Tag Archives: Chemistry

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The placebo effect: Its not just ‘in your head’

What if you switched out real medication for a sugar pill? By W. Carter via Wikimedia Commons

Why does the placebo effect work? Photo courtesy of W. Carter via Wikimedia Commons

The placebo effect is an amazing thing. What is going on for patients to feel better when they’ve been given nothing but a sugar pill? Is it ‘all in their heads’ or are there real changes occurring in their bodies? The placebo effect is thought to be somewhat of a sham by many. Has your pain really been treated if you are given a sugar pill you believe to be a pain killer? What if you rate your pain as decreased? Some people would argue no, but lets take a closer look at what that means.

The placebo effect was first described by a Dr. Henry Beecher, who was treating soldiers in the field during World War II. After running out of morphine, Dr. Beecher administered shots of saline solution instead without telling the soldiers. To his surprise, nearly half of them reported their pain had decreased. What he was witnessing was actually what we now call the placebo effect. Even today though, there are still a lot of unknowns surrounding the subject.

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Dr. Henry Beecher. Photo courtesy of Mathew Brady via Wikimedia Commons

One explanation for the placebo effect could be the ‘subject -expectancy effect”. Simply put, you thought the pills would make you feel better, so you felt better after taking them. Another explanation is that those susceptible to the placebo effect have been conditioned to feel better when taking medication. Perhaps these theories do hold some truth but what is really amazing about the placebo effect is that studies have shown actual changes in brain chemistry after a placebo has been taken. Studies have shown that taking a placebo can actually lead to increases in dopamine levels in the brain, acting similarly to how the actual drug should work.

The structure of dopamine, which can increase in your brain after taking a placebo pill. Photo courtesy of Wainscott DB1, Little SP, Yin T, Tu Y, Rocco VP, He JX, Nelson DL.  via Wikimedia Commons

The structure of dopamine, which can increase in your brain after taking a placebo pill. Photo courtesy of Wainscott DB1, Little SP, Yin T, Tu Y, Rocco VP, He JX, Nelson DL. via Wikimedia Commons

Whatever the mechanism behind why the placebo effect works the way it does, if it does improve symptoms, isn’t that enough to label it as ‘real’ or ‘effective’?

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References:

http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/the-placebo-effect-amazing-and-real-201511028544

http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/inside-the-mind/human-brain/placebo-effect.htm

http://www.brainfacts.org/sensing-thinking-behaving/mood/articles/2012/the-power-of-the-placebo/

Shortcuts to Weight Loss: The Risk-Benefit Analysis of Weight Loss Supplements

With the busy lives that humans now occupy within society, like post-secondary students during exam season for example, balanced and nutritional dietary and exercise are often disregarded or not of a major priority. As a result, the body begins to accumulate fats to act as a storage for excess energy from the foods we eat and thus leads to a case in what society would call “overweight”. The extreme case would result in obesity and this has been a growing concern (and a rather sensitive topic to some) over the past years because excessive body weight is associated with various cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, asthma, and overall, a reduction in life expectancy. However, there is one suggestion that is portrayed by media and human society that is supposedly a shortcut to this problem: weight loss supplements.

Weight loss supplements contain common active ingredients such as bitter orange (synephrine), chromium, guar gum, and Hoodia(1). Synephrine, the main composition of bitter orange, works to suppress appetite and increase the rate of metabolism, thus increasing the number of calories burned (1). Chromium is a mineral that helps to regulate insulin and helps promote muscle growth and fat reduction and guar gum helps block absorption of fats in the body and increase the feeling of fullness whereas Hoodia temporarily suppresses your appetite (1).

Although these active ingredients and their functionality seem to be the solution to obesity, there are many side effects. First of all, synephrine is very similar to ephedrine (see Figure 1), a banned stimulating drug by the Food and Drug Administration due to implications with stroke, heart attacks, and hypertensions, in chemical structure and have many similar characteristics (2).

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Figure 1: Chemical structure of synephrine compared to ephedrine

Secondly, although chromium exists naturally in our bodies and certain foods, the intake of excessive chromium is disadvantageous because chromium, like other heavy metals, is rather toxic to the human body even at low concentrations. Moreover, although guar gum and Hoodia (Figure 2) work in synch to suppress the production of fats for excessive energy storage as a result from eating food, the overall results are still not proven and can potentially lead to malnutrition (1).

