Last week, Charles Barkley, the executive producer and host of the new TNT series American Race, sat down with a handful of local activists, who had been featured guests of the show, in a sneak preview of the program.

In American Race, Barkley tours the country to explore the issue of race from different perspectives, to engage diverse Americans in dialogue that aims to build a sense of mutual understanding.

“It’s a hard show,” Barkley said. “I needed a beer after every interview.”

Despite the bumpy ride, Barkley felt that the show about race relations needed to be made. Here, he tells why:

Barkley, a Sports Emmy winner and a member of the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame, also joked that friends asked if he was nuts for taking on such a difficult and controversial topic, when he could have chosen to produce anything.

Here’s what the former NBA All-Star and current host of Inside the NBA on TNT said was the motivation behind his decision:

The conversation, which took place at the Paley Center in New York City on May 4, was moderated by Bakari Sellers, CNN commentator, and former South Carolina state representative. Also on hand to share their experiences while filming  American Race were:

• Dan Partland, executive producer
• Gerald Griggs, civil rights and criminal attorney from Atlanta
• Sharmina Zaidi, activist & and restaurant owner from Dallas
• Peter Jae Kim, activist and actor from Los Angeles
• William H. “Billy” Murphy, civil rights attorney from Baltimore
• Justin Normand, activist and sign maker from Dallas

A two-night event, the four-part series will air on broadcast May 11 and May 12. However, subscribers can watch currently watch the series via video on demand or the TNT app.

As if marijuana users needed another reason to smoke a joint, a new study reveals that cannabis may actually reverse the aging process in the human brain.

In the study, which was led by researchers at the University of Bonn in Germany and was recently published in the journal Natural Medicine, scientists found that cannabis helped older mice retain certain cognitive abilities that usually digress with age.

According to the study, older mice were given a small amount of THC, the main active ingredient in cannabis, over a period of four weeks. In turn, the mice regressed to the mental state of a two-month-old mouse. On the other hand, younger mice who were exposed to THC performed slightly worse on tests that measured their memory, behavior, and ability to learn.

“[The] results reveal a profound, long-lasting improvement of cognitive performance resulting from a low dose of THC treatment in mature and old animals,” the study reports.

Andras Bilkei-Gorzo, a neuroscientist who participated in conducting the study, told Voice of America that they were bedazzled by their findings. “The treatment made the young brain old and the old brain young. So, that was something that was above our imagination,” Bilkei-Gorzo said, as reported by voanews.com.

This scientific discovery could help researchers find ways to slow down or even reverse the cognitive aging process of humans. It may also lead to a medical breakthrough when it comes to treating age-related diseases like dementia.

“Cannabis preparations and THC are used for medicinal purposes,” the study reports. “They have an excellent safety record and do not produce adverse side-effects when administered at a low dose to older individuals. Thus, chronic, low-dose treatment with THC or cannabis extracts could be a potential strategy to slow down or even to reverse cognitive decline in the elderly.”

MTV changed up their annual awards ceremony a little this year. Instead of just being the “Video Music Awards” or VMAs, the 2017 edition included more in the movie and television realm (hence the name MTV Movie & TV Awards).

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the founders of The Black Brain Campaign are working to remove the stigma of mental health through education and advocacy.

People who identify as black or African American make up 13.2% of the total U.S population and of those, over 16% had a diagnosed mental illness in the past year. That is over 6.8 million people suffering with a mental illness. Too often, as blacks and African Americans, we suffer in silence.

Source: MentalHealthAmerica.net

The Black Brain Campaign is an initiative to dismantle the stigma of mental health in the black community through education and advocacy. The Black Brain Campaign was founded by Farida Saleem-Boyer and Jaynay C. Johnson. Both women are marriage and family therapists in the Philadelphia area. Saleem-Boyer and Johnson realized many weren’t receiving the help they needed due to the stigma attached to mental health and therapy.

Image: Founders Farida E. Saleem-Boyer, MS and Jaynay C. Johnson MS, MFT

The pair collaborated to create The Black Brain Campaign. The campaign’s goal is helping the community learn more about mental health and to advocate to ensure treatment is culturally competent.

African Americans are 20% more likely to experience serious mental health problems than the general population. Common mental health disorders among African Americans include:

• Major depression
• Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Suicide
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Blacks are Suffering in Silence

Saleem-Boyer says, “In the African American community there are not as many people actively involved in treatment that probably need it and should be in some type of therapy. The stigma most prevalent in the community is that if you’re going to see a psychiatrist, a therapist, or psychologist there’s something wrong with you. Most people have dealt with some type of traumatic experience and need to talk to someone. You matter, you’re important, and there’s help out there, utilize the resources. We’re here in the community prepared to provide you with information and professionals who can help.”

