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927 FOCUS.qxp_Layout 1 29/10/2019 12:42 Page 2020 FocusWINDLE COURT CARE HOME - MONTHLY TRIP TO CHELMSFORD MARKETOn Friday 18th of October we had a lovely day out at ChelmsfordMarket. Everybody was looking forward to going and the weatherheld out for us and turned out to be a really beautiful day. Theminibus arrived and getting on the bus everyone was excitedabout what they were going to buy.The Market is open most days of the week and there is literallysomething for everyone. We wandered around every stall(especially the wool stall) looking at what was on offer. Some ofthe ladies purchased wool and knitting items, whilst others lookedat magazines, pickles and craft materials.When everyone had seen all the stalls we decided to take a walkinto the shopping centre to have a look around and get somethingto eat. We passed through all the undercover shops and we didenjoy ourselves looking at the displays. On our way through thesecond market outside we bumped into some old friends of oneof our residents. They were so pleased to see each other it waslovely to see, and they told him how well he looked after all theseyears.One lovely resident had been collecting McDonalds vouchers sothat was where we decided to grab something to eat. I didn’thonestly think everyone would enjoy hamburgers but they turnedout to be a winner with everyone. Time was pressing on now andwe wanted to take a look at the Meadow Croft garden centre onthe way home so we made our way back to the minibus. Just aswe were getting on the minibus it started to rain but fortunatelywas only a shower.We made our way back home and because of the rain, which washeavier now we only stopped quickly at the garden centre.Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the day, and although exhausted weall returned safe and sound.Moving the clocks backLast weekend we put our watches and clocks back by an hour as did all other Europeans, but not everyonethroughout the world does this. It is a feature of countries further from the equator who have a widerdiscrepancy between daylight hours and night-time hours.It became quite widespread at the beginning of the last century as a device to save fuel which was neededto keep industry working. In this century the arguments for and against the practice are fairly even.But that extra hour. How did your pets cope with it? Did your dog want to go out for their morning exercisean hour earlier? How did you use it? Did you grasp the chance to get an extra hour in bed? Did you just goto bed later on Saturday evening? Whatever your answer you are the same you that got up on Sunday as went to bed on Saturdayand in one or two days time you and your pets will have settled into the new routine.In the Book of Genesis in the Bible we learn the truths behind the world which God planned for, created and now watches over.That tells us that ‘seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease’. God built the certaintyof them into His world. And they haven’t ceased. Yes there have been many times that the seedtime and harvest part of thepromise has been stretched but always it has returned. Occasionally the cold and heat part has come under scrutiny but they arestill part of the cycle of time. God’s creation never had the intent of being a blueprint of everything, every year, every personbeing the same. William Cowper the poet born in the first half of the eighteenth century said that ‘variety was the spice of life’.He recognised and welcomed the differences within God’s creation.But those difference mean that we have choices to make. What to eat?, What to do? When to do it, Where to go? - the list isendless. And one of the choices, the most important one that each of us has to make is whether we are going to recognise Godthe Creator as our heavenly Father, which means recognising Jesus as his son who was born and then crucified to carry thepunishment for the sins of everyone including you, and the Holy Spirit as God being present in the world today. The permanenceand certainty of the Trinity of God is certainly not affected by any decisions of mankind to move the clocks back or forwardsSouth Woodham Ferrers Christian CouncilFOCUS
