Early Birds Versus Night Owls: What Your Bedtime Really Says About You

The tortoise and the hare. Coyote versus roadrunner. The Sharks and the Jets. There are many proverbial rivalries that have rocked this world, but perhaps none so divisive as the one between the early bird and the night owl -- two rivals who share the same world on opposing clocks.



Whether you’re an early bird singing your way through morning or a night owl hooting around late at night, you can thank (or blame) your genes. The human clock follows roughly a 24-hour cycle that syncs with sequences of light and dark. What separates the night owl from the early bird is the former’s slightly longer circadian rhythm.



It is not, however, just their bedtimes that distinguish these two rivals. Studies show that your sleep schedule can actually influence your personality. We partnered with Garnier ® Miracle Sleeping Cream™ to explain the five major ways being an early bird or a night owl can affect your personality in this battle over bedtime.





1. Wit





While people often argue that the early bird gets the worm, there are also advantages to burning the midnight oil. Night owls scored the highest on inductive reasoning according to one study, and further research has shown that night owls tend to have higher IQs and cognitive abilities.



Early birds, however, still tend to perform better in school, adapting more easily to a 9-to-5 world. While night owls suffer social jet lag, early birds flutter through the day, setting clear goals and accomplishing them. Early birds are not only productive before their coffee kicks in but also more proactive. These skills combine to help early birds fly high.



And the winner is … TIE





2. Charm





You’ve probably heard that owls hunt at night. Well, their human counterparts seem to do the same. One study revealed that male night owls reported having twice as many sexual partners as male early birds had! (Interestingly enough, more men than women identify as night owls in the population as a whole.)



But it’s not all good news for night owls. Both males and females are more likely to be single or in short-term relationships -- in contrast to the early birds who flock together and sustain longer bonds. An Australian study also linked night owls with “the dark triad” of personality traits -- narcissism, Machiavellianism and psychopathy -- proof that when you’re tired, you really can get cranky!



And the winner is … THE EARLY BIRD





3. Creativity





Night owls tend to be more creative. While they are definitely not “morning people,” they experience bursts of energy that make them more productive later on.



A study at the University of Barcelona revealed night owls are novelty-seeking and like to explore the unknown. They are risk-takers, which may be explained by higher cortisol levels, a stress hormone that gets the body ready to face immediate threats and that contributes to daring behavior. For night owls, risk can pay off, translating into innovation, opportunity and financial gain. Sorry, early birds -- you may be too timid to go get the worm, after all.



And the winner is … THE NIGHT OWL





4. Stamina





Waking up energized and well rested, early birds might seem like the frontrunner in stamina … Think again.



Early birds and night owls performed equally well in reaction time tests one hour after waking, but night owls performed significantly better 10 hours after being awake. Early birds may wake up chirping, but night owls fight through the morning blues and rejuvenate throughout the day.



And the winner is … THE NIGHT OWL





5. Satisfaction





Alas, social jet lag catches up with the night owls! To follow a 9-to-5 schedule, night owls often suffer fatigue and are more prone to anxiety, depression and even addiction.



As night owls struggle not to be nocturnal, society has organized around an early bird schedule, which favors the early bird's wellbeing and even brain function. Early birds have more white matter in the brain, which enables communication between nerve cells. As a result, early birds have more pathways for feel-good hormones like serotonin and dopamine. This may explain why early birds tend to demonstrate more positive social traits, like optimism and persistence -- a surefire way to start every day singing!



And the winner is … THE EARLY BIRD



Early Birds Vs. Night Owls

Wit: Tie

Charm: +1 Early Birds

Creativity: +1 Night Owls

Stamina: +1 Night Owls

Satisfaction: +1 Early Birds



And it’s a tie … The rivalry rages on!





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Weird Loners Episode 1 Recap: “Weird Pilot”

Think of them as Friends who are losers … In fact, at first, you might think Fox’s new Tuesday night comedy should be called Weird Losers rather than Weird Loners. In any case, it’s actually a likable foursome of New Yorkers at the core of this new sitcom from creator and executive producer Michael J. Weithorn. Episode 1 spends its first few minutes with a “cold opening” that introduces us to each of the four main characters, flashing back to fourth-grade classroom photos with the narrator explaining how, as they grew into adulthood, none of them had been paired off. … Continue reading →

The post Weird Loners Episode 1 Recap: “Weird Pilot” appeared first on Channel Guide Magazine.

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Stop Playing 'Whack-A-Mole' With Toxic Flame Retardants, Health Advocates Urge

As the public has learned of health risks tied to chemicals in everyday products, many companies have responded by eliminating, one by one, the suspected cancer causers, brain damagers and hormone disruptors. But even prompt action doesn't entirely appease some health experts, who warn of a problematic pattern.



"We're playing toxic whack-a-mole," said Arlene Blum, a chemist at the University of California, Berkeley, and executive director of the nonprofit Green Science Policy Institute. "When after a great deal of research and testing, a chemical is found to be harmful, then the tendency is to replace it with as similar a chemical as possible. That's the easiest thing to do."



History has shown, however, that the substitutes may prove equally harmful. Take, for example, the widespread replacement of bisphenol A with bisphenol S in products such as hard plastic water bottles and cash register receipts. New research suggests the latter chemical may be just as harmful to human health.



On Tuesday, a coalition of medical, consumer and worker safety groups attempted to halt this cycle for flame retardants. Led by Blum's institute and Earthjustice, they produced a petition asking federal regulators to block an entire class of the chemical concoctions called organohalogens from their widespread use in four categories of consumer products.



When Congress banned polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in 1977 due to health concerns, the flame retardant industry replaced them with a chemical cousin, polybrominated diphenyl ether. When PBDE was discovered to be just as toxic, it was phased out in 2005, and the industry looked again for easily swappable substitutes to continue meeting flammability standards. Among the popular picks were chlorinated Tris and Firemaster 550, both of which have now been linked with their own growing lists of health concerns, including heart disease, obesity and cancer.



All of these chemicals are organohalogens, still the most common class of flame retardant additive. They can migrate out of consumer products to permeate, and persist in, the environment -- riding house dust, even infiltrating jars of peanut butter and the bloodstreams of nearly all Americans.



"The evidence is quite convincing that exposure in the womb to these flame retardants causes brain damage, lower IQs and persistent behavior problems in children," said Dr. Philip Landrigan, chairman of the department of preventative medicine at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.



"It's just been one bad actor after another," added Landrigan, who signed the petition. "You'd think we'd be smart enough to do a little better."



In addition to developing fetuses and young children -- the latter of whom tend to crawl on dust-laden floors and put their hands in their mouths -- chemical and manufacturing workers and firefighters are at increased risk from exposure to flame retardants.



Tuesday's petition, aimed at the Consumer Product Safety Commission, targets four categories of consumer goods: children's products, furniture, mattresses and the casings around electronics. While chemicals themselves are generally under the purview of the Environmental Protection Agency, they enter the CPSC's domain as part of a consumer product.



"This falls squarely within what CPSC is set up to do. They have the authority," said Eve Gartner, a staff attorney at Earthjustice. "In some ways, products with these flame retardants are like toys with small parts. They have inherent dangers. There's not really anything consumers can do to protect themselves against these chemicals."



Scott Wolfson, a CPSC spokesman, noted that the commission had received the petition. The next step, he said, is determining whether it "meets the requirements set out in the Commission's petition regulations."



"CPSC Chairman Elliot Kaye has said publicly that in the course of CPSC's work on issues like preparing a federal standard for upholstered furniture (which is ongoing), he does not want children to be exposed to harmful flame retardants," said Wolfson in an email.



He highlighted previous comments in which Kaye had lamented the lack of a "clear, systematic and holistic organization or plan to the way federal agencies are tasked with studying the basic toxicity and exposure scenarios of chemicals." That, combined with a "severe lack of federal funding as well as authorities to quickly and comprehensively address chemical toxicity and exposure," said Kaye, has forced agencies, including the CPSC, to "proceed in piecemeal fashion."



The American Chemistry Council, meanwhile, criticized the petition. "It's unfortunate these groups are presenting families with the false choice between chemical safety and fire safety when we can have both," the national industry group said in a statement. "Flame retardants have been proven to be a critical component of fire safety and can help save lives."



