positive rates, as the FDA warned in November 2020.18 While daily deaths have only dropped about 15% since January 12, 2021, there have been dramatic drops during the month in new cases19 (down 60% from 250,000 new cases a day to 100,000) and, as noted, in hospitalizations20 (down 46%). Reports claim more than 486,000 Americans have died from COVID as of February 16, 2021.21 However, none of these numbers is reliable. In addition to inaccurate PCR results, a variety of other measures have skewed the reported number of deaths from COVID. While CDC electronically codes other causes of death, it has chosen to hand code every COVID death,22 and explains:
CDC Treating COVID Deaths DifferentlyI am waiting for CDC to answer my Freedom of Information Act query, which requested the protocol CDC's coders use for coding COVID-19 as a cause of death. Why is CDC treating COVID deaths differently from deaths due to other conditions? CDC changed the way it coded death certificates for a COVID-caused death in March 2020, to include everyone for whom COVID is in any way contributory to the death. By placing different parts of the instructions about coding on different web pages, CDC successfully hid what it was doing. On one page, the guidance23 states, "If COVID-19 is determined to be a cause of death, it should be reported on the death certificate." On a different webpage, CDC states: "When COVID-19 is reported as a cause of death on the death certificate, it is coded and counted as a death due to COVID-19."24 CDC has encouraged providers to be generous with COVID designations.25 And the COVID death definition appears to be a moving target,26 variable across states. CDC attempts to explain27 why its mortality numbers do not add up, and includes this excuse: "Other reporting systems use different definitions or methods for counting deaths." But it is CDC that chose not to issue uniform guidelines. COVID Diagnosis Liberally Applied
The Public Is in the DarkBy accepting excessive cycle thresholds for COVID PCR tests, CDC considerably expanded the numbers of COVID-positive cases, hospitalizations and deaths. By using a variety of idiosyncratic and changing statistical measures, CDC was able to control and further increase the number of deaths attributed to COVID-19. I do not mean to imply that the PCR tests, whose manufacturers may have recently reduced their cycle thresholds, are now accurate. Over 200 different PCR tests have been "authorized" under emergency rules36 by the FDA, which so far has not standardized or formally approved them. The public is in the dark as to whether and how each individual test may have changed in response to WHO's instruction, and we remain uninformed about the accuracy of each test. In fact, it has been established37 by the American College of Pathology that COVID-19 PCR test results are not reproducible. By hand-coding each death due to COVID, CDC gave itself the power to determine how many COVID deaths would be counted at any particular time. And by creating excessively loose case definitions38 for COVID, several of which did not require a single sign of illness, just a positive test, CDC was able to calibrate the number of COVID-positive cases by the rate at which it rolled out tests to the nation. Today, the media are telling us to rejoice. Maryland has just gotten its percentage of positive COVID tests below 5%,39 when a month ago the rate was 8.76%. In my state of Maine, a reduction in the percentage of test results that are positive has turned all counties “green,” allowing schools to be open.40 How much of this is due to dialing down the cycle thresholds? We Are Being Lied Into the AbyssThings are worse, things are better. Wear no mask41 — no, wear a mask — hey, wear two masks.42 New variants with even more infectivity are coming! But they are no more lethal, and SARS-CoV-2 is quite infectious already, so will the new strains make an appreciable difference? It seems that despite having recovered from COVID, you can be reinfected with the new viral strains. But how common is that? Does it simply mean you can have a positive PCR test, but be otherwise asymptomatic? I found only a single case report43 of a person becoming severely ill from a new strain after having recovered from original COVID.
