The brain may have a distinctive activity pattern during stressful events that predicts bodily reactions, such as rises in blood pressure that increase risk for cardiovascular disease, according to new proof-of-concept research in the Journal of the American Heart Association, the Open Access Journal of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. The new research, the… Continue reading Stress, Your Brain – and The Risk of Heart Disease
Tag: stress
Stress and Self-Talk
During stressful times, you might want to try silently talking to yourself in the third person. Researchers say that doing that may help you control emotions without any mental effort beyond what you would use for first person self-talk. (That’s the way people normally talk to themselves.) A first-of-its-kind study led by psychology researchers at… Continue reading Stress and Self-Talk
Are You Totally Stressed Out? This Is What It Could Be Doing to Your Body!
You’re trying to get the kids off to school, you can’t find your cell phone, and you’re sitting in traffic. Your hypothalamus, a tiny control tower in your brain, decides to send out the order: Send in the stress hormones! These stress hormones are the same ones that trigger your body’s “fight or flight” response. Your… Continue reading Are You Totally Stressed Out? This Is What It Could Be Doing to Your Body!
“Late-Life” Genes Help Combat Stress, Aging
A subset of genes involved in daily circadian rhythms, or the “biological clock,” become active only late in life or during periods of intense stress when they are most needed to help protect critical life functions, according to new research. The findings, made in research done with fruit flies and published today in Nature Communications,… Continue reading “Late-Life” Genes Help Combat Stress, Aging
New Guidelines for Treating Back Pain
A physicians’ group has recommended that doctors and patients should treat acute or sub-acute low back pain with non-drug therapies. The American College of Physicians (ACP) said that the non-drug therapies included superficial heat, massage, acupuncture or spinal manipulation. Drug therapy, if desired, should consist of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) or skeletal muscle relaxants. The… Continue reading New Guidelines for Treating Back Pain
Stress and Habitual Drinking
Researchers are discovering more about the brain chemistry interactions between stress and alcohol. A team led by John Dani, PhD, chair of the department of Neuroscience in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, found that rodents that had been exposed to stress had a weakened alcohol-induced dopamine response and voluntarily drank… Continue reading Stress and Habitual Drinking
Stress and Bad Food Choices
When it comes to food choices, stress counts for a lot, according to researchers from The Ohio State University. In their study, unstressed women who ate a biscuits-and-gravy breakfast made mostly with saturated fat fared worse in blood tests looking for precursors to disease than those women who ate an identical breakfast made primarily with… Continue reading Stress and Bad Food Choices
Positive Attitude Toward Aging Helps with Stress
A positive attitude toward aging gives older adults more resilience in stressful situations, according to new research from North Carolina State. “There has been a lot of research on how older adults respond to stress, but the findings have been mixed: some studies have found that older adults are less resilient than younger adults at… Continue reading Positive Attitude Toward Aging Helps with Stress
The Dangers of Multitasking
We’re all beyond busy these days. Whether we’re texting while we’re waiting in line, or decluttering and cleaning the house at the same time, doing it constantly can take a toll on us in a number of ways. Here, Dr. Amit Sood, author of The Mayo Clinic Guide to Stress-free Living, lists the main drawbacks… Continue reading The Dangers of Multitasking
Is It Hair Loss or Something Else?
If you’ve noticed that there are more hairs on your pillow or hairbrush, the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) says that you may just be shedding more hair than normal. And that is not the same as hair loss, the AAD says. There is a difference. Hair shedding often stops on its own, the AAD… Continue reading Is It Hair Loss or Something Else?
A Surprising Way to Reduce Stress
No matter what your skill level as an artist, sketcher, or doodler, a new research study found that making art can significantly reduce stress-related hormones in your body. . Although the researchers from Drexel University’s College of Nursing and Health Professions believed that past experience in creating art might amplify the activity’s stress-reducing effects –… Continue reading A Surprising Way to Reduce Stress
Managing Urinary Incontinence
Editor’s note: Bladder leakage, which can be caused by something as simple as a sneeze, is a common, annoying and even embarrassing condition for millions of women. But there are ways to manage and treat it. Here, the experts from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, one of the National Institutes… Continue reading Managing Urinary Incontinence
Conquering Food Cravings
Most of us want to stay at a healthy weight, or get there. But we also face daily – and sometimes hourly – temptations in the form of high-fat, low-nutrition junk food. Is there anything we can do about it? Yes. A study from experts at the University of California Davis found that “eating mindfully”–… Continue reading Conquering Food Cravings
Secrets of a Stress-Free Coloring Hobby
Once upon a time, coloring books had large patterns and were meant only for little artists. Now, though, the grown-ups appear to have taken the market by storm. According to Nielsen Bookscan, 12 million adult coloring books were sold in the U.S. alone in 2015, and that figure is expected to increase this year. And… Continue reading Secrets of a Stress-Free Coloring Hobby
10 Ways Stress Is Written All Over Your Face
Stress is written all over our face and can result in looking years older when stressed for prolonged periods of time. My expertise is in understanding neural pathways as they respond to anxiety, stress and trauma explains that how we think directly impacts how we age and how youthful we appear. The routine stressors in… Continue reading 10 Ways Stress Is Written All Over Your Face
“Invisible Work” Takes Toll on Unpaid Caregivers
Unpaid family and friends who assist older people with disabilities by coordinating doctor appointments and managing medications are significantly more likely to experience emotional, physical and financial difficulties than caregivers who don’t provide this type of support, according to research done at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and published February 15th 2016… Continue reading “Invisible Work” Takes Toll on Unpaid Caregivers
Discrimination Increases Risk for Mental-Health Problems
People who are the victims of chronic discrimination, whether on the basis of race, ethnicity or sexual orientation, can develop risk factors for mental disorders, experts say. “We now have decades of research showing that when people are chronically treated differently, unfairly or badly, it can have effects ranging from low self-esteem to a higher… Continue reading Discrimination Increases Risk for Mental-Health Problems
Ready to Retire? It’s Time to Simplify Your Life
The time is now to get started on reaching your retirement goal (or dream) in 2016. Reboot Partners, four Boomer professionals, have written a practical guide, THE RETIREMENT BOOM: An All Inclusive Guide to Money, Life, and Health in Your Next Chapter (Career Press), to make the transition a bit easier. (You can order the… Continue reading Ready to Retire? It’s Time to Simplify Your Life