HLife | Healthy Living Redefined

What is a gentleman? Driven by something I read and considered to be a weak definition of this term, I thought I’d offer my own two cents here. After all, I am a lady, and I think that’s enough to qualify me to at least give this a try. Read More…

The Endocrine System might just be my favorite body system because it is in charge of communication. The hormones secreted by the endocrine glands tell everyone else what to do and when to do it (bossy glands!) But this is just one aspect, one reason why I like it. The other is that it corresponds exactly with the traditional chakra system.

Science first: The Endocrine System is composed of glands that release hormones into the blood, which tell the various organs in our body what to do or stop doing (we got this). Let’s look at the major glands and their jobs: Read More…

Psychology: Looks like washing your hands has more than a physical benefit. A recent study concludes that the activity “wipes the slate clean,” affecting us psychologically by removing doubts about recent choices, in addition to the feeling of being clean of germs as well as the already established link to feeling morally restored. “It’s not just that washing your hands contributes to moral cleanliness as well as physical cleanliness, as seen in earlier research” said Spike W. S. Lee, a doctoral candidate in social psychology. “Our studies show that washing also reduces the influence of past behaviors and decisions that have no moral implications whatsoever.” The researchers say that the “clean slate” effect may be relevant to many choices and decisions in life, not just the complex ones where ‘good behavior’ is implicated (for example, cheating) but also with simple choices like whether to buy one car over another (buyer’s remorse). The study was published in the May 7th issue of Science. Read More…

Sex: Hooking up or dating? According to research done at a university campus, where ‘hooking up’ is a mainstream means of interaction, both genders showed a preference for traditional dating over hooking up, but when it came to assessing the benefits and risks of these two different ways of relating, there were marked distinctions. Women seemed to want a relationship more than men, and they feared that they will become more emotionally attached to a partner who is not interested in them, while more men seemed to value independence and feared that even in hooking up type of relationships that are supposed to be free of commitment, a woman might seek to establish a relationship. The study was published in the journal Sex Roles. Read More…

Nutrition: We now know that spices have antioxidants – oregano and others typically used in the Mediterranean diet – but who’s got the most? According to research published in the Flavour and Fragrance Journal, cloves are king when it comes to these benefits. “Out of the five antioxidant properties tested, cloves had the highest capacity to give off hydrogen, reduced lipid peroxidation well, and was the best iron reducer”, said Juana Fernandez-Lopez, one of the authors of the study. The researchers hope that the high antioxidant properties of this and other spices will make the food industry consider them for usage in preserving food, instead of using synthetic chemicals that cause toxicity and other side effects. But, until then, you can just make some clove tea for yourself and enjoy the taste as well as the benefits. Read More…

Family Mealtime

Weight: A new national study suggests that preschool-aged children may have a lower risk for obesity if they regularly engage in one or more of three specific activities. These include eating dinner as a family, getting adequate sleep and limiting their weekday television viewing time. The study showed  that 4-year-olds living in homes with all three habits had an almost 40% lower prevalence of obesity than did children living in homes that practiced none of these routines. Each routine on its own was associated with lower obesity, and more routines translated to lower obesity, according to the analysis. The study appears online in the journal Pediatrics. While it may be difficult for some families to adhere to these routines regularly, the researchers stated that families with young children may want to consider what it would take for them to have these routines for their child, given the consequences. Read More…

The latest from the journals when it comes to men and women, in honor of Valentine’s Week.

Communication: There is power in the word “we”. A new study from UC Berkley suggests that spouses who use “we-ness” language are better able to resolve conflicts than those who don’t. The researchers analyzed conversations between 154 couples and found that those who used pronouns such as “we”, “our”, and “us”, behaved more positively toward one another and showed less physiological stress.  In contrast, couples who emphasized their separateness by using pronouns such as “I”, “me”, and “you” were found to be less satisfied in their marriages. Read More…

Exercise: Regularly practicing yoga may help with inflammation. According to a study published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, women who routinely practiced yoga had lower amounts of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in their blood. IL-6 is an important component of the body’s inflammatory response, and reducing inflammation may provide benefits for diseases like stroke, type-2 diabetes, arthritis and other debilitating conditions. The yoga practitioners also showed smaller increases in IL-6 after stressful experiences than did women who were the same age and weight but who did not practice yoga. “Hopefully, this means that people can eventually learn to respond less strongly to stressors in their everyday lives by using yoga and other stress-reducing modalities,” said Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, lead author of the study. “Muscles shorten and tighten over time, mainly because of inactivity. The stretching and exercise that comes with yoga actually increases a person’s flexibility and that, in turn, allows relaxation, which can lower stress,” said Ron Glaser, co-author of the research. Read More…

Antioxidants: Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine discovered that a chemical found in vegetables reduces problems caused during inflammation. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, states that thiocyanate, a dietary antioxidant found in broccoli and cauliflower, protects cells from damage caused by chemicals released when inflammation occurs as a response to infection and injury. Yet another reason to eat your veggies.

Mating: It looks like women may be responsible for the alpha male personality. According to a study published in the journal Biological Reviews, sexual selection (competition between one sex for a mate – usually males competing to be chosen by females) may have shaped the evolution of the male personality, which is more pronounced, daring and aggressive in males from humans to house sparrows. Read More…