Our families are being torn apart. Our small businesses are going bankrupt. Our countries, and probably we ourselves, are being scooped up by the banks, as borrowing on an unheard-of scale persists at a dizzying pace. Who will pay these debts? What will be the price? Can you see that the looting and crashing of our economies is intentional, buttressed by lie after lie? We are being lied into the abyss. Our so-called leaders are tossing us and especially our children and grandchildren over a cliff. They threw away our Constitution long ago. Now, they have stolen and sold our future. Please calm down. Turn off all the "news" and ponder what has been happening. We can fix this mess, once enough of us understand it. Give it the time and focus it deserves. Our leaders won't save us. Only WE can. from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/02/26/pcr-test-false-positive-rate.aspx When an investigation is led by individuals with financial and professional stakes in the outcome, what happens? Nothing. And that’s where we’re at with the World Health Organization’s investigative team1 tasked with getting to the bottom of SARS-CoV-2’s origin. The WHO’s investigative commission includes Peter Daszak, Ph.D.,2 the president of EcoHealth Alliance, a nonprofit organization that has a close working relationship with the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), having outsourced several gain-of-function research projects to it. When SARS-CoV-2 first emerged in Wuhan, China, the EcoHealth Alliance was actually funding the WIV to collect and study novel bat coronaviruses. Not only has Daszak gone on public record dismissing the possibility of the pandemic being the result of a lab leak,3 calling the notion “crackpot,” “preposterous” and “pure baloney,”4 he was also the mastermind behind the publication of a scientific statement, published in The Lancet and signed by 26 additional scientists, condemning such inquiries as “conspiracy theory.”5,6 This manufactured “scientific consensus” was then relied on by the media to “debunk” theories and evidence showing the pandemic virus most likely originated from a laboratory. WHO’s Investigative Team Dismisses Lab Origin TheoryConsidering Daszak’s personal involvement with gain-of-function research in general, and research efforts at WIV in particular, he has plenty of motivation to make sure the blame for the COVID-19 pandemic is not laid at the feet of researchers such as himself, especially those at WIV. So, it was no surprise whatsoever when the WHO, February 9, 2021, announced its investigators had concluded the WIV and two other biosafety level 4 laboratories in Wuhan had nothing to do with the COVID-19 outbreak, and that the lab-escape theory would no longer be part of the team’s investigation.7,8,9 Interestingly, Alina Chan, a molecular biologist at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, points out that SARS-related work has also been done in BSL2 and BSL3 labs, which were excluded from the investigation.10 The team also was not equipped or designed to conduct a forensic examination of laboratory practices.11 Rather, they relied on information obtained directly from the Chinese team. According to the WHO team leader, Danish food safety and zoonosis scientist Ben Embarek, the officials at WIV “are the best ones to dismiss the claims and provide answers” about the potential for a lab leak. However, that line of reasoning hardly passes the smell test. As noted by GM Watch, it “defies common sense: Suspects in an investigation should clearly not be treated as ‘the best ones’ to dismiss any possible charges against them.”12 Embarek further insisted that lab accidents are “extremely rare,” hence it’s “very unlikely that anything could escape from such a place.”13 Yet this is another entirely unconvincing argument. According to the Cambridge Working Group in 2014, “biosafety incidents involving regulated pathogens have been occurring on average over twice a week” in the U.S. alone,14,15 and a Beijing virology lab accidentally released the original SARS virus on no less than four separate occasions.16 Three of those four instances led to outbreaks.17 Experts Condemn Conflicted WHO InquiryMany experts are now condemning the WHO’s inquiry as a sham and a political stunt to exonerate the Chinese government.18 And, at the front of this sham investigation is Daszak himself, who was hand selected by Chinese authorities to be on the WHO’s investigative team in the first place. As reported by GM Watch:19
Unherd also reported on the controversial WHO investigation:21
