Looking at 8 clinical trials and a dozen of other studies on vegans we take a look through time at what changes you can expect and when as well as some hurdles and myths. Part 2: https://youtu.be/HAaK--L9tDk- Links and Sources -https://www.patreon.com/mictheveganhttps://www.facebook.com/mictheveganhttps://www.instagram.com/micthevegan - @micthevegan

My Whole Food Vegan Video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wofs3...

Milk and Hormone Manipulation:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...

Inflammation Response After Egg and Sausage Meal:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

Beyonce Diet Gas Article:http://fusion.net/story/126602/i-ate-...

Increase Bean Consumption Symptoms Study:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

Discomfort Stopped after 24-48 hours study:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2...

Legumes and Survival:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...

Vegan Gut Type:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

Enterotypes and Foods:https://fhs.mcmaster.ca/chanchlani/do...

Vegan Gut / TMAO Study:https://www.researchgate.net/publicat...

Vegans More Regular Poopers Oxford Study:https://www.cambridge.org/core/servic...

3 Week Artery Clearing Dietary Trial:http://dresselstyn.com/JFP_06307_Arti...

Vegan Protein Levels Are Higher Study:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/...

12 Weeks Diabetics Gone Vegan Trial:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...

14 Week Obesity Weight Loss Vegan Study:http://tinyurl.com/hd3qvb2

16 Week Vegan Migraines Study:https://thejournalofheadacheandpain.s...

16 Week Office Worksite Study:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

22 Week Vegan Diabetes Trial:http://the-physicians-committee.org/s...

22 Week Workplace Vegan Trial - Productivity, etc.:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2...

24 Week Vegan Keto Dietary Trial:http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/4/2/e0...

Vegans 16% less cancer:http://tinyurl.com/zrpbatf

Vegan Less Mortality: http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamai...

Vegan Diabetes: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2...

Vegans 10% less Hypothyroidism: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2...

Vegan 63% less Hypertension: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

Vegan Less Heart Disease: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

Originally posted here:

How Your Body Transforms On A Vegan Diet - YouTube

English[edit]Etymology[edit]

Clipping of vegetarian or vegetable, 1944[1]. Coined by Donald Watson of the Vegan Society and first appeared in The Vegan News[2].

vegan (not comparable)

Fruits, vegetables and seeds are vegan but meat and horse-riding are not.

He eats a completely vegan diet.

This chocolate cake is vegan.

This person is not vegan as they eat eggs and wear leather.

Yesterday I went to a vegan party.

She is interested in vegan philosophy.

relating to vegans or veganism

vegan (plural vegans)

supporter of veganism

We should all consider carefully what our Group, and our magazine, and ourselves, shall be called. 'Non-dairy' has become established as a generally understood colloquialism, but like 'non-lacto' it is too negative. Moreover it does not imply that we are opposed to the use of eggs as food. We need a name that suggests what we do eat, and if possible one that conveys the idea that even with all animal foods taboo, Nature still offers us a bewildering assortment from which to choose. 'Vegetarian' and 'Fruitarian' are already associated with societies that allow the 'fruits'(!) of cows and fowls, therefore it seems we must make a new and appropriate word. As this first issue of our periodical had to be named, I have used the title "The Vegan News". Should we adopt this, our diet will soon become known as a VEGAN diet, and we should aspire to the rank of VEGANS. Members' suggestions will be welcomed. The virtue of having a short title is best known to those of us who, as secretaries of vegetarian societies have to type or write the word vegetarian thousands of times a year!

veganm

Borrowed from English vegan.

vegan (comparative veganer, superlative am vegansten)

Comparative forms of vegan

Superlative forms of vegan

Borrowed from English vegan.

veganm (definite singular veganen, indefinite plural veganer, definite plural veganene)

Borrowed from English vegan.

veganm (definite singular veganen, indefinite plural veganar, definite plural veganane)

veganm (plural vegans or vegan)

veganc

See the original post:

vegan - Wiktionary

PeopleJohannSebastian Bach (16851750)

An enormously influential German composer whorose to prominence in the early 1700s.Best known by his contemporaries as an organist, Bach also wrotean enormous body of both sacred and secular music that synthesizeda variety of styles and in turn influenced countless later composers.

An English philosopher and statesman who developed the inductive method or Baconianmethod of scientific investigation, which stresses observationand reasoning as a means for coming to general conclusions. Baconswork influenced his later contemporary Ren Descartes.

An Italian politician who ventured into philosophy toprotest the horrible injustices that he observed in various Europeanjudicial systems. Beccarias book On Crimes and Punishments (1764)exposed these practices and led to the abolition of many.

A Czech educational and social reformer who, in responseto the Thirty Years War, made the bold move of challengingthe necessity of war in the first place. Comenius stressed toleranceand education as alternatives for war, which were revolutionaryconcepts at the time.

A French philosopher and scientist who revolutionizedalgebra and geometry and made the famous philosophical statementI think, therefore I am. Descartes developed a deductive approachto philosophy using math and logic that still remains a standardfor problemsolving.

A French scholar who was the primary editor of the Encyclopdie,a massive thirty-five-volume compilation of human knowledge in the artsand sciences, along with commentary from a number of Enlightenmentthinkers. The Encyclopdie became a prominent symbolof the Enlightenment and helped spread the movement throughout Europe.

