Author: Personal Liberty News Desk

According to a new University of Wisconsin study, folic acid supplements may help improve the condition of patients with severe brain and spinal cord injuries.

Using a rodent model, lead author Bermans Iskandar and her colleagues discovered that folic acid was capable of promoting nerve cell regeneration through a newly discovered molecular pathway in subjects with severe neurological injuries.

In an accompanying editorial, Matthias Endres and Golo Kronenberg, of the Humboldt University Medical School in Berlin, Germany, admit that while the findings are preliminary, they provide a basis for testing whether folic acid supplementation is worthwhile in individuals suffering from spinal cord injuries and brain trauma.

Meanwhile, a separate study has found that fewer than 24 percent of women of childbearing age are meeting the daily folic acid minimum intake recommended by the United States Public Health Service and Institute of Medicine, according to ScienceNews.org.

Mothers who do not consume enough folic acid or vitamin B9 are known to be at an increased risk of giving birth to children with neurological defects.

In the study, nearly 75 percent of women who took a nutritional supplement received at least the minimum daily allowance of the nutrient.

According to a new ABC News poll, fewer than one-third of registered voters plan to back their current representatives in Congress in the upcoming November elections. This marks the greatest level of voter discontent regarding incumbents since the Republican Party took control of the House and Senate in 1994.

However, the poll also found that registered Democrats were far more likely to vote for current members of Congress than were Republicans and independents.

While most political pundits assume the Democrats will fail to maintain their considerable majority in Congress this November, the survey revealed some positive signs for President Obama and his party.

In the party-to-party measure, a total of 46 percent of Americans said they trust Democrats to handle the main problems facing the country, compared to just 32 percent who favored Republicans.

The poll also indicated that an overwhelming majority of Americans blame former President George W. Bush for the current state of the economy and the ballooning budget deficit, while just more than one-quarter find Obama to be the most culpable.

Results of a recent animal study suggest that individuals who are at a high risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease may benefit from the naturally occurring antioxidants found in grapes.

For the study, a team of scientists from the University of Michigan Health System monitored the health of a group of overweight lab rats that were fed a diet consisting of high-fat foods mixed with a powdered form of table grapes.

After three months of follow-up, the researchers found rodents that consumed a grape-enriched diet had better heart function, lower blood pressure and reduced inflammation than a group of control rats that were not given the fruit powder.

"Reducing these risk factors may delay the onset of diabetes or heart disease, or lessen the severity of the diseases," said lead researcher E. Mitchell Seymour. "Ultimately it may lessen the health burden of these increasingly common conditions."

The beneficial health effects took place even while the rodents experienced no change in body weight. The research team plans to conduct a similar human trial later this summer.

Conservative groups that fight against overturning the "don’t ask, don’t tell" policy also frequently share stories of ex-gays who have found the way to socially acceptable lifestyles. Recently, some of those activists have taken Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Steele to task for failing to meet with members of the ex-gay community.

The group, called Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX), quoted an interview Steele gave to Gentleman’s Quarterly in which he allegedly said he doubted that ex-gays exist. Since then, despite PFOX efforts, Steele has refused to meet with ex-gays and hear about stories of individual change, despite the fact that one of his predecessors, Ed Gillespie, held such meetings.

"It’s no wonder the RNC continues to lose factions of its members, such as Tea Party conservatives," said Christopher Doyle, a PFOX board member. "Steele would be better off if he extended ex-gays a place at the table rather than paying his staff to watch lesbians dance on it at strip clubs."

Meanwhile, in the sign that the fight over "don’t ask, don’t tell" is heating up, Family Research Council and the Alliance Defense Fund representatives held a news conference on April 28 to announce the release of a letter to President Obama and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, signed by more than 40 retired military chaplains.

The letter addresses the chaplains’ religious liberty concerns against what it calls "the practice of open homosexual behavior in the military."

Just a few days after Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry vetoed two restrictive abortion measures, calling them "unconstitutional intrusions into citizens’ private lives and decisions," the state senate voted to override the vetoes, meaning the bills will become laws without the Democratic governor’s support.