927 FOCUS.qxp_Layout 1 29/10/2019 12:42 Page 21FOCUS ON HEALTH0South Focus Woodham FocusSouth Woodham Focus 21NARCISSISM is on the rise. One study suggests that posting lots of selfiesmakes you more narcissistic ... so, if this is true, we are already in the throesof an epidemic.We see signs of it on the world stage. Trump is a '10 out of 10 narcissist',according to Larry Lindsey, the former Bush official, who attributes Trump'salleged personality disorder to his childhood. According to a story in theIndy, Lindsey says Trump's mother ignored him. Even if this story turns outto be 'fake news', Trumps mother, had she lived, would certainly beignoring him now following his abandonment of the KurdsSean Coughlan writes for the BBC that "Narcissists might have"grandiose" delusions about their own importance and an absence of"shame" - but psychologists say they are also likely to be happier thanmost people."He goes on to explain: "An ongoing study of narcissism by researchers atQueen's University Belfast has found such people might infuriate othersbut are less likely to be stressed or depressed. Psychologist Dr KostasPapageorgiou says negative responses to narcissism can overlook thepositive benefits to the narcissists themselves. Researchers have beentrying to understand why narcissism appears to be "on the rise in modernsocieties" - in politics, social media and celebrity culture - if it is also seenas being "socially toxic". They define narcissists as being likely to "engagein risky behaviour, hold an unrealistic superior view of themselves, are overconfident,show little empathy for others, and have little shame or guilt".With such negative qualities, the researchers wanted to know whynarcissism seemed to be so visible and often rewarded rather thanpenalised."SC explains that the upside is that "They have lower levels of stress andare less likely to see life as stressful - with their self-confidence andheightened sense of self-importance appearing to be "protective"qualities. This follows the Belfast team's previous work, which indicatednarcissists were more likely to succeed in work and in their social lives."In the past some have accused me of narcissistic traits - but this is palpablyuntrue. Narcissism is a silly infatuation with oneself ... but, with me, it's thereal thing!A dung beetle walks into a bar and says: "Is this stool taken?"CAN OVER THE COUNTER MEDICINES HELP DEPRESSION? St John'sWort is very popular in Germany where some claim it's as effective asantidepressants while having milder side effects on the whole. As withmany other herbal remedies, however, there are some potential seriousside effects - and, even if there weren't, it's not recommended that youself medicate if you are suffering from depression.There is some news this week which may mean that, at some future date,simple over-the-counter medication may be part of the armamentariumwith which we fight depression. Kaya Burgess writes in The Times: "Takingtwo painkillers a day can reduce the symptoms of depression, a study hassuggested. The findings have prompted calls for trials on whether overthe-counterpills could be prescribed for mental health disorders.Scientists reviewed 26 previous studies to look at the effect of antiinflammatorydrugs, including ibuprofen and aspirin, on the symptoms of“major depressive disorder”. These include low moods and the inability tofeel pleasure.Researchers from the University of Science and Technology in Wuhan,China, found that the drugs were 79 per cent more effective at eliminatingsymptoms and 52 per cent more effective at reducing their overall severitythan a placebo."Jane Kirby takes up the story in The Independent: ""Common painkillers,statins and fish oils may help curb depression, especially if taken withantidepressants, experts say. A new review found that anti-inflammatoryagents, including painkillers such as ibuprofen and aspirin, as well as statinsand omega-3 fish oils, could curb major symptoms of depression such aslow mood."She goes on to point out that: "Experts from the University of Science andTechnology in Wuhan, China, reviewed 26 existing studies for theirresearch in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry."When these journalists say "pain killers" they seemingly DON'T meanparacetamol and the like ... but rather the anti-inflammatory drugs(examples of which are listed below.) Jane expands on the theme asfollows: "The anti-inflammatories included in the studies were nonsteroidalanti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen and aspirin;omega 3 fatty acids often found in fish oils; cytokine inhibitors; statins;steroids; antibiotics; a drug used to treat sleep disorders (modafinil); andN-acetyl cysteine, which is used to loosen excess phlegm in people withcystic fibrosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD). Theresults suggested that, overall, these medicines and agents were 52 percent more effective than placebo at reducing overall symptoms ofdepression and were 79 per cent more effective in eliminating symptomsthan placebo. The most effective drugs were found to be NSAIDs, omega3 fatty acids, statins and minocyclines, and the effect was greater if thesewere added to antidepressants."So where does this leave us? In the past an association betweeninflammation and depressive symptoms