Why Hair Turns Gray Is No Longer A Gray Area: Our Hair Bleaches Itself As We Grow Older

 

ScienceDaily (2009-02-24) -- Wash away your gray? Maybe. Scientists have now solved a mystery that has perplexed humans throughout the ages: why we turn gray. These researchers show that going gray is caused by a massive build up of hydrogen peroxide due to wear and tear of our hair follicles. The peroxide winds up blocking the normal synthesis of melanin, our hair's natural pigment.

check the sciendaily for the complete article

ever wondered why?

ever wondered what this label is for?and why is it present at the back of a diet coke? if no, let me explain it to u.

these products i.e, diet coke & several others contains aspartame which is an artificial sweetener.It is 180 times as sweet as sugar in typical concentrations, without the high energy value of sugar. While aspartame, like other peptides, has a caloric value of 4 kilocalories (17 kilojoules) per gram, the quantity of aspartame needed to produce a sweet taste is so small that its caloric contribution is negligible, which makes it a popular sweetener for those trying to avoid calories from sugar.

Aspartame is composed of two amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine.

so now we should know a bit of phenylketonuria:

• Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a rare, inherited metabolic disease that results in mental retardation and other neurological problems when treatment is not started within the first few weeks of life.
• cause-The disease arises from the absence of a single enzyme (phenylalanine hydroxylase). This enzyme normally converts the essential amino acid, phenylalanine, to another amino acid, tyrosine. Failure of the conversion to take place results in a buildup of phenylalanine. Through a mechanism that is not well understood, the excess phenylalanine is toxic to the central nervous system and causes the severe problems normally associated with PKU.
• The diet for the most severe form of phenylketonuria eliminates all of the very high protein foods since all protein contains phenylalanine. This means that all concentrated sources of protein must be eliminated from the diet in order to limit the amount of phenylalanine. Except in rare circumstances, the diet does not allow consumption of meat, fish, poultry, milk, eggs, cheese, ice cream, legumes, nuts, or many products containing regular flour. A synthetic formula is used as a nutritional substitute for the eliminated foods.
  

now coming back to aspartame-this sugar substitute, sold commercially as Equal and NutraSweet, was hailed as the savior for dieters who for decades had put up with saccharine's unpleasant after taste. but this,as u now know contains phenylalanine,so people with phenylketonuria when they consume products with aspartame will have increased blood levels of phenylalanine {since they cannot metabolise it} .Toxic levels of this substance in the blood can result in mental retardation.

Since individuals with PKU must consider aspartame as an additional source of phenylalanine, aspartame-containing foods must state “Phenylketonurics: Contains Phenylalanine”

Ever wondered why?

 

have u ever wondered what this red line on the left side of certain medications is?

It indicates that the given drug is a schedule H drug,that means it has to be given only with the prescription of a qualified doctor.these medications also have a box indicating that it is a schedule H drug & it has to be sold only on a prescription.

EVER WONDERED WHY?

Ever wondered why this label "free from argemone oil" is printed on back of cooking oil packets.

If the answer is a no,then i will explain u the reason behind it.

In some countries where mustard oil is used for cooking purposes,When it is adulterated deliberately (as in most cases) or accidental contamination with argemone oil, proteinuria (specifically loss of albumin) occurs, with a resultant edema as would occur in nephrotic syndrome.-known as epidemic dropsy.

Why does it occur accidently?
Its due to similarity b/w seeds of the two plantsCan we differentiate them:
Yes-Argemone seeds have rough surface and mustard seeds on pressing is yellow inside while argemone seed is white.

Mechanism:
The main toxic component in argemone oil is a glycoside, sanguinarine.Sanguinarine is a benzophenanthrine alkaloid and is being studied as a potentially antineoplastic agent (induction of cell death pathways). It is a cumulative toxin. Sanguinarine can be absorbed through the skin and contaminated oil used for massage can lead to sporadic cases.
IT has been suggested that the impairment of hepatic phase I and phase II enzymes by argemone oil may decrease the rate of metabolism of the alkaloid, which in turn may be responsible for the slow elimination of the compound/metabolite through urine and faeces . The retention of sanguinarine in the GI tract, liver, lung, kidney, heart, and serum even after 96 hrs of exposure indicates these as the likely target sites of argemone oil toxicity. The inhibition of Na+-K+-ATPase activity of heart by sanguinarine is due to interaction with the cardiac glycoside receptor site of the enzyme,which may be responsible for producing degenerative changes in cardiac muscle fibers in the auricular wall of rats fed argemone oil and could be related to tachycardia and cardiac failure in Epidemic Dropsy patients. The decrease in glycogen levels following argemone oil intoxication could be due to enhanced glycogenolysis leading to the formation of glucose-1-phosphate, which enters the glycoltic pathway resulting in accumulation of pyruvate in the blood of experimental animals and dropsy patients. The enhancement of glycogenolysis can further be supported by the interference of sanguinarine in the uptake of glucose through blocking of sodium pump via Na+-K+-ATPase and thereby inhibiting the active transport of glucose across intestinal barrier. It is well established that increased pyruvate concentration in blood uncouples oxidative phosphorylation, and this may be responsible for thickening of interalveolar septa and disorganized alveolar spaces in lungs of argemone oil-fed rats and the breathlessness as has been observed in human victims.

The other facet of argemone oil toxicity,In vitro studies have shown that the toxicity of argemone oil is due to the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and which in turn may cause enhancement in lipid peroxidation (LPO) in various hepatic subcellular fractions including microsomes and mitochondria of rats. The damage in hepatic microsomal membrane causes loss of cytochrome P-450 and its dependent membrane bound enzymes responsible for xenobiotic metabolism thereby leading in a delay of sanguinarine excretion. The toxicity of sanguinarine has also been shown to be dependent on the reactivity of iminium bond with nucleophilic sites like thiol groups, present at the active sites of the enzymes and thus suggesting the electrophilic nature of the alkaloid. Recent studiese in the blood of dropsy patients has revealed that there is extensive ROS production in the argemone oil intoxication leading to depletion of total antioxidants in the body and especially lipid soluble antioxidants such as vitamin E and A (tocopherol and retinol)are highly depleted in dropsy patients. There is an extensive damage to the anti-oxidant defense system (anti-oxidant enzymes and anti-oxidants) of the blood.(from wiki).


So thats for today,so now know that just by seeing the world around u,we can learn a lot of facts about medicine.Andi will post such articles whenever i get across such things.Just be rational and make ur brain think and u can reach the sky.