American thinker, diplomat, and inventor who traveledfrequently between the American colonies and Europe during the Enlightenmentand facilitated an exchange of ideas between them. Franklin exertedprofound influence on the formation of the new government of theUnited States, with a hand in both the Declarationof Independence and the U.S. Constitution.

A German author who wrote near the end of the Aufklrung,the German Enlightenment. Goethes morose The Sorrows ofYoung Werther (1774)helped fuel the Sturm und Drangmovement,and his two-part Faust (1808, 1832)is seen as one of the landmarks of Western literature.

A French feminist and reformer in the waning years ofthe Enlightenment who articulated the rights of women with her Declaration ofthe Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen (1791).

A Dutch scholar who, like Czech John Comenius,lived during the Thirty Years War and felt compelledto write in response to it. The result, a treatise on war and internationalrelations titled On the Law of War and Peace (1625),eventually became accepted as the basis for the rules of modernwarfare.

A German-English composer of the late Baroque period whose Messiah remainsone of the best-known pieces of music in the world. Handel was anactive court composer, receiving commissions from such notablesas King George I of England, for whom his Water Music suitewas written and performed.

A philosopher and political theorist whose 1651 treatise Leviathan effectivelykicked off the English Enlightenment. The controversial Leviathan detailedHobbess theory that all humans are inherently self-driven and eviland that the best form of government is thus a single, all-powerfulmonarch to keep everything in order.

A Scottish philosopher and one of the most prominent figuresin the field of skepticism during the Enlightenment.Hume took religion to task, asking why a perfect God would evercreate an imperfect world, and even suggested that our own sensesare fallible, bringing all observations and truths into question.Humes skepticism proved very influential to others, such as ImmanuelKant, and was instrumental in the shift away from rationalistthought that ended the Enlightenment.

American thinker and politician who penned the Declarationof Independence (1776),which was inspired directly by Enlightenment thought.

A German skeptic philosopher who built on DavidHumes theories and brought the school of thought to an evenhigher level. Kant theorized that all humans are born with innateexperiences that then reflect onto the world, giving them a perspective.Thus, since no one actually knows what other people see, the ideaof reasoning is not valid. Kants philosophies applied the brakesto the Enlightenment, effectively denouncing reason as an invalidapproach to thought.

Generally considered the founder of the Aufklrung,orGerman Enlightenment,who injected a bit of spiritualityinto the Enlightenment with writings regarding God andhis perfect, harmonious world. Also a scientist who shared creditfor the discovery of calculus, Leibniz hated the ideaof relying on empirical evidence in the world. Instead, hedeveloped a theory that the universe consists of metaphysical buildingblocks he called monads.

An English political theorist who focused on the structureof governments. Locke believed that men are all rational and capable peoplebutmust compromise some of their beliefs in the interest of forminga government for the people. In his famous Two Treatisesof Government (1690), he championedthe idea of a representative government that would best serve allconstituents.

The foremost French political thinker of the Enlightenment,whose most influential book, The Spirit of Laws, expanded JohnLockes political study and incorporated the ideas of a divisionof state and separation of powers. Montesquieus work also venturedinto sociology: he spent a considerable amount of time researchingvarious cultures and their climates, ultimately deducing that climateis a major factor in determining the type of government a givencountry should have.

A genius Austrian composer who began his career as a childprodigy and authored some of the most renowned operas and symphoniesin history. Mozarts music has never been surpassed in its blendof technique and emotional breadth, and his musical genius placeshim in a category with a select few other composers.

An English scholar and mathematician regarded as the fatherof physical science. Newtons discoveries anchored the ScientificRevolution and set the stage for everything that followed in mathematicsand physics. He shared credit for the creation of calculus,and his Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica introducedthe world to gravity and fundamental laws ofmotion.

English-American political writer whose pamphlet CommonSense (1776)argued that the British colonies in America should rebel againstthe Crown. Paines work had profound influence on public sentimentduring the American Revolution, which had begun just monthsearlier.

A French economist whose Tableau conomique (1758)argued against government intervention in the economy and inspiredScottish economist Adam Smiths seminal Wealthof Nations (1776).

An eclectic Swiss-French thinker who brought his own approachto the Enlightenment, believing that man was at his best when unshackledby the conventions of society. Rousseaus epic The SocialContract (1762) conceived of a systemof direct democracy in which all citizens contribute to an overarchinggeneral will that serves everyone at once. Later in his life,Rousseau released Confessions(1789),which brought a previously unheard-of degree of personal disclosureto the genre of autobiography. The frank personal revelations andemotional discussions were a major cause for the shift toward Romanticism.

An influential Scottish economist who objected to thestifling mercantilistsystems that were in place duringthe late eighteenth century. In response, Smith wrote the seminal Wealthof Nations (1776),a dissertation criticizing mercantilism and describing the manymerits of a free trade system.

A Dutch-Jewish lens grinder who questionedtenets of Judaism and Christianity, which helped undermine religiousauthority in Europe. Although Spinoza personally believedin God, he rejected the concept of miracles, the religious supernatural,and the idea that the Bible was divinely inspired. Rather, he believedthat ethics determined by rational thought were more important asa guide to conduct than was religion.

A French writer and the primary satirist of the Enlightenment,who criticized religion and leading philosophies of the time. Voltaires numerousplays and essays frequently advocated freedom from the ploys ofreligion, while Candide (1759),the most notable of his works, conveyed his criticisms of optimismand superstition into a neat package.