One of the measures forces pregnant women to undergo an ultrasound and receive a detailed description of the fetus just an hour before deciding whether or not to have an abortion, the Washington Post reports. The second bill prohibits expectant women from seeking damages in court if their physician withholds information regarding their pregnancy.

The second measure, which was overwhelmingly supported in both the state House and Senate, is designed to prevent women from discriminating against fetuses with disabilities.

"State policymakers should never mandate that a citizen be forced to undergo any medical procedure against his or her will, especially when such a procedure could cause physical or mental trauma," Henry said. "To do so amounts to an unconstitutional invasion of privacy."

The Oklahoma governor, who vetoed similar legislation in 2008, also criticized the bills for not allowing exemptions for victims of rape and incest.

Despite the Federal Reserve’s pronouncements that inflation is under control and holding steady at just above 2 percent, some experts believe the true figure is much higher than that.

According to Jeffrey Nichols—senior economic advisor to Rosland Capital, a California-based precious metal asset firm—the consumer price index , which is the government’s main inflation indicator, is flawed and causes the actual inflation to be significantly underreported.

In his view, the true level of general price increases is between 6 percent and 7 percent.

"Recent statistics paint a rosy picture of the United States economy emerging from recession with inflation subdued," Nichols said.

However, he added that "anyone who does grocery shopping, pays the utility bills, writes a tuition check for their child’s education, uses public transportation or flies across the country knows the truth about inflation."

Nichols also said that although the price of gold fell last week after the news that the investment bank Goldman Sachs had been charged with securities fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission, "prices in the $1,130 to $1,140 range are certainly attractive entry points for long-term investors."

According to a recent study presented at the 2010 Experimental Biology meeting in Anaheim, Calif., a high intake of vitamin D may help preserve physical function in older adults.

For the study, Denise Houston and her colleagues from the Sticht Center on Aging at Wake Forest University assessed the relationship between nutrient intake, long-term health conditions and mobility in seniors.

Over a four-year period the researchers monitored 2,788 healthy seniors with a median age of 75. At the beginning and end of the study they analyzed each participant’s blood level of vitamin D and examined their physical function using a variety of strength and endurance tests.

At the conclusion of the research the investigators found that while physical function declined with every respondent, those with consistently high levels of the nutrient experienced a more gradual deterioration in strength and endurance.

"Those with adequate or optimal vitamin D status [the highest group] had approximately 5 percent higher physical performance scores and 5 percent faster walk speed on the 400-meter walk compared to those with insufficient vitamin D status at the four-year follow up," Houston told WebMD.

Just a few days after Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed into law a historically aggressive immigration bill, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon indicated that the city may soon file a lawsuit challenging the legislation on constitutional grounds.

Gordon told Fox News the bill is not only unconstitutional, but also makes the state less safe, as police would be forced to spend an exorbitant amount of time focusing on this "unenforceable" law.

"It tramples civil rights," Gordon told the news source. "Now everyone has to show and prove that they’re a legal resident or citizen." He also warned that the new law may create "a division within the state that could lead to violence."

The Phoenix mayor also attacked the author of the bill, state Senator Russell Pearce, by comparing him to late Alabama Governor George Wallace, a well-known segregationist leader in the 1960s, KTAR.com reports. He said that Pearce is more concerned with making headlines than battling the real problems that face Arizona, such as violent crime and the drug trade.

Gordon indicated that he will ask the Phoenix City Council later this week to join him in his fight against the law.

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer made state history on April 23 by signing one of the toughest immigration bills in the country into law. The legislation, while praised by many conservatives and libertarians, has met with Democratic criticism both at the local level and in Washington.

The Libertarian candidate for governor, Bruce Olson, wrote in a blog for The Arizona Sentinel that he was "proud" of Brewer for the step that is "making it tough to run against ya."

He added that other states must follow suit with similar laws, but warned that the Federal government may try to overturn the bill.