"This petition unfortunately lumps together a broad range of substances with different properties and uses without any consideration of their individual safety or benefits," added Bryan Goodman, a spokesman with the American Chemistry Council, in an email.



Linda Birnbaum, director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, shared a similar concern about the petition's broad reach. "I'm not a big fan of flame retardants being used," she said. "But I think a blanket banning of anything with a halogen on it may not be the best approach."



Birnbaum suggested there might be some circumstances in which certain organohalogen chemicals may still prove critical for fire safety. "And I'm not convinced that some of the non-halogenated flame retardants are any better," she said.



While organohalogens still make up the majority of flame retardants in consumer products, another class -- phosphates -- is coming into use. Blum noted that these chemicals, too, are "looking worrisome." Yet she added that there was not yet enough evidence regarding their toxicity to add them to the petition.



Health experts and advocates seem to agree that before looking for a safer alternative, manufacturers should determine if a substitute is even necessary. Can a couch -- or mattress or children's toy -- be constructed differently so that chemical additives aren't needed in the first place? It turns out that flame retardants added to furniture may not actually slow fires.



Spurred in part by mounting evidence of health problems associated with flame retardant additives, as well as a Chicago Tribune investigation that found the additives may offer no meaningful fire protection, the state of California last year revised its Technical Bulletin 117 to remove a decades-old requirement that flame retardants be included in the stuffing of upholstered furniture. The state rule, which became the de facto standard for the rest of the nation, meant use of the chemicals flourished for years. However, as Blum noted, California's updated standard still does not forbid flame retardants outright.



How a CPSC ban on organohalogens would affect the furniture industry, one of the major users of flame retardants, is not yet clear. "We have just become aware of this petition and have not had the opportunity to fully investigate its potential impact on our industry," said Andy Counts, CEO of the American Home Furnishings Association, which has previously opposed measures that could increase chemical risks to its customers or employees.



Organohalogen flame retardants are the first of six entire classes of chemicals that Blum and her colleagues intend to address. This broader approach, they argue, could prove a more effective way to increase the chemical safety of household products.



Under the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, the EPA has banned just five chemicals and has required testing for only about 200 of the more than 80,000 permitted for use in the United States. A bipartisan bill unveiled in Congress earlier this month shows some promise of reforming the outdated law. Yet the legislation has also set off heated debate. Some public health advocates warn, for example, that a federal law could stymie swifter chemical safety efforts by states, several of which have already proposed bans on flame retardants.



"Bans take a really long time. TSCA reform is taking a really long time," said Blum. "And then there are so many chemicals and so much testing that needs to be done. So let's find a way to act on what we know, rather than wait for such a long time for a process that may or may not turn out to be effective."



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Do You Kiss Yourself in the Mirror

My son loves his reflection. Even when he thought the person staring back at him was another awesome baby, he would squeal and smile whenever his "friend" came to visit. Now that he is old enough to understand that it is in fact himself staring back at him, he loves his reflection even more. He loves it so much that he will run right up to the mirror and give it lots of kisses.



This practice, while adorable in childhood, would be called narcissistic, vain and self-absorbed if done by an adult. I for one would probably burst out in a fit of nervous laughter if told to kiss my reflection. I'm not sure if I can even say the words, "I love myself," without feeling a little bit awkward. Even smiling proudly at what looks back at me is tough.



I'm sure I'm not alone. Young children don't yet have those feelings of shame and self doubt. Though sadly I'm hearing of kids having body image and other self-esteem issues at earlier ages than ever before. Is it not long before my son succumbs to those negative feelings? Will my own words and actions unintentionally lead him to feel badly about himself? Will I know what to say if he asks me why he is not as tall as so-and-so, or as smart, or as popular?



I know that before I can ask my son to love himself, I have to love myself first. I'm sure I'm not alone in feeling like that is no easy task. I look in the mirror and see flaws, I read about others accomplishments and feel inadequate, I question my life and feel unsatisfied.



Becoming a parent has forced me to challenge all of those things. When you need to be there for your child, there is little room for self doubt. There is barely enough time to think about anything. Still, there are those moments when negativity creeps in and fills your head with shame and self-loathing.



We teach our children to love themselves. We praise their accomplishments and tell them how wonderful they are. We hope they never feel a moment of shame and unworthiness. We do all this for our children, and maybe we should do more of this for ourselves.



In the story of Narcissus, Narcissus drowns after becoming infatuated with his reflection in the water. This story is held up as the ultimate cautionary tale of the danger of loving oneself too much. I think it's time for a new interpretation. I think we could all use the chance to completely drown ourselves in love. Are you ready to take the plunge?



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Life. Life. Now!

This a talk from the Beyond Conference I gave in March, 2015 about living life in the present. I spoke about my weight loss journey and recovering from a seizure I had in October, 2014.



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Parents Need Answers About Youth Sports Concussions

When 49ers inside linebacker Chris Borland announced his early retirement from the NFL after just one season, the league and fans reacted with shock. But as a father, a neuroscientist and a geriatrician, I can imagine all too well the immense relief that Borland's parents likely felt knowing they would no longer have to watch their son take a beating on Sunday afternoons.



My life's work is ending Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, the very things that Borland feared developing in his later life. I am deeply committed to strengthening our scientific understanding of the causes of dementia--including untangling the impact of sports-related childhood concussions (the sort that Borland suffered before entering the NFL) on later-life cognitive function.



As a parent, it wouldn't take much evidence for me to decide to keep my two now grown children out of high-impact sports like football and soccer. But as a scientist and a physician, I have a different perspective: I can see clearly just how much we still don't know--and how much we need to learn--to make well-founded, smart public health recommendations about childhood sports participation and concussion risks.



When it comes to adult traumatic brain injury and dementia risks, the evidence is more established. Last year, the NFL stated in federal court documents that it expects nearly a third of its retired players to develop long-term cognitive problems and predicted that the conditions are likely to emerge at "notably younger ages" than in the general population.



There's a key difference, though, between what we know about the link between adult traumatic brain injury and later life dementia, and what we know about childhood concussions and later life dementia. The truth is, we know very little about how childhood concussions influence the risk for dementia in adulthood. We need to accelerate this research so that parents and coaches can make better decisions about youth sport participation, practice policies and competition rules.



This month, I co-authored a consensus statement published in Nature Reviews Neurology about the need to advance research into the short-term and long-term neuropsychological outcomes of youth sports-related concussions. The statement was the result of a meeting convened by Safe Kids Worldwide, the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation and the Andrews Institute for Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine. The meeting brought together more than 25 experts in a variety of fields including neurology, sports injury reporting, ethics, genetics, biomarkers, dementia and neuroimaging. The group concluded that there is not enough evidence to establish a clear link between early-life repetitive head impacts and adult cognitive decline and dementia. This is contrasted by what is known about similar head impact injuries in adults and the established risk of later-life cognitive decline and dementia.



So how can we get answers about childhood concussions and late life dementia risks? We need to improve our understanding of the fundamental biology of concussions and how factors like age, sex and genetics influence concussion susceptibility and recovery. We need to support continued research and development of brain imaging techniques that shed light on the pathology of pediatric brain injury and have the potential to accelerate the development of novel therapies.



Moreover, we need to improve local and nationwide injury surveillance, eventually tracking youth athletes from the beginning of their athletic careers. According to the CDC, there were 250,000 nonfatal traumatic brain injuries recorded among individuals under the age of 19 in 2009, constituting 65 percent of all sports-related concussions. Many more may have incurred undiagnosed concussions and could suffer consequences in the future.



With better monitoring we can improve our understanding of the scope of the problem by conducting a large, long-term study following youth athletes across their athletic careers to determine the influence of repetitive head impacts on the risk of developing late-life cognitive decline and dementia.



The bottom line: we need to establish and encourage clear lines of research in many different but complementary fields to improve our knowledge and translate that data into actionable guidelines.



Chris Borland did not make his decision lightly, but he had the benefit of stronger research surrounding the link between adult concussions and dementia risk.



