Leading edge scientists, psychologists and other health professionals gathered as a pioneering researcher, as well as a new branch of science, were honored in a groundbreaking event in Los Angeles, on May 29th.

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It’s unlikely that there was a conventional thinker in the hotel ballroom when the first annual Epigenetic Medicine Award was presented in Los Angeles on Thursday night[1]. Leading edge scientists, psychologists and other health professionals gathered as a pioneering researcher, as well as a new branch of science, were honored in a groundbreaking event.

While the current medical/science model is entrenched in Newtonian physics, and is based on matter, to the exclusion of invisible forces, Epigenetics has emerged as a quantum science.

 

According to Soul Medicine Institute (SMI), “Epigenetics is the new science describing influences that alter the expression of genes.” Epi- means above; so epigenetic means control of DNA from above or outside the gene.  SMI notes that, “New research shows that consciousness (beliefs, feelings, prayer, energy, thought) may have epigenetic effects.”

Dawson Church, Ph.D. notes that, “the picture ingrained in the public mind (is) that genes determine everything from our physical characteristics to our behavior. Even many scientists still speak from the assumption that our genes form an immutable blueprint that our cells must forever follow.[2]” However, the new science of epigenetics tells us that “genes are merely blueprints, and it is the environment … that determines genetic expression,[3]” according to cellular biologist Bruce Lipton, Ph.D.

One of the keynote speakers at the awards event, Lipton’s topic, The Biological Musings of a Free Radical, was peppered with humor, as he passionately shared a complex subject with the eager audience. Lipton’s pioneering stem cell research began in the late 60s. His research at Stanford University’s School of Medicine, between 1987 and 1992, revealed that the environment, operating through the membrane (of the cell), controlled the behavior and physiology of the cell, turning genes on and off.

Lipton’s discoveries, which ran counter to the established scientific view that life is controlled by the genes, presaged the new science of Epigenetics.

The historic, first Epigenetic Medicine Award went to Randy Jirtle, Ph.D., director of the Laboratory of Epigenetics and Imprinting at Duke University. Dr. Jirtle is a professor of radiation oncology at the school's medical center. His witty presentation cited his groundbreaking research with agouti mice, which proved that a mother's diet during pregnancy can influence gene expression in her offspring by altering the epigenome.

In the photo, the two agouti mice are genetically identical. However, the blond mouse is obese and predisposed to diabetes and cancer. The brown mouse is the healthy result of a change in the mother’s diet. The groundbreaking findings showed that a diet that has been nutritionally enhanced can result in changes in genetic expression of offspring, as explained in a 2006 Discover magazine article about Jirtle’s research, which was aptly titled, DNA is Not Destiny: The New Science of Epigenetics Rewrites the Rules of Disease, Heredity and Identity.[4]

Jirtle gratefully accepted the award for himself and the Duke University lab, and also expressed his appreciation for the recognition of the fledgling science of Epigenetics.

Sponsors of the awards ceremony and workshop presenters at the event included leaders in the energy psychology and energy medicine fields. Epigenetics and energy medicine both recognize the primary role of environment and belief in health and wellbeing.

In their book, The Promise of Energy Psychology, David Feinstein, Ph.D., Donna Eden, and Gary Craig explain how energy psychology methods such as Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) work. When our emotions are triggered by a harmless sight, sound, smell, feeling or thought, that trigger connects us to a memory of a previous experience relating to physical danger or emotional threat.  The trigger is recognized by the primitive area of the brain called the amygdala, which sends impulses to the autonomic nervous system that elicits a “fight, flight, or freeze” response in the body, resulting in both physical sensations and anger, fear, or the inability to take action.  However, in between the memory and the emotional response to it, there is a disturbance in the body’s energy.  In EFT, a series of acupuncture points are physically stimulated by tapping with the fingers to send impulses to the amygdala.  These impulses cause a reduction in the number of neural connections between the image and the alarm response, and often, after one or more repetitions of this procedure, the situation can be remembered with no emotional charge. 

Gary Craig, creator of EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques),[5]  one of the most well known methods of energy psychology, also presented at the two-day event.  He said that over one million copies of his free manual have been downloaded from his website, and over 400,000 subscribers receive his email newsletters. Craig said, “In my opinion, every health practitioner on the planet should consider skillfully using a form of energy medicine, such as EFT, before prescribing drugs, surgery, radiation or other invasive procedures. In my estimation and based on my observations, if this was done, it would reduce the cost of health care in the U.S. by 80 percent.”

Another presenter, the exuberant Donna Eden, author of Energy Medicine, said that “Energy is the very best medicine for your body.  It is the oldest, safest, organic, most effective medicine on earth …. Energy medicine is both a complement to other approaches to medical care, and a complete system for self-care and self-help. It can address physical illness and mental disorders, and it can also promote high-level wellness and peak performance.”

Eden notes that Mehmet Oz, M.D., of Columbia University, recently stated on Oprah, “Energy medicine is the next big frontier in medicine.”

And through the groundbreaking work of Dr. Jirtle, Dr. Lipton, and other gifted professionals, the science of epigenetics is opening the doors to new understandings of health and wellness.

The event raised funds for the following research projects:

The Iraq Vets Stress Project. This project studies the biochemistry of stress in Iraq veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder or PTSD, and brief treatments that have been scientifically demonstrated to dramatically improve their physical and psychological health. More information is available at www.StressProject.org

The Clinical Case History Database. This database, compliant with National Institutes of Health (NIH) standards for case history reporting, aggregates cases of remission and healing using Energy Psychology methods. www.CaseHistoryDatabase.org

The Effects of Healing Emotional Trauma on Physical Function. This study examines shifts in pain and physical function that accompany the resolution of major emotional traumas in an individual's life.

