Heena Sharma Blog

Americans and others around the world have turned increasingly to dietary supplements in order to maintain or preserve their brain health . A recent study found that a quarter of adults over 50 take a supplement for brain-related health. But that same study, done by experts convened by the AARP, suggests that seniors should spend their money elsewhere. The supplements don’t work. This is no small issue. Expenditures on non-vitamin brain health supplements such as such as minerals, herbal mixtures, nurtraceuticals or amino acids, have extended into the billions of dollars. This can amount to between US$20 and US$60 a month for seniors, a sizable sum that could be put toward other expenses, including fresh vegetables and fruit that actually do make a difference. As a neurologist who studies brain health and prevention of dementia, and who has been involved in research in memory and Alzheimer’s disease for my entire career, I can help explain what we do and don’t know about sup...

Are you searching for a partner with whom you can share personality traits? Relax. The key to relationship happiness could be as simple as finding a nice person, a new study has found. The study showed that despite popular belief, sharing similar personalities may not be as important as most people think, suggesting that it had almost no effect on how satisfied people were in their lives and relationships. "People invest a lot in finding someone who is compatible, but our research says that may not be the end," said Bill Chopik, Associate Professor at Michigan State University in the US. "Instead, people may want to ask, 'Are they a nice person?' 'Do they have a lot of anxiety?' Those things matter way more than the fact that two people are introverts and end up together," said Chopik. For the study, the researchers measured the effects of personality traits on well-being in 2,578 heterosexual couples who have been married for roughly...

Despite the widespread use of oral contraceptives (OCPs) by women, many are not aware that it may impair their ability to recognise others' emotional expressions, which may have serious consequences in interpersonal contexts, suggests a new study. The study showed that healthy women who use birth control pills are poorer judges of subtle facial expressions than non-users. "More than 100 million women worldwide use oral contraceptives, but remarkably little is known about their effects on emotion, cognition and behaviour," said senior author Alexander Lischke from the University of Greifswald in Germany. "However, coincidental findings suggest that oral contraceptives impair the ability to recognise emotional expressions of others which could affect the way users initiate and maintain intimate relationships," said Lischke. To investigate the effects of OCPs on women's emotion recognition, the researchers administered a special emotion recognit...

Here's another reason to add physical exercise to your daily routine. According to a recent study, exercising may help fight depression by stimulating muscle-generated mood boosters. According to research, the underlying mechanisms that make us feel good when we exercise, persist into old age and highlight the importance of staying active. "A previous study demonstrated these mechanisms in healthy young adults, however, it was unknown whether the muscle deterioration which accompanies aging would preclude older adults from achieving similar exercise-induced benefits. This could have important implications concerning the use of exercise as a treatment or a preventative strategy for depression in seniors," said David Allison, lead author on the study which was published in the American Journal of Physiology. Muscle loss is a common problem in the elderly, which may restrict that pathway, and therefore increases the risk of mental depression, says Allison. Fo...

Individuals with tattoos are more likely to be diagnosed with a mental health issue and report sleep problems, a recent study suggests. In a survey-based study published in the International Journal of Dermatology, the researchers also pointed out that people who had tattoos were more likely to be smokers, to have spent time in jail, and to have a higher number of sex partners. The survey was conducted in July of 2016 and resulted in a sample of 2,008 adults residing in the United States. "Previous research has established an association between having a tattoo and engaging in risky behaviours. In an era of the increasing popularity of tattoos, even among women and working professionals, we find these relationships persist but are not associated with lower health status," said Karoline Mortensen, lead author of the study. Read More Business Standard

Trying to figure out a trick to keep mental stress in check? It turns out just thinking about your romantic partner during a stressful situation may help keep your blood pressure under control just as effectively as actually having your significant other in the room with you. As part of a recent study, 102 participants were asked to complete a stressful task which included submerging one foot into 3 inches of cold water ranging from 38 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The participants, all of whom were in committed romantic relationships, were randomly assigned to one of three conditions when completing the task. * They either had their significant other sitting quietly in the room with them during the task. * They were instructed to think about their romantic partner as a source of support during the task * Or they were instructed to think about their day during the task. Those who had their partner physically present in the room or who thought about their partner had a lo...

Substance use disorders are more prevalent--and more severe--among sexual minorities , a recent study suggests. Lesbian, gay and bisexual individuals are more likely than heterosexuals to use alcohol, tobacco or other drugs. The research published in the Journal of LGBT Health provides the context behind the issue by examining the severity of alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse reported by lesbian, gay and bisexual individuals, and people who aren't sure how they identify. "Our findings provide strong evidence that a higher proportion of sexual minority individuals, particularly bisexual individuals and those who are not sure of their sexual identities, have severe alcohol and tobacco use disorders, and those who are 'not sure' also have a higher proportion of severe drug use disorders," said Boyd, lead author of the study. In the past, researchers often focused on any use or misuse of alcohol and drugs, and failed to document the severity ...