"The decision was simple after I had done a lot of research and it was personal," Borland said on "Face the Natioon" on Sunday, March 25. "I was concerned about neurological diseases down the road if I continued to play football.



It's not yet a simple decision for the parents of children playing high-impact sports. But with more research and better surveillance, we can ensure that parents, coaches, policymakers and physicians have the information they need to make educated decisions to protect the long-term health of young athletes.



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How My Husband Transformed My Son's MRI Scans Into Incredible Adventures

My son was 2 years old when he had his first MRI scan. After a long, painful night in the emergency room, a CT scan confirmed what we feared: Andrew had a tumor behind his left eye. An MRI was needed to get a clearer and more detailed picture of the horror we were facing.



On that first occasion, the MRI tech took him out of my arms and I listened to my son shriek my name over and over again with his arms flailing as he was carried down a very long, very white hallway. "Maaaama!! Maaaama!!! Mamaaaa!!!" Hearing his screams left me heartbroken and incredulous. It seemed like unnecessary trauma for a child who had already been through so much. Following his MRI and a biopsy, Andrew was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, a type of bone cancer.



The next time Andrew had a scan, my husband and I requested that we be allowed into the room with him until he fell asleep (from the anesthesia). The anesthesiologist looked at us skeptically, but he let us in. When we walked into the sterile room with the big whirring machine, I think we were all terrified. Andrew was afraid to lie down, and my husband and I were afraid of what the test would find. I was trying to convince Andrew to relax on the table by rubbing his head and telling him he was safe and would be OK. But it wasn't working.



And then my husband was inspired: "The mask is part of your spacesuit!" he told Andrew. "You need to breathe different air because you are going to a different atmosphere!" He told him that the MRI machine was a rocket ship, and he would be traveling to different planets and visiting funny aliens who told jokes. He told Andrew that he if he could be brave, he would get to see amazing things. The tension in the room disappeared. Everyone was smiling. Andrew decided he would wear the mask and be brave. He relaxed on the table, quickly fell asleep, and we left the room.



Since that time, Andrew has had at least 15 more MRIs. He currently returns every six months as part of his follow-up care. With each one, my husband tells a new story. "The mask smells stinky because you are going back in time to see dinosaurs! They fart A LOT! It's OK!" The MRI has doubled as a time machine, a rocket ship to circle the earth, a UFO to visit alien nations and even a brain transfer machine. Following one of his scans, the anesthesiologist returned to our room to tell us that Andrew had done well, and that it had been the smoothest parent involvement he had ever experienced.



Andrew turned 7 this year, and now actually looks forward to his MRIs. (I wish I could say the same.) A month ago, as I was tucking him into bed, he said, "I can't wait for my rocket ship ride so that I can come back and tell my friends what Jupiter and Venus look like!"



Andrew had his most recent MRI three weeks ago. It marked four years post-treatment. His trip into outer space was a success! My favorite part of the story: His tests were all clear.












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This Is Nursing

This is why I fell in love with my coworkers and with our nursing profession. I cannot look at this picture without getting a little teary. If you're religious, what religion you practice, whatever it is you may believe in... none of it matters. When we've had a horrific outcome, when we have had a close call, when one of our own is sick, we come together. We pray for our patients, we pray for their babies, we pray for our families, and we pray for our coworkers.



When times are tough. When times are rough.



This is nursing. It's nurses, and physicians, and midwives, and unit clerks, and scrub techs, and patient care assistants and management, and even housekeepers! We are family. This is one of my work families, and I'm so proud to say that I work here, at Houston Methodist San Jacinto. Whatever our days bring, whatever walks through the door, we have each other. This isn't going on at just this hospital, in this city. This happens at every hospital, everywhere. I hope the people we serve know how we care for them, how we hurt for them. And I know how we care and hurt for each other. Sometimes we huddle together in the break room, sometimes we hug each other in an empty room. When we are blindsided by the unexpected or when our patients are blindsided, we cry together, we cry alone, and we cry at home. We're the only ones that know what kind of work we really do, and if we didn't have each other, it just wouldn't be nursing.

Until my next delivery ♥

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Anxiety About Anxiety Can Cause Anxiety

There was an 8-year-old crying at after-school pick up today. She was almost hysterical, racing back and forth, saying she wanted to go home, and that she was afraid. I asked the counselor what was going on and it seemed the young girl had an untied shoe lace and felt she was going to die as a result. The counselor kept telling her to stop crying, that she wasn't going to die, there was nothing to be afraid of and to stop it. This just increased the child's hysteria.



I walked over and said, "It's okay to be afraid. It can be scary." Immediately, she stopped crying and looked at me. I said. "Can you breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth like me?" and I began to breathe slowly, modeling what I wanted her to do. She began to do it, eyes locked with mine. We breathed together and mellowed the beast of anxiety.



I write this not as a kudos to me, but as a show of compassion for people who experience any level of anxiety. It is a nasty companion.



I believe that the young girl truly felt that she was gong to die, and here's why: Her heart was probably pounding incredibly fast; her head was probably hurting from clenching her jaw; she was jumpy and probably felt out of control. All of these symptoms of anxiety can be terrifying, which just increases the anxiety.



Anxiety about anxiety can cause anxiety.



The fastest way to stop anxiety is to pop a Xanax. Gotcha! The even faster way is to breathe. Slowly and steadily. And walk through your body: Is my heart racing? Check. Is my head hurting? Check. Am I sweating? Check. Thank you, body, for showing me I need to get more oxygen to my brain. Breathe.



Oxygen to the brain helps slow down the train of anxiety and allows you to see things a bit more clearly. That high-pitched hysteria you were feeling is now ebbing to a softer edginess. The more you breathe, the gentler you feel. You're in charge again, not anxiety.



And talk to yourself the way I spoke to that young girl. No judgment. "It's okay to be scared." I didn't agree or disagree that there was something to be afraid of; I allowed her to feel what she was feeling. I didn't fight her anxiety; I invited it to the table. And in that gesture, anxiety released its grip.



Give yourself the gifts of breathing and no judgment. Share this with your family, friends, coworkers -- anyone you know who has slight or more intense anxiety. I don't propose that medication is unnecessary. In fact, medication can be amazing. But relying on medication alone can feed the feeling of helplessness so many anxiety sufferers experience. It's empowering, and immediately effective, to be an active participant in managing one's anxiety.



You've got the power.



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Kids' Fast Food Consumption On The Decline

BY KATHRYN DOYLE

Mon Mar 30, 2015 1:57pm EDT



(Reuters Health) - Between 2003 and 2010, the number of U.S. kids eating fast food on any given day went down, and the calories from some types of fast foods have declined as well, according to a new study.



“Most prior studies have focused on menu items, but this (one) actually looked at what children are eating,” said coauthor Colin D. Rehm, formerly of the University of Washington in Seattle and now of Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts.



“The take-home message is that changes can be made, whether they are due to consumer preference or due to what the restaurants have done themselves,” Rehm told Reuters Health by phone. “It shows that change is possible.”



According to data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, in 2003, almost 39 percent of U.S. kids ate fast food on a given day, which dropped to less than 33 percent by the 2009-2010 survey.



Calorie intake from burger, pizza and chicken fast food restaurants also went down, while those from Mexican foods and sandwiches did not change.



Mexican food and sandwiches were minor contributors to total fast food consumption to start with, so it would have been difficult to detect a decrease over the course of the study, Rehm noted.



Other sources have noted a decline in pizza sales since 2003, which may explain some of the decrease in frequency and calories from those sources, the authors write in JAMA Pediatrics.



Increased consumer nutrition awareness and restaurant reformulations of menu items or portion downsizing also likely contributed to the trend, Rehm said.



“Menu labeling” with calorie information had really only just begun in 2010, so it would not have had a sizeable effect on these data, he said.



“Given that fast food intake appears to be declining among adults, it's not surprising that we'd see a similar trend in children,” said Katherine W. Bauer of the Center for Obesity Research and Education at Temple University in Philadelphia.



Bauer was not involved in the new study.



By 2010, fewer kids were visiting pizza restaurants every day, and when they did, they tended to consume fewer calories. For burgers, calories decreased but the percentage of visitors per day did not, indicating that kids, or their parents, started making lower-calorie choices at burger restaurants, Rehm said.