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Figure 2: Chemical structure of guar gum (top) and Hoodia (bottom)

To note, a research by Eichner, Maguire, Shea, and Fete have determined that many weight loss supplements are still on the market today that contain other ingredients that are banned due to psychiatric issues and complications with the cardiovascular and nervous system (3). Other ingredients that are not banned but are subject to caution and consumer knowledge are also present in many weight loss supplements(3).

In conclusion, although shortcuts are available to everyday medical conditions such as obesity, there are also many drawbacks to such methods. The optimum method would be the natural method of weight loss which involves a balanced nutritional dietary and exercise, despite how busy our lives may be or what telemarketers or advertisements tell you.

-Andrew Siu

References

Eichner, S., Maguire, M., Shea, L.A., and Fete, M. Journal of the American Pharmacists Association 2016, 5, 538.

Fitday. How do weight loss pills work in the body?  http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/fitness/weight-loss/how-do-weight-loss-pills-work-in-the-body.html (accessed Oct. 31, 2016).

Google Patents. Pharmaceutical compositions having appetite suppressant activity. http://www.google.com/patents/US7166611 (accessed Oct. 31, 2016)

Nutrient Journal. Is bitter orange fruit (citrus aurantum as synephrine) new ephedra? http://nutrientjournal.com/is-bitter-orange-fruit-citrus-aurantum-as-synephrine-new-ephedra/ (accessed Oct.31, 2016).

Sci-Toys. Guar gum. http://sci-toys.com/ingredients/guar_gum.html (accessed Oct. 31, 2016).

Happy Halloween: Beware of the caries!

Halloween has approached us. Among the daunting horror films and scary costumes come the dreaded likelihood of cavities AKA dental caries (DUN DUN DUN)!

As a child I always wondered how cavities form, but I never looked into it because I didn’t want to face the awful truth that my beloved candy is actually plotting against me. But now that I am older, and hopefully wiser, I have figured out the true story of the candy cavity curse!

It begins the moment you present that delicious piece of candy to your mouth, and the simple sugars, specifically sucrose, are released into your oral cavity. The sugar feeds the already present bacteria on your teeth [1], which live in the plaque growing on the enamel. Plaque forms normally on your teeth by the combination of sucrose, and proteins from your saliva [2]. However unpreventable, it can be removed by frequent tooth-brushing. So bacteria such as Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans), which are round, cariogenic (causes tooth decay), and anaerobic, feed on the sucrose provided by the candy, to form lactic acid through glycolysis [2].

Glycolysis is an important process in which energy is produced. The process is outlined generally below.

Hydrolysis of Sucrose to form Glucose and Fructose Image Credit: Charles E Ophardt http://chemistry.elmhurst.edu/vchembook/548toothdecay.html

Hydrolysis of Sucrose to form Glucose and Fructose Image Credit: Charles E Ophardt http://chemistry.elmhurst.edu/vchembook/548toothdecay.html

Formation of Lactic Acid from Fructose via Glycolysis. Image Credit: Charles E Ophardt http://chemistry.elmhurst.edu/vchembook/548toothdecay.html

Formation of Lactic Acid from Fructose via Glycolysis. Image Credit: Charles E Ophardt http://chemistry.elmhurst.edu/vchembook/548toothdecay.html

S. mutans lives in the plaque trapped between your teeth, and lacks oxygen. Therefore it uses glycolysis to produce lactic acid under anaerobic conditions [3]. Lactic acid is very acidic. It has a pH level of 2 [4]. The added acidity decreases the pH of your mouth to initiate the dissolution of the calcium phosphate in your tooth enamel [3]. Thus, the start of a cavity. A description of the process is explained in the video below.

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Despite the terror inflicted on my teeth due to my obsession with candy, I refuse to deprive myself of the traditional Halloween treat. Although ceasing the intake of sugar would obviously decrease the production of lactic acid on my teeth, also decreasing cavity formation, there are other methods being investigated to protect our teeth.

For example, Shelby Kashket, and Dominick P. DePaola have studied the anticariogenic effects of cheese [5]! They researched that possibly due to the buffering effects of dairy proteins on the lactic acid formation, and increased salivation when eating cheese, this helps in battling the cariogenic effects of S. mutans!

Additionally, Chu-hong Hu et al. developed a way to make large quantities of Glycyrrhizol A, an extraction of licorice root, into a sugar-free lollipop which can kill the S. mutans bacteria [6]! Talk about fighting fire with fire, or in this case, fighting candy with candy!

Finally, you can also use toothpaste with sodium bicarbonate, which raises the pH level in your mouth and neutralizes the acid [1]. Or rinse with fluoride, which speeds up the remineralization of the enamel, too [7].

