User:Atc424/sandbox

Because you engaged with a hotly debated and controversial topic, several outside readers have critiqued your work.  Going forward, just be careful to avoid marking things as independently verified fact when they might be beliefs or original research.

More organized version of my information:

To be added into the Introduction: (I added the bolded part)

Research into the effectiveness of traditional Chinese herbal therapy is of poor quality and often tainted by bias. For most conditions, there is not enough solid evidence to know whether or not TCM methods work for the conditions they are used for. There are concerns over a number of potentially toxic Chinese herbs.

Chinese herbology in America (new section):

Herbal medicine has become more and more popular within the United States. People unsatisfied with western medicine turn to Chinese herbal medicine. "The lack of government regulations and the increasing advertisements by the manufactures have created an impression to the common public that the natural herbal remedies are inherently safer and cheaper than conventional medicine." Herbs in the United States are prepared most commonly as capsules, teas, and ointments.

Chinese herbal treatment provides an alternative to western medicine, which can be toxic as it involves injecting drugs into the body whereas Chinese herbal treatment do not. "Chinese herbal medicines improve and augment the effectiveness of western medications in the treatment of liver cirrhosis, arthritis, and cancer, thereby decreasing the dosage and adverse side effects of western chemotherapies."

However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations for herbal medicine are less strict then they are for prescription drugs. Herbal medicine in TCM are sometimes marketed as dietary supplements in the United States and manufacturers of herbal medicine don't have to prove to the FDA that the claim is valid. Since the regulations for Chinese herbs are so loose, therapeutic effects of Chinese herbs have been exaggerated or distorted resulting in herbs being misused.

Add to Toxicity section:

Most Chinese herbs are safe but some have shown to not be. tReports have shown products being contaminated with drugs, toxins, or false reporting of ingredients. Some herbs used in TCM may also react with drugs, have side effects, or be dangerous to people with certain medical conditions. "For example, the Chinese herb ephedra (ma huang) has been linked to serious health complications, including heart attack and stroke."

"In fact, a total of 109 varieties of Chinese medicine injections have been approved by the State Food and Drug Administration of China, all of which have the potential to induce adverse drug reactions that include systemic anaphylaxis, anaphylactic shock, acute intravascular hemolysis, hepatorenal damage, skin lesions, cardiac damage, respiratory distress, and GI disorders. Furthermore, the tendency for consumers to use multiple unprepared herbs in conjunction with one another and in addition to prescription medications is problematic as most consumers and, in fact, most physicians and pharmacists are unaware of their potential drug interactions. These single unprepared products, if taken without professional monitoring, can pose potential risks to patients and those products can cause interdrug reactions with the prescribed medications the patients are taking."

How Chinese herbal medicine is combined:

In the United States, herbs are sold usually as a capsule. However, the traditional process of preparing is a long and tedious one. Herbs are often combined under specific preparation and treatment of herbs. Many chemical reactions are involved but how Chinese herbal medicine is combined depends on the disease to be treated. Chemical reactions, heat, cooked, dried, are all methods of herbal extraction.

Certain combination of herbs were also avoided as they may counteract with each other and may either decrease effectiveness or cause unwanted side effects. "There are also certain foods to be avoided by patients taking certain medical substances and, in general, patients taking herbs should avoid cold, greasy, or other hard to digest foods."

More information about specific herbs:

1. http://www.itmonline.org/arts/herbintro.htm (MLA citation: Dorr, Subhuti Dharmananda / Christopher. “FIFTEEN COMMONLY-USED CHINESE HERBS.” An Introduction to Chinese Herbs, www.itmonline.org/arts/herbintro.htm.)
   1. Astragalus (huangqi): used for immune deficiency, allergies, autoimmunity, etc., benefits digestive functions and skin disorders
      1. used in the treatment for AIDS and hepatitis, senility, heart diseases
      2. cancer patients can take this for leukopenia that occur with chemotherapy
   2. Atractylodes (baizhu): treatment of digestive disorders and problems of moisture accumulation (reduces diarrhea, gas, bloating, bladder digestion, etc.
   3. Bupleurum (chaihu): more commonly used in Japanese practice of Oriental medicine
      1. for liver diseases, skin ailments, arthritis, menopausal syndrome, mental disorders, etc.
      2. reduce inflammation and regulate hormone levels
   4. Cinnamon (guizhi and rougi): warm the body, excite circulation, and balance the energy of the upper and lower body
      1. reduce allergies
   5. Coptis (huanglian): inhibits infections and calm nervous agitation
      1. treatment for skin diseases, intestinal infections, hypertension, and insomnia
   6. Ginger (jiang): benefit digestion, neutralize poisons in foods, ventilate lungs, warm the circulation to the limbs, helps morning sickness and food contamination
   7. Ginseng (renshen): disease-preventive and a life preserver, is believed to "calms the spirit and helps one gain wisdom", normalizing blood pressure
   8. Hoelen (fuling): alleviates irritation of the gastro-intestinal system, helps transport moisture out of the digestive system into the blood stream and form the various body tissues to the bladder
   9. Licorice (gancao): neutralize toxins, relieve inflammation, and enhance digestion
      1. used by Chinese doctors for hepatitis, sore throat, muscle spasms and certain heart diseases
      2. also believed to enhance the effectiveness of herb formulas and is used to moderate flavor of herb teas
   10. Ma-huang: stimulates perspiration, open breathing passages, and invigorate the central nervous system energy
       1. used in modern drugs for asthma and sinus congestion
       2. has anti-inflammatory actions useful in treating some cases of arthralgia and myalgia