Another name for the German Enlightenment.

A system of faith to which many of the French philosophes andother Enlightenment thinkers subscribed. Deists believedin an all-powerful God but viewed him as a cosmic watchmaker whocreated the universe and set it in autonomous motion and then neveragain tampered with it. Deists also shunned organized religion,especially Church doctrines about eternal damnation and a naturalhierarchy of existence.

A trend in European governments during the later partof the Enlightenment, in which a number of absolute monarchs adopted Enlightenment-inspiredreforms yet retained a firm grip on power. Frederick the Great ofPrussia, Maria-Theresa and Joseph II ofAustria, Charles III of Spain, and Catherinethe Great of Russia are often counted among these enlighteneddespots.

A revolution in France that overthrew the monarchy andis often cited as the end of the Enlightenment. The French Revolutionbegan in 1789 whenKing Louis XVI convened the legislature in an attempt tosolve Frances monumental financial woes. Instead, the massive middleclass revolted and set up its own government. Although this newgovernment was effective for a few years, internal dissent grew andpower switched hands repeatedly, until France plunged into the brutallyviolent Reign of Terror of 17931794.Criticssaw this violence as a direct result of Enlightenment thought andas evidence that the masses were not fit to govern themselves.

The name given to the bloodless coup dtat in Englandin 1688, whichsaw the Catholic monarch, King James II, removed fromthe throne and replaced by the Protestants William and Mary.The new monarchs not only changed the religious course of Englandand the idea of divine right but also allowed the additional personalliberties necessary for the Enlightenment to truly flourish.

One of the cornerstones of the Enlightenment, a philosophystressing the recognition of every person as a valuable individualwith inalienable, inborn rights.

The economic belief that a favorable balance of tradethatis, more exports than importswould yield more gold and silver,and thus overall wealth and power, for a country. Governments tendedto monitor and meddle with their mercantilist systems closely, which Scottisheconomist Adam Smith denounced as bad economic practicein his Wealth of Nations.

The general term for those academics and intellectualswho became the leading voices of the French Enlightenment duringthe eighteenth century. Notable philosophes included Voltaire,the Baron de Montesquieu, and Denis Diderot.

Arguably the foundation of the Enlightenment, the beliefthat, by using the power of reason, humans could arrive at truthand improve human life.

Another fundamental philosophy of the Enlightenment, which declaredthat different ideas, cultures, and beliefs had equal merit. Relativismdeveloped in reaction to the age of exploration, which increasedEuropean exposure to a variety of peoples and cultures across theworld.

A movement that surfaced near the end of the Enlightenmentthat placed emphasis on innate emotions and instincts rather thanreason, as well as on the virtues of existing in a natural state.Writers such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau and JohannWolfgang von Goethe both contributed greatly to the developmentof Romanticism.

Gathering places for wealthy, intellectually minded elitesduring the years during and prior to the Enlightenment. The salonstypically held weekly meetings where upper-class citizens gatheredto discuss the political and social theories of the day.

A gradual development of thought and approaches to thestudy of the universe that took place from approximately 1500 to 1700 and pavedthe way for the Enlightenment. Coming from humble beginnings withbasic observations, the Scientific Revolution grew to a fever pitchwhen scientists such as Galileo Galilei, RenDescartes, and Johannes Kepler entered the sceneand essentially rewrote history, disproving Church doctrines, explainingreligious miracles, and setting the world straight on all sortsof scientific principles. The result was not only new human knowledgebut also a new perspective on the acquisition of knowledge, suchas the scientific method.

A political idea, developed by John Locke andthe Baron de Montesquieu,that power in governmentshould be divided into separate branchestypically legislative,judicial, and executivein order to ensure that no one branch ofa governing body can gain too much authority.

A philosophical movement that emerged in response to rationalism andmaintained that human perception is too relative to be consideredcredible. David Hume brought skepticism into the spotlightby suggesting that human perceptions cannot be trusted, and then ImmanuelKant elevated the field when he proposed that humans are bornwith innate experiences that give shape to their own, individualworlds.

An idea in political philosophy, generally associatedwith John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau,stating that a government and its subjects enter into an implicitcontract when that government takes power. In exchange for cedingsome freedoms to the government and its established laws, the subjectsexpect and demand mutual protection. The governments authority,meanwhile, lies only in the consent of the governed.

Literally meaning storm and stress, the name given toan undercurrent of the German Enlightenment duringwhich German youths expressed their angst by rebelling against thepleasant optimism of the time. Influenced partly by JohannWolfgang von Goethes The Sorrows of Young Werther,participants in the Sturm und Drang movement harboreda depressed, more archaic idealism. Though it revealed a decidedone-sidedness of the German Enlightenment, the movement did notsustain itself for very long.

A brutal, destructive conflict in Germany between 1618 and 1648. TheThirty Years War began when Bohemian Protestants revolted out ofa refusal to be ruled by a Catholic king. The battle would eventuallyspread throughout Germany and involve many other countries on bothsides, resulting in the death of nearly a third of the German populationand unfathomable destruction. Enlightenment thinkers such as JohnComenius and Hugo Grotius reacted against the warwith treatises about education, international relations, and the natureof war itself.