However, the new law, which will make it a misdemeanor for foreign nationals to fail to register and carry their documents with them, was heavily criticized by ethnic groups and Democratic lawmakers.

Among the critics were Hispanic state legislators in Arizona as well as members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in Washington, D.C.

In the nation’s capital, President Obama called the bill "misguided" but said the Federal government must act on the immigration issue.

"Our failure to act responsibly will only open the door to irresponsibility by others," he said.

"That includes the recent efforts in Arizona, which threaten to undermine basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans, as well as the trust between police and their communities that is so crucial to keeping us safe," Obama added.

The president was referring to the part of the bill that requires police officers, if they have a "reasonable suspicion" that someone is an illegal immigrant during a lawful stop, to determine that person’s immigration status and, if necessary, transfer them into Federal custody.

As people age their ability to exercise for extended periods of time slowly diminishes. Fortunately, results of a new University of California study suggest that taking daily arginine and antioxidant supplements can help compensate for the loss of exercise capacity by enhancing a person’s anaerobic threshold, which is the amount of exercise that needs to be done before lactic acid begins to accumulate in the blood.

For the study, lead author Zhaoping Li and her colleagues from the university recruited 16 active male cyclists between the ages of 50 and 73, and randomly assigned them to take either a mix of arginine and antioxidant supplements or dummy placebo tablets.

After only one week of taking the nutritional supplements, the study group experienced a 16.7 percent increase in anaerobic threshold. In contrast, the threshold of the control group did not significantly alter.

"A dietary supplement that increases exercise capacity might help to preserve physical fitness by optimizing performance and improving general health and well-being in older people," said Li.

She concluded that findings suggest "a potential role of arginine and antioxidant supplementation in improving exercise performance in elderly."

Over the last few years nutritionists have identified many health benefits linked to the consumption of brown rice, including its ability to help control cholesterol and blood sugar. According to a new study, routinely eating brown rice may also help protect a person from high blood pressure and atherosclerosis, two important risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

Through comprehensive research, lead author Satoru Eguchi and his colleagues from the Cardiovascular Research Center at Temple University discovered that brown rice contains a layer of tissue capable of combating angiotensin II, an endocrine protein partially responsible for the development of high blood pressure and the hardening of the arteries.

The subaleurone layer of brown rice, which is stripped away to make white rice, is also rich in dietary fibers and oligosaccharides.

"Our research suggests that there is a potential ingredient in rice that may be a good starting point for looking into preventive medicine for cardiovascular diseases," said Eguchi. "We hope to present an additional health benefit of consuming half-milled or brown rice [as opposed to white rice] as part of a regular diet."

The researcher also speculated that the study’s findings may help shed light on why fewer people die of heart disease in Japan than the United States.

In an effort to blunt the impact of the sweeping healthcare reform passed by Congress and signed by President Obama late last month, the Florida legislature has passed an act that aims to protect the state’s healthcare system from interference.

Florida’s Healthcare Freedom Act (HJR 37/SJR 72), sponsored by Florida Representative Scott Plakon and Florida Senator Carey Baker, passed the House and Senate and will appear on the November ballot.

The legislation, which was inspired by the American Legislative Exchange Council’s Freedom of Choice in Healthcare Act, blocks a state or federal requirement for individuals to purchase health insurance.

"Protecting the individual freedom for people to make their own healthcare decisions is a priority," said ALEC health task force director Christie Herrera.

She added that "the amount of support from state legislators and policy makers for this legislation has been tremendous."

ALEC’s Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act has now been introduced or proposed in 42 states.

Meanwhile, Mississippi Representatives Alex Monsour and Steven Palazzo received preliminary approval to place their Healthcare Freedom Act on the 2011 or 2012 ballot.

In a newly released video, Bertha Lewis, chief executive officer for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), is reportedly captured praising socialism and degrading the Tea Party movement, comparing the recent conservative initiative to the eras of segregation and McCarthyism.

