Ilchi Lee Images & Peace Quotes

Have you ever gotten the feeling after not eating for a while that a candy bar or donut would be the perfect treat to boost your energy levels, even though you're well aware that the simple carbohydrates are more likely to cause you to crash? Well, it may be your brain playing tricks on you.

In a brain imaging study, researchers at Yale University and the University of Southern California found that when people had low blood glucose levels, brain regions that regulate impulses were weakened. This was especially true in obese volunteers.

"Our prefrontal cortex is a sucker for glucose," said senior author Rajita Sinha.

When shown photos of foods, some of which were healthy while others were high in calories, the insula and striatum were stimulated, causing a desire to eat. Additionally, the prefrontal cortex, which controls impulses, was significanly weakened. These reactions were heightened when the volunteers were shown images of unhealthy food, and even more so in the obese.

"The key seems to be eating healthy foods that maintain glucose levels," Sinha said. "The brain needs its food."

Author and philosopher Ilchi Lee believes that in order for individuals to use their human brain potential, all areas of the body must be healthy. This may mean avoiding fatty or sugary foods in order to maintain brain wellness and practicing meditation to stay at a healthy weight. Though it may seem counterintuitive, the results of this study support the notion.

Lee has shown countless individuals how to unlock brain potential through practices that engage the body, mind and spirit.

Teenagers often feel as though they are old enough to make their own decisions. Sometimes, they choose to use their full brain potential and seek advice from elders. Other times, they make assumptions on their own, even when it comes to self-medication.

This may be especially detrimental considering the findings of a recent study, which suggested that pharmacists are not educating teens adequately about prescription drugs.

"Most teenagers take their medicines appropriately, but there is evidence of accidental or intentional inappropriate use or misuse," said lead author Priya Bahri. "Research has found that although pharmacists know about the importance of talking to teenagers about their medications, they tend not to."

The researchers, who presented their findings at the congress of the International Pharmaceutical Federation, reported that an estimated 35 percent of teenage boys and 45 percent of girls in the same age group take prescription medications, ranging from painkillers to birth control.

Complications that can arise from pharmaceutical drugs include anxiety, addiction, birth defects and a host of other conditions. Authors of the study said that open communication, paired with education through social media and other online resources, may help improve teens' knowledge of prescription drugs, thereby preventing misuse.

Philosopher and trailblazer Ilchi Lee believes that using human brain potential to its fullest extent is a key to attaining happiness and success. There are many chemical substances, like pharmaceuticals and alcohol, that can hold people back from achieving fulfillment.

As a result, individuals who are dependent on drugs or alcohol should make a focused effort to quit their brain-damaging habits. It will not be an easy journey, but it is a necessary one. Lee says that mind-body-spirit exercises like yoga and meditation may be able to assist individuals on their paths toward success.

People often act foolishly when under the influence of alcoholic beverages. Researchers at the University of Missouri College of Arts and Science conducted a study to determine exactly why beer, wine and liquor have this effect on adults.

In a trial, the team of scientists divided a group of volunteers into three subsets: one that was given alcoholic beverages, one that was not and a third that was administered a placebo. The researchers then monitored the participants' brain activity while they completed tests on a computer, with the goal of gauging how they reacted to making mistakes.

"When people make mistakes, activity in a part of the brain responsible for monitoring behavior increases, essentially sending an alarm signal to other parts of the brain indicating that something went wrong," said lead researcher Bruce Bartholow.

The team found that drunk individuals had a significantly dulled response to mistakes, compared to those who drank non-alcoholic beverages or placebos.

"Contrary to previous studies, our study shows that alcohol doesn't reduce your awareness of mistakes – it reduces how much you care about making those mistakes," Bartholow added.

In order for individuals to succeed in life, they must use their full brain potential. Author and philosopher Ilchi Lee believes this, and says that drugs, whether they be legal, pharmaceutical or illicit, can only hold people back from achieving their goals.

So, you may be wondering how to unlock brain potential. Besides avoiding mind-altering chemicals, individuals can try practices that aim to align the mind, body and spirit. Lee believes that meditation is one such way that people can use their minds to embrace the positive and eliminate the negative.

