Our partner Rob Brezsny, who has a new book out, Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote […] The post Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ From Rob Brezsny appeared first on Good News Network.

Health trends are fickle. What’s popular one month is more often than not passé the next, usually after being swiftly debunked – only after it’s already made a dent in your pocket though, of course. One trend that just won’t go away, however, is oil pulling, with its proponents declaring benefits all the way from curing bad breath to tackling diabetes – but how true are such claims?What is oil pulling?Oil pulling is the practice of swishing a small amount of edible oil around your mouth for a while, usually around 20 minutes, “pulling” the oil through the mouth and teeth, before spitting it out.It’s a method that comes from traditional Ayurvedic medicine, with a recent surge in popularity that’s seen oil pulling supported by celebrities and internet users alike, with sesame, coconut, olive, and sunflower oils being popular choices.Does oil pulling have any oral health benefits?Bad breathOne of the purported benefits of oil pulling is in reducing halitosis, the medical term for bad breath. This can have multiple causes, but odor-producing bacteria trapped on the tongue and forming a sticky film called plaque on the teeth can often be the source of the problem.                A small study of 20 teenagers suggested that oil pulling with sesame oil was as effective as chlorhexidine – an antiseptic used as a mouthwash to kill bacteria in the mouth – at reducing halitosis, with participants reporting less unpleasant breath.However, as can be seen from the number of participants, this study is small – scientists can’t make any hard and fast conclusions from such a sample size, at least not any reliable ones. Other more general meta-analyses and reviews of oil pulling found it appeared to reduce bacteria in the saliva, which could potentially have an effect on halitosis, but that’s still far from definitive evidence that oil pulling can make breath less smelly.Tooth decay and gum diseaseReview studies have also assessed whether or not oil pulling appears to have any impact on two of the main factors contributing to tooth decay and serious gum disease: plaque, in which bacteria produce acid that breaks down teeth; and gingivitis, an early stage of gum disease characterized by irritated, bleeding gums, and when left untreated can progress to periodontitis, which can destroy the bone supporting teeth if not treated.A 2023 meta-analysis found that oil pulling significantly improved participants' modified gingival index scores (MGI), a measure of gum health, compared to non-chlorhexidine mouthwash. A 2020 review identified two studies that concluded it reduced plaque, but the authors note that "there was no reported statistical difference in one". The authors of both papers commented that no conclusive findings could be made because many of the studies analyzed were of low quality.A similar conclusion was made in a 2022 meta-analysis, although the authors there also found no significant difference in gingivitis and plaque when comparing oil pulling and a control method.Authors cited problems such as a high risk of bias, small sample size, and general poor study design – and because of those problems, it would be hard to reliably conclude that oil pulling had any effect in preventing tooth decay and gum disease.Teeth whiteningWhile stain-free teeth aren’t necessarily an indicator of good oral health, the appearance of our teeth can affect how we feel about ourselves – there’s a reason why the global teeth whitening market is so successful. But what if there was a less expensive way to get whiter teeth than strips and toothpaste?Unfortunately, there’s no solid scientific research to support that oil pulling is the much cheaper answer. That’s meant quite literally, by the way – while there’s a wealth of anecdotal evidence online, a TikTok video does not a scientific study make, and proper scientific studies on the matter are few and far between.Does oil pulling have any wider health benefits?Besides oral health, there are also people who claim that oil pulling can have a multitude of health benefits throughout the body, like helping with hangovers, clearing your sinuses and even managing diabetes – but none of these have any scientific backing.“You can make the stretch that oral health can support systemic health — that there are benefits downstream, but to date, there is no scientific research that oil pulling is a direct mechanism of action for these other conditions. ” wellness and preventive medicine specialist and osteopathic physician Dr Sandra Darling told Cleveland Clinic HealthEssentials. “And no current evidence suggests that improving oral hygiene alone will improve diabetes or other chronic conditions.”A more general health claim that’s often made is that oil pulling “detoxifies” the body, but no such cure-all treatment exists – detoxifying is the exclusive job of the liver and kidneys. The bottom lineThe issue with the vast majority of studies into the purported benefits of oil pulling for oral health is that they’re not particularly reliable.It’s no surprise then that the American Dental Association “does not recommend oil pulling as a dental hygiene practice.” That’s not to say that the potential for benefits is nonexistent, but research so far hasn’t been sufficient enough to prove otherwise.That being said, oil pulling isn’t likely to do you much harm either – unless you’re allergic to the oil or you swallow too much of it, which can lead to stomach upset. Those things aside, there’s nothing to stop you from adding it to your routine, but if that routine is already adequate, there’s also no good reason to add in oil pulling.What makes an adequate routine? The ADA says: “[B]rush twice a day for two minutes with fluoride toothpaste and floss between your teeth once a day and don’t use tobacco.”All “explainer” articles are confirmed by fact checkers to be correct at time of publishing. Text, images, and links may be edited, removed, or added to at a later date to keep information current.  The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

