One of the more intriguing aspects of human behavior comes packaged in an extremely natural and habitual act — sleep. Most of us take this routine of sleeping as part of the day, and slide in and out of it rhythmically, systematically. When we do, though, our bodies and minds enter this realm of unknown — theoretically, a passive state of rest for the body and mind. However, due to the many subtle and spontaneous reactions in physical and mental functioning, experts now term sleep as a dynamic rather than a passive state of being. Read more →

The randomized controlled trial (RCT) is the gold standard for evaluating whether or not a therapeutic modality works. In RCTs testing the effect of acupuncture to improve symptoms, researchers often use “sham acupuncture” as a control procedure, on the theory that sticking needles into points that are not on acupuncture meridians should have no effect.

The problem with this approach is that there is really no such thing as sham acupuncture. Read more →

Most people know the “typical” eating disorder patient: adolescent girl, over-achiever, perfectionist. This is an accurate description, since most patients with diagnosed eating disorders and patterns of disordered eating are females between the ages of 10 and 20. Currently, it is estimated that 1% of adolescent girls have anorexia. Nearly 30% of adolescent girls have disordered eating attitudes and behaviors, while not meeting the criteria for diagnosis of an eating disorder. Read more →

Imagine a world without chemotherapy. Imagine a world where cancer could be fought without side effects. Imagine a world where it didn’t matter how far along your cancer had progressed, treatment could still be rendered and completely effective.

The New England Journal of Medicine recently published an article from a joint collaboration between several cancer centers on both the east and west coast. A 52 year-old man with stage IV malignant melanoma, a very aggressive and potentially lethal form of skin cancer, donated blood to the scientists who have developed a technique to isolate specific CD4+ T cells and clone them in vitro. Read more →

Many people in the United States, and indeed the world, are not aware that there are two types of fully licensed physicians. Allopaths (or M.D.s) have enjoyed being the mainstay of healthcare for hundreds of years along with the luxury of being a 20:1 majority of practicing physicians. Osteopaths (or D.O.s) have been around for about 130 years, and represent one of the fastest growing medical professions according to the American Osteopathic Association. When I was applying to medical school in 2000, there were 19 osteopathic medical schools in the United States. Currently there are 25 schools with 28 campuses, which represents greater than 50% growth in less than 10 years. Read more →

Within the field of psychology more and more research is based on the functioning of the brain. Even in fields such as social psychology, which traditionally was opposed to looking at the relationship between brain and behavior, is neuroscience growing. More and more psychological disorders are being explained in relation to neurological function or dysfunction. Depression is caused by too few or too many neurotransmitters. Schizophrenia is caused by a “mis-wired” brain. Anxiety is caused by a hyper-reactive sympathetic nervous system (and possibly an abnormal amygdala). We are overweight because of hypothalamic problems and can’t sleep because our reticular activating systems are out of whack. Read more →