The two-minute video, which appeared on the Verum Serum blog on Wednesday, focused on Lewis’ speech at the March 25 winter conference of the Young Democratic Socialists, where she encouraged the group of liberals to stand up for their beliefs, while warning them of the possibility of a turbulent future.

"Any group that says, ‘I’m young, I’m Democratic, and I’m a socialist,’ is all right with me," she told the audience. "You know that’s no light thing to do—to actually say, I’m a socialist—because you guys know right now we are living in a time which is going to dwarf the McCarthy era…the internment during World War II…and the era of Jim Crow."

Lewis went on to heavily criticize the Tea Party movement, calling the grassroots campaign a simple exercise of veiled bigotry.

"This is not rhetoric or hyperbole—this is real," Lewis said. "This rise of this Tea Party so-called movement—bowel movement in my estimation—and this blatant uncovering and ripping off the mask of racism."

The Obama administration’s newly passed healthcare reform bill received more bad publicity last week, as officials with the nonpartisan Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released an assessment indicating that the legislation will actually increase spending over the next decade.

In the report, Rick Foster, CMS’ chief actuary, estimated that projected healthcare spending would increase by 1 percent over the next 10 years to $311 billion. Last month, the Congressional Budget Office reported that the new law would decrease spending to an estimated $222 billion, Fox News reports.

The report also indicated that by delaying the implementation of most of the spending provisions until 2014, the administration is hiding the true cost of the legislation, according to The Hill.

"Because of these transition effects and the fact that most of the coverage provisions would be in effect for only six of the 10 years of the budget period, the cost estimates shown in this memorandum do not represent a full 10-year cost for the new legislation," wrote Foster in the 38-page report.

He concluded that the proposed Medicare cuts may be "unrealistic," as they could force about 15 percent of healthcare providers into the red, "possibly jeopardizing access" to medical care for senior citizens.

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s team of lawyers filed papers with a Federal judge April 22, asking the court to issue a subpoena for President Obama to testify as a witness in the disgraced politician’s upcoming corruption trial.

According to the Associated Press (AP), the motion indicates that the president has direct knowledge concerning the government’s accusation that Blagojevich attempted to sell the senatorial seat left vacant following Obama’s presidential election victory.

While no direct accusations were brought against the president, the court documents claim that the comments made by Obama at a news conference conflict with statements made by a candidate for the seat and a labor union president.

"There are two conflicting stories and the defense has the right to admit evidence that contradicts the government’s claims," said the motion, which was obtained by news sources after blacked out portions of the documents were mistakenly revealed online for several hours.

Before the "computer glitch" could be fixed, the public was able to view sealed testimony by several witnesses who reportedly said that a labor union representative spoke with Obama on Nov. 3, 2008, and that the then-Illinois senator expressed his hope that Senate Candidate B would be picked by Blagojevich as his replacement. Valerie Jarrett, a longtime friend of Obama’s and a current White House adviser, is known to be Senate Candidate B, according to Fox News.

Blagojevich’s trial is expected to begin on June 3. It is still unclear whether Obama will be forced to testify.

While praised by many immigration reform proponents, the law passed in Arizona that seeks to limit illegal immigration by making it a crime to be in the state without documentation has stirred controversy among many ethnic organizations.

Last week, the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce criticized the law, saying it will result in the racial profiling of Latinos. It has now been joined by The Hispanic National Bar Association, whose representatives claim that the legislation raises "grave constitutional issues."

In addition to racial profiling, the alleged constitutional violations include freedom from unreasonable seizures and lack of due process guarantees, according to the association.

HNBA National President Roman D. Hernandez said that "if enacted, this law will create an impediment to effective police enforcement of major crimes."

He cited local law enforcement officials as saying that "Hispanics in general and undocumented persons in particular will be less willing to cooperate in providing information to police."

The Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhood Act was passed earlier this month and it makes it a state misdemeanor to fail to comply with Federal law requiring that foreign nationals register and carry their documents with them.