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It's a sign of just how well things are going for Donald Trump. Trump's the man that Morning Joe most loves to hate. But apparently bereft of any good material to use against him, Wednesday's show instead was reduced to devoting most of its opening segment to attacking the woman who endorsed him last night: Nikki Haley.  The show opened with a clip of Stephen Colbert imagining Haley saying that she hates herself for endorsing Trump.  John Heilemann pitched in to say that "We found out last night who Nikki Haley really is. Nikki Haley is all about Nikki Haley."  And Joe and Mika never curry favor with politicians to promote their careers? Scarborough played a clip of Haley from her campaign earlier this year in which she said: "Many of the same politicians who now publicly embrace Trump, privately dread him." Snarked Scarborough: "Nikki Haley meet Nikki Haley."  The Morning Joe crew might have gotten some kicks out of dumping on Haley. But their attack on her did nothing to detract from Donald Trump. To the contrary, it demonstrated his ability to unite the party. Let's remember: Scarborough's the guy who, the very day after Biden's debate debacle, very unsubtly called on Biden to quit the race. Among Scarborough's lines of attack on Biden was his analogy to the CEO of a Fortune 500 company who put in a performance as bad as Biden's. Scarborough rhetorically asked whether such a CEO would be kept on in his job.  Scarborough also suggested that, just like Barry Goldwater during Watergate told Richard Nixon that it was "over," Democrats need to do the same thing with Biden. But after presumably getting his knuckles rapped by Mika and the Biden campaign, Scarborough was soon back in his traditional role of abject Biden lackey. So, people who shamelessly flip-flop from criticizing a candidate to slavishly supporting him? Joe Scarborough: meet Joe Scarborough.  Here's the transcript. MSNBC Morning Joe 7/17/24 6:00 am EDT STEPHEN COLBERT: Trump changed his schedule to show up earlier to hear both Nikki Haley and Ron Desantis. Yes. The former president changed his whole schedule so he could watch his defeated rivals forced to sing his praise, while he drank a Diet Coke made out of a goblet of Chris Christie's skull. Then, we heard from one of those crushed souls, Nikki Haley, who said this. NIKKI HALEY:  I'll start by making one thing perfectly clear -- COLBERT: -- I hate myself [laughter.] There's no other explanation. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. . . .  JOHN HEILEMANN: This has been the story of the Trump era, right? Where people who have been either publicly or privately critical of Donald Trump, who said he was disqualified from being president for oner eason or the other, then turned around later and capitulated to him. So we've seen it for a long time. There's not anything really surprising about it. But I would say that in the case of Nikki Haley, it's more, it's really more egregious, I think, than almost anybody. Because she -- even compared to Ron DeSantis. Ron Desantis said some critical things about Trump during the primary. But they were well within the bounds of what we have heard in the both parties, in nomination contests. People -- Kamala Harris criticized Joe Biden back in 2020.  But Nikki Haley was different . . . The question of what she was, at heart, was on the table. And I think there was always a school of thought which was, ultimately, Nikki Haley is all about Nikki Haley. She wants a future in this party. Eventually, she will endorse him, people would say. And others would say, no, I think she's really changed. She's found her voice. Well, we found out last night, which Nikki Haley, who Nikki Haley really is. . . .  NIKKI HALEY [from Feb. 2020 campaign event]: Of course, many of the same politicians who now publicly embrace Trump, privately dreadhim. They know what a disaster he's been. And will continue to be for our party. Donald Trump can't win a general election. MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Wow. JOE SCARBOROUGH: Katty, it's almost like she's Carnac the Magician and can predict the future. Because she predicted her own future right there.  After saying electing Donald Trump would be suicide for America. After saying he was unhinged. After saying he wasn't all there, he needed to take a cognitive test. That he was too old to be President of the United States. She said, you know, ome Republicans will say this that worked for him quietly. But then they'll go on to support him. Nikki Haley, meet Nikki Haley.

