It sounds crazy, but, as Gretchen Reynolds reports in the New York Times, research suggests that a common chemical found in many cosmetics and personal care products may influence our will to exercise. The Times reports that scientists at Texas A&M University set out to determine if the chemicals, called phthalates, […]
Health
Chronic Fatigue: It’s In Your Gut
After years of doubt about whether the condition known as chronic fatigue syndrome is really a syndrome, researchers have identified biological markers of the disease in gut bacteria and inflammatory microbial agents in the blood of chronic fatigue sufferers. A Cornell University news release reports that researchers at the school […]
Health Benefits Of Retirement
Is retirement good for your health? Researchers at the University of Sydney think it may be. The New York Times reports that after following more than 27,000 men and women who retired during a three year period, the researchers found that when compared to people who were still working, the retirees walked […]
Trees Are Good For Your Health
Yes trees. And other greenery, too. Researchers at Harvard’s Chan School of Public Health and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital have found that during an eight-year study period, there were fewer deaths among women who lived in the greenest surroundings. In fact. their mortality rate was 12 percent lower than those […]
Exercise Is Best Defense Against Dementia
Apparently, you can do something to stave off dementia, but you have to do it in middle age. A landmark 20-year study conducted by researchers at the University of Melbourne strongly suggests that regular exercise in middle age is the best lifestyle change a person can make to prevent cognitive […]
Mid-Life Fitness Prevents Late-Life Strokes
It’s true, even in Texas, where researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas have found that among nearly 20,000 adults in their mid to late 40s, the most fit had a 37 percent lower risk of having a stroke after 65, compared with the least fit. HealthDay […]
Standing Desks Boost Productivity
Yes, standing desks help us burn more calories, and they also appear to improve our attention. Now comes a report from researchers at Texas A&M suggesting that standing desks also improve productivity. A Texas A&M news release reports that when researchers examined the productivity differences between two groups of call center […]
What Those Crackly Knee Sounds Really Mean
What do those crackly noises made by your knees really mean? Researchers at Georgia Tech who have devised a way to record the sounds of healthy and unhealthy knees have this answer: it depends. First, they say, all knees make crackly sounds, even if you can’t hear them. Healthy knees […]
Coffee Keeps Arteries Clear
First, the bad news. About 16 million Americans suffer from atherosclerosis, meaning that their arteries are at least partially clogged by plaques. And now the good news: coffee appears to help keep arteries clear. The Tufts Health & Nutrition newsletter reports on a new Korean study that has found that […]
How To Stay (Relatively) Safe From Ticks
From Stephen Wikel, professor emeritus of medical sciences at Quinnipiac University’s Frank H. Netter M.D. School of Medicine, comes this advice, via HealthDay, about how to stay safe from ticks: Protect your ankles. Wear long pants tucked into high socks when doing yard work. Wrap duct tape — sticky-side out — […]