In a 2013 study titled, African American Men and Women’s Attitude Toward Mental Illness, Perceptions of Stigma, and Preferred Coping Behaviors researchers found that blacks can hold beliefs related to stigma, psychological openness, and help-seeking, which in turn affects their coping behaviors. The participants in this study were not very open to acknowledging psychological problems, but they were somewhat open to seeking mental health services.

Removing the Stigma

Johnson says that it’s important to break the stigma so that we can heal overall as a people. She wants our community to know that there are things you’re going to go through in life and it’s OK.

“You can be sad today, and tomorrow too. And then you can be happy on Thursday, happy on Friday and then find yourself anxious on Saturday…it’s all OK because life is a journey and there’s no way we can all stay on the same path every single day of our lives forever. So that’s what I want this campaign to do, I want this campaign to highlight the various highs and lows of just being a human and understand that it’s OK either way.”

To learn more, visit The Black Brain Campaign.

Elisha Lowe is a registered nurse, business strategist, writer, entrepreneur and inspirational speaker with two decades of experience in healthcare. She works with top healthcare organizations to grow novel products and helps healthcare-based entrepreneurs bring their businesses to life. You can follow her on Twitter @ElishaLoweRN or learn more at www.elishalowe.com.

Eating my way through some of NYC’s best restaurants supporting small business and diversity.

While most of the nation was sipping margaritas and throwing back shots of tequila, I had the pleasure of sampling sweet wine and cocktails, and tasty, bite-sized delicacies that would send any foodies’ taste buds into overdrive. My Cinco de Mayo celebration led me to the BCA Global’s 13th Annual Food & Wine Experience. It was the perfect way to close out Small Business Week with more than 30 local restaurants and distilleries showcasing the best of their menus. Check out some of my favorite bites.

The evening kicked off with BCA President and CEO Alex Askew welcoming more than 200 attendees. He recognized this year’s recipient of the BCA Vision in Wine Award, George Carbonell of Empire Merchants and called attention to the deserving culinary students working alongside celebrity chefs and premier NYC food professionals at the event. Around this time, I had my first experience with caviar atop a light salad paired with a sweet rosé. Two thumbs up for both.

Barbecue pulled pork slider in hand (straight from the Lincoln Center Kitchen), I headed upstairs with my fellow foodies to take in an overwhelming display of food, wine, and spirits vendors. My first stop was a well-known, go-to spot whose restaurant is located in downtown Manhattan.

Negril Village

Negril Village’s Chef Dwayne served delicious oxtail pasta. I had to stop myself from taking more than one.

Solomon & Kuff

Next up, I visited the Solomon & Kuff table to try their Bluefish Ceviche. Located in Harlem, my part of town, the restaurant boasts a selection of more than 100 rums and features Caribbean-inspired cuisine. I will definitely be paying them a visit in the near future.

Just Soul Catering

Not only did they have their elevator pitch on point, Just Soul Catering had the literal recipe for success. Jambalaya Stuffed Cornbread with options: shrimp, chicken, or vegetarian. Need I say more?

Gifted Hands Catering

Being the shrimp and grits kind of girl that I am, my heart jumped and mouth watered when I saw the Blue Cheese Grits w/Smoked Sriracha Buffalo Shrimp that Gifted Hands Catering’s Chef D. Palmer was offering. It was every bit as delicious as it sounds. I’m not telling, but I’m pretty sure I saw several hands grabbing for seconds.

Nadege Fleurimond

It wouldn’t have been right to leave without dessert, so I gladly obliged in sampling a healthy portion of Nadege Fleurimond’s Bread Pudding with Coconut Rum sauce.

Led by Askew, the BCA’s mission is to consistently build a broader platform for diversity within the culinary, hospitality, and food service industry. They seek to diversify the talent pool of young professionals of color by providing exposure as well as professional and educational opportunities. The Annual Food and Wine Experience is the only culinary event in the country that focuses on diversity. To learn more about BCA Global, go here, or contact them at info@bcaglobal.org for membership and donation inquiries.

Rochelle Turner is the Marketing and Audience Development Manager at Black Enterprise. For more bite-sized tips on marketing and life, check out her website at rochelleshante.com.