Emily Jacobs at Jewish Insider reported The Washington Post came under fire for an insensitive treatment of Ronen and Orna Neutra, the parents of an American hostage in Gaza who spoke at the Republican convention. It's bad enough that the Post's headline described their son Omer as "missing," not held hostage. But they came under fire for a tweet scolding the parents that they later deleted and admitted was "unacceptable." "Omer Neutra has been missing since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. When his parents speak publicly, they don't talk about Israel's assault on Gaza that has killed over 38,000 Palestinians, according to local officials. Experts have warned of looming famine," the Post tweeted on X.  Congratulations to @jslaternyc and the @washingtonpost for what just might be the most disgusting thing it ever published pic.twitter.com/u2Ur5mITJd — Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) July 19, 2024 The post linked to the story by Post reporter Joanna Slater on the Neutras about their speech on day three of the convention. Slater called their trip to the convention "surreal," for some reason. At least the story acknowledges that the Neutras were uplifted by the Republican crowd's support. The story itself still carries a slightly less insensitive version of the tweet:  When the Neutras speak publicly, they don’t talk about the ferocity of Israel’s counterattack, which has killed more than 38,000 Palestinians and left nearly 90,000 injured, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Swaths of the territory have been pulverized and international experts have warned of looming famine. In addition to ripping hostage parents for failing to denounce Israeli "ferocity," the Post felt compelled to play this game of camouflaging their trusted source of casualty counts -- "local officials" and the "Gaza Health Ministry" -- is the terrorist group Hamas. They're more likely to trust Hamas as an objective source than Republicans. In another X post published Friday morning, the paper explained that it deleted the initial post because it had "mischaracterized the efforts of Neutra’s parents." The paper followed up hours later with a more thorough explanation. "A previous post referencing the below story was unacceptable and did not meet our editorial standards, and The Post has deleted it. The reporter of the story was not involved in crafting the tweet. We have taken the appropriate action regarding this incident," The Post wrote on X. “The Post keeps failing to meet its commitment to fairness in stories about American Jews. I know it’s costing us our readers’ trust, because they’ve told me so. Top management needs to fix this ASAP,” a Post journalist, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Jewish Insider.  They added Jonathan Greenblatt, the Democrat-affiliated CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, called out the Post for not making changes to the article itself.  “Are you kidding me, @washingtonpost? You may have deleted the post, but the thoughtless characterization of Omer Neutra’s parents – who have spent the last 287 days not knowing the fate of their son after he was kidnapped by terrorists on Oct 7 – remains in your article. In what world did anyone find it acceptable to publish in the first place?” he wrote on X. 

Donald Trump leads a revamped party into November.

Look to the self-defeating machinations of Merrick Garland and Jack Smith.

The famous doctor’s new memoir reveals that his foibles were on full display well before Covid.

The people who refuse to apologize for 2020 are the same people who, in 2020, began every meeting with an apology for ‘colonization’ and ‘white supremacy.’

The deconstruction was intentional.