vaguely scientific burblings

[baratron]

Random thought: Did the improvement in my PMS symptoms coincide with a general improvement in my mental health, or when I finally gave up the struggle to digest animal milk and switched over entirely to soy? Or both? Could phytoestrogens from soya be relieving the splat in my own oestrogen production?

Interesting link of the day:
Monogamy gene found in people, New Scientist, 01 September 2008, 22:00. Where "people" = men in opposite-sex relationships. I'm a little uncertain how this is relevant to ethical non-monogamy or polyamory - you could hardly call me a "serial commitment-phobe" considering that I have three committed relationships - if anything, I'm a "concurrent commitment-phile"! Nor how it relates to a bisexual woman. Anyway, link posted for interest.

Terrifying link of the day:
Bipolar disorder 'shrinks brain', BBC News, Friday, 20 July 2007, 01:28 GMT. MRI scans of the brains of 20 patients with bipolar disorder and an equal number of volunteers without the condition shows that while everyone loses brain tissue in the areas controlling memory, face recognition and co-ordination, the loss is worse for people who are bipolar, and worst for those who had the most episodes of mania and depression.

Comments

[aardvarkoffnord.livejournal.com]

That bipolar link is both interresting, and as you say terrifying.

I notice that no mention is made of the fact that many bipolar abuse alcohol, or are alcoholics, to try and cope with their condition, and that this might cause the brain shrinkage.

[hattifattener]

I've read some stuff on earlier studies on depression (not bipolar), where there's also a definite shrinking-brain effect, and IIRC they addressed those sorts of confounding factors.

[aardvarkoffnord.livejournal.com]

Fairy nuff.

I am doomed either way *sigh*

[baratron.livejournal.com]

Not necessarily. The impression I have from that research and some other stuff I've read lately is that it's the number of episodes that affect the severity of, e.g., long term brain function. This is why my doctor's current approach is to throw medication at me until I achieve zero symptoms (however much that concept makes me laugh for its sheer impossibility - I've been depressed for so long that I have no idea at this stage which aspects are symptoms and which are "just me") for a year.

I'm concerned about myself because I rapid cycle with the PMS, and research shows that the more you cycle, the worse everything gets. It's like a negative feedback graph where the perturbations get bigger and bigger with time. Also, my memory and co-ordination are noticeably crappy at the moment (more about this in another post).

[alexmc.livejournal.com]

> Bipolar disorder 'shrinks brain',

I have an image of a little cartoon brain cringing inside the skull and trying to hide from the world by making itself as small as possible.

[aardvarkoffnord.livejournal.com]

Actually, sometimes, that is bloody close to the truth.

If you could do a cartoon of that on a t-shirt, I would probably buy it.

[alexmc.livejournal.com]

Sadly the image is just in my shrinking brain right now but I'll see if I can put it on paper...

[jenny-gould.livejournal.com]

I know I am a lot healthier physically and mentally now that I drink really really organic milk and eat beef that comes from cows not pumped full of antibiotics, and is fed on grass (http://www.mercola.com/beef/main.htm) not grain. Thats the right Omega balance and no mastitus (Urrgh thats spelt wrong.). Likewise no hormones to "increase growth" in my chickens, who get to run around and have big fat legs rather than emaciated tidly things in factory farmed ones, and their eggs are better too.

[jenny-gould.livejournal.com]

This (http://www.texasgrassfedbeef.com/omega_3_fatty_acids.htm)is a better, slightly more scientific link (I added the wrong one!)

[hiddenpaw.livejournal.com]

Can't help thinking from the language that the "Comitment-phobe Gene" that the writer thinks polyamory is some sort of antisocial mental condition. which is strange given that the research in the article suggests it is in fact a natural state for some people.

I wonder if what the writer referred to as "Commitment phobes" are in fact people who find the need to be in committed relationships with more than one person but find it impossible due to the pressures of society's impression of what is a "Proper" relationship