- 04 July 2008 |
- Site Map |
- Brijit Blog |
- Brijit for Facebook |
- FAQ
- The Economist
- | Time
- | The New Yorker
- | Fortune
- | ESPN The Magazine
- | Wired
- | Smithsonian
- | A.V. Club
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Tim Jarvis, April 2008
While Prozac provides significant relief to many depression sufferers, 30 percent of all patients are resistant to current drug therapy. Jarvis highlights recent innovations in the treatment of depression, such as electroconvulsive therapy (the most effective non-drug-related treatment) and deep brain stimulation, a radical therapy using brain implants to alter brain wave patterns. Meanwhile, new brain-scanning techniques are providing guidance in drug prescription. And ketamine, an anesthetic, is being hailed as the pill beyond Prozac. Jarvis compiles a great overview, though it will be valuable to a niche audience.
Posted 5:11, 7 April 2008
This abstract was written by
Marc Calderwood
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Edwidge Danticat, April 2008
In this touching piece, Danticat describes her first experience with foot washing as part of an Easter service in her small church. In ancient times, it was considered courteous to offer guests a basin in which to wash their feet, and if a visitor was especially revered, the head of the household might wash his feet for him. Despite her uncertainty and embarrassment about offering her feet to a virtual stranger to be washed in an intimate ceremony (and then washing the feet of this same stranger), Danticat discovers that the humbling exchange created not only a symbolic link through touch, but a very real one.
Posted 11:17, 28 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Karen Cosgrave
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Suze Orman, April 2008
In this expert advice column, Orman recommends socially responsible investing options for the altruistic investor and advises looking closely at the fund's performance and expense ratio, or the "annual charge all investors pay to cover fund management costs." Orman also cautiously approves of a home equity loan for a couple helping their children through college. The toughest advice is for the indebted single mother in her 40s whose mortgage rate will adjust soon: Orman counsels selling her house now, establishing an emergency fund, and setting up a Roth IRA.
Posted 11:23, 26 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Laura Dixon
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Cathleen Medwick, April 2008
Medwick crafts a stirring look at the differences between how men and women handle pain. Studies led by Dr. Jeffrey Mogil at McGill University show that the generalization that men handle pain better than women has a genetic basis: Women are biologically more sensitive, have a lower pain tolerance and respond to pain killers differently. Despite the findings, the medical field has a long way to go when it comes to pain -- and chronic pain might take on a diagnosis of it's own, rather than simply being a symptom. Medwick ends on an uncertain but hopeful note that progress is being made.
Posted 10:35, 26 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Elizabeth Niemiec
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Emily Bazelon, April 2008
Bazelon takes an in-depth look at the lives of families with children conceived with the same sperm donors, and how they found each other using the online Donor Sibling Registry. While the families develop lifelong bonds, the process reveals a lot about the secrecy of anonymous donors and their medical histories -- specifically, the genetic risks that can be passed onto their children (the common thread in this piece being autism). Bazelon does an exquisite job combining personal narratives with informative scientific and legal background to convey the intensity of the entire sperm donation process.
Posted 9:39, 26 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Elizabeth Niemiec
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Michele Owens, April 2008
Owens reveals that some citizens of rust-belt Detroit are planting huge gardens and raising farm animals. One school for teenage mothers, the Catherine Ferguson Academy, turned their running track into a field for horses and space for growing vegetables. Fresh produce is often scarce and expensive in inner cities, but vacant lots are plentiful and cheap, enabling neighborhood groups to buy land and cultivate their own food. Young entrepreneurs are selling produce at local farmers' markets, and collaboration is causing a bumper crop of community spirit. Owens' piece, with its green message, is timely and worth checking out.
Posted 9:04, 26 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Laura Dixon
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
David L. Katz, April 2008
Katz answers four questions with the thoroughness, expertise, and candor we'd all like from our physicians. He reassures a gastric bypass recipient that it is common to substitute other obsessive behaviors for overeating and recommends counseling and visiting her doctor. A person with type 1 (juvenile) diabetes worries about also developing type 2; Katz advises consulting with her doctor about exercise and soluble fiber. He also recommends that people with thyroid symptoms should get a blood test instead of avoiding all offending foods. But advice such as linking obesity to "eating too much and doing too little" keeps the article from being eminently useful.
Posted 8:59, 26 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Laura Dixon
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Sara Reistad-Long, April 2008
Reistad-Long's informative article sheds light on a common but often unexpected side effect of prescription drugs: weight gain. Some migraine medications stimulate hunger, and chemotherapy drugs can tamp down metabolism. Reistad-Long describes the mechanisms of eight types of medications most likely to cause the scale to go the wrong way and suggests some alternatives. A Harvard physician provides a good rule of thumb: A gain of five pounds should be the "red flag" that triggers a call to a doctor. He also advises that when no drug substitutions are possible, "eating 100 to 200 fewer calories" should keep weight in check.
Posted 4:30, 25 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Laura Dixon
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Jim Shepard, April 2008
Shepard's heartfelt essay shares tales of coexisting with animals and the responsibilities that are part of the package. He has protected his human family from a black bear, but feels guilty for not always protecting his dogs as carefully. He accidentally spooked his first dog into the path of a car when he was a young boy, and years later, in a similar moment of frustration, he put his elderly dog out alone and she was killed. The piece ends on a happier note, acknowledging that dogs exemplify the joy in life and always give us another chance.
Posted 3:06, 25 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Laura Dixon
and edited by Brijit.
in O, The Oprah Magazine
by
Suzan Colon, April 2008
Colon takes on one challenge of being a new wife -- commanding a new kitchen. With an arsenal of mediocre cooking skills, she recounts her journey from dumpy, overcooked tuna steaks to banana bread that tastes like apple cinnamon to a decent pesto sauce and finally a smash-hit sausage rigatoni and asparagus dish (with a recipe from Giada de Laurentis). This quaint, thoughtful narrative gives a fresh look at a woman's desire to cook well for her husband and proves not only that the best way to a man's heart is through his stomach, but that the history and love behind familial cooking can be life-defining.
Posted 2:33, 25 March 2008
This abstract was written by
Elizabeth Niemiec
and edited by Brijit.