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(November 16, 2017) MORE INFORMATION TO BE ADDED INTO MY ARTICLE:

-add more information about specific herbs

1. http://www.itmonline.org/arts/herbintro.htm
   1. Astragalus (huangqi): used for immune deficiency, allergies, autoimmunity, etc., benefits digestive functions and skin disorders
      1. used in the treatment for AIDS and hepatitis, senility, heart diseases
      2. cancer patients can take this for leukopenia that occur with chemotherapy
   2. Atractylodes (baizhu): treatment of digestive disorders and problems of moisture accumulation (reduces diarrhea, gas, bloating, bladder digestion, etc.
   3. Bupleurum (chaihu): more commonly used in Japanese practice of Oriental medicine
      1. for liver diseases, skin ailments, arthritis, menopausal syndrome, mental disorders, etc.
      2. reduce inflammation and regulate hormone levels
   4. Cinnamon (guizhi and rougi): warm the body, excite circulation, and balance the energy of the upper and lower body
      1. reduce allergies
   5. Coptis (huanglian): inhibits infections and calm nervous agitation
      1. treatment for skin diseases, intestinal infections, hypertension, and insomnia
   6. Ginger (jiang): benefit digestion, neutralize poisons in foods, ventilate lungs, warm the circulation to the limbs, helps morning sickness and food contamination
   7. Ginseng (renshen): disease-preventive and a life preserver, is believed to "calms the spirit and helps one gain wisdom", normalizing blood pressure
   8. Hoelen (fuling): alleviates irritation of the gastro-intestinal system, helps transport moisture out of the digestive system into the blood stream and form the various body tissues to the bladder
   9. Licorice (gancao): neutralize toxins, relieve inflammation, and enhance digestion
      1. used by Chinese doctors for hepatitis, sore throat, muscle spasms and certain heart diseases
      2. also believed to enhance the effectiveness of herb formulas and is used to moderate flavor of herb teas
   10. Ma-huang: stimulates perspiration, open breathing passages, and invigorate the central nervous system energy
       1. used in modern drugs for asthma and sinus congestion
       2. has anti-inflammatory actions useful in treating some cases of arthralgia and myalgia

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Peer Review from Zikun Yu

Overall, I think your article is very neutral and informative. The good use of resources supports the claims in the article. However, I think you should avoid using too many quotations. Instead I think you should use the resources to articulate your claims. More information about specific herbs can be added too.

Peer Review from Jared Weiss

Jared Weiss's edit: Overall, I found what you added to be very informative in terms of factual information and what people generally feel about these Chinese herbs. You did a good job of utilizing quality sources and choosing specific instances when the herbs proved ineffective such as in the case of ephedra. Things that can be improved I think are you should include specific herbs that are considered Chinese herbs and describe what they do and if they are commonly used and have found to be useful or not. Lastly, a brief history of where these herbs came from would be helpful to the reader to knowing why they are here in the first place.

I will be peer editing the article: Mealworms

"

Draft:[edit]

Mealworms have historically been consumed in many Asian countries, particularly in Southeast Asia. They are commonly found in food markets and sold as street food alongside other edible insects. (ADDED)

Nutrient Composition (ADDED)[edit]

Mealworm larva contain significant nutrient content, a feature that has made them viable as food and feed. For every 100 grams of raw mealworm larva, 206 calories and anywhere from 14 to 25 grams of protein are contained. Mealworm larva contain levels of potassium, copper, sodium, selenium, iron and zinc that rival that of beef. Mealworms contain essential linoleic acids as well. They also have greater vitamin content by weight compared to beef, B12 not included.

