Author Archives: alicel23

The Two “E”s to Avoid Cancer: Exercise and Eat Well

Posted on April 3, 2013 | Leave a comment

Cancer is a mysterious silent killer whose cure, even to this day, cannot be found.  Many studies have found a link between weight gain and obesity to increased risk of cancer.  Could the solution to cancer prevention be something as simple as getting enough exercise and having a proper diet? As many of you know, the idea of following a healthy diet and exercising regularly is beneficial and we are constantly reminded by our friends, family and even the media. However, unknown to many of us, what we think is a common idea may be very effective in preventing obesity-related cancers.

Healthy Salad by Emilian Robert Vicol via Flickr creative commons

How exactly does being overweight relate to increased cancer risks you ask? Simply put, it has been hypothesized that many hormones or proteins involved in the development and progression of diseases such as cancer, are secreted by adipose tissue. Therefore, the more fat accumulated in the body, the more hormones secreted or “genes” expressed that can take part in the pathways leading to cancer. To examine the effects of weight loss on fat tissue gene expression and subsequently, the amount of hormones secreted, Dr. Kristin Campbell, a researcher at the University of British Columbia, and associates studied the effects of exercise and diet on body fat tissue. 

Dr. Kristin Campbell working with Scenery Slater, a cancer patient by Martin Dee via http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/2012/06/06/blame-it-on-chemo-brain/

Forty-five postmenopausal women participated and were divided into 4 treatment groups: a control group (no treatment), a calorie-restricted diet group, an exercise group and a diet+exercise group. Blood and adipose tissue samples were taken from every participant before and after following the treatments for 6 months. The samples were then analyzed for changes in hormone levels or fat tissue expression in the body. It was found that women who followed only a calorie-restrictive diet lost the most weight and greater weight loss was correlated with greater changes in fat tissue gene expression. In other words, reducing the amount of body fat ultimately reduces the chances of developing diseases such as cancer.

How women were divided into different groups in the experiment

For further details on the motivation of Dr. Campbell as well as the findings of the research, take a look at the video below:

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Youtube via whywontmynamefit

Although the subjects were all postmenopausal women, Dr. Kristin Campbell notes that weight loss can also reduce the risk of colon cancers and other obesity related diseases that affect men and women equally. From the research findings, we can see how important being healthy is for not only older generations, but for the younger generations as well. We hope our blog motivates others to live a healthier lifestyle.

With that being said, listen to the podcast below for Dr. Campbell’s suggestions for exercise and diet regimes:

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– Grace Lam, Alice Lin, Ashkan Nasr, Derek Rejto

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Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Outreach Project, Science Communication

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To fear or not to fear

Posted on March 4, 2013 | 5 comments

Is there something you are afraid of? Fear is a psychological trait that is found in everyone. People develop fear throughout their lives, but most of our fears are developed during childhood when the mind is more vulnerable. There are many fears in the general public, the most common ones being: height, public speaking, small spaces, the dark, snakes, spiders, needles and dentists.

Spider by cheetah100 via Flickr Creative Commons

Fear comes in different forms and it can be on a conscious and unconscious level. One might find themselves fearing harmless objects due to their connection to the object or thing they actually fear. For example, one who is afraid of heights may find themselves developing a fear of skyscrapers, since it subconsciously reminds them of high places.

We all know what we fear, but why do we fear and how does fear develop? The most obvious answer may be that when we experience something unpleasant, it can trigger us into fearing the object or thing that traumatized us. For instance, if a child was bitten by a dog when they were young, they may start fearing dogs. From that moment on, whenever they come across dogs, their first instinct is to get away from the dogs as far as they can. In contrast to our beliefs, studies show that there is another cause of fear.

Shocked baby by mjtmail (tiggy) via Flickr Creative Commons

One study based their experiment on monkeys and snakes. Initially monkeys and snakes were placed in a room and the response of the monkeys was monitored. From the observations, it turns our monkeys do not fear snakes. However, when the monkeys were isolated from one another and a shocking noise was accompanied each time a snake was introduced, the monkeys started becoming afraid of the snakes. Furthermore, when the response of a frightened monkey was shown to another monkey, the second monkey also developed a fear for snakes. From this experiment, it can be concluded that people can develop fear without having to personally experience a traumatic event to learn to fear something.

Take a look at a video of a fearless seven year old kid skydiving:

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From YouTube user: woods852

As it turns out, we learn our fears and we can overcome them by stepping out of our comfort zones and continuously exposing ourselves to what we are most afraid of. So what will you do next?

For further readings on another study based on learning fear see here.

