Dr. Howard Smith Reports

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/zo64Jd-qW-s   When you clean your bathroom with chlorine products, you may be gassing yourself and your pets.   Chlorine vapors combine with citrus ingredients in household products under fluorescent lighting to form toxic airborne particles.   Studies by University of Toronto chemists show that the sodium hypochlorite in chlorine bleaches emits the strong oxidants hypo...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/cb3EzDHKcOM   Sixteen year old teen girls using oral contraceptives are significantly more likely to show depressive symptoms than non-users at the same age.   This was not true for young women at other ages.   Dutch psychiatrists in association with Harvard psychiatrists and gynecologists report this finding from their study of 1010 teens 16 to 25 years of age.   They...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/sjlLlEP08uA   Young women who suffer preterm birth or preeclampsia during their initial pregnancy have a two-fold greater risk of developing high blood pressure years later.   That hypertension can come on in only 3 years.   OB-GYN researchers at Indiana University studied nearly 4500 women with an average age of 27 at their first pregnancy.   Nearly 1 in every 3 women...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/WmktGi8VmbA   Are you or do you know a person who becomes more jittery when trying to relax.   Psychologists at Penn State studied this so called “relaxation-induced anxiety” in a group of 96 college students.   One-third of subjects had generalized anxiety disorders; one-third had major depression; and one-third were without issues.   All participants did relaxation ex...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/_a1bjl42fik   This plant sugar, naturally found in fruits, real fruit juices, and honey but added to table sugar, highly processed foods, and beverages, harms your liver by preventing its normal processing of fat.   Researchers at Boston’s Joslin Diabetes Center now report this result following their in-depth study of liver cell metabolism.   Their research shows that t...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/coW1hyYs094   The death toll from E-cigarette use has now climbed to 12 in 10 states.   The CDC further reports that 805 mostly young persons in 46 states have fallen victim to severe lung injuries after vaping and 91% required hospitalization.   Those stricken after e-cigarette use have a distinct profile: most were young with a median age of 23 years, males in 69% of...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/TtWHs0_tqLI   Thyroid surgeons performing at least 40 yearly complete thyroid excisions have the fewest complications. Kaiser Permanente California now reports its review of 10,500 such operations over a 7 year period.   The chief complications of vocal cord paralysis and parathyroid hormone deficiency occur since the nerves to the larynx and the parathyroid glands must...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/oaJHcZmrrN8   Most women are counseled to try a vaginal delivery following a previous Caesarian section (VBAC).   The latest evidence from the University of Oxford questions the wisdom of that recommendation.   More than 74,000 Scottish births over a 13 year period show that a VBAC is associated with a 7 fold higher risk of a uterine rupture, a 3 fold   higher risk of s...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/_MoJEEKE4ik   Our cells and bodies work on internal biological clocks which are lubricated for better efficiency by good old fashioned stress.   University of Minnesota biologists now report   this phenomenon in the journal Neuron .   Using a mouse model and tissue cultures of cells, the scientists unraveled the complex blend of signaling proteins that control the clock...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/VHVmpX5vX2E   The Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy and FitBit wearables are credible exercise measuring devices that take clinical testing into the real world.   Pulmonologists from Utah’s Intermountain Medical Center now report that these devices can match a standard 6 minute walk distance test for estimating lung reserve.   The study tested 52 respiratory disease patients...

