Mental Attitude: Major Depression Associated with a Smaller Hippocampus.
A large international study has found that individuals with major depression have a significantly smaller hippocampus (an area of the brain associated with regulating emotions) than those without depression. Dr. Jim Lagopoulos, an associate professor at Brain and Mind Research Institute, says these findings reveal new information about our brain structures and the mechanisms that might underlie depression.
Molecular Psychiatry, June 2015
Health Alert: Smoking’s Cost on Society Is Falling!
After adjusting for inflation, the total cost of smoking (healthcare, lost productivity from illness, and lost productivity from premature mortality) in the State of California has fallen 13% since 1999. Experts suggest the state’s early adoption of tobacco control strategies has contributed to both the lower number of present day smokers in the state and the reduced intensity of cigarette use among current smokers. Researcher Dr. Wendy Max notes, “The California tobacco control program has been very effective but there remains work to be done, especially in light of the changing landscape of tobacco products.”
Nicotine and Tobacco Research, July 2015
Diet: BBQ Grill Brush Wires Can Cause Big Health Woes.
Summer is a great time to cook on the grill; however, using a rusty old grill brush to clean the barbecue can potentially be dangerous. Health experts from the Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University warn that wire bristles from grill brushes can snap off, land on the grate, and can eventually find their way into grilled meats. If swallowed, these bristles can damage a person’s throat and digestive tract. Experts recommend that people who grill toss out their wire brush in favor of a safer options such as bristle-free brushes made of metal coil or brushes with nylon bristles.
Brown University, July 2015
Exercise: You Probably Still Need to Exercise, Even if You Have a Busy Job.
According to a new study, having a busy job may not provide enough exercise to meet the current physical activity recommendations to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD). The small study followed 83 employees working in six occupation groups during a typical work week. Employees wore a pedometer to record steps and energy expenditure. The researchers found that only 6% of the participants reached the recommended amount of 10,000 steps per day during working hours, while 30% were described as “sedentary” (achieving less than 5,000 steps per day).
EuroPrevent Congress, July 2015
Chiropractic: Can Migraines Be Caused By a Neck Problem?
For some patients with migraine headaches, treatments aimed at alleviating nerve compression in the neck may lead to reduced headache severity and frequency, or even lasting relief. This adds to a growing body of research that some patients with migraine headaches may benefit from treatments intended to improve cervical function, such as chiropractic care.
Eplasty, June 2015
Wellness/Prevention: CPR & AED Training Mandatory For High School Graduation?
Experts recommend that both a working knowledge of CPR and the use of an automated electronic defibrillator (AED) should become a graduation requirement for middle and high school students. According to physicians from the Institute of Medicine, less than 6% of the 395,000 Americans who suffer cardiac arrest outside a hospital each year will survive. Dr. Robert Glatter, an emergency physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City notes, “By teaching laypersons in public settings the proper use of such devices, we may be able to effectively increase survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.”
National Academy of Sciences, June 2015