Continued here:
SparkNotes: The Enlightenment (16501800): Key People & Terms

Buddhism is the practice of Buddhas teachings, also called Dharma, which means protection.

We need to practice Buddhas teachings because there is no other real method to solve human problems. For example, because modern technology often causes more suffering and dangers, it cannot be a real method to solve human problems. Although we want to be happy all the time we do not know how to do this, and we are always destroying our own happiness by developing anger, negative views and negative intentions. We are always trying to escape from problems, even in our dreams, but we do not know how to liberate ourself from suffering and problems. Because we do not understand the real nature of things, we are always creating our own suffering and problems by performing inappropriate or non-virtuous actions.

By practicing Buddhas teachings, living beings are permanently protected from suffering.

Today we can see many different forms of Buddhism, such as Zen and Theravada Buddhism. All these different aspects are practices of Buddhas teachings, and all are equally precious; they are just different presentations.

Citation (MLA): Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. Modern Buddhism. Glen Spey: Tharpa Publications, 2013.

More here:
What is Buddhism? KMC New York - kadampanewyork.org

Keywords

Knowledge; Attitude; Mental illnesses; Nigeria

Understanding mental illness in Nigeria is something that has to be taken contextually and historically. There is a large misconception and misinformation on the context of the subject amongst Nigerians. The general belief is that preternatural or supernatural forces, witches, evil spirits and even God cause mental illness [1-7]. These beliefs have influenced the attitude of Nigerians towards the mentally ill. Historically, people with mental illnesses were burned, hanged, mutilated, abandoned and restrained with chains, all in the bid to save their souls, or bring redemption to their families and curb the iniquities causing mental illness within the families [1,7]. These beliefs on the etiology of mental illness shape attitudes and have been shown to have a huge impact on the acceptance of the mentally ill amongst Nigerians [8].

Research has linked negative societal attitude with the behaviour of the mentally ill, rather than the cause of these mental illnesses [1,8,9]. Thus, mentally ill persons are frequently referred to as dangerous, suspicious, unstable, unreliable, irresponsible, and homicidal [1]. These labels on the mental behaviour of the mentally ill have aggravated stereotypes and provoked further prejudices on people with mental illnesses [9].

The impact of the stigmatizing attitude and poor knowledge of mental illness among Nigerians have shown to be a major hurdle to improving mental health in Nigeria. Current evidence points to the paucity of basic knowledge about mental illness, its causes and characteristics. This in turn affects the needed priorities on what services or facilities are required to manage them. Conversely, there is a growing evidence that changing the perception of Nigerians to mental illness will result in a better and more improved mental health care within the country [1]. This scoping review was designed in a bid to evaluate the level of peer-reviewed literature and information on the knowledge of, perceptions and attitude of Nigerians towards mental illness. The results summarize the views of Nigerians on mental health issues, challenges, existing gaps in literature and possible interventions that could help unravel this issue. It is hoped that this review will instigate feasible and practical interventions, raise policies and health education programs that will improve mental health literacy among Nigerians.

Scoping reviews are exploratory studies that systematically map literature on select topics with the goal of determining the feasibility of conducting a systematic review, summarizing and disseminating research findings to knowledge users and identifying gaps where further research may be required. As a form of synthesis, or systematic reviewing, scoping reviews are nascent and methodological frameworks being refined [10]. This scoping review employed the methodological framework and advancements put forward by several authors [11-13]. They involve six stages, which include:

1. Identifying the research question

2. Identifying relevant studies

3. Selecting the studies

4. Charting the data

5. Collating, summarizing and reporting of the results, and

6. Conducting consultation exercises (optional)

The review methodology helped provide flexibility for synthesis of a variety of study designs and article types [11,12]. Although presented in steps, the process was not linear as some steps were repeated to ensure a comprehensive assessment of the study.

Stage 1: Identification of the research question

Research questions used in scoping studies are initially broad as the focus is to summarize the breadth of evidence by linking a clear purpose to a well-defined set of literature [11]. The primary question that guided this scoping review was: What are the knowledge of and attitude towards mental disease among residents in Nigeria?

Stage 2: Identification of studies relevant to the research question

This stage involved identifying relevant studies by developing a search strategy, keywords, search sources, time span and language filters [11,12]. With the involvement of the Saskatchewan College of Medicine librarian, a broad search strategy was designed using the following keyword combinations and their synonyms: Knowledge, Attitude, Mental illness and Nigeria (Table 1). Six electronic bibliographic databases (Web of Knowledge, PUBMED/ MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, PsycINFO, and PsychARTICLES) were searched using a syntax composed of all identified keywords and their synonyms. Table 1 also provides the search strings and queries used in identifying relevant articles for the review. The initial article search was commenced on April 17, 2016 and completed on May 28, 2016. A second search was carried out from June 09 to June 10, 2016 using all identified electronic bibliographic. Thirty (30) articles were retrieved randomly based on title and abstract screening, and their references searched to avoid missing relevant articles. Hand searching of articles cited in full text articles retrieved, were completed (the snowball phenomenon). To ensure completeness, a third search was carried out from July 18 to July 20 2016 using same syntax and bibliographic databases. No grey literature was used or retrieved in this study.

Table 1: Keywords (with synonyms) and search strings used for literature search.

Citation management: All citations were imported or manually entered using the reference managers Endnote X7 and Mendeley Desktop 13.8. Associated full text articles were thereafter added to citations for further reviewing. Duplicates were removed manually after assembling citations.