Post-natal depression in fathers is linked to emotional problems for their teenage daughters, a study has found. Almost one in 20 new fathers suffered depression in the weeks after their child was born, according to the study published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. The study, based on a sample of over 3,000 families in Bristol, UK, also identified a link between post-natal depression in men and depression in their daughters as they reached adulthood . At 18, girls whose fathers had experienced depression after their birth were themselves at greater risk of the condition, said Professor Paul Ramchandani from the University of Cambridge in the UK. The "small but significant" increased risk applied only to daughters; sons were not affected, said Ramchandani. One reason for this "handing on" effect could be that post-natal depression in fathers is sometimes linked with an increased level of maternal depression, researchers said. Read More ...

Inculcating severe food restrictions can lead to binge-eating disorder and obesity, a new study has found. It is important to examine potential links between binge-eating disorder and food insecurity, as binge-eating is associated with more severe mental and physical health problems than overeating or obesity alone. To investigate, researchers surveyed 1,250 adults in the United States and categorised them into three groups: healthy weight, binge-eating disorder, and obesity. The team assessed financial influences on participants' food consumption behaviours over a span of 12 months. As part of the study, which was published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders, a greater proportion of individuals within the binge-eating disorder and obesity groups reported that they cut the size of their meal or skipped meals, and ate less than they thought they should, relative to participants in the healthy weight group. Read More Business Standard

Contrary to popular belief, aggressive behaviour brings emotional pain to sadists, a recent study has observed. People with sadistic personality traits tend to be aggressive, but only enjoy their aggressive acts if it harms their victims. However, according to a series of studies conducted on 2000 people, these actions ultimately leave sadists feeling worse than they felt before their actions. " Sadistic tendencies don't just exist in serial killers, but in everyday people and are strongly-linked to greater aggressive behaviour," said David Chester, lead author of the study which is published in the Journal of Society for Personality and Social Psychology. In the real world, a sadist might be someone bullying others to feel better, or a group of sports fans looking for rival fans to fight for the "excitement" of it. In a lab setting, as part of the study, the scientists gauged people's aggressive and sadistic tendencies by measuring pa...

According to a recent study, having a fixed bedtime and getting sufficient amount of sleep from early childhood may lead to a healthy body weight in adolescence. The results of the study were published in the journal 'Sleep'. The researchers at Penn State identified groups of children by bedtime and sleep routines and tested longitudinal associations for each group with adolescent body mass index (BMI). The findings suggest that childhood bedtime and sleep routine groups predict adolescent sleep patterns and BMI. In a national study of urban households, one-third of children consistently adhered to age-appropriate bedtimes for ages five through nine. Those who had no bedtime routine at age of nine had shorter self-reported sleep duration and higher BMI at age of 15 when compared to those children with age-appropriate bedtimes (after adjusting for age 3 BMI). "Parenting practices in childhood affect physical health and BMI in the teenage years. Developing a...

Heterosexual sexist men who think their female partners or wives want to control them are more likely to underestimate their power in romantic relationships and act aggressively , researchers say. The study examined what is known as hostile sexism, or the belief that women want to control men, in romantic relationships because the power dynamic is different from the workplace or other areas of life. "Power dynamics are not as simple in intimate relationships because even in well-functioning relationships, both partners are inescapably dependent on each other," said Emily J. Cross, post-doctoral student from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. "This mutual dependence constrains an individual's power. This can be very difficult for men who have sexist views because they are already concerned about losing power to women and they may lash out at their significant other in harmful ways," he added. For the study published in the Journal of P...

As most brides-to-be aspire for a fairytale wedding , they often neglect the stress and anxiety that comes along with it. Don't get too consumed and do take care of your mental health, experts suggest. Shreyasi Ghosh, Content Head, The Wedding Brigade and Saket Nath Tiwari, Psychiatrist, National Mental Health Programme, Ghaziabad, have shared their thoughts on importance of mental health -- whether you're a bride-to-be with a pre-existing mental health disorder or one with a serious case of pre-wedding blues: Accept your condition: As in the case of every other problem, even with depression, acceptance is the first step towards getting better. Even if your first reaction to your diagnosis is denial, know that acceptance is extremely empowering. It prepares you for your next step towards recovery. Acceptance, however, does not mean resignation to your problem. It means understanding you have special needs and finding those to better equip yourself to feel calme...

DigiLocker, a digital storage service operated by the government, can currently store digital driving licences and Aadhaar Current Affairs News : Worried about losing your identity proofs while travelling by train? Worry no more. Railways have now said that they will accept soft copies of Aadhar and driving licence provided they are in your DigiLocker, a digital storage service operated by the government that enables Indian citizens to store certain official documents on the cloud. The national transporter has sent a missive to all zonal principal chief commercial managers that these two identity proofs on such service will be accepted as valid proof of identity of a passenger. "If a passenger shows Aadhaar or driving licence from the 'issued documents' section by logging into his DigiLocker account, the same should be considered as valid proof of identity," the order said. It has, however, clarified that the documents uploaded by the passenge...