Reduced frequency of fast food intake and reduced caloric contributions from fast food are positive signs for health, Bauer told Reuters Health by email.



“From this paper alone I don't feel we're able to say that kids are getting healthier, because we don't know what, if anything, they're substituting for their fast food meals and snacks,” she said. “If children are substituting the calories from fast food for the same number of calories and quality of food from another type of restaurant, then they're no better off.”



This study only looked at calories and did not consider the nutrition profile of the foods, which is important, he noted. U.S. dietary goals should be to reduce calories and to improve the nutritional value of those calories, Rehm said.



“We're definitely getting a number of positive signs from around the country that our public health efforts to address obesity and improve children's nutrition may be working, including what we see in this paper,” Bauer said.



Other studies have noted a decrease in kids’ overall calorie consumption as well as added sugar consumption, Rehm said.



“There’s always room for improvement in the American diet, but we are seeing some encouraging results,” he said.



SOURCE: bit.ly/1adWrco JAMA Pediatrics, online March 30, 2015.



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Sacred Sisterhood of Healers!

I don't know how many people learn about the revolutionary Dorothea Dix in school any more, but for people involved with mental health advocacy, she is a shining light and one of the great women of history. It is poignant for me that I will be spending the last three days of Women's History Month with the modern-day Dorothea Dix, Elyn Saks of the USC Gould School of Law. We will be immersed in collaboration and study at the Saks Institute for Mental Health Law, Policy and Ethics, where Elyn is changing history and shattering expectations with her life and work.



These two shining stars carry on a tradition of advocacy that unites them across the centuries. When I stop and think about this incredible legacy, it draws my attention and awareness to how many modern day female leaders have revolutionized the holistic health of women and have had a direct effect on my own life.



I get asked all the time, 'With your mental health history, what is your current treatment and diagnosis?" I have written before about my history with brain health challenges, with diagnoses given to me when I was young that are usually considered chronic. But my history has not become my reality, so I like to turn that question around and ask, "Do I have a brain that functions 'normally'? No, I say, but does anyone?'



Finding my way to that perspective owes so much to modern medicine when I was in my teens and a remarkable litany of teachers, healers, and revolutionary leaders. Their work changed my DNA, my health history, and my whole life trajectory. For Women's History Month, I want to publicly honor them for their radical work in bringing Flawless health to the world:



Debbie Rosas

The final leg of my journey in ending my challenges with anorexia came through the intensive Nia White Belt training with Debbie Rosas. I learned how to tune in to sensation in my body at a cellular level, to stop thinking "no pain no gain." I accepted that there is truly no gain if there is no self compassion, which set the foundation for my studies a few months later with the revolutionary change maker Regena Thomashauer.



Regena Thomashauer

Regena contributes to changing the paradigm of health by teaching women how to express all their emotions, shed self-hatred and doubt, and live healthy, happy lives in every area -- work, family, spirituality, physical health, and emotional wellbeing.



I have been studying with Regena for about a decade. She has taught me how to create a life-based on authentic expression of emotions and pleasure -- and to understand that there is a direct correlation between the light and the dark in our lives. The tools in her toolkit are powerful antidotes to women's lives today, which are so often a breeding ground for depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and general discontent.



Barbara Stanny

Barbara specializes in financial education for women. From her body of work, I have learned how to stand for my value, which has completely revolutionized my relationship with money. As a result of clarity about my work and finances, abundance flows to me in all areas of my life.



Christiane Northrup, M.D.

In Regena's Mastery course, we had the incredibly lucky experience to study with Dr. Northrup, a pioneer in women's health who specializes in women over 40. Her work has been very informative and healing for me during this time of intense change in my body -- after 45 where I have seen shifts in my anxiety levels, insomnia, and patterns of weight gain. I have been able to rise to these body image and health challenges with the support of Christiane's brilliant work.



Off the Mat Into the World

In this yoga leadership training, Hala Khouri, Seane Corn, and Suzanne Sterling use music, ritual, yoga, somatic therapy and thoughtful study to achieve an almost unimaginable release of trauma and grief. I cried in this training to the point where I was almost hyperventilating, but it was so healing -- soul cleansing and very important for changing patterns that no longer serve me.



I experienced extreme mental health challenges as a young adult, some of them life-threatening. Even after many hospitalizations and years of treatment, I had some surprising regression in my 30s. Now, at least every day, I stop and feel a moment of gratitude for these women and their work as I celebrate the radical transformation in my life from studying with them.



They changed my history and they are changing the world for the rest of us. This is a powerful sisterhood that I hope every women reading this will join to carry on a legacy of hope for all women everywhere as we model holistic health for our daughters, our girls... our future.



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If you're struggling with an eating disorder, call the National Eating Disorder Association hotline at 1-800-931-2237.



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Kids With Autism Are More Likely To Have Gastrointestinal Problems

By: Rachael Rettner

Published: 03/30/2015 02:00 PM EDT on LiveScience

Children with autism may be more likely to have gastrointestinal problems early in life, compared with children who don't have the condition, a new study suggests.

Researchers analyzed information from children in Norway whose mothers had answered questions about their child's health during infancy and early childhood. The study included 195 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD); 4,636 children who had other types of developmental delays; and more than 40,000 children with typical development (who did not have autism). Many of the children with autism had been diagnosed after their mothers completed the study survey.

The mothers' reports showed that children with autism had higher odds of experiencing symptoms such as constipation, food intolerance and food allergies at ages 6 to 18 months than the typically developing children did. (Food intolerance is a condition that can be similar to food allergies but is usually less severe.)

At ages 18 months to 3 years, the children with autism were more likely than typically developing children to have diarrhea, in addition to constipation and food allergies or intolerance, the study also found.

Children with autism were also more than twice as likely to have at least one gastrointestinal symptom during both of these age ranges, compared to children with other developmental delays or typical development, the study found. [Beyond Vaccines: 5 Things That Might Really Cause Autism]

It's not clear why gastrointestinal symptoms may be more common in children with autism. Some people have suggested that the diets of children with autism may be different from those of children without the condition, because children with autism may prefer different foods. Although studies suggest that the diets of children with autism may be different from those of other children, their overall nutritional intake has not been shown to differ, the researchers said.

Other researchers have suggested that genetics may play a role in both autism and gastrointestinal symptoms, or that the two conditions may share another underlying mechanism.

Future studies examining the reason for the link between autism and gastrointestinal symptoms should focus on early life, the researchers said.

"Even though GI symptoms are common in early childhood, physicians should be mindful that children with ASD may be experiencing more GI difficulties in the first three years of life" than children with typical development or other developmental delays, the researchers, from Columbia University, wrote in the March 25 issue of the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

"Treatments that address GI symptoms may significantly contribute to the well-being of children with ASD and may be useful in reducing difficult behaviors," they said.

The researchers noted that it's possible that mothers of children with autism tended to report GI symptoms in their children more often than these symptoms actually occurred, which would have affected the results. But the researchers also said that this possibility is unlikely — one previous study found that parents' reports of their children's gastrointestinal problems tended to agree with doctors' diagnoses, regardless of whether the children had autism.

The researchers also noted that a more conclusive study should be conducted in the future, when more cases of autism have been detected among the children in the study. The children were born between 2002 and 2008, and had follow-ups to look for signs of autism until 2013, but some of these children may have yet to be diagnosed with autism.

Follow Rachael Rettner @RachaelRettner . Follow Live Science @livescience , Facebook & Google+ . Original article on Live Science .

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The Day After My Father's Funeral

My parents went through a divorce when I was 4 years old. The earliest memories I have of my father are not positive. My parents constantly fought -- the final nail in the coffin being my father cutting open my little brothers lip when he hit him.



I grew up hating my father.



He hurt my mother, brother, and several family members. He hurt me by not being a father I could look up to, and learn how to be a man from. As I became an adult, my hatred for him grew.



There was a point where that hatred decreased. I left my parents home at 17 and was homeless. I dropped out of high school and got three jobs to survive. I didn't have time to think about him.