Moreover, it directs police officers to inquire as to immigration status on a "reasonable suspicion" that an individual is undocumented.

While the nation seems to be divided in its support for the recently passed healthcare reform bill, the majority of Americans say they do not understand the specifics of the law and don’t have enough information to recognize how they will personally be affected by the new programs, insurance regulations and tax credits, a new survey has found.

According to the recently released Kaiser Health Tracking Poll, a total of 31 percent of Americans expect the bill to improve their current situation, while 33 percent believe they will be worse off under the new law. Meanwhile, nearly 56 percent of those surveyed said they are confused about its specifics, including a high percentage of those who support it.

"People are struggling to understand how the law will affect them and their families and to separate fact from political spin," said Kaiser president and CEO Drew Altman.

While most registered Republicans and Democrats who were surveyed favored their party’s view of the legislation, the majority of independents disapproved of the law. Overall, the most stringently opposed aspect of the bill is the federal mandate that Americans are required to purchase health insurance.

For years dieticians and nutritionists around the world have recommended the Mediterranean diet to individuals who are at a high risk of developing cardiovascular disease and type-2 diabetes without having a full understanding of the mechanism responsible for its apparent health benefits.

However, a new study recently published in the journal BMC may have uncovered the genetic basis for the cardiovascular improvements linked to the diet, which includes high intake of vegetables, fish, legumes and monounsaturated fatty acids such as olive oil.

For the study, lead author Francisco Perez-Jimenez and his colleagues from the University of Cordoba, Spain, analyzed the effects that variations of the Mediterranean diet had on different groups of participants.

At the time of follow-up they found that the phenol compounds contained in extra-virgin olive oils had a dynamic effect on the genes of 20 participants suffering from metabolic syndrome, a common condition often associated with an increased risk of heart disease and diabetes.

"These findings strengthen the relationship between inflammation, obesity and diet and provide evidence at the most basic level of healthy effects derived from virgin olive oil consumption in humans," said Perez-Jimenez. "It will be interesting to evaluate whether particular phenolic compounds carry these effects."

Former New York Governor George Pataki was in Boston on April 18 to launch a petition that proposes to repeal the Obama administration’s healthcare overhaul.

He was leading a rally staged by Revere America, an organization working to advance public policies rooted in freedom and free markets. The petition-signing event kicked off its national campaign to gather the signatures of one million Americans who want to repeal and replace "ObamaCare."

The event coincided with the 235th anniversary of Paul Revere’s famous ride for freedom.

"Just as 235 years ago our freedoms were in danger, they are now as well," the former governor said at the rally, quoted by NECN.com, a news website.

"We can’t wait until 2012 to take back this country. We have to do it in 2010, and every single day this year counts," he added.

The next day, Pataki was continuing his campaign for signatures in Iowa, where he explained why he decided to return to the national stage.

"I was happy as a private citizen," he said, quoted by Radio Iowa, "but when I see what is happening in Washington over the course of the last year and a half, like most Americans I believe we are seeing a government that is dramatically headed in the wrong direction."

Pataki is chairman of Revere America and served as the 53rd Governor of New York from 1995 to 2006.

Just a day after criticizing members of the GOP for participating in a closed-door meeting with Wall Street executives, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is in hot water following a report on Tuesday which indicated that he attended a fundraiser earlier this year hosted by the president of Goldman Sachs.

When asked to confirm or deny his attendance at the event, Reid evaded the question and instead read a prepared statement regarding his involvement in financial regulatory reform, MSNBC.com reports.

"I’m leading the effort to rein in Wall Street," said Reid. "I’m going to make sure that in this legislation I do everything within my ability to make sure that banks aren’t too big to fail."

However, later that day Reid’s spokesman Jim Manley confirmed that the Nevada senator attended the fundraiser, stating that the $37,000 that was raised was done so in accordance with campaign rules.

In response to the news, National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman Brian Walsh told NBC that "one can only presume that Senator Reid will be returning these donations immediately."

Manley indicated on Wednesday the congressman plans on keeping the donations.