Drug Addiction for some refers to a disease while many believe that it is just a matter of will or choice. We take addiction to be learned behaviour. However the contemporary science has tried to shed light on the pathological background of the addiction, giving a new thought to the world. It suggests that like another disease, it is a brain disease that develops over time. Repeatedly using drugs brings certain fundament structural and functional changes in the brain that continue long even after the individual stops using them.

The evidence suggests that these long-lasting brain changes are responsible for the distortions of cognitive and emotional functioning that characterize addicts. It is as if drugs control the brain’s natural motivational control circuits, resulting in drug use becoming the sole, or at least the top, priority for the individual.

There is much public debate on this brain-based view of addiction as some people wrongly think that it somehow releases the addicts from responsibility point of view, for their own behaviour. However in spite of this belief, the biological and behavioural explanations are not only an alternative way to understand this phenomenon, they are in fact an incorporate part of the whole picture.

continue reading Drug Addiction or Disease

Thousands of bioactive phytochemicals have demonstrated strong potential for their future beneficial pharmaceutical or medicinal applications.

‘Food-grade pectin’, commonly used as a thickening agent and stabilizer in food, tops the industry’s list of ingredients. This chemical has the highest probability succeed in the healthcare sector owing to its benefits and yields. It is extremely useful for medical applications like drug delivery, gene repair, and tissue repair. ‘Food-grade-pectin’ offers food ingredient manufacturers more than $890 million in sales and therefore is advantageous to the healthcare industry.

‘Glycomacropeptide’, is one more phytochemical having similar applications. It is a whey component that is released during the manufacture of cheese. ‘Glycomacropeptide’ has been shown to stimulate the body’s synthesis and release of cholesystokinen. This compound plays an important role in the regulation of digestion and appetite suppression. There exists a big market component amounting to more than $65.6 million potential for the healthcare industry and businesses.

“There are a variety of market opportunities in the healthcare sector, either in drugs, medical foods, or medical devices,” said Steven Heffner, publisher of Kalorama Information.

The cost-effective discoveries and recovery of novel ingredients with improved properties from food processing streams depends on next generation analysis, isolation, and separation technologies. Food ingredient manufacturers will have adopted new science and technological advancements and techniques in order to add value to their primary, byproduct, and waste streams.

continue reading Bioactive Phytochemicals Bring More Than One Billion Reasons to Think Healthy

What are antidepressant drugs and how do they work? In cases of depression where psychotherapy alone fail at treating the condition, people seek alternatives, often of which takes on the form of a pill. What many people fail at realising is that antidepressants are not panaceas. While they do relieve depression in some people, these prescription drugs carry risks and should only be taken under the supervision of a medical practitioner. The result of ingesting these antidepressants varies according to people’s age, severity of depression, and history of illness. Furthermore, it is important to watch out for possible drug interactions when taking antidepressants in conjunction with other medications.

Types of Antidepressants

Antidepressants are available in three main forms, they are: selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs), tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). The SSRIs are a form of antidepressants which includes drugs like Prozac and Zoloft, as implied by the name; they work through inhibition of the presynaptic serotonin transporter receptor. TCAs were introduced in the 1950s and works through prevention of the nerve cell’s ability to reuptake serotonin and norepinephrine, Elavil is an example of this form of antidepressant. Finally, we look at MAOIs, which are amongst the earliest form of antidepressants developed works through inhibition of monoaxine oxidase, an enzyme which plays a large role in the determination of one’s mood by its effect on neurotransmitters. The drugs Nardil and Parmate are commercially available examples of MAOIs.

continue reading What You Ought to Know About Antidepressants