has been postulated - and therehas been talk of 'an overactive immune system' playing a part. Forexample, we give people a vaccination to boost their immune system andthey may find their mood dips for a short time afterwards.As ever, this is not as straightforward as it seems. Chronic pain can itselfresult in depression ... and, whilst NSAIDS may improve your mood, thosewho take large quantities of opioids in an attempt to deal with their painoften face the additional burden of depression.Anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) have well known side-effects - such asirritation of the stomach lining and, sometimes bleeding. The group of antidepressantsknown as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) havealso been associated with upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding (perhapsdue to depletion of serotonin from platelets) ... and, although some saythis is a relatively rare event, given that one recommendation seems to beto combine NSAIDs with anti-depressants (such as the commonly usedSSRIs) the poor old stomach could have to contend with a double whammy.Does this mean that GPs would have to prescribe a third drug to protectthe stomach in order to counteract this potential problem?All in all, then, these are interesting results ... but further trials will beneeded before your friendly doc will feel easy about prescribing on thebasis of this evidence alone.FACT: if somebody is playing Christmas music in October you are legallyallowed to kill them and use their corpse for a Halloween decoration.COMING OFF ANTIDEPRESSANTS: 'Pulse' newspaper reports that:"NICE has revised its depression guidelines to warn of 'severe' and lengthyantidepressant withdrawal symptoms, having originally said such symptomswere 'mild'.The updated guidance on treating depression in adults now includesstatements on withdrawal symptoms, clarifying that symptoms may besevere and last for months in some patients. This is a revision of the originalguidance, which advised that symptoms are generally mild and self-limitingover the course of a week."My experience is that many patients find coming off antidepressants 'nottoo bad' providing they do it under supervision - very slowly over a fairlyprotracted period of time. There are some, however, who have much moredifficulty and need more support. One common problem is that withdrawaleffects may be mistaken for a return of depressive symptoms ... causingthose affected to give up and 'go back on' their antidepressants."My Dad’s a Foster parent, whereas my mother has always preferredCarlsberg." Clive Anderson.NEW ALZHEIMER'S DRUG. The NHS tells us that: "There is at present nocure for dementia. But there are medicines and other treatments that canhelp with dementia symptoms."Because there's no cure, this is fertile ground for the snake oil salesmen.We see ads like: 'The Best Alzheimer's Treatment? - Over 95% Say 'It'sAloadofoldcrap!' This is the "Clinically Proven Natural Treatment" thatProtects Against Alzheimer's.'At last, though, there is hope of a significant advance. BBC News reportsthat: "Scientists believe they could be on the cusp of a breakthrough, aftera drugs company said it had the first treatment of its kind for Alzheimer's.The drug, which is called aducanumab, cannot cure it but Biogen says itslows down the rate at which it progresses, essentially meaning peoplestay more like themselves for longer. This came as a surprise as thecompany had suspended the drug trial in March 2019 because ofdisappointing results. But now a larger dataset has been analysed andBiogen says it shows that higher doses of aducanumab can provide asignificant benefit to patients with early Alzheimer's."It is thought to act on the plaques that form in the brain in this condition.There are some benefits in memory - as well as language and living skills.When you look at the history of Alzheimer’s research, the pathway to thispoint is littered with failures - so it doesn't do to get over excited. If thisdrug turns out to be half as good as it's cracked up to be, however, it couldrepresent the first step in the long climb towards a cure for this condition.The Guardian reported August that "Dementia is the biggest health crisisof our time, as statistics show the condition was the primary cause of deathin England and Wales last year. Almost one in eight people died fromdementia and Alzheimer’s disease in 2018, with the proportion increasingfor the fourth consecutive year."For information on what is available currently, seehttps://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dementia/treatment/ or Google 'NHS Whatare the treatments for dementia?' For additional info Google: 'Alzheimer'sSociety'Dr JohnFOCUS
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