So, I guess what I’m saying is, long live candy! And, apparently, cheese!
…Just make sure you brush and floss often, as well.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Nicole Yipp

References:

[1] Dr Chemical, http://drchemical.com.au/why-does-sugar-cause-tooth-decay (accessed Oct 31, 2016).

[2]Loesche WJ. Role of Streptococcus mutans in human dental decay. Microbiol Rev. 1986;50:353–380.

[3] Ophardt, C. E. Tooth Decay http://chemistry.elmhurst.edu/vchembook/548toothdecay.html (accessed Oct 31, 2016).

[4] Lactic acid; MSDS No. 9924447 [Online]; Science Lab; Houston, Texas, May 21, 2013, http://www.sciencelab.com/msds.php?msdsId=9924447 (accessed Oct 31, 2016).

[5] Kashket, S.; Depaola, D. P. Nutrition Reviews 200260 (4), 97–103.

[6] Hu, C. H.; He, J.; Eckert, R.; Wu, X. Y.; Li, L. N.; Tian, Y.; Lux, R.; Shuffer, J. A.; Gelman, F.; Mentes, J.; Spackman, S.; Bauer, J.; Anderson, M. H.; Shi, W. Y. International Journal of Oral Science 20113 (1), 13–20.

[7] Fluoride And Your Teeth http://www.colgate.com/en/us/oc/oral-health/basics/fluoride/article/fluoride-and-your-teeth (accessed Oct 31, 2016).

Oxygen Water and Reasons to Avoid it

Have you heard of “oxygen water?” This self-explanatory drink contains a higher concentration of oxygen than normal water. The manufacturers of oxygen water such as GP8 oxygen water and OXiGEN all claim their products have many health benefits such as an improvement in an athlete’s performance; however, is this true? In short it isn’t.

 

When people are vigorously exercising, they are always out of breath. Why is that? Oxygen is an essential fuel needed to generate energy (ATP) in the human body. This process of making energy in our bodies is known as cellular respiration.

Simple Overview of Cellular Respiration. It requires oxygen, sugar (food) to make energy, carbon dioxide and water. As shown above, oxygen is a necessary component in the process. Image created by Jay Park, public domain source: http://imgur.com/a/hqKCh

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When people are breathing hard, they are trying to get more oxygen in their lungs to fuel their bodies into motion. What if there was an alternate way of getting oxygen inside your body than breathing? Oxygen water manufacturers claim that drinking their product will increase the oxygen levels in your body. Unfortunately, this is no where near the truth.

 
With the popularity of oxygen water growing in both professional and amateur athletes, a few teams of scientists decided to challenge the science behind oxygen water. One of those scientists was Dr. Piantadosi who tested whether or not consuming oxygen water improved athletic performance. The study concluded that oxygen water did not improve any athletic abilities. Many other studies that tested oxygen water’s ability to enhance athletic ability all came to the same conclusion.

 
Unlike the aforementioned studies, Schoenberg and his team were determined to figure out if oxygen water was harmful by investigating the relationship between oxygen water and oxygen radicals. Oxygen radicals are a type of free radicals.  Free radicals have an unpaired electron and this makes the radicals highly unstable and reactive. When they are present in our body, they can damage and even kill the cells they come in contact with; therefore, having high levels of oxygen radicals is harmful.

 
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The scientists hypothesized that participants who drank oxygen water will have more oxygen radicals in their blood.  Their hypothesis was correct. Volunteers who drank oxygen water had higher blood oxygen radical levels than normal for thirty minutes after drinking oxygen water. With this finding, the team concluded that oxygen water may be harmful to the consumer.

 
The scientific community has made it clear that oxygen water is not what it claims to be. Hopefully with the power of science behind your back, you will avoid wasting your money on oxygen water!

 

Jay Park.

Reference:
1. Haque, Rabiul. Free Radical Injury (HD). 2015. Web. 10 Oct. 2016.
2. Piantadosi, C A. “”Oxygenated” Water and Athletic Performance * COMMENTARY”. British Journal of Sports Medicine 40.9 (2006): 740-741. Web. 10 Oct. 2016.
3. Schoenberg MH, et al. “The Generation Of Oxygen Radicals After Drinking Of Oxygenated Water. – Pubmed – NCBI”. Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. N.p., 2016. Web. 10 Oct. 2016.
4. Teacher’s Pet. Cellular Respiration. 2014. Web. 10 Oct. 2016.