Depression is an illness that affects all too many people and can cause them to experience extreme mental anguish, which eventually harms the body as well. Considering this, it's understandable why these individuals would seek out ways to unlock brain potential for their condition.

Luckily, researchers at the University of Texas Southwester Medical Center have found that regular physical activity is an effective way to lift mood and relieve other symptoms of depression.

In a trial, volunteers aged 18 to 70 were divided into two groups: One that engaged in an intense exercise regimen for 12 weeks and another that performed moderate activity for the study period.

The results revealed that 30 percent of the participants experienced a complete cessation of depressive symptoms, and another 20 percent reported significantly alleviated depression.

"This study shows that exercise can be as effective as adding another medication. Many people would rather use exercise than add another drug, particularly as exercise has a proven positive effect on a person's overall health and well-being," said lead author Madhukar Trivedi.

Interestingly, women with a family history of the mental disorder were more easily helped by moderate exercise, while those with no hereditary link to depression required more intense activity. For men, higher levels of activity were needed regardless of family history.

Author and flutist Ilchi Lee believes that stimulating unused brain potential is best done by focusing on the body, mind and spirit. It is possible to alleviate mental anguish by exercising the body, and vice versa. All aspects of an individual are inextricably linked, which underscores the importance of nurturing each one.

One marker of Alzheimer's disease is the buildup of beta-amyloid plaque on the brain, and researchers at California company Madera Biosciences believe that they may have the key to preventing the accumulation of the plaque and possibly even remove it from the brain.

As a result, the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) has awarded the company a $294,000 grant to develop their proprietary combination of compounds even further.

The treatment involves a combination of compounds that stimulate expression of apolipoprotein E (apoE), a lipid-binding protein that may help decrease beta-amyloid plaque and enhance human brain potential.

"Since apoE is the leading known risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (after aging), developing therapeutics based on our knowledge of apoE biology is a critical challenge in our field," said Howard Fillit, M.D., executive director of the ADDF.

Officials at Madera said they look forward to advancing their research on a possible treatment for Alzheimer's disease.

"These funds will allow us to gain a better understanding of how our compounds affect the pathologies caused by beta-amyloid deposition," said Rick Jack, Ph.D., the company's CEO.

Since there is currently no known cure for Alzheimer's, it may be best for healthy individuals to work now to preserve their cognitive function. Previous research has revealed that physical exercise, a healthy diet and meditation may help unlock brain potential.

Author and philosopher Ilchi Lee believes that preventing or alleviating conditions through holistic means is the best way to approach an illness. As a result, individuals should consider strengthening their minds with practices like meditation, which may be greatly beneficial when it comes to improving cognition.

Proponents of gender-segregated education have long cited brain differences as an excuse to separate boys and girls in school. However, researchers at the Chicago Medical School have determined that there is little evidence to prove any differences in human brain potential between sexes.

The researchers, led by Lise Eliot, looked at the claims made to support sex-segregation. These included disparities in the corpus collosum brain region, language lateralization, differences in maturation rate, the effect of hormones on learning, preferred styles of education as well as gender differences in hearing, vision and autonomic nervous systems.

Eliot and her team examined these ideas, and found misrepresentation or exaggeration of scientific facts behind each one.

"Beyond the issue of scientific misrepresentation, the very logic of segregating children based on inherent anatomical or physiological traits runs counter to the purpose and principles of education," Eliot said. "Instead of separating children in the name of 'hardwired' abilities and learning styles, schools should be doing the opposite: instilling in children the faith in their own malleability and promoting their self-efficacy as learners, regardless of gender, race, or other demographic characteristics."

Moreover, the researchers noted that children's brains are much different than those of adults. The brain is often molded by experiences and social situations throughout a lifetime, suggesting that the mind is a flexible thing that must be nourished and exposed to a variety of thoughts and ideas.

Author and philosopher Ilchi Lee believes in always working to unlock brain potential, since every human has a certain part of their mind that they do not exercise enough. For instance, if a small boy or girl is only exposed to things that re-enforce gender norms, then young males might never realize their dreams of becoming a chef, and females may never know they have a knack for mechanics.