When I got myself established, he tried to reach out. His voicemail said he just wanted to say HI. I broke the answering machine.



I met the woman who would become my wife, got my G.E.D., and we started our life together. I got steady work, our place, and we started a family. My father continued to reach out.



I ignored him.



We had our first son a year later. My father heard about him from my grandfather -- who I had an amazing relationship with. My grandfather was always there for my brother and I.



It had been years and my hatred for my father had faded. I told him he could see his grandson. From then on, I would talk to him every few months. He would come over to see his grandchildren, and he would keep apologizing. We kept this kind of relationship until April of 2012.



I can remember every second of the call. I can feel every emotion that ran through my body that call. My grandfather called to tell me my father died in his sleep. He was 54 years old.



I got off the phone and didn't know how to react; there were so many conflicting emotions. I simply hung up and went to bed. The next few days were a blur. I did all the normal life stuff, but in the back of my mind was a pinging. His funeral was a week later.



The funeral was torture. People came to express their condolences, but I was clueless as to what to do or how to react--this was my first death experience, and we weren't close.



During the funeral, I found out some things I didn't know about my father. He was a paramedic and had saved some lives. He volunteered for the Salvation Army and helped a lot of people. The biggest shock being how his mother died.



My grandmother had died before I was born, and it was a topic that wasn't discussed in our family. She died when my father was young, and her death affected him in ways that no one realized. He battled a lot of demons after her death.



I got home from his funeral and lost it -- I completely broke down. Every emotion from 32 years of life came crashing down on me. I cried for two hours and went to bed. I woke up the next day feeling the same.



I couldn't believe it. HE WAS DEAD. He was gone, and I would never get another chance to talk to him. I would never get a chance to repair our relationship to at least a functional level. That was it. Game over.



After a few days of raw emotion, I started to replay some of the last few conversations we had. The one thing he kept talking about were all the things he wished he had done in life.



He wished he was there for my brother and I. He wished he had traveled. He wished he had done this and that. He had so many regrets. He knew he would die with those regrets.



The one thing he said to me was to learn from his life. He said to live a life of no regrets. He would ask about my dreams--he told me to chase every one of them, no matter how impossible they seemed.



Little did he know how his death would impact my life. I hated my father most of my life, but in the end, he gave me a great gift. He gave me a wake-up call and reality check to the kind of life I was living.



As we approach the three-year anniversary of his death, I have taken his advice and honored his last wishes. I've lost 170 pounds, quit a job I hated to write full-time and moved our family from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to our dream destination of Maui, Hawaii. We have three beautiful children, and my wife and I will celebrate 17 years of marriage in December.



Live a life of no regret



When you deal with death, the one thing that becomes clear is the preciousness of time. Life is short and before we know it--it's gone. Time is the one thing we'll never get back.



Is it possible to live a life completely free of regret? I'm not sure, but probably not. BUT, you can accomplish all of your big goals. Do you want to lose weight? Do you want a better job or the chance to start a business? Do you want to move to your dream destination? Whatever your dreams are they ARE possible.



It's not going to be easy. It will take time -- too much time it feels like, but your dreams are possible. Don't let your dreams die with you -- like they did with my father. They are in your mind and heart for a reason. We only get one life to live. Make it count.



I miss my father. I miss my grandfather. I will continue to honor their memory, and I am their legacy. Don't wait for death before you do something about the kind of life you want to live.



Are you chasing your dreams?



Photo: Flickr/ Stephan Ridgway



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Billy Crystal and Josh Gad buddy up for FX’s “deliciously uncomfortable” series “The Comedians”

FX’s new comedy The Comedians (premiering April 9 at 10pm ET/PT) is a show about a show starring the guys behind the guys. Comedy legend Billy Crystal partners with (relative) newcomer Josh Gad (Frozen, The Wedding Ringer) in this mockumentary-style, behind-the-scenes look at their new comedy/variety show. Reluctantly paired up for The Billy & Josh Show, Crystal and Gad power through network execs’ demands, underperforming assistants, a skittish producer and their own conflicting comedic philosophies. “It’s a complicated show,” Crystal says of The Comedians. “We have a live show within the show, you have the sketches that fold into the … Continue reading →

The post Billy Crystal and Josh Gad buddy up for FX’s “deliciously uncomfortable” series “The Comedians” appeared first on Channel Guide Magazine.

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3 Self-Indulgences You Need to Start Doing Now

We have been taught that to be self-indulgent is an undesirable trait, something that can lead to ruinous behavior. The Merriam-Webster defines self-indulgence as "excessive or unrestrained gratification of one's own appetites, desires, or whims." While indeed many self-indulgences can pack on the pounds or put a major dent in one's relationships or budget, there are also advantages to allowing behaviors that gently pamper and nurture you.



Sometimes it's very proactive to devote the time to making sure your needs get met, especially when these self-nurturing behaviors are healthy and uplifting. I call this raising your permission levels . Self-nurturing, or what Sarah Ban Breathnach, author of Simple Abundance, calls "the hardest thing you'll ever do" demands that we regularly give ourselves permission to take time off, to indulge in simple pleasures, and to provide what is necessary to feed our heart and soul as well as our bodies.



Permission levels can be likened to an internal barometer measuring how much bliss, well-being, success, and love we allow ourselves. In other words, a person with high permission levels is one who is generally having a positive life experience. An individual with relatively low permission levels would feel an overall sense of dissatisfaction. A good indicator of where your permission levels are in relation to self-nurturing and well-being is the degree of anxiety or guilt you experience when you are not being productive, or just spending a day in bed or other forms of indulgence.



3 Self-Nurturing Way to Raise Your Permission Levels



1. Invest in high-quality flavor enhancers for water or herb tea.



If you aren't getting enough hydration on a daily basis (and most of us are not), this can really impact your mood and energy levels, according to a study done at the University of Connecticut. What really helped me kick up my water consumption was finding flavors that made H2O more appealing. There are commercial flavorings that are loaded with potentially toxic food colorings and flavorings but here are some healthier options: You can find orange blossom and rose-water inexpensively at Indian or Middle Eastern markets; Source out some organic essential oils, like a citrus blend and add a drop or two to your non-caffeinated beverage; My personal favorite is mint-flavored liquid chlorophyll. A few drops in a glass or a squirt in my water bottle is very refreshing as well as potentially an internal deodorant and beneficial supplement according to the Linus Pauling Institute.



2. Take a long soak bath at least once a week.

Showers are quick and efficient but don't allow for one to luxuriate and contemplate unlimited possibilities. One of the precepts of Natural Wellness is to learn to balance busy-ness with being-ness and baths are a great way to schedule some "me" time. Some people find baths as revitalizing as taking a power nap. Baths can be very meditative rituals, especially if you pamper yourself with candles, and fun bath and beauty products.



Dr. Mark Hyman recommends adding one-and-a-half to one cup of Epsom salt and one-and-a-half to one cup of baking soda to your bath, you also gain the benefits of magnesium absorbed through your skin and the alkaline-balancing effects of the baking soda, both of which help with sleep.





3. Spend no less than three to 15 minutes each day practicing deep breathing + reward.

Even if you haven't been able to make meditation a daily practice, doing a few minutes of focused breathing can dramatically improve your health and emotional outlook, according to Dr. Andre Weil. Try to take periodic breaks with the intent of taking at least five deep breaths, imagining that you are inhaling positive, clearing energy and releasing any stress out through the soles of your feet. A surefire way to lock in this life-affirming behavior is to reward yourself with something comforting and nurturing like a handful of pistachios, a square or two of dark chocolate, or a small latte or herbal tea.



LindaJoy Rose, Ph.D. aka Dr. L J has over 25 years as an expert in subconscious dynamics and is a pioneer in the education and certification of hypnotherapists worldwide She currently trains coaches in Holistic Health, Life Makeover Strategies and Subconscious Dynamics through her Natural Wellness Academy specializing in an approach that encompasses Body, Mind and Spirit.



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You Are A Good Daughter

When I first began talking to people about my journey with my mother's Alzheimer's -- which I tentatively began to do a couple of years ago -- one of the things I heard the most often was: "Your mother is very lucky to have such a good daughter."



