Dr Matt's Newsletter - November 23rd Thanksgiving Edition
Supporting healthy social interactions and diversity of health choices
Thanksgiving gives an opportunity to look at two areas in a bit more depth: Gratitude and the value of social connectedness. Also, since “Black Friday” is only two days away, at the very end of this newsletter I am providing a list of the family run businesses from all my previous newsletters. A gift feels a bit better when it comes from like-minded people in local businesses!
Here is a list of today’s newsletter sections:
Inspirational talk on Gratitude from Eckhart Tolle, and a quote from Desmond Tutu
Reminder about Miami conference December 3rd with Joseph Ladapo, Florida’s Surgeon General, and a new interview about Florida’s vaccine policy
Music of the week: African Marketplace – African Jazz and modern African dance music with Abdullah Ibrahim, Hugh Masekela, Miriam Makeba, and Thomas Mapfumo
Research of the week – healthy social interactions reduce all-cause mortality by 30%. This is more than any drug or other medical treatment by a wide margin. I wrote a literature review on this in my Master of Social Work program in 1996, and it is one reason I knew that the covid-19 social isolation policies were a pretty darn bad idea. However, it takes a bit more work and patience to maintain and build social relationships than just to try a “new drug” as Huey Lewis sang about in the musical selection from my November 9th Newsletter - a newsletter that also summarized research into the lack of effectiveness of the covid-19 vaccines.
Gifts from Family Run Businesses – from natural skin care products to hand crafted wooden items to health and fitness programs, to egg laying hens to customized jewelry. Gifts for the whole family.
Yours truly, one moment at a time.
Matt Irwin
Inspirational talk on Gratitude by noticing and appreciating “the little things” of life.
I first heard Eckhart speak when Oprah had him on her show as a regular guest. His wisdom about basing our lives in the present moment helped me remember again what I learned in my days of spiritual retreats at Trappist Monasteries, at a monastery in Thailand, and with Thich Nhat Hanh in the Virginia countryside.
In this talk Eckhart expresses quite a different perspective on Gratitude – noticing and appreciating whatever is around you at any given time. The shift in art, from painting kings, saints and generals to illuminating “normal” life scenes is an example, as are the lessons from Chrystal’s Near Death Experience in the newsletter from November 2nd – to appreciate things like “the smell of freshly cut grass”. Hope this helps you enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday a little bit more intimately than usual 😊
Inspirational quote from Desmond Tutu
“My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together.”
— Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Reminder about Miami conference December 3rd with Joseph Ladapo, Florida’s Surgeon General
See the newsletter from November 2nd, and October 12th for more information on how Dr Ladapo helped turn Florida’s focus back to true public health by emphasizing nutrition, exercise, and healthy social activities. They also recently recommended against the covid-19 vaccine for men in ages 18-39 and are carefully considering other ages and women (see video interview linked below).
If any of you are going to Miami please let me know so we can sit at the same table for the fancy dinner Saturday night. Here is a link to the website about the conference https://brownstone.org/miami/#learn
In my October 12th newsletter there was an extended interview of Dr Ladapo, and below is a slightly shorter one, 27 minutes, that focuses on the recent recommendation against covid-19 vaccines for men ages 18-39. Before discussing the vaccine recommendation they discuss his personal experience of the covid-19 lockdowns, his attempts to prevent the social isolation measures from being implemented and how these efforts eventually met with ostracism at UCLA before being asked by Florida governor Ron DeSantis to be surgeon general.
You can hear Dr Ladapo’s sadness and compassion for the same issue within Ghandi’s quote in my September 14th newsletter: “Fear of disease has killed more men than disease itself.” Dr Ladapo has some wise words of his own near the end: “Have your house in order - Your internal house – your emotional, spiritual, mental, and physical being. By taking care of those parts of yourself, that allows you to do the best you can when God throws curveballs at us.”
Music of the week – African Marketplace
Thinking of Joe Ladapo’s childhood in Nigeria reminded me of African-jazz and African dance music that I fell in love with many years ago. I was a jazz DJ in college and often played music by Abdullah Ibrahim and others. When I lived in Portugal from 1990 to 1993 I regularly went to Afro-Portuguese dance clubs, and I traveled in Zimbabwe, Botswana, and South Africa throughout the summer of 1992. Over these years I learned of other musicians such as Hugh Masekela, Miriam Makeba, and Thomas Mapfumo.
Here are some selections from all four. You can see how this music would be welcome dance music at a wedding or any social gathering.
Abdullah Ibrahim – The Homecoming Song, from the album, African Marketplace.
This album was in our radio station library and I played every tune from it at one time or another on my “Fat Jazz” show. For my wedding in the summer of 1993 I taught it to my jazz combo, and it made for a great dance number.
Abdullah Ibrahim – Maraba Blue
A more contemplative jazz ballad with an African rhythmic foundation. This tune turns the volume down a few notches and turns the beauty up a few… I searched for an extended version that does not fade out, but this was the only one I could find. If any of my avid readers find one please post a link in the comments section.
This version is from the album “Cape Town Flowers” and if you ever get a chance to visit Cape Town take advantage. I spent about ten days there in 1992 with my then-girlfriend-now-wife, Cris, and would love to go back when the time is right.
Thomas Mapfumo – Vanhu Vatema “Black People”.
Thomas was nicknamed “The Lion of Zimbabwe” and was famous for criticizing both the white minority government, and then the communist government of Robert Mugabe which combined corruption with disastrous communist economic policies. Here are translations of the lyrics of this song, which are sung in his native language, Shona:
We fought our against our enemies, but the biggest now are within us.
Educate yourselves and let’s be free from the shackles of the mind.