As one of the executive producers and stars of VH1’s Basketball Wives, Shaunie O’Neal often finds herself in the middle of a lot of drama, but that’s far from how things are in her personal life.

Currently, the super busy mother of five is putting a lot of effort into a series of empowerment events called “Let’s Talk About It,” which she hopes will inspire women to live their dreams beyond their circumstance. “Let’s Talk About It” will make stops all over the country, and feature a panel of phenomenal women such as Mielle Organics founder and CEO Monique Rodriguez, Single Wives Club founder Koereyelle DuBose, and TV producer Stella Bulochnikov, among others.

During a recent chat, O’Neal and I discussed “Let’s Talk About It,” her other television projects, and balancing family and career.

How the Idea for the “Let’s Talk About It” Events Emerged

After attending a few events last year and actually sitting on a panel of an empowerment event, I felt they were still missing a few components that I thought would’ve been impactful and helpful to our audience. I felt like the women that were at this event wanted to hear more about our stories, how we reached the pinnacle of success, how we handle failure and fears, and how we juggle family and career since they both can be very time-consuming. One day, I was sitting in the car thinking and talking to a friend about how to touch the hearts, empower the minds of women, and on that day I decided I would commit to doing a multi-city empowerment tour.

The “Let’s Talk About It Empowerment Series” includes a range of topics from parenting advice, women’s health, entrepreneurship, self-esteem, love, and awareness. I want women to walk away not just empowered for that moment or that day, but ready to put whatever they learned into action. That’s something we don’t really do much, and I know a lot of people will say it sounds so contradictory to the show you have on TV.

Unfortunately, that’s not what good TV is to people nowadays. They don’t want to see too much good—you can sprinkle a little good in there, but they want to see some drama, tears, and fights and things like that. So, I think that’s what’s shown, despite some good being done, a lot of times it doesn’t even make it because that’s not what sells good television. But in my personal life, it’s so very important to me to do this—to do something that empowers other women because that’s who I am.

What She Hopes Women Will Take Away From “Let’s Talk About It”

I definitely hope they will take away that we actually can work together, we actually can uplift each other, and it’s OK to compliment each other. It’s OK to share your knowledge with one another. We have an issue with hoarding things, you know what I mean? If I have a good attorney, I’m not going to let you use my attorney because my attorney got me some great deals, and I don’t want you to get them—that type of thing. I think we just gotta get out of that mentality, so I’m hoping that if five people sitting in that room got that message, then they can tell five of their friends, and we go to the next city, and the same thing can happen. Maybe it can just start to peel away at the BS that we deal with just as women working with each other, especially women of color. And I find that it’s not just women of color, but it’s just women, in general, being able to work together because I feel like men can do it so easy. They seem to be able to work together so much easier than we can, and we have to do better, and maybe this could be a start—a little piece of a start—of peeling away the BS.

Her Other Television Projects

I’m constantly working on new stuff, selling new stuff, shopping new stuff—when I’m not filming, that’s what I’m doing. Now, we have the ‘Let’s Talk About It’ events that will start taking a lot of my time as well but, yeah, I’m still working on things from other reality shows, to scripted stuff, to TV movies.

Balancing Career and Family

You know, people ask me that all the time, and I just don’t have an actual answer. I really just push through. Sometimes I do get overwhelmed. I’ll just kind of sit and just be like, ‘Oh my God, how am I supposed to get all of this done?’ But in the back of my mind, I know I will, so it’s kind of like sometimes I’m just winging it. I know I have to accomplish 17 things in the next 24 hours, and I’m going to get it done, some way, somehow. I might be exhausted…and that’s another thing. I’m so wound up by the end of my day, that I usually don’t even go to bed to like 2 o’clock in the morning because that’s the time I get to calm it all down, and maybe finish some emails, and check homework and do stuff like that that I couldn’t do while I’m moving around the city. Like today, I had two interviews and two meetings, and I had to go order birthday cake, and take my daughter cupcakes for school for her birthday. Things like that, I just make it happen. I get myself a calendar, and I just make it happen. I don’t think there’s a correct answer, but you just push through.

Black Enterprise contributor Mara—”The Hip-Hop Socialite”—is a headline-grabbing entertainment journalist, radio personality, and creator of “The SCOOP,” an international entertainment news and lifestyle column. Follow her on Twitter @HipHopSocialite.

According to research nearly 80% of Americans are on social media. Its fun, entertaining, informative and a way to connect with family and friends… but could it be causing more harm than good and be the cause of unnecessary stress?