Stage 3: Study selection

At this stage, the search strategy was refined based on title and/or abstracts retrieved for the initial search results. This was achieved by applying a pre-developed eligibility criteria and selection process.

Eligibility criteria: Owing to the large number of anticipated articles for this topic, this study was limited to the following;

1. Peer-reviewed journal articles,

2. Review articles written in English or English/French, and

3. Review articles that assessed a combination of any of the keywords; knowledge (or its synonyms), attitude (or synonyms), Mental illness (or its synonyms) and Nigeria.

No timeline restrictions were placed. All articles that failed to fall within these criteria were excluded.

Selection process: A two-stage selection process was used to assess the relevance of articles identified from the search. After deduplication and application of the inclusion criteria, all identified articles were manually screened for relevance by checking their titles and abstracts for identified keywords. Full text articles (FTAs) were retrieved at this stage, if they had at least one or more identified keyword combinations. The second level screening process involved reading the full text articles retrieved from the first stage to ensure selected articles reflect an answer to the research question [11]. Thus, several iterations of stages 1 to 3 occurred. The selection process was carried out by two reviewers and a reviewer agreement score calculated. The overall kappa was 0.91, which represents a high level of agreement.

Stage 4: Charting the data within included studies

This step involved reading and re-reading the full text articles from those selected to identify and chart key themes that may support or contradict ideas identified from other included scoping review articles on a standard data extraction sheet [11]. For this scoping study, a tabular spreadsheet was created using Microsoft Excel 2013 for data entry and coding. The following title fields were entered for selected scoping articles:

Author(s): Names of leading author and co-authors

Year: Year of publication in identified journal

Title: Title of publication article or research

Study design: Research design (cross-sectional, case-control, cohort, case studies, etc.)

Study type: Quantitative, qualitative or mixed study type

Setting: Location of study

Summary/Abstract

Knowledge of mental illness among residents in Nigerian community

Attitude towards mental illness among residents in Nigerian community

Comparisons noted

Study strengths

Limitations to study (Table 2).

Table 2: Summary of articles included in scoping review (n=25).

Stage 5: Collating, summarizing and reporting results of the review synthesis

This stage is aimed to provide a coherent structure from the scoping review results, so the chart, using descriptive numerical summaries and thematic analysis [11]. In this study, the data gathered was subsequently analysed thematically and quantitatively, using QSR International's NVivo 10 qualitative data analysis Software and IBM SPSS Statistics for Macintosh, Version 21.0. Results of analysis and frequency tables are displayed in Tables 2-5.

Study selection

A total of 2079 peer-reviewed articles were retrieved from the overall search; with 2063 collected from the six bibliographical databases selected, and 16 from hand-searching of references and snowball phenomenon. Following deduplication and relevance screening, 111 articles were found to meet the eligibility criteria (based on their titles and/or abstracts). All 111 Full Text Articles (FTAs) were thereafter reviewed for inclusion based on their relevance to the research question. Of the 111 FTAs read, 86 articles failed to meet these eligibility criteria, leaving a total of 25 peer-reviewed articles for inclusion into the final scoping review (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Flowchart showing selection of articles for scoping review (n=25).

Descriptive numerical summary

The overall characteristics for the scoping articles are shown in Table 3. The peer-reviewed articles included fourteen (56%) published between the years 2000 and 2010, seven (28%) published before the year 2000, and four (16%) published after the year 2010.

Table 3: General attributes of publications included in the scoping review (n=25).

Word terminologies used to describe the keywords for the search strategy in this scoping review were consistent across selected articles. Of the 25 articles, 11 (44%) articles used beliefs to describe the knowledge of mental illnesses, six (24%) used the word perception alternatively for knowledge and 8 (32%) used knowledge as keyword terminology. Similarly, 17 of the 25 (68%) articles used attitude as keyword terminology describing attitude to mental illness, and 15 (60%) used the key word terminology mental illness (Table 3). Only one article however, defined beliefs in the context of mental health. Definition of terms used was rare except where belief was described as an acceptable knowledge and a cognitive information an individual accepts about an object. In other words, a subset of knowledge [7]. The term attitudes were not defined in any selected publication.

Reported methods from scoping articles

The methodological characteristics of reviewed articles are summarized in Table 4. Twenty-four (96%) studies used crosssectional research design with one applying a community-based participatory (CBP) approach. With regards to study type, 22 (92%) were quantitative studies and two (8%) mixed studies. All data provided in these studies were primary data (Tables 2 and 4). The largest data set contained information on 2342 respondents from three different communities participating in the study [8,14].

*Refer to Table 2 for key to study titles and authors.

Table 4: Methodological characteristics of publications included in the scoping review (n=25).

Questionnaires and survey instruments were used as primary source of data collection for all identified articles including the CBP research. Focus group discussion was used in collecting qualitative data from participants in one study which also utilized standardized questionnaires [15].

Methodological strengths and limitations of the scoping articles

The methodological strengths and limitations of identified scoping studies are summarized in Table 2. Fourteen (56%) articles acknowledged possible strengths, limitations and bias with their respective studies and research designs. Notable limitations reported were poor sample size (A, B, K, M, Y), social desirability bias (D, E, L, O) and cultural differences which may influences beliefs and choices (H, I, J, O, V,). For example, in a cross-sectional quantitative study set out to determine the attitude of high school teachers to mental illness. The lack of a comparison group was dully recognised as a major limitation to the study as well as poor validity and a possible social desirability bias given that the respondents were educated and well enlightened [16].

