Dopamine Fasting
By Natalie Zhu compliments of the Village Pulse

Dopamine fasting sounds like it belongs to the category of “popular healthy diets” such as the Atkins diet, the Zone diet, the paleo diet, and the raw food diet. However, dopamine fasting doesn’t just involve giving up food- it involves taking a break from social media, shopping, video games and any other pleasurable activities we regularly indulge in. 

So, what exactly is dopamine fasting? The basic idea is to temporarily abstain from the usual stimulations of life such as social media, video games, mouthwatering foods, and Netflix in order to reset our dopamine levels.  This trend was popularized by Dr. Cameron Sepah, who states how “taking a break from behaviors that trigger strong amounts of dopamine release allows our brain to recover and restore itself.  Dr. Sepah primarily focuses on six compulsive behaviors -- with some examples being emotional eating, excessive internet usage, and shopping. In this case, dopamine fasting may allow us to become less dominated by unhealthy stimuli that are mentioned above. Instead of automatically responding to reward-cues like a text message or a notification button, we should allow our brains to take breaks to reset from “this potentially addictive bombardment” (Grinspoon). Thus, dopamine fasting’s main intent is to reset our brain’s reward system; by freeing ourselves from our usual stimulations, we will not only regain control of our lives but also be better able to address compulsive behaviors that these activities may cause. 

Dopamine functions as a neurotransmitter and is heavily involved in the motivational component of reward-motivated behavior. The brain’s reward system can learn certain cues in the environment we associate with potential rewards over time (Mccabe). For example, being in a bakery while thinking about cookies may raise our dopamine levels. However, there are many misconceptions about dopamine fasting even within its own name. Even though dopamine does rise in response to rewards and positive stimulations, it doesn’t actually decrease when you avoid partaking in these activities. Thus, the dopamine fast does not actually lower our dopamine levels and you can’t “fast” from a neurotransmitter. However, too little dopamine can result in disorders like Parkinson’s Disease, which include symptoms of muscle rigidity, stiffness, and difficulty of balance and coordination; hence, too little dopamine may also not be a good thing. In addition to this, some people have misinterpreted dopamine as if it was like heroin or cocaine. These people are fasting in order to give themselves a “tolerance break” so the pleasure of whatever they are depriving themselves of (food, social media, or video games) “will be more intense or vivid when consumed again” (Grinspoon). Unfortunately, dopamine does not function that way.

However, fasting in a minimally disruptive way can be a great technique to reduce stress and possibly engage in other more simplistic activities. The original intent behind dopamine fasting was to allow us to disconnect from our technologically driven world and allow us to reconnect with ourselves and others. However, radical extremes such as not eating any food or not listening to any music, can not only stress oneself even more but can also disturb their lifestyles and the environment around them. As a whole, however, taking a timeout for mental health is a great way to reconnect ourselves, but completely cutting ourselves out from all pleasurable experiences in our life is not. While dopamine fasting may not be the total solution to solve our smartphone addiction, it is still important to practice mindfulness and resist temptation sometimes. So instead of instinctively reaching for our phones when we hear that bell notification, we should pause and think about it -- and maybe even go out for a simple walk instead. 

References:

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/dopamine-fasting-misunderstanding-science-spawns-a-maladaptive-fad-2020022618917

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sacramento-street-psychiatry/202002/debunking-dopamine-fasting

https://www.livescience.com/is-there-science-behind-dopamine-fasting-trend.html

https://www.healthline.com/health-news/what-is-dopamine-fasting#Can-a-dopamine-fast-cure-you-of-smartphone-addiction?

https://www.sciencealert.com/dopamine-fasting-is-silicon-valley-s-latest-trend-here-s-what-an-expert-has-to-say

This article is provided by The Village Pulse, The NYC Pain Specialists Blog.  Karan Johar, M.D. | Executive Editor, Cherry Lam | Chief Medical Editor, Sherry Chow | Assistant Healthcare Editor, Nathalia Schettino | Assistant Wellness Editor.  The information in these articles are written by student interns interested in medical careers. As such please do not take the information described in these informational bulletins as medical advice. If you need treatment, please contact a certified medical health professional to address your issue.

