A Space to Speak: Therapeutic Theater to Address Gender-Based Violence.

This article examines the experience of eight graduate students in the drama therapy program at Lesley University when creating and performing a theater piece centered around gender-based violence. The performance piece, A Space to Speak, used the performers' real-life stories to highlight their vastly different, yet strikingly similar, experiences and invited the audience to examine their own relationship to those stories. A description of the process used to create and perform the piece is followed by a discussion of the impact the process had on the performers and audience members.

Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and the treatment of depression.

Depression is a common, recurrent, and debilitating illness that has become more prevalent over the past 100 years. This report reviews the etiology and pathophysiology of depression, and explores the role of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA) as a possible treatment. In seeking to understand depression, genetic factors and environmental influences have been extensively investigated. Research has led to several hypotheses for the pathophysiological basis of depression but a definitive pathogenic mechanism, or group thereof, has hitherto remained equivocal. To date, treatment has been based on the monoamine hypothesis and hence, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors have been the most widely used class of medication. In the last decade, there has been considerable interest in n-3 PUFAs and their role in depression. These fatty acids are critical for development and function of the central nervous system. Increasing evidence from epidemiological, laboratory, and randomized placebo-controlled trials suggests deficiency of dietary n-3 PUFAs may contribute to development of mood disorders, and supplementation with n-3 PUFAs may provide a new treatment option. Conclusions based on systematic reviews and meta-analyses of published trials to date vary. Research into the effects of n-3 PUFAs on depressed mood is limited. Furthermore, results from such have led to conflicting conclusions regarding the efficacy of n-3 PUFAs in affecting reduction in symptoms of depression. PUFAs are generally well tolerated by adults and children although mild gastrointestinal effects are reported. There is mounting evidence to suggest that n-3 PUFAs play a role in depression and deserve greater research efforts.

Walnuts (Juglans regia) Chemical Composition and Research in Human Health.

Walnuts are among the most widely consumed commercially grown tree nuts in the world. Many health benefits have been claimed for the consumption of these, including reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, type II diabetes treatment, and prevention and treatment of certain cancers, and the lessening of symptoms attributed to age-related and other neurological disorders. The health-promoting benefits of walnut consumption are ascribed to its fatty acid profile, which is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids with a particularly high ω3:ω6 ratio-the highest among all the tree nuts. The content of polyphenols and other phytochemicals in walnuts, with their claimed cytotoxic properties, also make them an attractive candidate for research for the prevention of free radical-induced nucleic acid damage. Research of walnut consumption in humans and animals employing a range of data sets and statistical methods suggest that walnuts may be considered a safe potential nutraceutical or possibly pharmaceutical substance. Nevertheless, few reviews of scientific research on the proposed benefits of these nuts exist, in spite of the numerous claims attributed to them in the lay media. This brief review article attempts to disseminate much of the information surrounding walnut consumption, and human health benefits, to other scientists and the interested general reader.