Buyer Beware: What You Should Know About Organic Food Products

There has been a lot of hype and excitement over organic foods and the health benefits associated with “going organic” these past few years. However, one particular experience recently has made me question whether or not the whole “organic movement” is well portrayed to the public or if it is just overrated in general.

One day while at work, a customer comes up to me and asks if we carried frozen organic hamburgers. My initial thought was “Huh, do they even sell such a thing in general?”. But because I have not seen any types of organic frozen hamburgers for sale at any point I have worked or shopped at my workplace, I kindly told her that we, unfortunately, do not carry such a product and that was the end of that conversation. Or at least I thought so. This customer proceeds to ask why we do not carry organic frozen hamburgers and that we should carry it because organic products are, according to her, “healthier and will help you live a longer life”. First of all, that statement is pretty contradictory to me. If one wants to be healthy and eat healthier, frozen hamburgers wouldn’t be on my list of healthy foods to eat. Secondly, how can one conclude that eating organic “will help you live a longer life”? But due to the time restrictions and the ridiculousness of the conversation, I did not ask how one would reach such a conclusion and kindly told the customer that I would make a suggestion to my manager when convenient and that was the end of the conversation (for real this time).

Since then, I have been read a few online articles on organic foods to further educate myself about organic food products and there was one particular article titled “The Dirty Truth About ‘Organic’ Produce” by Henry Miller(5) I found to be very interesting as it summarized my opinions about organic foods in general. Keep in mind I call it an opinion because there is still extensive research and studies made on the difference between organic and conventional food products. This article argues that the idea of organic food products may be misinterpreted by the public and that there may even be further risks when compared to conventional food products.

It seems as if the public classifies organic foods as being “pesticide-free”, but that is not the case. The term “organic” allows for an arbitrarily defined set of principles and techniques to implement the use “natural” pesticides and approved chemical pesticides. In other words, although conventional food products implement the use of synthetic chemical pesticides, organic food products also implement the use of pesticides that pose the same health risks because “organic” pesticides do not just disappear(5). Qualitatively, when comparing the toxic effects of synthetic pesticides to organic pesticides, a research has shown that the exposure to synthetic pesticides are negligible when introduced in small doses such as that in the residues of conventional food products and are only significant when exposed in large doses such as to those working in agriculture(3).

Although some experiments and studies have shown that organic foods contain higher levels of antioxidant and metabolites(2), their actual benefits, if there exists any at all, is unknown and required more scientific investigation(5). Moreover, even with higher levels of antioxidant and metabolites, it is important to note that one trade-off with organic food products is that organic food products are more likely subject to contamination than conventional food products from external sources(4,5). How often do you hear stories on social media about a woman finding a spider inside her organic apple or organic food products being recalled due to E. Coli or Salmonella contamination?

Furthermore, organic farming methods are not as beneficial to the economy compared to conventional farming methods. The cost of processing organic food products which includes providing fertility, weed control, pest control, and disease control combined with the overall reduced yield compared to conventional farming methods is neither efficient nor reliable to the agricultural industry(6). This is also evident because if organic farming methods were more reliable and efficient, one would simply observe a massive upscale movement from conventional farming methods to organic farming methods, but that is not the case(5).

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Figure 1: Willingness of Consumers to Pay for Organic Products (1).

In conclusion, organic food products tend to be overrated and do not live up to their standards because of misinterpretations by the public, the potential for increased health risks, and the overall cost-benefit factor in comparison to conventional food products. So next time when shopping, think about whether you really want to pay a few extra dollars for the organic food product- something that is probably only good for bragging to your neighbors about.

Andrew Siu

Chem 300 109

References

  1. Batte, M. et al. Putting their money where their mouths are: Consumer willingness to pay for multi-ingredient, processed organic food product 2007, 2, 145.
  2. Brandt, K., Molgard, J.P. Organic agriculture: does it enhance or reduce the nutritional value of plant foods? 2001, 9, 924.
  3. Holzman, D. PESTICIDES. Organic Food Conclusions Don’t Tell the Whole Story 2012, 12, A458.
  4. Grob, K. et al. Food Contamination with Organic Materials in Perspective: Packing Materials as the Largest and Least Controlled Source? A View Focusing on the European Situation 2007, 1, 529.
  5. Miller, H. The Dirty Truth About ‘Organic’ Produce 2015, 1, 1.
  6. Richards, T. The Economics of the Organic Food Sysytem: Discussion 2011, 2, 322.