Indeed, China appears to be purposely hiding much of the scientific data the world needs if we are ever to get to the bottom of where SARS-CoV-2 came from, which makes the WHO’s catering to China all the more suspicious. As reported by OpIndia23 and others,24 a critical database in China that holds the genetic sequences of more than 22,000 samples, including more than 100 unpublished sequences of bat coronaviruses and all bat coronavirus gain-of-function research data from the WIV, was brought offline in September 2019. The WIV-affiliated database created by the National Virus Resource Center was also made inaccessible to the outside world. According to OpIndia, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has stated there is “reason to believe” WIV researchers became ill in the fall of 2019 which, if true, would coincide with the takedown of these crucial databases.25 Below, I’ll also review additional evidence suggesting WIV staff may have gotten ill as early as August 2017. WHO Sticks to Natural Origin TheoryAccording to the WHO team and its Chinese counterparts, one theory still in the running is that SARS-CoV-2 piggybacked its way into the Wuhan market in shipments of frozen food from other areas of China, where coronavirus-carrying bats are known to reside, or even other countries.26,27 Australian beef was apparently offered up as one possible overseas source.28 In an interview with CNN, Daszak referred to finding SARS-CoV-2 on frozen animal foods as “a striking piece of evidence,” as the animal meats in question, including ferret badgers, have been identified as potential intermediate hosts.29 And that brings us to another promoted theory, which is that the virus mutated and jumped species naturally, going from bats to an intermediary host such as pangolin, cat or mink, before mutating into a virus capable of infecting a human host. A third theory is that an infected individual brought the virus into the Wuhan market, although no details on who that might have been, or where they might have contracted the infection in the first place have been presented. WHO has now declared its China investigation completed, and is considering expanding its scope to look into other countries as the potential source of the virus. Not surprisingly, Chinese state media are reporting that Wuhan has been “cleared of guilt” and is no longer a suspected origin of the pandemic. The Chinese Foreign Ministry is also calling for an investigation into American-based laboratories.30 New Evidence of Lab Origin EmergesMeanwhile, just two weeks before the WHO officially dismissed the lab leak theory and took it off the table for future inquiries, a new study31 by Dr. Steven Quay — a highly respected and one of the most-cited scientists in the world32 — was published, claiming to show “beyond a reasonable doubt that SARS-CoV-2 is not a natural zoonosis but instead is laboratory derived." In the short video above, Quay summarizes the findings of his Bayesian analysis. His 193-page paper goes into the full details and can be downloaded from zenodo.org33 for those who want to dive into the nitty gritty of this statistical analysis. Bayesian analysis,34 or Bayesian inference, is a statistical tool used to answer questions about unknown parameters by using probability distributions for observable data. As reported by PR Newswire:35
Well, we now know that the WHO team got no such answers, and have moved on to less fertile fields of inquiry. Ironically, Quay based the starting probabilities used for his analysis on the work of Daszak himself, among others. Suspicious Activity at WIV in Fall of 2019At the same time, more evidence of “suspicious activity” at the WIV just before the official announcement of the COVID-19 outbreak has also emerged. As mentioned, there are suspicions that WIV laboratory staff may have gotten sick as early as August 2019. According to a January 24, 2021, report by Australian Sky News,36 a January 16, 2021, fact sheet released by the U.S. State Department states:
The fact sheet further accuses the Chinese Communist Party of “systematically” preventing “a transparent and thorough investigation of the origin of the pandemic, instead choosing to devote enormous resources to deceit and disinformation,” while stressing that the U.S. government still does not know where, when or how SARS-CoV-2 initially infected humans. They do not rule out a lab accident, however. The fact sheet also noted that China has a biological weapons program, and that the WIV has collaborated with the Chinese military on “secret projects.” Scientific Hubris Is a Serious Threat to Us AllDecember 18, 2020, Colin David Butler,37 Ph.D., of the Australian National University, published an editorial38 in the Journal of Human Security in which he reviews the history of pandemics from antiquity through COVID-19, along with evidence supporting the natural origin and lab escape theories respectively. As noted by Butler:
Indeed, scientific hubris may well be at the heart of our current problem. Why are certain scientists so reluctant to admit there’s evidence of human interference? Why do they try to shut down discussion? Could it be because they’re trying to ensure the continuation of gain-of-function research, despite the risks? We’re often told that this kind of research is “necessary” in order to stay ahead of the natural evolution of viruses, and that the risks associated with such research are minimal due to stringent safety protocols. Yet the evidence shows a very different picture. For the past decade, red flags have repeatedly been raised within the scientific community as biosecurity breaches in high containment biological labs in the U.S. and around the world have occurred with surprising frequency.39,40,41,42,43 As recently as 2019, the BSL 4 lab in Fort Detrick was temporarily shut down after several protocol violations were noted.44 Asia Times45 lists several other examples of safety breaches at BSL3 and BSL4 labs, as does a May 28, 2015, article in USA Today,46 an April 11, 2014, article in Slate magazine47 and a November 16, 2020, article in Medium.48 Is Gain-of-Function Research Justifiable?Clearly, getting to the bottom of the origin of SARS-CoV-2 is crucial if we are to prevent a similar pandemic from erupting in the future. If gain-of-function research was in fact involved, we need to know, so that steps can either be taken to prevent another leak (which is not likely possible) or to dismantle and ban such research altogether for the common good. As long as we are creating the risk, the benefit will be secondary. Any scientific or medical gains made from this kind of research pales in comparison to the incredible risks involved if weaponized pathogens are released, and it doesn’t matter if it’s by accident or on purpose. This sentiment has been echoed by others in a variety of scientific publications.49,50,51,52 Considering the potential for a massively lethal pandemic, I believe it’s safe to say that BSL 3 and 4 laboratories pose a very real and serious existential threat to humanity. Historical facts tell us accidental exposures and releases have already happened, and we only have our lucky stars to thank that none have turned into pandemics taking the lives of tens of millions, as was predicted at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Seeing how scientists have already figured out a way to mutate SARS-CoV-2 such that it evades human antibodies, as detailed in “Lab Just Made a More Dangerous COVID Virus,” having a frank, open discussion about the scientific merits of this kind of work is more pertinent than ever before, and we shouldn’t allow the WHO’s dismissal of the lab origin theory dissuade us from such discussion. from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/02/26/origin-of-coronavirus-who.aspx In a collaboration between researchers1 from the University of Queensland and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, scientists discovered quercetin has proneurogenic effects in the hippocampus of the brain. The hippocampus is located within the temporal lobe and is part of the limbic system.2 This is a part of the brain where behavioral and emotional responses are generated. These responses are central to survival and include reproduction, caring for babies, feeding and the fight-or-flight response. Other parts of the limbic system include the thalamus, hypothalamus, basal ganglia and amygdala. The hippocampus is a well-studied part of the brain, which takes its name from the shape that resembles a seahorse. This area plays a crucial role in memory consolidation, coding and learning.3 Another of its major functions is forming a cognitive map, which is related to your ability to acquire new knowledge, store it and recall it. Your behavior is dependent on your ability to acquire new knowledge and represent the information accurately. Damage to this area can produce maladaptive behaviors. "Evidence supports the role the hippocampus plays in decision-making as it relates to memory deficits that result from an Alzheimer's type of dementia."4 According to the Alzheimer's Association,5 the number of people living in the U.S. who have Alzheimer's disease is growing. There were an estimated 5.8 million people diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2020. Nearly two-thirds are women. Experts estimate that as the population of people over 65 continues to grow, the number with Alzheimer's will also rapidly increase. By 2050, it is projected 13.8 million will have Alzheimer's disease. This new data offer more information about caring for the health of your memory and learning centers that are often hardest hit by Alzheimer’s disease. As I discuss below, there are also other strategies you can use to protect your brain health. Quercetin Stimulates Proneurogenic ActivityThe research design of the featured study in Stem Cell Reports6 was built on past studies that have demonstrated the benefits of phytochemicals found in plant foods. As the researchers wrote, one of the interesting processes is the brain's plasticity, which is necessary for structural and functional modifications to happen when exposed to internal and external stimuli. The researchers said they chose apples as they are widely consumed across the globe resulting in a generalized exposure.7 The study began with an in vitro examination of quercetin, which is an abundant flavonoid found in apple peel. The second half of the study was an in vivo study using an animal model. After their data analysis, the researchers ultimately found that apples contained compounds in the peel and the flesh that helped promote neurogenesis. Quercetin from the peel and another active compound from the apple flesh, 3,5-Dihydroxybenzoic acid (DHBA), demonstrated the ability