Passover Project Challenge Letter and Post-Seder Update
By Gary Smith and Harvey Braunstein

Hello all.

I offer you a challenge.  Namely, what I will call "The Passover Project".

My thesis is that the world as we know it is changing before our eyes.  Whatever we took for granted needs to be rethought -- how we communicate with each other, how we share, how we come together in a world that is pushing us apart.  All this has to be rethought and that, too, is happening before our eyes.

While our Passover Seder is officially behind us, the challenge remains.  As do our reflections about what we either just experienced or caused to experience via for most of us a Zoom Conferencing.

There is this nagging reality that for many of us, we have taken the idea of a Passover as a given.  There will always be one next year.  And so, many of the things we may have wanted to say, most especially to our children, either didn't get said or got said only in part. Because there was always a next year.

What I would like each of you to do is to try to put in writing what you want your children to know about why Passover is so important to you.  Not something generalized or theoretical.  Rather, what makes it so important to me.  And what of this do I want to make sure I communicate to you. If this is our last shot, then what do we want to make sure we have conveyed.

While I am leaving this fairly vague and open-ended, I am asking you to start with the words, “My Dear Children.”  That will serve as the focus of what you want to say.

Set aside the Haggadah, even the ones you may have written yourself.  We can get to that later.  Let's try to focus on the assumption that for many of us, our children cannot always travel to be with us on Passover.  But there is a certain group of somethings we want them to always hold dear and be able to share when it is their turn to lead their own seders.

For those who have created stories or explanations or essays of their own, we can create an appendix for those pieces.  The same for essays or articles written by others that have become favorites of yours or "go-to's" over the years.

There is a requested deadline of a week from when you receive this note.  While you can always amend, the best is going to be that which is freshest. Feel free to refer to this most recent seder as inspiration. Not only what you did, but also what you realize you didn’t do and realize with regret that this may have to wait until next year.

So, dip your quill into your inkwell and let’s get started.

Please send your letters to Gary Smith at gvet@me.com.  We will coalesce the letters and be able to share them with as many as possible.  Each letter that is written will serve as something special to help others think about this. This is another way to assure the Passover and the Holocaust will never be forgotten

Happy Hunting, Harvey Braunstein

Warm Regards, Gary Smith

THE POWER OF 5G AND AUTONOMOUS TECHNOLOGIES
Getting in early and riding the coming wave
By Gary Smith

First, I want to thank Richard Gray, our editor.  He has been meticulous, passionate, and dedicated to putting out a newsletter that is informative, articulate, and fortuitous   If you believe the HWR newsletter has provided you value please share it with your friends and family.  We are proud of the topics and the information that we provide. We hope you feel the same 

All of us have been hearing about 5G for the last couple of years.  It has come in many forms.  If you look back at past HWR newsletters, I have reviewed the first 2 parts of the 5G rollout.  In this issue, I want to expose you to the power of what 5G will mean to our society from an automotive viewpoint.  When I researched the information on 5G and 5G companies I was astounded with the changes coming.  Please believe change is coming and actually is here.

Remember the changes enabled by 4G including video conferencing, new technology in cars, smartphones and their development as well as Google Maps, etc.  Well, 5G will eclipse this to the point our lives will totally change, and it will happen quicker than we think.

Let’s start with the automobile industry and the effects it will have on the rest of businesses and society.  This is happening quickly.  I am hopefully giving you some thoughts for how you want to invest or divest in future companies and industries. Or just exposing you to the here and now.  Actually, it is happening now as we learn to make better use of our roads through continuous 5G connectivity between cars, to the automotive infrastructure, infotainment and even to other road users like cyclists and pedestrians