Food security implications:[edit]

Mealworms, as well as other insects have tremendous food security potential. Insects can be raised in much less space than conventional endothermic food sources such as poultry, beef and swine, and emissions from raising mealworms are negligible in comparison to conventional food stocks. The low pollution factor as well as small space requirements, coupled with low startup costs for farming mealworms makes them a viable source of protein and nutrients for individuals in many parts of the world that may not have access to more expensive and land-intensive food sources."

-Keeps information objective

-There's not a lot to work with

-Unclear where the information came from (has sources but they aren't linked to the corresponding information)

-Add more information

Week 8: Peer Edit

I will be peer editing Jared's article:

"Drafting Article: Intermittent Fasting

How people use intermittent fasting to lead healthier lives

Intermittent fasting has been used for a long time although originally it was just a way of life. It was not seen as new knowledge that could be for benefits in the fitness industry. Intermittent fasting helps with fat loss and boosts human growth hormone.  There are other types of fasting as mentioned previously, however intermittent fasting is a strategic fast for health and fitness cleansing purposes as opposed to religious purposes for holidays such as Yom Kippur or Ramadan. Fasting can stave off inflammation of the body as well. while inflammation is the body's natural response to sickness and infection, if it stays in our body for too long, it can cause adverse health consequences. "Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) plays an important role in several cellular processes involved in inflammation, including oxidative metabolism, enzyme release and stimulation of neutrophil migration and aggregation." A healthy diet can stave off this inflammation, however intermittent fasting in particular can decrease levels of LTB4. Intermittent fasting might be difficult for most people to do and as such should not be done every day and especially not on days when physical activity is incredibly high in the early hours. On a day when one is not very active, by intermittent fasting, one can jumpstart cell regeneration, fat burning, and give their digestive systems a break so that they can focus on other processes in maintaining homeostasis.

Living longer by going back to primitive ways of eating

"Studies have shown that reducing typical calorie consumption, usually by 30 to 40 percent, extends life span by a third or more in many animals, including nematodes, fruit flies and rodents." This is contrary to what some health experts claim in that you should eat 5-7 small meals per day. In the case of intermittent fasting, you are waiting till the afternoon (16-20 hours of fasting and 4-8 hours of a feeding window) to start caloric consumption for the day. Therefore, you would not be eating 5 more times throughout the day, but would rather be having 2-3 larger meals in the rest of the day. This concept of intermittent fasting is also helpful in reducing disease risk. What makes intermittent fasting pleasurable to some is that you can afford to have larger meals or feast in order to break the fast as opposed to limiting calories in countless small meals throughout the day. This way of eating has also been found to lower risk of brain diseases such as strokes or Altzheimers due to the lack of inflammation occurring in the body. It has also been said that having the three main meals a day is a "modern invention" along with several snacks throughout the day. This is not how humans were programmed to eat from an evolutionary standpoint. In early civilization, our ancestors would have to wait for the animal to be killed and they would also be constantly moving around to avoid danger, so there was not always time to eat nor was there always food available. Our genes have not had the chance to be modified to support modern society and therefore the primitive way to eat is seen as more "natural." One common concern for trying this out could be the possibility of binge eating, or eating so few calories during one time might cause them to overeat during their next time eating. However, in a study done on mice this was found to not be the case. "She was surprised to find that, like mice, when people are given only 25 percent of their caloric needs on a fasting day, they do not eat 175 percent the following day. They actually only eat slightly more—115 percent or so. That means by the end of the week, they’ve eaten a lot less than they typically would, and they only felt deprived for 3.5 days." This would lead to weight loss or at least weight maintenance depending on where your current health standing is when you do intermittent fast. Also, the studies showed that people were able to stick to this plan. Even when people decided to "cheat" a few times a week, these people would still end up losing more weight than those that tried other diets. This is because the overall calorie intake still ended up being less as well as the other health benefits that would occur. Intermittent fasting also leads to increased productivity for all aspects of work and life. This is due to the fact that when your body is in "starvation mode" it is not able to become distracted by petty issues. It focuses on one thing, which is maintaining homeostasis and in order to do so must concentrate intensely at the task at hand. Hormone regulation is also involved such as insulin not being released which controls blood sugar, and once you do break the fast the insulin response is not as large."