Authors of selected scoping studies generally attributed their study strengths to the large sample sizes they got (G, H, I) and an intervention arm of the study (B). The attitudinal change ascribed to an educational program was noted to be significant in a community based intervention [17].

Although not all scoping articles reported limitations in their respective studies, we inferred further researcher limitations from the results and nature of data of these respective studies as, language biases, selection biases, reporting biases and possibly confounding especially with the mixed method studies (D, F).

Thematic analysis and study findings

We grouped the findings of the scoping review into two groups; 1) Knowledge of mental illnesses among Nigerians and 2) Attitude towards mental illness among Nigerians. Results for each are summarized in Table 5.

*Refer to Table 2 for key to study titles and authors

Table 5: Overview summary of major primary outcomes in Knowledge and Attitude towards the mentally ill described in publications included in the scoping review (N=25).

Knowledge of mental illnesses among Nigerians: Knowledge, perceptions and beliefs of Nigerians about mental health and illness was assessed quantitatively in all of the scoping articles (92% (23/25) assessed purely quantitatively and 2/25(8%) assessed both qualitatively and quantitatively). Standardized structured questionnaires like the Familiarity with mental illness questionnaire (B), the Opinion on Mental Illness (OMI) scale(T,U), the Taylor and Dear Inventory of Community Attitude to Mental Illness(CAMI) (A,W), the modified version of Bogardus Social Distance Scale(B,G), the Discrimination and Stigma Scale (DISC 12) (F) and the Community Screening Interview for Dementia and Blessed Dementia Scale(Y) among other tested survey instruments were used to assess the knowledge of and attitude towards mental illness.

After analysing results of individual articles across all 25 scoping articles, we categorized the knowledge of causal attribution of mental illness based on common responses to;

a) Medical-which included hereditary, brain dysfunction, and other biological factors,

b) Supernatural- witchcraft, juju (sorcery), evil spirits, divine punishment, etc. and

c) Psychosocial-poverty, stress, drugs and alcohol abuse, traumatic event, shock, etc.

The most common causal attribution to mental illness noted was ascribed to supernatural causes. This was reported as a primary outcome for knowledge of causes of mental illness in 36% (9/25) (A,C,E,H,K,N,Q,R,X). Six articles (24%) recorded psychosocial causes (I,J,K,O,P,W) as a major cause of mental illness while only two articles (8%) reported medical causes (D,Y).

Several studies also assessed the knowledge and preference of treatment options for people with mental illness, in addition to knowledge and attitude. Of the 25 articles scoped, six (24%) expressed a preference for unorthodox (traditional) treatment options (C,N,O,Q,R,X) while 20% (5/25) expressed a preference for orthodox (western) treatment options (D,L,P,W,Y). Mental illness was generally viewed in a bad light Nigerians, in articles reviewed. Three scoping articles (12%) reported a bad prognosis of mental illness as one of the primary outcomes assessing the knowledge of prognosis of mental health (H,J,V) (Table 5).

Attitude towards mental illness among Nigerians: The scoping review also scoped the attitude of Nigerians towards people with mental illness. After analysing data charts from all 25 scoping articles, we thematically categorized attitude(s) of Nigerians towards mental illness into seven categories (Table 5);

a) Social distance and avoidance: This is the degree to which someone is willing to accept or associate with people having different social characteristics-in this case mental illnesses [14,18].

b) Marriage stigma: This included the willingness to marry, to stay in marriage or be given in marriage to someone with mental illness.

c) Job entrustment stigma: This included the freedom for a mentally ill person to work among or be employed among healthy or non-mentally ill persons.

d) Perceived dangerousness: This is the perception that an individual with a mental illness is extremely dangerous [18,19].

e) Social acceptance: This included acceptance at work, home and society where they lived in)

f) Sympathy: The awareness of someones distress and expressed compassion for them [1]

g) Indifference: A condition in which the person is unconcerned with symptoms of others [20]

The most prevalent attitude expressed as a primary outcome from all 25 articles scoped was social distance and avoidance (B,C,F,G,H,I,J,K,L,M,Q,S,W). Social distance was expressed in 52% (13/25) of scoping articles. Following that was perceived dangerousness due to fear, anger or mistrust towards mentally ill persons (A,B,F,H,J,L,O,P,T,U,V,W). Perceived dangerousness was expressed in twelve (48%) of scoping articles. Marriage stigma was recorded in 16% (4/25) of scoping articles (C,L,O,S). Job entrustment stigma (C,L), Social acceptance(O,L) and sympathy (O,D) were noted as primary outcomes of attitude towards mental illness in 8% (2/25) of scoping articles respectively. Only one article recorded and indifference to mental illness (L) (Table 5).

This scoping review applied a systematic approach to assess the knowledge and attitude toward mental illness by Nigerians. The findings show some cross-cultural variations, however, still similar in outcomes. Evaluating attitude towards mental illness through the knowledge of the causes of mental illness was critical and important for future service organization. Such findings have linked causal attribution and stigmatising attitude to mental illness [8,21,22]. Results from the scoping review showed a poor knowledge and widespread belief that mental illnesses were caused by supernatural forces including sorcery, witchcraft and punishment from God for sins. Culturally, Nigerians regardless of education seem to adhere in varying degrees to a belief in supernatural causation for any illness or outcome [20]. Results from the scoping review even showed that this belief was not limited to the public alone, but also popular among the workers in health care sectors (A,J,K,M,S,T,U,W,X). A belief in supernatural causation project people with mental illness as dangerous and distasteful [8].

