145 Fewer Sperm, More Infertility
Critically Speaking
Infertility is on the rise, leading otherwise healthy young couples to seek a form of assisted reproductive technology appropriate for their particular situation. This increase infertility of considerable concern. Is one sex affected more than the other? What are the long-range implications if the trend keeps going? Is it only humans that appear to be affected? And the critical question is why? In today’s episode, Therese Markow and Dr. Shanna Swan, author of the new book Count Down, answer many of these questions, including discussion of the types of chemicals and other factors that may...
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144 Our Failing Education System
Critically Speaking
Dr. Richard P. Phelps is founder of the Nonpartisan Education Group, editor of Nonpartisan Education Review (), a Fulbright Scholar, and fellow of the Psychophysics Laboratory. He has authored, or edited and co-authored Correcting Fallacies about Educational and Psychological Testing (APA); Standardized Testing Primer (Peter Lang); Defending Standardized Testing (Psychology Press); Kill the Messenger (Transaction), and several statistical compendia. Phelps has worked with several test development organizations, including ACT, AIR, ETS, the OECD, Pearson, and Westat. He holds degrees from...
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143 The mental health crisis: dreams and nightmares
Critically Speaking
In this culture where dreams and nightmares are such a part of our everyday language, the question becomes, what is dreaming? We all dream, so what does it mean, and how does it impact other areas of our lives, such as our mental health? In this episode, Therese Markow and Dr. Michael Nadorff discuss these questions, as well as diving deeper into the different cycles of sleep, the changes in our dreams and sleep as we age, different types of nightmare therapies, and the relationship between nightmares and suicide. Key Takeaways: All dreams, good and bad, occur during...
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142 Cold and Colder
Critically Speaking
Various forms of cold therapy, from ice on wounds to cold showers, have been successfully used for ages. And ice baths help athletes after an event. But these temperatures don't fall below freezing, or 32°F, and are usually above this. Recently, tanks providing whole body cryotherapy have been promoted for a wide range of health problems, some serious and progressive. This involves subjecting the body to anywhere from minus 160°F to 250°F, for several minutes. While this extreme exposure, even if for only a minute or so, definitely causes physical reactions, there have been no clinical...
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141 Breast Cancer Risks: Underarm Products
Critically Speaking
Breast cancer is on the rise, especially in women under 40. This is pretty scary and the increase points to something environmental. In today’s episode, Therese Markow and Dr. Kris McGrath talk about one of these environmental factors and how our individual underarm hygiene may play a role in our risk for breast (and prostate) cancers earlier in life. Dr. McGrath has had a long time interest in this trend and they discuss some of his work on the relationship between underarm shaving and the use of deodorants and antiperspirants. Key Takeaways: The majority of breast cancer is...
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140 Dr. Cheryl Rosenfeld: The Placenta and the Fetal Brain
Critically Speaking
What's the placenta? Some people think of it as a bag filled with fluid that protects the fetus inside from accidental blows, or a structure that sends maternal nutrients to the fetus while removing its waste products. Well, it's actually much more than this. When we may think that the placenta is protective, it can also create detrimental effects to the fetus - effects that can be lifelong. In fact, the placenta is a complex organ on its own and we've only recently been discovering some of the things that the placenta really does, and also what it can't do. Every new person that has arrived...
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139 Dr. Jon Lieff: Consequences of Head Injuries
Critically Speaking
Just about everybody has bumped their head at least once in their life. A number of these bumps on the head, especially those resulting from more obvious head injury, are more serious than most of us imagine. What is a concussion? When should head trauma receive more attention? Given the recent reports about long term effects of head injuries in athletes, and the risks of head traumas for sports and accidents, let's learn a little bit more. After all, each of us has a head. Today's guest neuro psychiatrist, Dr. Jon Lieff, has been treating head injuries for decades, he even founded several...
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138 Egg Donation: Long Term Risks?
Critically Speaking
Millions of women are undergoing ovarian stimulation to harvest either their own eggs or to donate, for monetary compensation, to egg banks that can help infertile couples, gay couples, and single infertile women to, through in vitro fertilization, conceive. Donors can receive considerable payments for their donations and, in fact, many young women undergo multiple cycles of ovarian stimulation treatments. These payments can help with student loans, living expenses, and other things. The treatments consist of hormone injections for over a week in order to get the ovaries to...
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137 Who Believes in Conspiracy Theories?
Critically Speaking
In a world full of media, which may contain misinformation or fake news, there are conspiracy theories abounding. However, conspiracy theories, and the spreading of those theories, is not a new practice, it has been around and transmitting in any way that people communicate. In this episode, Therese Markow and Dr. Joseph Uscinski talk about the origin of conspiracy theories and how these formal theories differ (and are similar) to the fake news and misinformation that fills our media screens today. They discuss some of the earliest US conspiracy theories, as well as some of the more modern...
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136 Dr. Ryan Townley: Dementia Drug Trials
Critically Speaking
Among the biggest health fears adults have are getting a diagnosis of cancer or developing Alzheimer's disease. An estimated 6.2 million Americans aged 65 and older, actually are living with Alzheimer's today. That number could double by 2050. The worldwide number is estimated to be about 50 million. Alzheimer's develops later in life, and class can last anywhere from three to 10 years before the patient dies. And currently, there's no cure for the disease. Well, today's guest is uniquely suited to address these questions and tell us what's on the horizon in terms of research and treatment....
info_outlineDr. Therese Markow talks with psychiatrist and researcher Dr. Daniel Blumberger about depression that does not respond to medications and behavioral cognitive therapy. Approximately one third of patients suffering from major depression are “Treatment Resistant”.
Fortunately, there are a range of brain stimulation techniques that help the majority of these patients. Electroconvulsive therapy or ETC, has evolved into a much more benign procedure than depicted earlier in movies and has the best outcomes in patients with major depression. New techniques, involving stimulation of the brain magnetically, such as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) also can be effective and are being refined for broader use. Depression is a serious and sometimes fatal disease, and there is hope for those resistant to pharmaceutical approaches.
Key Takeaways:
- Major Depressive Disorder, or MDD, is a debilitating disorder that can be fatal
- About a third of those suffering from MDD, do not respond to. pharmaceutical treatments.
- The majority of these patients benefit from ECT, which now has been greatly improved.
- A newer group of brain treatments, using magnetic stimulation, also are useful for Treatment Resistant Depression.
- Sufferers should ask their physicians about access to these non-pharmaceutical treatments.
"It is very important to intervene early when someone isn’t responding to medication. The more treatments that someone doesn’t respond to, the less likely that they will respond to each subsequent course of treatment. The longer things linger, the harder it is to get someone better." — Dr. Daniel Blumberger
Connect with Dr. Daniel Blumberger:
CAMH Profile: Dr. Daniel Blumberger
Connect with Therese:
Website: www.criticallyspeaking.net
Twitter: @CritiSpeak
Email: [email protected]
Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.
Daniel Blumberger
Date of appointment May 8, 2020
Date created May 3, 2020
Critically Speaking Guest Interview
https://app.acuityscheduling.com/schedule.php?owner=16987289&action=appt&id%5B%5D=29e531037007b14b2f367229a9f7cb65
Name: Daniel Blumberger
Phone: (415) 535-8501
Email: [email protected]
Guest Intake Form
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Provide a link to your website or online professional profile/bio: https://www.camh.ca/en/science-and-research/science-and-research-staff-directory/danielblumberger
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Please provide your professional affiliation and areas of expertise and you would like it to appear in our show notes.: Medical Head and Co-Director, Temerty Centre for Therapeutic Brain Intervention at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto
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