The Obscure Increase In Health Problems

Many reports have shown a steady uptick in depression and general health abnormalities worldwide, so much that it has led to it becoming a costly industry. But where is this increase coming from?

I think if we are considering external factors, it can be multiple culprits. Processed foods, preservatives, heavy metals and method of food preparation can be one. All of these can contribute to a reduction of nutrients recieved from the food as well as unnatural interactions with our cells inducing inflammation, oxidation and stress. Normal function would subsequently be compromised. These three factors, inflammation, oxidation and stress have pointed to be paramount contributers to a myriad of health diseases and disorders. Countries with the highest amounts of anti-inflammatory food actually have been correlated, maybe looser than I would like, to having lower such health incidents. Heart disease, cancer, and depression to list three. Maybe another culprit is the type of technology we are bombarded with on a daily basis and of which continues to grow. We now are in the time period of 5th Generation wireless technology (5G), which runs in the microwave range of the electromagnetic frequency spectrum. People want faster download and upload speeds, but this can very well be at the expense of our health. There have been scientific studies showing rats developing tumors when exposed to such high electromagnetic radiation. My third idea of what can be adding to the health epidemic is lack of vitamin D and sunlight. Vitamin D is crucial in synthesizing neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine, which are frequently targetted in people with mood disorders. Lack of these two things would also imply lack of physical activity usually, which wouldn't serve very well. On the backburner, which isn't something I have thought enough about to make any bold claims is the constant attention and negativity we receive from social media and popular culture. 

One interesting tidbit is it has been studied in people with high suicidal ideation and suicide victims that their brains shows significantly low levels of the protein Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, which is commonly abbreviated to "BDNF". This is known to function in creating new brain cells and maintain a healthy lifespan of them. It can obviously be deducted that BDNF can very well be lacking due to cellular damage from earlier problems I've mentioned earlier in this post. There are supplements, drugs and physical activities that can tremendously improve BDNF levels. 

This leads to my last question and note. What can be done to combat this situation? I wonder if aside from finding personal solutions to it, there are industry solutions we can bring to work towards.

Alexander Seid

IS101-2003