Psychological causes such as alcohol, drugs and substance abuse, stress, and trauma were also implicated as common causes of mental illness. Again, this is a common belief among Nigerians who tend to attribute mental illness causation to psychological or social influences.

The downside to this view is that it tends to instigate more stigmatization rather than sympathy as the society views the mental illnesses as being self-inflicted or self-deserving [1,4,20,22]. All these objectionable views and beliefs on causes of mental illness by Nigerians, further complicates the preference for type of care. A supernatural view of the cause of mental illness will imply that unorthodox (traditional) means of treatment supersedes the orthodox means. Hence, spiritualists and traditional healers are then patronized. Although results from our scoping review showed that a few studies reported preference for a combination of both treatment options (J,Q,R), it is likely that the element of cultural misconception, which has been shown in the Nigerian society to affect their health seeking behaviour, may still make them choose the traditional means of treatment over the western approach. This behaviour doesnt only relate in reference to mental illness but in other illness types. The issue is that a lot of Nigerians who have lost hope in the health-care system, will resort to spiritual answers by going to prayer houses, traditional healers and spiritualists. No articles were found comparing the treatment approaches. Findings of such studies potentially will reduce stigma and impact attitudinal beliefs about mental illness.

Although studies have claimed that there is less stigmatizing attitude towards mental illness in Nigeria [23], this scoping study showed otherwise. Several studies have shown that stigmatizing attitude to mental illness is significantly associated with stereotypes and discrimination [1,21]. It was concerning the report that the Nigerians seem to despise people with mental disorders more than their illnesses (D,F,G,H,I). Overall, negative views were expressed in all scoping articles reviewed in this study (A-Y). In some studies, negative attitude expressed were indicative of age, gender, educational or economic status (A,B,C,F,G,H,I,J,K,L,M,Q,S,W). A notable article was a study carried out in Lagos, Nigerias most populous state, supposedly laden with the educated and elite (F). Results from this study revealed a widespread negative attitude towards mental illness even after previous studies may have said otherwise [3]. The most common views about the mentally ill reported from the scoping review, was perceived dangerousness (A,B,F,H,J,L,O,P,T,U,V,W) and social distance (B,C,F,G,H,I,J,K,L,M,Q,S,W). Studies have shown that these two negative views stimulate social resentment [21] and foster social distance [14,15]. Regrettably, there were also no changes in knowledge and attitude views over time, comparing older articles (below the year 2000) and newer articles (abover the year 2000).

There were a few research gaps observed from this scoping review. One striking observation was a rarity of studies carried out in the eastern part of Nigeria. Nigeria is a culturally assorted country with dissimilarities in access to mental health services which could affect knowledge and attitude to mental illness [24]. Nevertheless, several studies among other ethnic groups in this scoping review have suggested a widespread poor knowledge of and attitude towards mental illness which have been shown to have a strong validity and reliability (A,B,C,E,J,K,L,M,N,O,P, Q,R,T,U,X,Y). Secondly, the focus on mental illness as a general term rather than on specific mental disorder may have created a bias to respondents in individual studies, who have little or no knowledge about the term mental illness or may possess a narrow view of what the term means.

However, the findings of this scoping review support observations from other studies done outside Nigeria even though methodological differences may preclude comparability [25-30]. This corroborates the notion that stigma is a universal phenomenon, but experiences are local [27]. Thus, the need for mental health literacy is a global subject. The impact of education on the knowledge and attitude of Nigerians to mental illness was studied in a few of the scoping reviews (B,I,K,M,P,S,U,W,X,Y) and showed that mental health literacy was significantly associated with positive attitude towards mental illness. It has been said that an increase in literacy and education regarding the mental health and illnesses, will result in an improvement in attitude toward people with mental illness [8] as mental health illiteracy is a renowned source of stigmatizing attitude towards the mentally ill [22]. A potential direction this finding leads is the need to demonstrate effective interventions so as to curb the attitudinal excesses [40].

The outcome of this scoping review is a validation of a chronic widespread public stigmatization of the mentally ill. This demonstrates the need for mental health literacy in all levels of education. A better understanding of mental illness would significantly improve knowledge and attitude towards mentally ill persons. There is an urgent necessity, to improve the health care system in Nigeria, by developing strategies that would improve mental health literacy, and change stigmatizing attitude at both institutional and community levels. This will in the long run improve the quality of the societal attitude towards mental illness and the socio-economy of the mentally ill.

One practical yet feasible way to improve literacy in mental health, is by instituting age-appropriate school-based educational programmes. Although complexities may arise in creating these educational programs, reason being that stigmatizing attitude and beliefs in supernatural causation have been shown to still exist among educated health workers, however, its a good place to start from. Another practical recommendation is to increase psychiatry clerkship rotations for medical students, beyond 4 weeks. This will help familiarize students more with mental health diseases outside their pre-conceived misconceptions. In addition, it is necessary to encourage health workers (nurses, psychologists, psychiatrists and other health care professionals) to show positive attitude towards mentally ill persons as this play an important role in influencing their response to treatment. Missing in the scoping review was the role of the media in propagating attitudinal observation or changes. Future studies to examine how the media can play a role in education or reducing stigma.