At first, I felt like an imposter.



"I'm really not," I wanted to reply. "I'm so imperfect. I was a challenging teenager. I was so angry at my mother for so long and for so much. I've stayed living in Los Angeles instead of moving back to Massachusetts to take care of her full-time. I could have done less. I could be doing more. Sometimes I don't want to talk to her on the phone because it hurts. I've been selfish. I am selfish. I'm not a good daughter. I'm not good enough."






Rebellious teenage me




When my mother was two years into her illness, she began to cling to a couple of stories which she would repeat ad nauseam. One of them was about my sophomore year of high school when I went through a rebellious streak and began cutting class and hanging out with "crooks and thugs" in Harvard Square. She would begin talking about this brief period of my adolescence and what began as a reference or retelling would quickly escalate into more. The old rage -- which was a part of what I'd been trying to escape at 16 years old to begin with -- would come back into her eyes and her voice and no matter how I tried to change the subject, she wouldn't be deterred. She would scold me. She would become shrill and screamy and loud.



In response to her circular, repetitive reproaches, I would eventually become so frustrated that I would snap. I would lose my patience; I would turn back into that angry 16-year-old girl on the inside, filled with resentment and blame. Once, after days on end of it, I went so far as to tell her -- quite loudly, if not actually yelling -- "You have to stop! You have to stop! That was 10 years ago, you have to have to have to stop talking about this! What do you want me to do? I was 16. You have to stop!"



In that moment, I certainly didn't feel like a good daughter. I didn't feel like an imperfect daughter. I felt like a terrible person who was yelling at my mother who has Alzheimer's and couldn't help herself.



After the last essay I wrote, I received many heartfelt comments and messages from women thanking me for writing it. In turn, they shared with me their own painful and bittersweet experiences with a loved one who suffered or is suffering from Alzheimer's disease or another terminal illness. Each and every kind and empathetic word and story was a beautiful spot of blossoming pain and love on my heart. But the ones that stood out to me the most were the ones in which the writers confessed to me that they, too, had had very difficult relationships with their mothers before they became ill. Many of these messages had a sense of being whispered, a sense of relief in the confession, an echo of guilt. Message after message of women telling me, "It was the same with my mother. Thank you for writing about it. That was the part of your essay that meant the most to me."



I realized that we are all afraid that we are bad daughters. That even if it is our mothers who have Alzheimer's and not us, a part of our minds are also stuck on the past and we are wracked with guilt in the present. That we are filled with shame for the selves we used to be and those selves inside of us that still are. And that goes for all women, I think, who have had a rocky past with their mothers. Even if their mothers don't have Alzheimer's. Even if their mothers aren't sick at all. Even if their mothers hurt them and have continued to hurt them so badly that they've had to cut ties.



But to all of these women, to all of you, there is something that you need to hear. Something that you need to hear so hard that it becomes a physical force, a stamp, that you feel imprinted on your heart.



You are a good daughter.



If you have loved your mother enough to feel the pain of her hurting you, and the pain of you hurting her, you are a good daughter. If you have tried to forgive her, even if you haven't been able to so far, you are a good daughter. If you have ever striven to do the very best that you can, even under challenging circumstances, you are a good daughter.



And it's OK.



It's OK if your relationship was challenging. It's OK if your relationship was awful. It's OK if you said things or did things that you aren't proud of, of which you are ashamed, that you wish you could take back. It's OK.



Guilt is among the most visceral of human emotions and too often, because of its very nature, we push it down until it becomes a near-permanent part of us. It becomes something that rattles around in the background at all times and then, every so often, flares up painfully like a chronic illness that our immune systems mostly suppress but can't quite shake. I believe that it takes so much soothing, deep breathing and self-forgiving, again and again and again, to heal your guilt. And especially if you are grieving. Because guilt is so painful and cuts so deeply that it is well known to be an integral part of grief.



So I will say it again. Because I want you to know it so much that you feel it in your bones and your heart and your teeth and your skin and every part of you that hurts.



You are a good daughter.



You are a good daughter. And it's OK.









Rebecca Emily Darling is a writer, artist, vintage seller, and sometimes actress living in Los Angeles. You can follow her on twitter, facebook, and instagram, and you can take a peek at her vintage treasures here.



Photo by photographer and illustrator Caroline Moore.




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How to Cope With a Bad Job (Without Losing Your Mind)

Most of us have probably created a "My Job Sucks, Make It Feel Better!" playlist at one point or another. There are many subtle and varied options for the discerning disaffected peon - 'Sixteen Tons' for the under-appreciated and prospect-less; 'Take This Job and Shove It' for the more assertive malcontents; and for the pacifists among us, maybe just a plaintive, '(Lord I) Feel Like Going Home'.



Everyone has moments of frustration, however much they may love their job - statistics indicate that the average length of a work-related moment of frustration is about forty years, so one option is to just hang in there and wait for retirement (disclaimer: this statistic may be a lie). Quitting a job, especially a secure and well-paid one, is a nuclear option which may not be available to everyone - for example, those whose wallet-based photographs of famous Americans have been replaced with photos of their kids. What can you do when you've loaded sixteen tons and you feel like going home, but there's no opportunity to tell your boss, "Take this job and shove it!"?



Both psychology research as well as field research based on crowd-sourced psychometric data collected by such companies as Good.Co and Cangrade support two ideas, both of which are suspiciously simple on the face of it. One is that people are happier in jobs where the culture, people, and everyday working experience matches their own preferences and values. The other is that some people are by nature better equipped to handle problems relating to poor cultural fit, which is the biggest single factor contributing to job dissatisfaction.



How to cope with a bad job



There are numerous ways to handle poor cultural fit without requesting your boss to insert your job vigorously into his or herself. One technique is to tolerate the unpleasantness until you retire or - more likely given that poor cultural fit is associated with increased stress and health risks - expire, gibbering, in a dusty corner of the office (disclaimer: this is not a recommended approach). Alternatively, depending on your particular set of characteristics (i.e. strengths and weaknesses), there are two less soul-destroying options, both of which require a bit of flexibility and innovative thinking.



The key to surviving a bad job is knowing this: if your workplace makes you unhappy, you have two options: the option to try to change it, the option to change yourself, or a little of both. Another way of looking at it is to accept the things you can't change, and change those you can.



Change what you can



If you can approach the powers that be with suggestions for changes to the working environment which benefit the whole company (as well as you!), they might just listen. Thankfully, it's no longer 1952 and many companies have finally come to embrace the importance of individual differences, recognizing that organizational culture is dynamic, fluid, and reciprocal - an evolving entity which responds to influences from the top down and from the bottom up. The key here is to know what works for you, and what level of compromise you're willing to accept - it's impossible to ask someone to fulfil your needs when you don't know what they are.



That being said, not all organizations or particular jobs have a level of flexibility which permits this kind of change, and it would be irrational to suggest that everyone can simply go into work and tell their boss how things are going to be. There are some lucky people who can get away with this by virtue of their own character or their boss's, but for most of us, this will result a scenario that goes from you saying 'take this job and shove it', to your boss saying 'I'm taking your job and shoving you out of the window'.



Actively accept the things you can't change



That said, nobody is really powerless in their organization, no matter how low down the pecking order they might be; your own attitude and perspective is always something you can control. Like the song says: they can't take that away from you. If your workplace is unfixably horrible, the fastest way to improve your situation is to accept it - not passively, but actively.



Consider ways to tolerate your situation better: improvements you can make within whatever limitations are imposed on you to make your everyday experience of work more enjoyable, no matter how small. Have something nice for lunch, take a walk in a park, put a comforting photo on your desk, make funny or motivational desktop backgrounds for your computer during breaks, or even print and hang a few motivational images, like this Career Happiness Manifesto.



The key here is to remember that work pays you; it doesn't own you. What matters most - in the workplace and everywhere - is not the place but your attitude towards it, and that is always within your own power.



"They call it work for a reason..."



Why does this all matter so much? Surely if you hate your job it's no big deal; don't most people collect their paycheck while dreaming of retirement? After all, your Aunt Mildred never fails to remind you that, "they call it work for a reason" - so aren't we supposed to be miserable at work? Well...no, unless you're a masochist, obviously.