-his article is informative

-stays objective and adds history to the topic of "intermittent fasting"

-can try to break up the paragraph into two different sections so it's easier to follow the information flow

-add real life examples of people who have benefited off intermittent fasting

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Week 7: Draft

-my edits are bolded and underlined

Introduction:

Chinese herbology (simplified Chinese: 中药学; traditional Chinese: 中藥學; pinyin: zhōngyào xué) is the theory of traditional Chinese herbal therapy, which accounts for the majority of treatments in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). A Nature editorial described TCM as "fraught with pseudoscience", and said that the most obvious reason why it has not delivered many cures is that the majority of its treatments have no logical mechanism of action.

The term herbology is misleading in the sense that, while plant elements are by far the most commonly used substances, animal, human, and mineral products are also utilized. In the Neijing they are referred to as 毒藥 [duyao] which means toxin, poison, or medicine. Unschuld points out that this is similar etymology to the Greek pharmakon and so he uses the term "pharmaceutic". Thus, the term "medicinal" (instead of herb) is usually preferred as a translation for 药 (pinyin: yào).

Research into the effectiveness of traditional Chinese herbal therapy is of poor quality and often tainted by bias. For most conditions, there is not enough solid evidence to know whether or not TCM methods work for the conditions they are used for. There are concerns over a number of potentially toxic Chinese herbs.

Chinese herbology in America (new section):

Herbal medicine has become more and more popular within the United States. People unsatisfied with western medicine turn to Chinese herbal medicine. "The lack of government regulations and the increasing advertisements by the manufactures have created an impression to the common public that the natural herbal remedies are inherently safer and cheaper than conventional medicine." Herbs in the United States are prepared most commonly as capsules, teas, and ointments.

Chinese herbal treatment provides an alternative to western medicine, which can be toxic as it involves injecting drugs into the body whereas Chinese herbal treatment do not. "Chinese herbal medicines improve and augment the effectiveness of western medications in the treatment of liver cirrhosis, arthritis, and cancer, thereby decreasing the dosage and adverse side effects of western chemotherapies."

However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations for herbal medicine are less strict then they are for prescription drugs. Herbal medicine in TCM are sometimes marketed as dietary supplements in the United States and manufacturers of herbal medicine don't have to prove to the FDA that the claim is valid. Since the regulations for Chinese herbs are so loose, therapeutic effects of Chinese herbs have been exaggerated or distorted resulting in herbs being misused.

Add to Toxicity section:

Most Chinese herbs are safe but some have shown to not be. tReports have shown products being contaminated with drugs, toxins, or false reporting of ingredients. Some herbs used in TCM may also react with drugs, have side effects, or be dangerous to people with certain medical conditions. "For example, the Chinese herb ephedra (ma huang) has been linked to serious health complications, including heart attack and stroke."

"In fact, a total of 109 varieties of Chinese medicine injections have been approved by the State Food and Drug Administration of China, all of which have the potential to induce adverse drug reactions that include systemic anaphylaxis, anaphylactic shock, acute intravascular hemolysis, hepatorenal damage, skin lesions, cardiac damage, respiratory distress, and GI disorders. Furthermore, the tendency for consumers to use multiple unprepared herbs in conjunction with one another and in addition to prescription medications is problematic as most consumers and, in fact, most physicians and pharmacists are unaware of their potential drug interactions. These single unprepared products, if taken without professional monitoring, can pose potential risks to patients and those products can cause interdrug reactions with the prescribed medications the patients are taking."

How Chinese herbal medicine is combined:

In the United States, herbs are sold usually as a capsule. However, the traditional process of preparing is a long and tedious one. Herbs are often combined under specific preparation and treatment of herbs. Many chemical reactions are involved but how Chinese herbal medicine is combined depends on the disease to be treated. Chemical reactions, heat, cooked, dried, are all methods of herbal extraction.

Certain combination of herbs were also avoided as they may counteract with each other and may either decrease effectiveness or cause unwanted side effects. "There are also certain foods to be avoided by patients taking certain medical substances and, in general, patients taking herbs should avoid cold, greasy, or other hard to digest foods."

-add more information on specific herbs?

-more information on history?

-talk about acupuncture?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Week 6: Finalize topic/Find your sources

Final topic: Chinese Herbology (how to narrow?)