Seed Grant Funding for Research through ACEP, the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology. This innovative program provides seed grants of $3,000 to $5,000 for studies that advance the field of Energy Psychology. Proposals are reviewed annually, and the ACEP research committee works actively with grant recipients to ensure a high quality of research. www.energypsych.org

ACEP accepts donations to be used to support research.  ACEP, 303 Park Avenue South, Suite 1051, New York, NY, 10010, USA.

The author thanks Norma Eckroate for invaluable contributions to this article.

RESOURCES:

 www.epiaward.com 

Dr. Bruce Lipton's site: www.brucelipton.com/   

Donna Eden's site: www.innersource.net 

Dr. Randy Jirtle's website: www.geneimprint.com

Dr. Dawson Church's site: www.soulmedicineinstitute.org/  

Fiber artist Nancy Jirtle's website: http://www.cyberfibres.com/  

A clinical trial of PTSD in Iraq Vets is currently underway at Marshall University, sponsored by Soul Medicine Institute. It is a random, blind, controlled study. Vets are given a group of psychological tests, and their stress biochemistry (cortisol, a primary stress hormone, and DHEA, a cell repair hormone) is measured. They are then given four treatments with Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), after which their psychological state and stress biochemistry is measured again. They are also tested after six months, to determine if any effects of treatment are lasting and permanent. SMI is setting up a network of therapists to treat veterans and their families at low or no cost. SMI is also funding outcome studies of Energy Psychology to treat Iraq veterans with PTSD, and also other emotional traumas. Please consider making a donation to Soul Medicine Institute, PO Box 442, Fulton, CA 95439. 707 237 6951.

A veteran who has been in conventional therapy for 30 years, trying to processes the emotional trauma of having shot a youth who walked toward him with an armed grenade, still describes his PTSD as severe. Gary Craig does an EFT session with him, and the veteran  reports a complete resolution of his stress: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEOq0EoHR4Y  

http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/health/display.var.1444212.0.0.php?act=login

Authors Website: http://www.OceanViewArts.com

Authors Bio:

Meryl Ann Butler is an artist, author, educator and OpedNews Managing Editor who has been actively engaged in utilizing the arts as stepping-stones toward joy-filled wellbeing since she was a hippie. She began writing for OpEdNews in Feb, 2004. She became a Senior Editor in August 2012 and Managing Editor in January, 2013. In June, 2015, the combined views on her articles, diaries and quick link contributions topped one million. She was particularly happy that her article about Bree Newsome removing the Confederate flag was the one that put her past the million mark.

Her art in a wide variety of media can be seen on her YouTube video, "Visionary Artist Meryl Ann Butler on Creativity and Joy" at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcGs2r_66QE

A NYC native, her response to 9-11 was to pen an invitation to healing through creativity, entitled, "90-Minute Quilts: 15+ Projects You Can Stitch in an Afternoon" (Krause 2006), which is a bestseller in the craft field. The sequel, MORE 90-Minute Quilts: 20+ Quick and Easy Projects With Triangles and Squares was released in April, 2011. Her popular video, How to Stitch a Quilt in 90 Minutes with Meryl Ann Butler can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrShGOQaJQ8

She has been active in a number of international, arts-related projects as a citizen diplomat, and was arts advisor to Baltimore's CIUSSR (Center for Improving US-Soviet Relations), 1987-89. She made two trips to the former USSR in 1987 and 1988 to speak to artists, craftpeople and fashion designers on the topic of utilizing the arts as a tool for global wellbeing. She created the historical "First US-Soviet Children's Peace Quilt Exchange Project" in 1987-88, which was the first time a reciprocal quilt was given to the US from the former USSR.

Her artwork is in collections across the globe.

Meryl Ann is a founding member of The Labyrinth Society and has been building labyrinths since 1992. She publishes an annual article about the topic on OpEdNews on World Labyrinth Day, the first Saturday in May.

OpEdNews Senior Editor Joan Brunwasser interviewed Meryl Ann in "Beyond Surviving: How to Thrive in Challenging Times" at https://www.opednews.com/articles/Beyond-Surviving--How-to-by-Joan-Brunwasser-Anxiety_Appreciation_Coronavirus_Creativity-200318-988.html

Find out more about Meryl Ann's artistic life in "OEN Managing Ed, Meryl Ann Butler, Featured on the Other Side of the Byline" at https://www.opednews.com/Quicklink/OEN-Managing-Ed-Meryl-Ann-in-Life_Arts-Artistic_Artists_Quilt-170917-615.html

On Feb 11, 2017, Senior Editor Joan Brunwasser interviewed Meryl Ann in Pink Power: Sister March, Norfolk, VA at http://www.opednews.com/articles/Pink-Power-Sister-March--by-Joan-Brunwasser-Pussy-Hats-170212-681.html

"Creativity and Healing: The Work of Meryl Ann Butler" by Burl Hall is at
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Creativity-and-Healing--T-by-Burl-Hall-130414-18.html

Burl and Merry Hall interviewed Meryl Ann on their BlogTalk radio show, "Envision This," at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/envision-this/2013/04/11/meryl-ann-butler-art-as-a-medicine-for-the-soul

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