A groundbreaking study from Colorado State University shows how horses can help children with autism feel calmer. At CSU’s Temple Grandin Equine Center children who experienced horse therapy showed greater reduction in cortisol levels than children who received traditional therapy. The research split 72 children ages 6 to 11 into two groups. One group received…
Read MoreCan sleeping on bees help with anxiety? In Ontario, Canada, Diana Graham runs the Bees and Bloom Wellness, for people seeking bee bed therapy. In her cabin, beehives are placed underneath wooden beds and separated by a screen that securely separates the bees from the clients. Clients report “[feeling] amazed” and “breathing better” after smelling…
Read MoreToday’s featured study comes from Mayo Clinic Proceedings, and highlights the importance of dogs in stroke rehabilitation. Many stroke recovery patients suffer from limited motivation, reduced energy, lack of companionship and decreased interest in therapy activities but having a canine friend around may help. Brent Bauer, M.D. (an internist at Mayo Clinic) and his team…
Read MoreA team of University of California Davis (UCD) researchers published a study giving new insights into how donkeys or minihorses improve our moods. Claire Short, who manages the Green Care Lab at UCD and UCD Associate Professor Rebecca Calisi Rodríguez conducted the study to see how interacting with donkeys in different ways can have different…
Read MoreInformation encoded in bat DNA may help humans achieve longer lifespans. University of California Berkeley postdoctoral fellow Juan Manuel Vazquez teamed up with undergraduates to collect small biopsy samples of the wing from the bat genus Myotis to analyze the genome. They found a connection between the bat’s lifespan and immune function.. The Myotis bat’s…
Read MoreAt a sober living home for veterans in Winnebago, Minnesota, dogs are being introduced to help veterans cope with PTSD and overcome alcohol and drug addiction. The sober living home, named Bravo Zulu House, partnered with K9s for Warriors, a non profit organization that provides trained service dogs to military veterans suffering from PTSD, traumatic…
Read MoreIn a study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases a newly developed bacteriophage was used to clear a patient’s rare multi-drug resistant infection. The bacteriophage was developed by Denmark’s biotech company SNIPR Biome. Scientists developed the bacteriophage using CRISPR to selectively target Escherichia coli. The phage was used to treat a 65-year old man…
Read MoreA research team from the University of Chicago has developed a strain of gut bacteria that might assist in fighting pancreatic cancer. Ralph Weichselbaum, MD (Chair of Radiation and Cellular Oncology) and his team engineered a strain of Bifidobacterium longum to release a modified form of interleukin-2 – an immune molecule that activates T-cells. B.…
Read MoreA goat farmer from Vermont has decided to turn her goat milk farm into a therapeutic sanctuary. The owner of Villa Villekulla Farm, Lauren Gitlin wants to move away from commercial milk production and turn her 53-goat herd into therapy animals. A nonprofit sanctuary that offers animal-assisted therapy will replace the farm. Gitlin plans to…
Read MoreIn a recent study led by Professor Alma Karen Lomeli-Lepe, researchers from the University of Guadalajara used bee venom to fight Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a neurological disorder that is caused by the degradation of dopamine-producing neurons, leading to cognitive decline, tremors and restricted movement. Levodopa combined with carbidopa has been used to treat…
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