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This book is written for people wanting to understand basic Buddhist principles and how to integrate them into their lives. . . . It will be of much benefit to its readers.H.H. the Dalai Lama

Thubten Chodron has presented the Buddhist view on essential issues of spiritual development. . . . A tremendous resource for those interested in Buddhist practice.Karma Lekshe Tsomo, president of Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women

Chodrons plain English makes her beginners guide nearly perfect for those new to Buddhism and those who simply want to learn more.Booklist

A very compassionate book. Her approach is nonsectarian and emphasizes the basic unity found within Buddhism.Ryo Imamura, Jodo Shin priest and professor of psychology at Evergreen State College

Her lucid, correct, clear, and convincing manner is highly commendable.Ven. Dr. Havanpola Ratanasara, College of Buddhist Studies, Los Angeles

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Getting organizational culture right is as difficult as it is critical. Doshi and McGregor provide numerous real-world recommendations for how to do this. They bring to bear years of hands-on experience that will prove invaluable to leaders in all sectors-corporate, non-profit, and public. (-Joel Klein, CEO Amplify, former Chancellor NYC public schools.)

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In the modern world the approach to selling has changed and our sales training has to change with it. Clients arent looking for salespeople who do business, they are looking for business people who sell. Utilising the BARRETT methodology, we provide programs and workshops that assist you in developing an empowered, high performance business sales team that consistently reach and exceed the goals and targets they have been set.

The fact is if you improve yourself then you improve your life and if you improve your people then you improve your business thats why we train. Whether you are talking life, sport or business the power to succeed is in your hands.

The purpose of Barrett's Sales Training is to give everyone access to the skills, processes, tools and personal insight we all need to be able to proactively and consistently sell ourselves effectively. That means we need to be able to act ethically and confidently in any situation - whether we are in a traditional sales environment, professional services or just need to communicate internally. Since 1995, we have researched and synthesised a vast array of information and distilled it into practical easy-to-apply processes that you can use every day to make decisions about how you work and relate with others. In addition, we have researched and defined the core behavioural competencies that underpin our sales training.

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Dont worry about getting enough protein.Courtesy of Olives for Dinner

If youre trying to become a vegan, rich sources of concentrated protein include beans, soy products like tofu andseitan, quinoa, nuts, and hemp seeds, says Moran. Plus, there are vegan protein powders you can add to water and shakes. As long as you include these staples along with protein-rich veggies like asparagus, cauliflower, and broccoli, you should meet your daily requirements.

Pictured: Spicy Fava Bean Falafel on Olives for Dinner

Many who claim to be vegetarian or vegan are really starch-atarians filling meat voids with pasta, fries, bread, and other non-plant substitutes, says Ashayla Patterson of the bakery Sweet Artique. Try to eat more healthy, whole foods to give your body the vital nutrients and antioxidants it needs.

When you remove animal products you lose a lot of the fat and salt, which is often what contributes to the cant-put-it-down taste, says Kroecher. He likes to add rich, complex flavors with walnuts, avocados, pine nuts, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, fresh basil, cold-pressed flax seed oil, and unrefined grey or pink sea salt. Other ingredients to consider include nuts, dried fruits, protein powder, chia or hemp seeds, and Spirulina, a protein-dense freshwater algae.

Pictured: Vegan Apple Tart on 86Lemons

Many staples of a vegan diet like grains, beans, and nuts are cheap, and they usually store well if you buy them in bulk. Bechter also suggests you join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture); shop at farmers markets an hour before closing for discounts; and visit VeganCuts.com for dailydeals and discounts on vegan food and lifestyleproducts. You can also find more grocery shopping tips in the bookEat Vegan on $4 a Day, by Ellen Jaffe Jones, or at the site Plant Based on a Budget.

Pictured: Farmers Market Tacos on Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes

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Becoming Vegan: 12 Tips from the Experts | Reader's Digest

What does it mean to be human in a technologically enhanced world? Humanity+ is a 501(c)3 international nonprofit membership organization that advocates the ethical use of technology, such as artificial intelligence, to expand human capacities. In other words, we want people to be better than well. This is the goal of transhumanism.

Humannity+ Advocates for Safe and Ethical Use: Technologies that intervene with human physiology for curing disease and repairing injury have accelerated to a point in which they also can increase human performance outside the realms of what is considered to be normal for humans. These technologies are referred to as emerging and speculative and include artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, nanomedicine, biotechnology, genetic engineering, stem cell cloning, and transgenesis, for example. Other technologies that could extend and expand human capabilities outside physiology include artificial intelligence, artificial general intelligence, robotics, and brain-computer integration, which form the domain of bionics, uploading, and could be used for developing whole body prosthetics. Because these technologies, and their respective sciences and strategic models, such as blockchain, would take the human beyond the normal state of existence, society, including bioethicists and others who advocate the safe use of technology, have shown concern and uncertainties about the downside of these technologies and possible problematic and dangerous outcomes for our species.

CURRENT PROJECTS: Humanity+ @ Beijing Conference; Blockchain Prize; Humanity+ @ The Assemblage New York City; TransVision 2018 Madrid, Spain.

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