Published: February 23, 2009
Artificial light affects us in subtle ways. At its best, ambient lighting can relax, soothe or excite, but used poorly it can drain us of energy and disrupt sleep. What if lighting could adapt automatically to meet our individual needs?
The result, say a team of European researchers, would be an improvement in the general wellbeing of anybody who spends long periods in artificially lit buildings, particularly the elderly and the infirm, but also factory and office workers.
“Studies have shown that the quality and type of lighting can have a significant impact on our health and comfort,” explains Edith Maier, a researcher at Vorarlberg University of Applied Sciences (FHV) in Austria. [continue reading…]
Published: February 3, 2009
Image: iStockphoto
More and more people are living longer, but living to extreme old age is unusual and tends to run in some families. A new study at Columbia University Medical Center, sponsored by the National Institutes on Aging, aims to learn more about the secrets to a long healthy life. Investigators are seeking long-lived families to help investigate this important question.
The study is looking for families with two or more healthy brothers and sisters who are at least 79-years-old and in good health and can be interviewed in person (interviews can take place either at Columbia or at the participant’s home). [continue reading…]
Published: January 23, 2009
Image Credit: iStockphoto
UK and US researchers looked at 2,000 people aged 65 and over.
They found that compared to those with the highest vitamin D levels, those with the lowest were more than twice as likely to have impaired understanding. Alzheimer’s charities said the research was interesting, but more work was needed to understand vitamin D’s role. [continue reading…]
Published: January 21, 2009
The thesis “We who stayed at Volvo“ is a study of the impact that many years of industrial work has on people and their attitude to their job, their life outside work and their own future. The study is based on life history interviews with 16 workers aged between 49 and 62 at Volvo’s Torslanda plant. The objective has been to try to understand how workers’ experiences and the ageing process have led them to think, feel and act in the way they do now. [continue reading…]
