Our second brain has.....

[Guest guest]

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90 percent of the body's entire supply of serotonin can actually be found in

our " second brain " . Read on..........

 

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_http://www.mercola.com/2005/may/31/prozac_nsaids.htm_

(http://www.mercola.com/2005/may/31/prozac_nsaids.htm)

 

" What do Prozac and NSAIDs Have in Common?

You Don't Want to Know "

 

The evidence has mounted yet again regarding the need for doctors to wise up

about the side effects of drugs when prescribing medications to their

patients.

 

Why? According to a study, taking selective serotonin re uptake inhibitors

(SSRIs) like Prozac and Paxil can cause acute gastrointestinal bleeding

similar to that prompted by aspirin and related painkillers.

 

The Study

 

Researchers reviewed the medical records of some 550 patients admitted to

hospitals for acute gastrointestinal bleeding and found that continual use of

the antidepressants in question were responsible for a risk of bleeding

similar to that caused by ongoing use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

(NSAIDs), such as:

 

Aspirin

Ibuprofen

Naproxen

 

In defense, the company that makes Prozac, Eli Lilly, argued the possibility

of bleeding was a potential side effect already listed and that patients

were cautioned about it in information that accompanied the medication.

 

Yet despite the argument, the reality remains: Gastrointestinal bleeding

from NSAIDS is responsible for an alarming 16,000 deaths in the United States

each year. Will SSRIs boost that statistic?

 

MSNBC May 16, 2005

 

Gary Craig's Comments:

 

EFT has successfully reduced or eliminated depression on many occasions

without the use of drugs, thus eliminating the

gastrointensinal bleeding mentioned above. Further, the result is often

permanent. As an example, go to the EFT Web site and read 30 plus years of

depression gone in 2 minutes.

Gary Craig

 

Gary Craig is a pioneering developer of EFT, a profoundly effective

emotional/mental healing approach. Dr. Mercola attributes much of the

incredible and

permanent patient successes at his clinic, The Optimal Wellness Center, to

the fact that EFT is used with every patient to address all three levels of

healing: mind, body and spirit. Of the thousands of natural treatments Dr.

Mercola has studied and used in

his 20 years of practicing medicine, he feels that EFT is the greatest

healing technique that exists.

 

Read more about Gary Craig's EFT Course.

 

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

 

While some of you may not have been aware that SSRIs can lead to

gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, similar findings were actually published in a

Dutch

study in 2004. That study found a threefold increase in the risk of

hospitalization for GI bleeding in patients who took:

 

Prozac

Paxil

Zoloft

Anafranil

 

I also ran a story on this association back in 2001. It is unclear as to

why this link to ulcers appears to exist, however, the take-home message is

that when you use a drug as a Band Aid to treat the symptoms, then please don't

be surprised when you come down with unexpected consequences.

 

In the case of antidepressants and ulcers, it is paradoxical as they should

actually lower, not increase, the risk of ulcers by lowering the stress and

anxiety response that contributes to them.

 

Those who suffer from depression are often found to have lower than normal

levels of serotonin. Known as " the feel good hormone, " serotonin works as a

neurotransmitter in the brain, where it aids in the transmission of certain

nerve impulses that modulate mood, emotion, sleep and appetite.

 

SSRIs work by blocking the reuptake of serotonin into certain neurons in the

brain, in effect, leaving it in the " field of play " for longer than normal.

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The Second Brain

 

Interestingly, a few years ago a physician by the name of Michael Gershon,

who has since gone on to write a book about this topic, discovered that the

digestive tract contains bundles of neurons now known collectively as the

enteric nervous system (ENS) or " second brain. " One of a number of amazing

discoveries that have since been made about the ENS is the fact that 90 percent

of

the body's entire supply of serotonin can actually be found there.

 

While this fact may or may not help to explain why SSRIs can lead to

bleeding in the GI tract, it does make for some startling implications in

regard to

just how important the function of our digestive tracts may be.

 

This further supports the notion that using SSRIs to increase low levels of

serotonin in the brain is just another Band-Aid approach to treatment that

does not address the root cause of disease. After all, since a healthy gut

can house 90 percent of the body's serotonin, wouldn't making sure it was

functioning optimally be prudent advice for anyone suffering the effects of low

levels of it?

 

Additional tips for treating the root causes of depression include:

 

Balancing your intake of omega-3 and omega-6 fats.

 

Getting adequate amounts of exercise.

 

Using one or more energy psychology tools, like the Emotional

Freedom Technique, to help battle the dual effects of stress and depression.

 

Taking advantage of the healing powers of religion, prayer and spirituality.

 

Getting adequate exposure to sunlight.

 

 

Related Articles:

 

Was Prozac's Link to Suicide Intentionally Covered Up?

 

Treatment Options for Healing Depression

 

How Could Drug Companies be so Evil?

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