  https://youtu.be/0_CdQ5xGbdA   To guide your headstrong teen, present your opinions as rational suggestions rather than imperial directives.   Psychologists at Cardiff University studied the responses of 1000 adolescents to pointed suggestions delivered in various tones of voice.   Each teen heard 30 directives voiced by actors in 3 ways: a controlling authoritarian tone, a autonomy-supportive t...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/JVUkY5c6kqw   Overdoing your training for an endurance sport can leave you mentally fatigued.   A French investigation, just published in the journal Current Biology, studied 37 thirty something male athletes during a 9 week training program.   Over-training led to feelings of mental exhaustion but also increased impulsivity with a preference for immediate rather than g...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/XC4XX8lSwtw   Nearly 40% of Americans state that today’s divisive politics are stressing them out.   Even more distressing is that 4% are driven to suicidal thoughts.   Political scientists at The University of Nebraska-Lincoln surveyed some 800 subjects.   The data show that: 32% are unnerved by the relentless controversies on cable news. 29% lose their tempers more ea...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/SmZC939blGs   Choline supplementation may be one important key to preventing the dread dementia of aging.   A mouse model study by the Arizona State University finds that choline blocks formation of amyloid plaques and reduces numbers of microglial scavenger cells that damage normal brain cells.   The researchers fed their experimental animals, genetically prone to deve...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/EgRJcmO3kns   Many studies convince us that healthy eating, consuming more fruits and vegetables while moderating intake of carbs, fat, and meats, reduces cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.   Now an Australian meta-analysis presents proof that such a moderating diet will also keep your kidneys in work order.   The researchers analyzed 18 separate studies following so...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/JpZFL6rGnfY   Slogans seem more believable if the words appear in alphabetic order or nearly so.   A University of   Texas study, just published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology , explores this phenomenon in detail.   Ten advertising claims, either written in an alphabetic sequence or not, were presented to a focus group and rated for truthfulness.   The truth rati...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/-gftb2MimL8   When you brew tea contained in a plastic teabag, it can release nearly 15 billion microscopic plastic particles into the liquid you’re consuming.   A new study from the American Chemical Society tested four different commercially-available teas that are packaged in completely or partially plasticized teabags.   A single teabag released 11.6 plastic micropa...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/ogsadES_aa4   Cancer survivors facing sleepless nights can be cured with basic sleep education.   Psychologists at Harvard’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, looking for a less resource-intense alternative to individual cognitive-behavioral-therapy, tested a simple 2 step program on some 51 participants.   It begins with a sleep-education class that makes that dry informat...

Vidcast:   ttps://youtu.be/IC2HBiQBqf8   You’ll turboscharge your self-confidence by seeing yourself in the eyes of those outside your circle of peers.   A Brigham Young University study of 213 college students analyzed the phenomenon called the imposter syndrome in which even competent trainees feel they are faking it and will be embarrassingly exposed any minute.   The study shows that one in ev...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/Icbiaal4Abg   If you crack open that can of nuts and consume even half a serving each day, you’ll keep your weight in a healthy range and avoid obesity.   Harvard nutritional researchers conducted longitudinal studies on nearly 145,000 professional men and women for up to 24 years.   Subing in nuts for less healthy fare such as processed meats, refined grains, and sugar...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/SH6daqtuf0c   More than one in every 10 young persons with medical illness is currently using marijuana each day.   Public health researchers at the Universities of Nebraska and Kansas reviewed survey records from nearly 170,000 participants.   Frequency of use is highest in the youngest.   Twenty-five percent of young patients 18-24 use marijuana while only 2.4% of tho...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/uwfSwkH0Hvk   At least once daily Sofrito, a sauce consisting of garlic and onions, reduces the risk of developing breast cancer by 50% or more.   Researchers at the Universities of Buffalo and Puerto Rico studied more than 300 breast cancer survivors and an equal number of healthy controls.   Those women consuming the most Sofrito showed the greatest benefit. The effec...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/v4hLGckpOYI   Kids and teens who specialize in a single sport sustain more stress fractures, tendinitis, ligament tears, and musculoskeletal overuse damage.   Brown University epidemiologists and Boston Children Hospital orthopedists analyzed data from more than 10,000 youths over the past 22 years.   More serious injuries occur in those who exclusively play one sport,...

Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/2go_s2VQgnM   The pathologic love of yourself decreases almost 80% in most persons as they pass from their teen years into midlife.   Psychologists from the University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign report this finding after studying some 237 participants over a 23 year period surveying them at 18 and 41 years of age.   Three key aspects of narcissism, vanity, entitlement...

  Vidcast:   https://youtu.be/3grsczIEnEE   Regularly consuming green, oolong, or black tea at least 4 times weekly will improve your brain’s regional synchrony and your thinking skills.   A collaborative study recently published in the journal Aging looked at MRI brain imaging and neuropsychological test results as a function of tea drinking.   The imaging studies showed that regular tea drinkers...