The new wave of transportation will be what is called TaaS, Transportation as a Service.  There will be an extreme domino effect on our society. Let me explain.  TaaS is moving so fast that pockets of change using autonomous vehicles are beginning to dominate.  Autonomous vehicles are those that are self-driving and electric.  Much of the research over the last 20 years has developed into 5G capabilities.  5G infrastructure outbuilding was pacing progress.  5G will be to our lives like the internet was in the early and late ’90s.  You have some of the most powerful companies in the world researching these vehicles.  In Arizona 50,000 autonomous vehicles are already on the road as Uber and Lyft taxis.  One would think this will happen 10 years from now, but it is upon us now and moving fast.  Singapore, China and other countries are adopting this technology rapidly. Tesla and other automobile companies have primitive forms of autonomous cars right now.  The financial markets are forward-looking. The stocks of these companies are moving so fast that it may become too late in the next 6 months to participate. 

What was the last new American automobile company?  DeLorean? Chrysler?  It has been a while and now there are several each looking to grab a part of the electric car market with unique visions.  The elephant in the room is Tesla and it is as much a computer, software, and battery technology company as classic automobile company.  Among others in the USA and elsewhere, Rivian and Waymo each have their visions and strengths as they redefine personal transportation.  Remember the horse and buggy?  It was taken over by horseless carriages in part because of the preponderance of horse manure.  Oats and manure were replaced by gasoline 100 years ago and now gas is being replaced by renewable electricity.  As was then, change is heavily driven by health and pollution issues!  I bet there were competitions 120 years ago between horses and horseless carriages for which could go fastest, and which could out-pull the other in a tug of war.

Here is the domino effect.  Harbor Airlines-will begin flying electric planes (not hybrid) as part of their flights totally bypassing oil-based jet fuel.  Within the next 2-5 years, new cars and trucks will be mostly autonomous electric vehicles.  As this happens oil will be less and less important. It will be needed in plastics and other things but not cars and not planes.  Cars will cost much less to run-and more people will not need to own a car because on demand an autonomous vehicle will drive to their front door, pick them up and drop them off at their destination.  Insurance costs will drop as autonomous cars have been shown to reduce accidents by 80% -- since 80% of accidents are caused by human error.

Many industries will suffer but new more environmentally friendly industries will expand - with or without government incentives.  Big investors are already selling their oil company investments. There is so much more on this but now let’s look at some companies that have invested in and are beginning to roll out autonomous vehicle technology.

#1  Tesla – is one of those companies, like Microsoft in the 1990s, that will always be too expensive to buy and always increase in value.  Of course, it could end up like Digital Equipment Company.

#2   Google - rivals or exceeds Tesla in self-driving experience through its Waymo subsidiary.  It still has to disclose its source of body and wheels.  Waymo will probably then be spun off from Google.

#3  Aptiv PLC (APTV) - provides the electrical or nervous system of many of these new vehicles.

#4  Nvidia - provides computing power and design graphics for autonomous vehicles, though Tesla has gone off on its own.  There are 5 levels of autonomous vehicles.  We are just beginning to reach the 3rd level   Nvidia already has a level 3 in operation with the Audi A8

#5   Qualcomm - has developed the Lincoln and Mercedes autonomous vehicles (ATV).

#6   Intel - provides digital technology to BMW, Ferrari and Volkswagen.

#7   Baidu (Chinese) – provides digital technology to Ford and Chrysler (Fiat).

#8   Apple- has a presence yet to be fully defined.

#9   Amazon - has several big autonomous vehicle investments, particularly in delivery trucks.

#10  Panasonic -  and other companies in the battery/energy storage, distribution and clean generation businesses will thrive..

There are many other companies and industries involved but I have just named a few.  This is not a suggestion to buy these companies but exposure to what is happening before our eyes.  This is a 10 trillion-dollar technology that is growing in scope and influence.  Speak with your advisors ASAP. This is a wave you can still get into early and ride to new financial heights.

Stay healthy and stay safe, Gary

I hope you have enjoyed this article. I tried to give you a little exposure to this technology.  I am continuing to do more research on the TaaS subject. Let me know your thoughts and interests for future issues.  Please email me at gsmith@fjmc.org with any questions or comments.