February 2012

Are you a Desk Potato?

Published: February 20, 2012

Image: istockphoto

You may feel productive putting in long days at the office. But while your mind is active, your body isn’t. There is a growing body of research that supports the idea that, regardless of your exercise routine after hours, the more time you spend sitting each day, the higher your risk of heart disease. Evidence suggests your hips, spine and shoulders suffer as well.

“It’s important to get up and move around throughout the day. Exercise not only helps with how you feel physically, but it also improves your mind and your memory.”” says Julia Henderson-Kalb, a Saint Louis University occupational therapist. “

While it’s not always feasible to hit the gym at lunchtime, some small changes to your routine can add up quickly to make a positive impact your health.

Henderson-Kalb suggests these simple habits to help you increase your daily activity in a substantial way.

• Sit on an exercise ball instead of a chair. You’ll strengthen your abdominal and back muscles and improve your posture.

• Set an alarm to go off every hour to remind yourself to stand up and stretch. Get in the habit of walking around your office while you talk on the phone.

• Always take the stairs and use the restrooms on another floor.

• Park far away from the entrance to your office building. Wear a pedometer and aim to get 6,000-10,000 steps per day.

• Bring your lunch to work. Not only is it less expensive and can be healthier, but you’ll leave time in your day to take a lunchtime walk or exercise break.

• Bring light weights or exercise bands to the office and build an exercise routine into your day. Follow this link for specific exercises and a demonstration.

To hear more about the importance of avoiding sedentary work days, visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz35RPBQlyI&feature=related

Source: Saint Louis University Medical Center

Think Twice Before Renewing Romance With An Ex

Published: February 20, 2012

Cyclical relationships — is the term used for a couple who breaks up and then gets back together. Amber Vennum, assistant professor of family studies and human services at Kansas State University, looking at why couples reunite and how it affects the relationship.

“There has been very little research on this topic, but it turns out that cyclical relationships are quite prevalent,” Vennum said. “With college-age kids, about 40 percent are currently in a relationship where they have broken up and then have gotten back together. That’s shocking, especially when you factor in the outcomes of being in a cyclical relationship.”

Image credit: iStockphoto

For her research, Vennum analyzed information that cyclical and noncyclical couples gave about their relationship and its characteristics. The information was evaluated using the relationship deciding scale, or RDS, which assesses relationship qualities and accurately predicts what the relationship will be like 14 weeks into the future.

While movies, books and TV shows may portray rekindling a relationship as romantic, Vennum found that the results of getting back together were less than desirable.

Findings showed that couples in a cyclical relationship tended to be more impulsive about major relationship transitions — like moving in together, buying a pet together or having a child together — than those not in a cyclical relationship. As a result, the couples in cyclical relationships tended to be less satisfied with their partner; had worse communication; made more decisions that negatively affected the relationship; had lower self-esteem; and had a higher uncertainty about their future together. [continue reading…]

United States Sees Highest Suicide Rate in 15 Years

Published: February 16, 2012

image:stockXpert

The latest data reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that the rate of U.S. suicide has been increasing since 2000, with 2009 marking the highest number of suicides in 15 years.

The CDC report showed that between 2008 and 2009, the suicide rate increased 2.4 percent, with 36,909 suicide deaths reported nationally. In August 2011, a report from the CDC showed that in 2008, 13.4 percent of people who committed suicide had experienced job and financial problems. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, an emergency crisis hotline reported a 14 percent increase in call volume between 2010 and 2011. The CDC’s thus recommended increasing counseling, job placement and financial services that can help reduce the mental distress that can increase suicide risk.

“The recent increase in suicide, whether heightened by economic strain or other social triggers, signifies the need for education and training on understanding and preventing suicide,” said Dr. Lisa Firestone, Director of Research and Education at The Glendon Association and Violence and Suicide Prevention Alliance. “The suicidal state is both preventable and treatable. Services and education have been proven to save lives. Armed with the right tools to identify the warning signs and implement helper tasks, we can fight this crisis.”

[continue reading…]

Understanding Free Will

Published: February 16, 2012

Brains Are Automatic, But People Are Free

Michael Gazzaniga, one of the world’s leading researchers in cognitive neuroscience, describes the mystery of free will. Whether you are a parent, a philosopher, or the CEO of Facebook, it’s a concept that you’ll inevitably have to bang your head against — the individual right to choose what one does, what one doesn’t do, what one is exposed to.

Source: bigthink

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