Let’s build a new Wakanda. Rebuild Munhumutapa
Let’s build a new Timbuktu. Build a new Africa.
Rebuild the pyramids. Greater Zimbabwe. A new Zulu nation
Build a new Africa…
Miriam Makeba: Hapo Zamani.
Miriam was nicknamed “Mama Africa” for her lifelong advocacy for her native continent. She lived through revolutions, civil wars, and saw many of her causes melt away as new governments took over that had their own deep injustices. I wonder what she would have thought of the covid-19 social isolation mandates. My sense is that she would have told the authorities what they could do with them :-)
High Masekela: “Grazing in the Grass”.
Hugh was a trumpeter who mixed jazz and African rhythms. He joined with Dollar Brand ( who later changed his name to Abdullah Ibrahim) to form an African inspired jazz band in 1959. This tune topped the “Top 100” chart in the United States in 1968 which placed Hugh, and African music, squarely in the center of the musical map. You may recall Paul Simon’s album “Graceland” which had a similar impact when it was released 18 years later, in 1986.
Research of the week Social Health increases survival more than any medication ever could.
Thanksgiving is partly about being with family and friends, and this is very good for our health. This is true even if there are only one or two friends or family, and even if we do not get along smoothly all of the time. This is plain common sense, of course, but there are also dozens of research studies that confirm it.
I wrote a literature review in 1996 on social support and survival of cancer as part of my Master of Social Work program, and this is one of the reasons I knew from the beginning that covid-19 social isolation protocols were going to cause more harm than good. The other reason was that I have been following “viral scares” quite closely for 25 years. When examined a bit more closely, every one is filled with absurd contradictions and wildly exaggerated claims. I therefore already knew that our own innate healing system could handle any virus, no matter what the media and people like Tony Fauci say. This is especially true when we are supported by healthy life choices, but even “healthy hedonists” generally do much better than people think :-).
The study reviewed below was published in 2019 in a standard medical journal of epidemiology. It was a prospective cohort study, which means they followed them over time to assess their health and mortality after doing an initial interview to assess their social interactions. They differentiated between “social support” which was a single subjective question, and “social integration” which was based on eight questions covering contacts with relatives or friends, group activities, and marital status.
The “social support” question did not have much impact on mortality, but their more detailed analysis of social contacts and interactions, which they called “social integration” was highly significant. All-cause mortality was reduced by 30%, and most individual illnesses were also reduced. Ironically, the illness I focused on in my literature review in the 1990’s, cancer, had a reduction of only 6%, which was not statistically significant. However, this is the natural way of scientific studies which definitely do not always agree any more than regular people do 😊. The diseases with the largest reductions in mortality in this study were lung disease and diabetes, which both had mortality reduced by about 50%.
Regarding Thanksgiving, I expect that the positive impact of social interactions makes a lot bigger difference on your health than whether you eat an extra piece of pecan pie so you have my blessings to indulge. I am doing a four mile run in the morning tomorrow to help reduce my guilt factor...
Regarding the stresses and disagreements inherent in social gatherings, maybe we can all take a deep breath, step back, and “drop in” to our emotional present moment without judgement, and notice the beauty of the “insignificant” little things around us.
Gifts from Family Run Businesses – from natural skin care products to hand crafted wooden items to health and fitness programs.
First Newsletter on September 7th:two family run businesses
(1) Dad’s Tree Service - The “Dad” in this case, although very fit and healthy, is actually the grandpa to patients in my practice. Although they can remove dead ones, they can also plant a new one if you ask, and help keep old trees healthy. https://www.dadstreeservice.com/ 703-799-5844
2) Jonathan and Brittany make hand-made beautiful custom dog kennels to fit your home and family. Email: thegesingathering@gmail.com, Phone: 978-602-2072, https://etsy.me/2S3pRt2
September 21st Newsletter
Keith Kadish makes handcrafted artisan wood items including wooden cutting boards, candle holders, serving trays and other goods. https://www.etsy.com/shop/CalicoWoodcraftShop
September 28th Newsletter
Scott and Pam Krause, The Krause Team Real Estate: (krauseteamrealtors.com) Scott and Pam are two of my adult patients who know the neighborhoods quite well. What could be a better gift than a new home? Or at least a free tour to see some possibilities 😊
October 12th newsletter –
Natural skin and hair care products from Rayvon and Sasha Wills - Ray of Light Products is their all-natural company for skincare. To make a purchase visit www.rayoflightproducts.com
October 19th Newsletter –
Cory Aplin and Mumta Purohit are specialists in Optimal Body Weight Loss. This might work best if you join in yourself. After all, it takes two to Tango and if two people join together they will motivate each other. A free consultation can be booked by visiting www.MyOptimalBody.com
October 26th newsletter -
Adam and Andrea Melia own Nashville Standard Presents, a small music production company that provides live entertainment for a variety of private events, active adult senior living facilities, and a lecture series and storytelling services. A concert from them would be quite a gift and you can also purchase their recorded music as a gift www.nashvillestandardpresents.com
November 9th newsletter –
Whiffletree Farm: Pay them a visit for grass-fed animal products and egg laying hens - the gift that keeps on giving. https://whiffletreefarmva.com/store/egg-laying-hens-for-sale
November 16th newsletter-
Hand crafted heirloom jewelry by Laura Benkowski. Laura makes high quality custom jewelry using precious metals and precious gems. Contact her if you would like to discuss a unique item or you can order one of the many retail designs on her website,
https://laurastephanie.com/
References - study on social integration and mortality
Tan, J., & Wang, Y. (2019). Social Integration, Social Support, and All-Cause, Cardiovascular Disease and Cause-Specific Mortality: A Prospective Cohort Study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(9). Retrieved from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6539343/