Goals

1. Go back to other sections and see what other information I can add to make the article even more informative
2. Try to add sources to the parts that have been flagged as not reliable
3. Write about Chinese herbology in western culture (accepted/not accepted in medicine/cuisine/etc.)
4. Chinese herbology v.s American medicine
5. Add more about the history of how Chinese medicine and how it came to be

Sources

1. https://sallychang.com/herbs-history/ (detailed history/usages)
2. https://www.sacredlotus.com/go/foundations-chinese-medicine/get/origins-history-chinese-medicine (origins)
3. https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2014/251891/ (Chinese herbs in american medicine)
4. http://smallfarms.cornell.edu/2011/01/09/traditional-chinese-medicine-in-north-america-opportunities-for-small-farms/ (Chinese herbs is actually pretty big in America? They are expanding farms which means an increase in jobs and American farms are trying to keep the herbs authentic=truly respects the practice)
5. http://www.highfallsgardens.net/newsletters/Can%20Chinese%20Herbs%20Be%20Produced%20in%20North%20America.pdf (can Chinese herbs be well grown in America, advantages vs disadvantages, also explores economical aspects and future prospects...)
6. chinahighlights (focuses on Chinese herbs and medicine)
7. http://legacy.jyi.org/volumes/volume6/issue5/features/feng.html (how Chinese medicine grew in America--chinatowns)
8. https://nccih.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/chinesemed.htm (use this to showcase side effects/risks (if any), "if you are thinking about using TCM...")

I posted in the talk page as well.

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Week 5: October 15, 2017 (3-5 potential articles)

1.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_herbology

This Wikipedia article on Chinese herbs explains more on what it is, its functions, how it’s named, etc. I want to use some knowledge in this article to write more about the history of how Chinese medicine came to be and its history.

2.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumpling

This article talks about all types of dumplings from different countries, but I want to focus on Chinese dumplings, how it came to be, the significance within the culture and the different varieties of the Chinese dumpling.

3.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture_in_China

In class, we are focusing on the history of food in America and that got me curious about the history of food in China. I want to explore the timeline of how Chinese agriculture came to be and how the changes affect the country today.

4.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_food

This Wikipedia article actually got me interested in baby food and its cultural significance. I did not realize baby food showed class or that manufactured baby formulas are preferred. I want to dig deeper into the product and also look into baby food in Chinese culture.

After considerate, the topic on Chinese herbology and agriculture in China are the two topics I'm more interested in further exploring.

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Week 4: I added a few sentences to this article: Baby food

Article Evaluation

I tried to go back and re-edit the sentences I added but I was not sure how but I copy pasted the sentences (the ones in bold) I added, here.

1. "At the beginning of the 20th century in America, most babies began eating baby food around the age of seven months. During and shortly after World War II, the age at which solid food was first introduced dropped to just six weeks. This age has since increased to four to six months.By the mid-20th century, manufactured baby food was readily used and supplemented previous infant feeding practices. Author of Inventing Baby Food, Amy Bentley argues that the excessive additives of sugar, salt, and MSG in overused manufactured baby food conditioned infants to prefer processed foods later in life. Also, it is believed that exposing infants to solid foods at an earlier age well help them get used to foods later on in life. This subsequent misuse of salt and sugar was also feared to effect issues of weight and nutrition based diseases."
2. "In the Western world until the mid-1900s, baby food was generally made at home. The industrial revolution saw the beginning of the baby food market which promoted commercial baby foods as convenience items. In developed countries, babies are now often started with commercially produced iron-fortified infant cereals, and then move on to mashed fruits and vegetables. Commercial baby foods are widely available in dry, ready-to-feed and frozen forms, often in small batches (e.g. small jars) for convenience of preparation. On the contrary, in developing countries, breastfeeding is more widely accepted and socially tolerated in public, thus creating a societal contrast. Amy Bentley, author of Inventing Baby Food, talks about how infant feeding reflects one's "position in the postwar era of the American Century" because in developed countries, families are able to purchase processed baby foods to feed their children, whereas in developing country, natural breastfeeding is more popular."

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Week 3: The article I chose to evaluate: Hunter-gatherer

The article broke down the different sections clearly, which made it easier to follow the article, as it is relatively long.

This article is strictly neutral, stating facts and taking no sides. There is a lot of factual information regarding the topic within the article but something I did notice is that many of the sources cited are other wikipedia pages or ".com" websites.

The article is relevant as the topic is one of the many we covered in class.

In the talk pages, people say that the article is a bit wordy and "chatty" or bad, which I can kind of understand why. The article includes lots of facts but like I mentioned, the sources are not 100% reliable and unnecessarily wordy.

Also, the article is more story-telling and narrative whereas in class, the information was talked about and backed up with evidence and open discussion.