to increase precursor cell proliferation and neurogenesis. The researchers measured the effect on neural precursor cells, which are stem cells that can generate neural cell types within the brain. They found the effect was like that reported in past studies for other compounds such as resveratrol and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), which is found in green tea.8 During the lab portion of the study, the researchers found that stem cells generated from a mouse brain were protected and exhibited more neurogenesis when quercetin and DHBA were added to the cell cultures.9 During the animal study, they found structures in the brain that were associated with learning and memory had more neurons when the mice were given doses of quercetin or DHBA. Exercise Also Stimulates Brain GrowthAnother stimulus that promotes neurogenesis is exercise. One study10 from the University of British Columbia discovered that aerobic training could increase the volume of the hippocampus in older women who had mild cognitive impairment. The scientists engaged 86 women ages 70 to 80 years and assigned them to a twice-weekly program over six months. The women engaged in aerobic activity, resistance training or balance and tone training. Those enrolled in the aerobic training showed significant improvement in hippocampal volume. As reported in Science magazine,11 neurogenesis without exercise may not be enough to protect memory and learning. One animal model demonstrated that increasing levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) were required before the animals could outperform the control mice on testing. BDNF is a key molecule produced in the brain with exercise and may help to explain the neuroprotective and cognitive benefits people experience with exercise.12 Much less is known about the interaction between exercise, BDNF and neurogenesis in the human brain as the inaccessibility of human brain tissue is the limiting factor. More is known about the benefits from animal models, while indirect measurements of neurogenesis are used in human participants. Senior author of the paper published in Science, Rudolph Tanzi, Ph.D., commented on the results of chemically induced neurogenesis with exercise:13
More Strategies to Protect Brain HealthThere are additional strategies you can use to help promote brain health. Astaxanthin is one. This powerful antioxidant is a naturally occurring carotenoid responsible for the pink or red color found in salmon, trout, lobster and other seafood.14 It's often referred to as the “king of antioxidants”15 and is derived from haematococcus microalgae that produce it as a protective mechanism to shield it from ultraviolet light.16 In your body, it helps protect against reactive oxygen species and oxidation that play a role in heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and aging. In one review of the literature,17 scientists identified several pathways astaxanthin may take to help slow brain aging. They also found it increases BDNF levels and attenuates oxidative damage to DNA, lipids and proteins. Another nutrient found in fatty fish that helps protect your brain health is omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fats are long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids that include EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). They are crucial for cell membranes and play an anti-inflammatory role in the body.18 DHA is especially crucial for brain health as it is an essential structural component that is found in high levels in the neurons. As I have written before, and covered in my book “Superfuel,” co-written with James DiNicolantonio, Pharm.D., when there is an inadequate amount of omega-3, the nerve cells become stiff and are prone to inflammation. This reduces proper neurotransmission from cell to cell and the cells become compromised. Low levels of DHA have been linked to both memory loss and Alzheimer's disease, and some studies have suggested degenerative brain diseases may potentially be reversible when sufficient DHA is provided.19,20 However, it is important to choose wild-caught Alaskan salmon, krill oil or other sources of safe fish, such as sardines, to meet these nutritional requirements. I discuss why in “The High Cost of Salmon Farming.” There are also many benefits to nutritional ketosis, only one of which is providing adequate fuel to your brain for optimal functioning. You’ll find more information about the metabolic and antiaging benefits, as well as the importance of cyclical ketosis, in the article “Ketones: The Fourth Fuel.” Strategies to Slow Brain AgingThere are strategies you can use to improve brain function and others you should avoid as they have a negative impact on brain health. To protect your brain health, processed foods and sugar are two dietary culprits to avoid. Regular consumption of foods high in sugar is also linked to a higher risk of Type 2 diabetes21 and Type 2 diabetes is associated with a 60% higher risk for any type of dementia.22 One study found people who were recently diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes also had a 16% increased risk for dementia, indicating even after having diabetes for a short time you are still at increased risk for dementia. An increased risk for dementia may also be present with higher levels of glucose without Type 2 diabetes. In one study,23 researchers found that even without a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes, people with higher hemoglobin A1c and glucose measurements had significantly lower scores on memory testing. Also, participants with higher blood sugar levels had lower hippocampal volume. Another source of carbohydrates and blood glucose is alcohol. Chronic excessive alcohol consumption is known to cause neuronal dysfunction and brain damage.24 Yet, even moderate alcohol consumption can reduce brain volume and is associated with neuronal changes.25 In a large study evaluating brain aging and alcohol,26 researchers from the University of Southern California examined 17,308 brain scans of cognitively normal participants. They found that for every gram of alcohol consumed each day, the participants’ brain aged 0.02 years, which is equivalent to 7.3 days. To put this in perspective, 12 ounces of regular beer have approximately 14 grams of alcohol.27 Chronic sleep deprivation is another lifestyle component that can trigger poor brain health. When you don't get enough sleep, your brain cannot do the necessary housekeeping. Researchers from Marche Polytechnic University in Italy28 show that astrocytes, which are a type of glial cells in the brain that normally get rid of unnecessary nerve connections, start to break down healthy nerve synapses when you are chronically sleep-deprived. The researchers looked at astrocyte activity in four groups of mice and found that chronically sleep-deprived mice had more than double the activity of the well-rested mice and instead of targeting only damaged cells, astrocytes were beginning to destroy healthy synopsis, an activity that could lead to neurodegenerative diseases. Quercetin and Exercise Serve Important Roles in ImmunityTogether, exercise and quercetin help to support your immune system. The interaction of lifestyle choices with your immune system has become even more important in 2020 after the release of SARS-CoV-2. In one review of the literature,29 researchers describe a “remarkable increase in the number of descriptive studies on exercise and immune system” than occurred in the 1990s. The preponderance of the evidence demonstrates exercise has an important positive and complex effect on the immune system. The compelling link between physical activity and a strong immune defense system continues to be supported by research data.30 There is a clear inverse relationship between your risk of illness and moderate exercise. While athletes can experience an increased risk after intense training, habitual moderate exercise delays the onset of age-related immune dysfunction and reduces your risk of illness. In 2020, scientists also began calling for regular exercise, even in isolation without access to gyms or sports clubs, as it can play an important role in supporting the immune system.31 Regular exercise of adequate intensity has been suggested as an auxiliary tool for preparing the immune system,32 even in the elderly.33 Quercetin has also been highlighted in the medical literature as it acts as a zinc ionophore, helping move zinc into the cells where it can halt viral replication, and as a synergistic partner with vitamin C. Yet, on its own, quercetin acts as a natural antihistamine and anti-inflammatory that can also lower your risk for viral illnesses. Researchers have also found that quercetin can inhibit the expression of casein kinase II (CK2),34 which down-regulates the ability of the cell to generate type 1 interferon when it is attacked by a virus. By inhibiting the expression of CK2, quercetin may help slow the replication of RNA viruses. In addition to apple peel, you can find quercetin in foods such as plums, red grapes, green tea, elder flower and onions.35 Considering its wide-ranging benefits, quercetin may also be a useful supplement for many, either acutely, for times you feel you’re coming down with something, or more long-term for metabolic health and, potentially, brain health. If you choose to supplement, I believe that quercetin is best taken at night (with zinc) before you go to bed, and you haven’t eaten for at least three to four hours. You will sleep for eight hours, and if you are metabolically flexible, this is the time that you will dive into nutritional ketosis. The other benefit of taking quercetin at night is to take advantage of its senolytic action. This helps to remove senescent cells, which are similar to nonreplicating cancer cells that secrete powerful proinflammatory cytokines. You can optimize quercetin’s senolytic properties if you take it while you are fasting. I talk more about quercetin in "Another Reason to Add Quercetin to Your Daily Supplements." from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/02/25/quercetin-found-to-stimulate-new-brain-cells.aspx |
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