The idea that suffering is somehow a good thing was invented to make people feel less bad about suffering being an inescapable part of life, but that doesn't mean we have to go looking for it. A job isn't just a job; it's a part of our self-identity, and when people are in jobs they hate, this impacts how they feel about themselves generally. Self-awareness and the capacity to take personal responsibility for our actions are crucial to fulfillment. As Viktor Frankl, psychotherapist and Holocaust survivor, wrote in 1946, "Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather he must recognize that it is he who is asked."



What's your answer going to be?



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A New Strain Of Enterovirus D68 May Be The Cause Of Recent Childhood Paralysis Cases

Scientists have linked a specific strain of the respiratory illness enterovirus D68 to the previously-unexplained rash of childhood paralysis and muscle weakness that struck dozens of children between 2012 and 2014.



Researchers found the genetic imprint of a relatively new strain of enterovirus D68 -- B1 -- in children who developed acute flaccid myelitis (paralysis or muscle weakening) after having a fever or respiratory illness. After checking patients' respiratory secretions, blood and cerebrospinal fluid for a variety of different pathogens, they couldn't find any other probable cause of the paralysis in these children.



While this study strengthens the link between EV-D68 and sudden paralysis or muscle weakening in pediatric patients, it doesn't definitively establish the virus as the cause of acute flaccid myelitis. Nor does it explain by which mechanism EV-D68 may cause paralysis. But the finding points to the urgency for further research of EV-D68 and a possible vaccine, said lead researcher Dr. Charles Chiu, director of the Abbott Viral Diagnostics and Discovery Center at University of California, San Francisco.



"Given that none of the children have fully recovered, we urgently need to continue investigating this new strain of EV-D68 and its potential to cause acute flaccid myelitis," said Chiu in a statement.



Chiu also found that among siblings who caught a genetically identical strain of EV-D68, only one of them went on to develop acute flaccid myelitis, which indicates that not everyone who contracts this certain strain of EV-D68 will have the same reaction.



"This suggests that it's not only the virus, but also patients' individual biology that determines what disease they may present with," explained Chiu.



The study examined 48 pediatric patients: 23 had confirmed enterovirus-related diseases and 25 had acute flaccid myelitis. Chiu found genetic traces in EV-D68 in 12 out of the 25 who had been struck by acute flaccid myelitis, and saw they were all part of the same B1 strain. He speculated that they were only able to find trace amounts of EV-D68 in some patients because fluid samples were taken from the children about one week after the onset of respiratory symptoms, which may have been too long to wait for more robust samples.



The B1 strain of EV-D68 emerged around four years ago, and is similar to other viruses like EV-D70 or poliovirus, which cause nerve damage and paralysis. It was the most dominant strain of EV-D68 circulating during the 2014 outbreak, and only a small minority of children -- 115 across 34 states -- went on to develop paralysis or muscle weakening between Aug. 2014 and Mar. 2015, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



Babies, children and teens, particularly those with asthma, are especially susceptible to the disease because they're less likely to have built up immunities against the disease. Symptoms can start out mildly (fever, cough, sneezing, body aches) and progress to wheezing or difficulty breathing. Currently, there is no vaccine for EV-D68.





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What 3D Facial Imaging Can Reveal About Your Aging Process

By: Laura Geggel

Published: March 31, 2015 06:30am ET

It's no secret that most people accumulate wrinkles on their faces as they age. But now, a 3D analysis of those wrinkles and other signs of aging could reveal a person's age based on only an image of his or her face, a new study finds.

The researchers also found that levels of several biological markers in people's blood are associated with the markers of aging that appear on people's faces. For instance, women with older-looking faces tend to have higher levels of "bad" cholesterol, the researchers found.

"3D facial images can really tell your biological age," said the study's senior researcher Jing-Dong Han, a professor of computational biology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Max Planck Partner Institute in Shanghai. "It's really more accurate than a physical exam." [8 Tips for Healthy Aging]

In the study, the researchers used a special camera, called the 3dMDface System, to take 3D facial scans of 332 Chinese people. The scientists also collected blood samples from the participants, who ranged in age from 17 to 77 years old.

An analysis of the 3D scans revealed several patterns: As a person grows older, the mouth grows longer, the nose becomes wider, the forehead narrows, and the distances between the mouth and nose increases, the researchers found. The corners of the eyes also droop with age, likely because of gravity's relentless pull, the scientists said.

Moreover, young faces are smoother and thinner than old faces, while old faces have more sagging and fat accumulation and fuller cheeks than young faces, the researchers wrote in the study.

Modeling age

The researchers created a mathematical model to calculate each person's age based on the 3D scans. Results showed that people younger than 40 can look up to six years younger or six years older than their actual ages, based on their facial features. So, people who are 30 years old might look as young as 24 or as old as 36.

Variation increased in people older than age 40, meaning that some people looked much younger, whereas others looked much older, making it harder to determine their true ages, the researchers said.

This new model could help identify which people are aging physiologically faster, or slower, than their chronological age suggests, the researchers said.

It may also help doctors tailor treatments for individuals, Han said. For example, fast agers, meaning the people who have reached physiological ages that are older than their chronological ages, could perhaps receive treatment more suited for older people, she said. (For example, older people with cancer usually receive smaller doses of chemotherapy than younger people do, she said.)

The biological indicators in the participants' blood samples also showed age correlations with people's faces. Women with older-looking faces tended to have higher levels of "bad" cholesterol. In men, those with older-aged faces tended to have lower levels of albumin, a protein found in blood plasma.

Moreover, high levels of "good" cholesterol and albumin were associated with reduced fullness in the cheeks and the regions below the eyes in both men and women, the researchers said.

"But so far I don't know if this is causal or a mere correlation," Han said of the blood biomarker results.

Still, the new model shows that 3D facial imaging is a better predictor of a person's true age than current blood profiles, Han said.

The results are likely to vary among people of different ethnicities, however, said Dr. Jean Carruthers, a clinical professor of ophthalmology, who specializes in facial cosmetic surgery at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, who was not involved in the study.

"I liked their concepts of slow and faster agers, but more work will be needed to correlate the future health of these subjects with their facial parameters over a period of time," Carruthers told Live Science.

Han agreed, and said that she has collaborators in the United States who are interested in collecting American samples. In the future, Han and her colleagues may also look at other biomarkers, such as microRNA expression, and see whether they are tied to aging.

The study was published online today (March 31) in the Nature journal Cell Research.

Follow Laura Geggel on Twitter @LauraGeggel . Follow Live Science @livescience , Facebook & Google+ . Original article on Live Science.

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Why We Blame Strange Events On The Full Moon, Even Though We Know Better

Have you ever experienced something out of the ordinary and found yourself thinking, "It must be the full moon"? You probably need to read this.



For centuries, the moon has been a socially acceptable explanation for any number of odd events. Some hospital workers even believe that there's a correlation between the full moon and the number of people admitted to emergency rooms or babies born.



But a new data analysis confirms what scientists have long known: The idea that lunar cycles exert any meaningful influence on human affairs is sheer lunacy.



The study, published earlier this month in the journal Nursing Research, revisited a body of research that found no link between moon cycles and hospital admissions or births. The studies also showed no correlation between moon cycles and patterns of criminal behavior, menstruation, depression, car accidents, surgery outcomes and other events sometimes thought to be associated with the full moon.



"Analysis of the data shows conclusively that the moon does not influence the timing of hospital admissions. This result is consistent with dozens of other studies spanning several decades," the author of the study, UCLA astronomer Jean-Luc Margot, told The Huffington Post in an email. "The Moon is innocent."



So why is it still so common for rational people to blame strange events or unfortunate occurrences on astrological happenings? Margot suggests that it has something to do with a common thinking error known as the "confirmation bias," which causes people to interpret information in a way that supports their pre-existing beliefs.



"We have a tendency to interpret information in a way that confirms our beliefs and to ignore data that contradict our beliefs," Margot said. "When life is hectic on the day of a full moon, many people remember the association because it confirms their belief. But hectic days that do not correspond with a full moon are promptly ignored and forgotten because they do not reinforce the belief."