-Alice Lin

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Posted in Biological Sciences

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Nighty night~

Posted on February 3, 2013 | 2 comments

Have you ever wondered what’s going while you’re sleeping? Well the truth is there is a lot going on during the period of time you are asleep and it is divided into five stages. Using an electroencephalograph (EEG) we can determine the stage of sleep we are in.

A sleeping baby by oksidor via Flickr Creative Commons

Early stages of sleep prior to stage one:

Before phase one, our mind is relatively alert and therefore we experience hypnagogic hallucinations, such as experiencing the sensation of falling, and myoclonic jerks, an involuntary twitching of the muscles. Furthermore, our brain starts to produce small and fast waves known as beta waves. As the mind slowly beings to relax, slower waves called alpha waves are produced.

Stage one:

During this period, we are in the relatively light stage of sleep, and is often considered as the transition between being awake and falling asleep.  It lasts for a brief amount of time, and usually when people wake up during this stage, they feel like they haven’t slept at all. The waves that are produced during this time is called theta waves, which are slow, high amplitude waves.

Stage two:

The body temperature starts to drop and heart rate slows down. At the same time the brain produces short periods of quick rhythmic waves known as sleep spindles. 

Stage three:

This is the period between light sleep and deep sleep. Slow, deep waves called delta waves are produced.

Stage four:

Delta waves continue to be produced, therefore this period is also known as delta sleep. This stage typically lasts for about half an hour and we fall into a deep sleep. Generally bed-wetting and sleepwalking occurs during this stage.

Stage five:

This phase is commonly known as rap eye moment (REM) and we enter this stage approximately 90 minutes after falling asleep.  Typically we enter REM sleep four to five times during the night, and each time the duration of REM sleep increases. During this period, the muscles become relaxed to a point where the body is paralyzed while respiration rate and brain activity increases. Due to the increase in brain activity, this is the time when most of our dreams occur. 

Here is an example of what an EEG looks like:

EEG when awake and during the different stages of sleep via http://www.nature.com/nri/journal/v4/n6/fig_tab/nri1369_F1.html

Although the above EEG depicts the stages of sleep from stage one to five in order, the stages do not actually occur in this sequence. After falling asleep, we begin in stage one, and progress into stages two, three and four. After stage four, stages three then two is repeated prior to entering REM sleep. After REM sleep, we return to stage two. Throughout the night we cycle through the above sequence four to five times.

Below is a video about the five stages of sleep:

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From YouTube user: Shannon Leigh

Now that you know more about the different stages of sleep, the next time you watch The Big Bang Theory and Sheldon mentions REM sleep, you’ll know what he’s talking about!

– Alice Lin

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Posted in Biological Sciences

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Going bananas!

Posted on January 14, 2013 | Leave a comment

Bunch of bananas by Ian Ransley via Flickr Creative Commons

There are more to bananas than what meets the eye as recent studies have shown that bananas can help fight cancer. Bananas are very nutritious and contain a fair amount of vitamin C, vitamin B6, potassium, as well as dietary fiber. It doesn’t just stop there; it is low in saturated fat, sodium and cholesterol and as the bananas ripens the amount of antitoxins increases.

Banana’s nutritional values via http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/1846/2

While most people eat bananas as part of their daily fruit and vegetable intake, bananas are found to be beneficial to the human body. Research have shown that bananas provide health benefits such as relieving morning sickness, lowering blood pressure, increasing nutrient absorption, maintaining a healthy digestive tract — and most surprisingly, it helps prevent cancer.

Take a look below at Dr. Willie T. Ong’s health blog regarding the benefits of bananas.

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From YouTube user: Kindguymd

A type of cancer scientists have associated with bananas is a type of kidney cancer called renal cell carcinoma, also known as hypernephroma. The tumours can travel to other areas of the body if they get into the lymph nodes (a process called metastasis), and the degree of spreading is categorized by the different stages of cancer. A cohort study done by van Dijk et al. explores the relationship between vegetable and fruit consumption and the risk of renal cell carcinoma. Although through their findings they found no association between total vegetable and/or fruit consumption, they did find that bananas have a protective effect. Furthermore, they mention another cohort study that has found statistically significant inverse association between bananas and renal cell carcinoma as well as previous reviews concluding a reduced renal cell carcinoma risk with vegetable and fruit consumption.

And there you have it! Start snacking on those bananas! Maybe next time when you’re eating a banana, you won’t think of it as merely a fruit!

For further readings regarding the studies on bananas and cancer see here.

– Alice Lin

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Posted in Biological Sciences

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