News for Now Update: Week ending May 14, 2022

What Primates Can Teach Us About Gender
Just as Dr. Francis M. Pottenger, Jr., saw that cats could give us clues about the importance of our diet, primatologist Frans de Waal sees apes as a source for better understanding our culture. His latest book, describing gender differences among primates and what we can learn from them, ruffles a few feathers while providing interesting insight on this challenging topic. Read more in The Guardian.

The Seaweed Solution to Nutrition and Bio-Based Fuel Needs
As land crops are being threatened by climate change, Swedish scientists like Dr. Sophie Steinhagen believe seaweed may solve critical nutrition and bio-based fuel needs, while companies like Sway are turning it into an ocean-friendly substitute for plastics. While 90% of seaweed cultivation still occurs in Asia, plantations like Nordic SeaFarm are popping up all over Europe to take advantage of its many benefits. Read more in The Guardian.

The Modern “Shrinking Faces” Epidemic—Consequences and Preventative Measures
From TMJ to sleep apnea, modern shrinkage of our facial structure has had an underestimated impact on human health. Whereas our ancestors grew jaws large enough for their teeth and airways (thanks to hard-to-chew foods), modern, softer diets have created smaller faces and caused breathing problems, which can lead to sleep and mood issues, especially in children. Functionally-trained dentist Dr. Scott Solomons shares vital information in this blog post about this little-known epidemic and the importance of early preventive measures. Read more at Dr. Scott Solomons’s blog.

Psychedelic Therapy: Ancient Wisdom and Modern Treatments
Ancient cultures have used hallucinogenic plants in healing rituals for thousands of years. Now, researchers at University of Texas’s Dell Medical School in Austin, Texas, have opened a treatment center to test their effectiveness in treating substance abuse, PTSD, and depression. Capitalizing on increases in neuroplasticity following exposure to ketamine, these researchers hope to help patients suffering from chronic relapse to change old patterns and adopt new, healthier habits. Read more at Fox 7 Austin.

Dr. Francis M. Pottenger’s Discussion of Milk’s Health Benefits and Potential Risks
Francis M. Pottenger, Jr., MD answers the question, “What is wrong with cow’s milk?” as he considers its historical health benefits and concerns over its health risks in this article published in Modern Nutrition in 1962. In exploring aspects of the production and consumption of milk, he looks at the relationships among soil health, crop health, cow health and nutritional factors of the milk produced. He also looks at the consequences to human health of prioritizing quantity over quality in milk production, such as cholesterol, gum disease, and obesity. (Regarding cholesterol, he states, “Cholesterol is not the villain, but the villain is what man does to cattle.”) Read more in our Pioneer Archives Post.