If you pull out your phone to check Instagram while waiting for the light to change, or read e-mails while brushing your teeth, you might be what the American Psychological Association (APA) calls a “constant checker.” And chances are, it’s hurting your mental health. The APA released a study earlier this year finding that Americans were experiencing the first statistically significant stress increase in the survey’s 10-year history and largely from what they believe is related to social media.

Social media use has skyrocketed from 7 percent of American adults in 2005 to 65 percent in 2015. For those in the 18 -29 age range, the increase is larger, from 12 percent to a remarkable 90 percent. But while an increase in social media usage is hardly surprising, the number of people who just can’t tear themselves away is ridiculous! Nowadays, 43 percent of Americans say they are checking their e-mails, texts, or social media accounts constantly. And their stress levels are paying for it: On a 10-point scale, constant checkers reported an average stress level of 5.3. For the rest of Americans, the average level is a 4.4. 

The highest stress levels were reserved for those who constantly check their work e-mail on days off. Their average stress level is 6.0. So those of you who think it’s somehow pleasant to work from home on a Saturday afternoon, you’re actually fooling yourself. About 42 percent of constant checkers specifically point to political and cultural discussions as causing stress. And the impacts play out in real life—35 percent of constant checkers say they are less likely to spend time with family and friends because of social media.

So how is it stressing you out and what can you do about it?

Use Social Media to Share NOT Compare

A recent survey of Facebook users found that the most common source of frustration on the social media site was envy caused by browsing others’ profiles. To turn down the social media stress in your life, avoid turning Facebook into a game of keeping up with the Joneses. Instead of browsing through classmates’ photos to see who had the best summer ever with their bae while you were at home working (and single), use the network exclusively to talk to friends and share fun updates on your life.

Be Careful NOT to Overshare

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snap chat, and other social media sites are a wonderful way to share photos, observations and life updates with your friends and followers. But be selective about what you post for the world to see — does everyone need to know the details or your recent break-up, or cryptic song lyrics that describe your anger and confusion over it? Probably not.

Be Positive

The golden rule is as important on social media as it is in every other part of life: Treat others the way you’d like to be treated. Negative or sarcastic comments are best kept to yourself. Also, when posting your own statuses, try not to vent your feelings too much. Studies have shown bad moods are “contagious” via social media — Facebook users can directly impact the emotions of their friends for up to three days.

Keep Your Love Life Offline

Whether you’re single, happily coupled, or breaking up, keep your love life off Facebook. It might be fun for a while to post #RelationshipGoals and #Bae statuses, but they’ll likely annoy your friends and make your relationship a whole lot more complicated. According to Mashable, 25 percent of people had found out their relationship was over because their #Bae changed their relationship status to “single.” You don’t want that to be you.

Keep Your Photos Clean

If you wouldn’t want an employer or a teacher to see it, keep it offline. No exceptions. Risqué or incriminating photos are best kept to yourself (or not taken at all) — you don’t want to leave a digital footprint of all your mistakes, especially the ones you don’t even remember.

Choose your friends wisely

Studies have shown that having more Facebook friends leads to increased stress levels, finding a link between larger online networks and social anxiety. Don’t worry about getting everyone to follow you on IG or Twitter and friend you on Facebook. To minimize social media anxiety, periodically go through and delete friends and followers you may not know very well or no longer want to share updates with. Hit delete on the trolls.

Take time to unplug

When social media is stressing you out, sometimes the best thing to do is walk away from your phone or laptop and just unplug for a few hours or a couple days. Temporarily disable your account if you need an intervention. And that includes unplugging from your fake account that you have on the down low for your trolling expeditions.  And no, don’t ask your girlfriend to use her account to look for you. (And don’t front like you’ve never done that)

Stress is a contributing factor for multiple physical, psychological and emotional unhealthy conditions.  Try these social media detox tips to keep your mind, body and spirit in order. Too much of anything is never a good thing and that includes social media. How do you avoid social media stress? Share in the comments below and tweet @BlackEnterprise @AskNurseAlice using #StressLess

Nurse Alice is a nationally board-certified and award-winning cardiac clinical nurse specialist with nearly two decades of experience in cardiovascular health. She is a community health activist and freelance media health expert. She has appeared on various national radio and TV shows including Dr. Oz, The Doctors, Dr. Drew, News One with Roland Martin, Tom Joyner Morning Show and more. She is also the author of “Curb Your Cravings: 31 Foods to Fool Your Appetite.”

You can follow her at AskNurseAlice.com and on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @AskNurseAlice