Welcome to another edition of Common Ground Online. Here's what's in this week's edition:
- EMPowerplus Research Update
- How the Research Began...
EMPowerplus research is taking on a life of its own! The groundbreaking EMPowerplus research already published continues to spark the interest of credible researchers worldwide.
 We are pleased to announce that over a dozen studies using EMPowerplus are currently underway or being prepared for publication in a number of countries around the world.
Here are a few quick facts about these studies:
- They involve over 500 participants.
- They involve people of many ages:
- They cover a broad array of mood disorders:
- bipolar disorder
- schizophrenia
- depression
- autism
- attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- One study is a large-scale, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. It is currently underway in the United States and Canada.
- If you live near Calgary, AB or San Diego, CA, visit moodstudy.com to find out if you are eligible to participate.
- For more details, visit clinicaltrials.gov.
Still other studies are in the planning stages. As these studies are published, we will feature them for you in Common Ground Online.
Dr. Bonnie Kaplan was one of the first researchers to study EMPowerplus. Her ground-breaking work has sparked interest in scientists from around the world to participate in further EMPowerplus research.
Dr. Bonnie Kaplan told the story of how she was introduced to Truehope and EMPowerplus when she testified as an expert witness in Truehope's 2006 court victory over Health Canada. Here are a few excerpts from her court testimony:
An email
I had been doing research in nutrition before, but I was not familiar with the people who became Truehope until…[in] May of 1996, I received an e-mail from Dr. Bryan Kolb...who's on the faculty at the University of Lethbridge. He's also a physiological psychologist-neuroscientist… So Dr. Kolb knew that I had an interest in nutrition; he knew that I had been studying children with ADHD and mood problems and so forth, and he e-mailed me and said, “There are some people in my office who I think you should meet. They believe that they're helping…children with ADHD using some nutritional intervention, vitamins, minerals...”
“I refused to meet with them”
And I e-mailed back saying I didn't want to meet them, and…that I had met with every flake in Alberta, and I didn't want to deal with any more flaky people, because I was tired of doing nutrition research; it seemed to bring out a kind of person I didn't enjoy working with, so I refused to meet with them. But I said, “Bryan, if you want to work with them, I will fax you some questionnaires that are kind of state of the art questionnaires for what we're using in our studies with ADHD…”
A small group of children
I faxed him the questionnaires and totally put it out of my mind… I literally forgot about it until August 11th, 1996, when I received a fax from Dr. Kolb consisting of a statistical analysis of a small group of children, and on the graph that he faxed to me it just said “vitamins” and nothing more. And I was surprised because I, certainly in 1996, did not believe that…any kind of vitamin supplement could affect mental health…in fact, I would say that I was quite closed minded about it. At any rate, it was startling enough, because it was statistically significant, that I picked up the phone and called him and said, who are these people and what are they doing? And he actually wasn't sure; he says, “They're giving kids a bunch of pills and liquids, and I don't know what all is in them, and, Bonnie, you know more about nutrition, why don't you meet with them?” And that's how I agreed to meet with the people who eventually became…Truehope… Actually at that first meeting Autumn was present too, Autumn Stringam.
Searching for scientific validation
They…hadn't formed Truehope then… They were just a couple of guys from Southern Alberta, who believed that they had helped people with mental problems. They believed they had made a breakthrough and they were going around to people like me, searching for scientific validation. They just wanted people to do research on what they considered to be a breakthrough…
“It warranted research”
… I decided I shouldn't be closed minded—we're not supposed to be in science—and I could see that these three people at that first meeting were not scam artists, I guess is the way I would describe it, that they were quite genuine. They were describing observations that they were quite certain they had seen; for Autumn, her own personal experiences were very, very compelling. And…my conclusion was it warranted research… And I was extremely busy with other research, but I agreed to do a little pilot study and pursue the topic. It was hard after hearing their stories not to get involved.
- Dr. Kaplan
Have you missed an edition of Common Ground Online? Are you new to the Truehope Program? Visit our email archive page for a directory of all previous Common Ground newsletters. These emails are loaded with useful information that can help you succeed on EMPowerplus and the Truehope Program.
Help us to serve you better. Send your questions or comments about the Truehope Program, EMPowerplus, or our support resources to feedback@truehope.com or call 1-888-878-3467 to speak to a Truehope Support Specialist.
We want to provide you with the most accurate and up-to-date program information so that you can continue to make informed decisions regarding your health. Our hope is that you will find hope, healing, and health through education and continued support.
Yours in health,
The Truehope Staff
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