I haven’t had time to post much lately, but I’ve been saving a few things that have piqued my interest. So without further ado …
O bed! O bed! delicious bed! That heaven upon earth to the weary head
I often joke that if sleeping were an Olympic event, I would be the gold medalist. It’s not so much that I sleep a lot. I’m not one of those people who sleeps all day … in fact, if I’m still in bed after 8 a.m., I’m really sleeping in. Rather, I just always seem to fall asleep easily, sleep hard and well, and getting enough sleep is a BIG priority for me.
So I loved this article by Lesley Stahl about The Science of Sleep. It’s all about the benefits of sleep, and even more importantly, the impact of not getting enough sleep. You should just read the whole thing, but here’s a few things to think about …
- Sleep significantly improves memory and alertness … and lack of sleep makes you downright stupid.
- Lack of sleep produces brain scans similar to those of people with psychiatric disorders … that’s right, don’t get enough sleep and scientists won’t be able to tell the difference between you and a paranoid schizophrenic.
- Both lack of sleep and poor quality sleep can produce pre-diabetic states … in other words, one of the reasons why people are so FAT is that they’re so TIRED.
- Sleep deprivation causes a significant drop in the hormone that tells your brain when you’ve had enough to eat … so again … people get FAT.
The article also talks about the culture we have where it’s some sort of badge of honor to talk about how little sleep one gets. I definitely see that all around me, and I’m thankful that I’ve never bought into it. I harbor no guilt about my sleep. I’ve always thought the people who brag about how little sleep they get are nuts … turns out they may end up that way. ;-)
I am also a BIG FAN of naps … in my opinion, napping is an art form and one of life’s great pleasures. The article has this to say about napping …
What’s most important is getting your seven and a half to eight hours total, so naps can help. And brand new research is showing that long naps, including REM sleep, can even improve emotional outlook, making people less sensitive to negative experiences and more receptive to positive ones.
In case you do not have my extraordinary talent for sleep, this article called How To Nap may be of help. It gives tips on where and how to nap, as well as very nice breakdown of the different types of naps, according to length of time.
Is The Cure Worse Than The Disease?
As someone who suffers from both asthma and allergies, I am always interested in new treatments that may help ease my symptoms. But this one? … I don’t know.
Hookworms … yes, hookworms. Apparently, in a small enough amount, hookworms suppress the immune system just enough to eliminate allergy and asthma responses, without completely compromising the body’s immune system.
Part of me finds this completely fascinating.
The other part of me just lost my lunch.
As If Y’all Didn’t Think I Was Insane Enough Already …
… Now you better really watch out! It seems that researchers have found a connection between high levels of fitness and a propensity toward violent crime. Using the three basic body types - ectomorph, endomorph, and mesomorph - as a frame of reference, the research shows that “mesomorphs make up an unusually large percentage of the prison population, from 62 percent to 73 percent.”
The article goes on to say
“But that does not mean that being fit is a predictor of criminal tendencies. Those who are fit may have personalities that are more likely to make them violent. In essence, what drives them to be fit also drives them to be violent. It is also likely that those who are fit find themselves in violent situations more.”
Clearly they are not referring to endurance runners … even if we did have violent tendencies, we’re too tired from running for hours on end to act on them.
And Under the Category of You Can’t Make This Stuff Up
This is an actual beverage product.
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