But these beliefs aren't just frivolous, Margot explained -- they can be dangerous. Confirmation bias can fuel a number of other dangerous ideas, such as climate change denial and anti-vaccine movements.



"Beliefs often dictate actions, and the societal costs of flawed beliefs are enormous," Margot said. "Take the example of the anti-vaccine movement. Vaccine-preventable diseases are killing people because of beliefs that are out of step with scientific facts."



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For Your Liver's Sake, You Should Probably Keep Drinking Coffee

More than half of American grown-ups drink coffee every day. Their non-sipping counterparts may want to follow suit.



The health benefits associated with drinking coffee are plenty: The brew is packed with antioxidants and downing a cup can help wake up the brain and make a person feel more alert and focused. A new report published by the World Cancer Research Fund found that the apparently magical liquid can also decrease a person's risk for liver cancer.








The numbers are pretty significant: Researchers found that a consistent love for coffee could lower liver cancer risk by 14 percent. As part of ongoing research for the Continuous Update Project, a research team at Imperial College London analyzed 34 existing global studies about how diet, nutrition, physical activity and weigh relate to cancer risk and survival. Collectively, the studies covered approximately 8.2 million adults and 24,500 cases of liver cancer. Researchers are not sure why coffee might protect against the disease, but they hypothesized that certain compounds in the beverage could help to fight toxins. "Both coffee and coffee extracts have also been shown to reduce the expression of genes involved in inflammation, and the effects appear to be most pronounced in the liver," the report reads.



Researchers also found that those with an alcohol habit benefited from the addition a coffee habit: Those who consumed about three alcoholic beverages a day could reduce liver damage, ultimately lessening their risk for liver cancer.



H/T: Grub Street



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4 Simple Steps to Supercharge Your Runs and Your Brain With Mindfulness

Photo Credit: Kennan Harvey, www.kennanharvey.com




It seems mindfulness is all over the news these days, whether here on HuffPost, on 60 Minutes, or on the cover of your favorite magazine. It's an ancient technique with modern adaptations, backed by science, to help you de-stress and rewire the mind, literally changing the brain, for greater success and happiness, and there's almost no end to the benefits of being more present and aware.



Like the old expression to kill two birds with one stone (sorry birds), adding mindfulness to exercise helps you boost both your mental and physical fitness at the same time. And exercising mindfully helps you get in the zone, making exercise easier, more enjoyable and energizing. Instead of feeling exhausted after a workout, you finish feeling exhilarated, revitalized, and ready to go. Mindful running recharges body, mind and soul. At MindfulRunning.org we have a whole program on it.



Running mindfully is also in many ways like yoga. It helps you gain awareness of your body while reducing stress and shutting off the mental chatter. At the same time there's the added cardiovascular, weight loss, and strength-gaining benefits of forward motion. And if you're outdoors, you also get the mental massage and brain-boosting benefits of changing scenery. Running or walking outdoors, particularly through a park, forest, or along the water's edge, can calm, quiet, and recharge the mind, helping you think and move at your best again.



Here are four simple steps to incorporate mindfulness into your workouts whether you are indoors or out.



Step 1: Focus on your breath.



This is the simplest way to quiet the mind and give it some much-needed rest.



It's also the No. 1 thing you can do to access that elusive zone or where runners experience the runner's high feeling. While it's typically associated with running outdoors, you can get it on a treadmill too. And it has other massive benefits for your body as well, particularly if you practice deep, diaphragmatic, nasal breathing -- a fancy way of saying, Breathe slowly and deeply through your nose down to your belly.



Breathing deeply and slowly through the nose triggers the parasympathetic nervous system, known as the "rest and relax" response. This keeps stress hormones at bay, reduces inflammation, relaxes muscles, increases available oxygen and gives you greater endurance. It can also help lower your heart rate and blood pressure, both during and after workouts.







Conversely, breathing fast through the mouth (aka gasping for air) triggers the sympathetic nervous system, known as the fight-or-flight response. Ironically, this can reduce available oxygen, constrict blood vessels, tighten muscles, raise your heart rate and blood pressure, and raise your dreaded cortisol or stress hormones levels, thereby increasing inflammation.



Step 2:

Focus on your form.



This helps rewire and strengthen the mind to keep you in the present moment.



Pay particular attention to your leg speed, lightness and symmetry. Ask yourself:



1. Am I taking short, quick, quiet strides? Listen or watch in a mirror to see. The shorter and faster you step, the less bouncing and impact.



2. Are my arms and legs moving forward, or swinging in or out? The more they're pointed and moving forward, the less stress and strain on your joints, back and neck.



3. Am I moving symmetrically? Watch for one arm lower than the other, one leg's that's turned out (neither should be), landing differently with each leg, or carrying something in only one hand. If you spot this, then you're running inefficiently and potentially creating future injuries. Work to run balanced, smooth and even.







Step 3:

Work to bring your breath and movement into sync.



This dramatically calms the body and is a great way to get you in the zone.



When you're focused on these two things in tandem, there's little room left for extraneous thoughts. Start by counting your footsteps, then timing them with your breath. For example, you might take three steps for every inhale and three for every exhale. Where you start isn't important, but work to take more steps per breath, which gradually relaxes the mind and body. Can you take four steps for each inhale and each exhale, or even five? Extending the breath makes you more efficient at using air. This lowers your heart rate and helps quiet your mind. While it takes time to adapt, it dramatically improves fitness. By springtime, you'll find yourself running faster while breathing lighter!







Step 4:

Focus on dropping your thoughts.



This gives us many of the great benefits of meditation, particularly for the mind.


In general, it's only brief snippets in life where our minds aren't racing and we're truly present in the moment. But by dropping our thoughts as we run, we gain access to many of meditation's great benefits. Imagine greater patience, compassion, creativity, focus, and clearer thinking, all coming from your runs! You'll begin to experience this, plus more relaxed running, reduced tension, and a better ability to see obstacles on your path before you step on them. And ironically, after dropping your thoughts, often your most earth-shattering, million-dollar making, dramatically-improve-your-life ideas come to you just after you've finished your run -- so keep a notebook handy!



If you've studiously gone through steps 1, 2 and 3, then by now, there shouldn't be too many thoughts to drop. If a thought does sneak up, practice catching it, letting it go, then going back to your breath. Think of a thought as an unwanted ball lobbed your way. Don't worry about the ball, dwell on it, or hold onto it. Just catch, release, and breathe.



And don't worry about how many thoughts come up. Simply use each thought to strengthen your mental muscles. So make it a game. Work to see how long you can go between lobs. In the beginning perhaps it's only a few steps between thoughts, but with practice, it may become a minute, a mile or more! This relaxes mind, body and soul, giving you more patience, calmness and clarity of mind for everything in your day.







When this clicks, running and exercise become doubly precious. Because now you're literally entering the meditation zone, getting all the great benefits of quieting your mind as you run, walk or workout. This means a healthier you from the inside out, and a more resilient you, one that's capable of handling more stress or challenges ahead, and one that helps you be less judgmental of anything that comes your way. In essence, you're putting fuel back in your tank and having it on reserve for when you need it.



Meditating while you move also gives you greater satisfaction and joy from your workouts. This boosts your motivation, making it easier to run and fit your exercise in. And just think of how great you'll feel as you fly along in the zone, with smoother form, greater fitness, and a stronger, healthier, happier mind. Then when you're back at home or at work, you'll feel more refreshed, clearer of mind, and more productive too!



So give it a try today and check out mindfulrunning.org for more mindful running tips and videos.



Be mindful, have fun, and run free!



Best-selling author Michael Sandler has been a professional athlete and coach for over 25 years, most recently developing and spearheading the Mindful Running Movement through MindfulRunning.org and RunBare.com. Having survived and thrived after two near-death accidents left him with twin titanium hips and femurs, he has a contagious positive can-do attitude and is passionate about helping others discover their true-nature, tap into their inner wisdom, heal, and run like they've never run before! Together with his wife Jessica Lee, they've created the Mindful Running Training Program, and travel the world coaching, teaching, and cultivating mindfulness. Follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus.



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