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News on Health & Science

Your desk, wallet a haven for bacteria

TUSCON, ARIZONA: Your office desk harbors far more bacteria than your workplace restroom, and if you’re a woman, chances are your workspace has more germs than your male co-workers’, a new research report shows.

Women have three to four times the number of bacteria in, on and around their desks, phones, computers, keyboards, drawers and personal items as men do, the study by University of Arizona professor Charles Gerba showed.

Gerba, a professor of soil, water and environmental sciences, tested more than 100 offices on the UA campus and in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oregon and Washington DC. The $40,000 study was commissioned by the Clorox Co.

“I thought for sure men would be germier,”Gerba said. “But women have more interactions with small children and keep food in their desks. The other problem is makeup.”

Don’t get Gerba wrong: Women’s desks typically looked cleaner. But the knickknacks are more abundant, and cosmetics and hand lotions make prime germ-transfer agents, Gerba said. Makeup cases also make for fine germ homes, along with phones, purses and desk drawers.

Food in desk drawers also harbors lots of microorganisms, and it is more abundant among female office workers. Gerba found 75% of women had munchies in their desks.

“I was really surprised how much food there was in a woman’s desk,”he said. “If there’s ever a famine, that’s the first place I’ll look for food.”

The news isn’t all negative for the fairer sex. Gerba found the worst overall office germ offender is men’s wallets.

“It’s in your back pocket where it’s nice and warm, it’s a great incubator for bacteria,”Gerba said. Another hot spot for bacteria in men’s offices: the personal digital assistant. The average office desktop has 400 times more bacteria than the average office toilet seat, Gerba said.

Source:The Times Of India

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Positive thinking

Letters From The Heart

Sometimes it’s hard to come straight out and tell our friends how much we love and appreciate them. We might feel awkward expressing deep feelings, even to our nearest and dearest, because it is not a common practice. We might get choked up or embarrassed in the process, or we might fear we will embarrass them. Still, we all have those moments when we realize how fortunate we are to have the friends we have, and we may long to express our gratitude. Moreover, it may be of tremendous benefit to our friends to be at the receiving end of our appreciation. At times like these, writing a letter can help us say what we want to say without feeling self-conscious. Additionally, a letter gives your friend the space to really take in your expression of love and the gift of being able to return to it time and again.

As you sit down to write to your friend, take a moment to consider the qualities you most value in your friendship. It might be the fact that you always laugh when you talk or that you feel safe enough to confess your worst problems and always leave feeling better about everything. It might be the new ideas and experiences you’ve been exposed to throughout the course of your friendship. Whatever it is, really take the time to express to your friend their unique impact on your life. You don’t have to use big words or fancy metaphors; all you need to do is write from your heart and your friend will feel the love in the words.

Letters, which used to be somewhat common, are now rare. A handwritten letter makes a wonderful gift to be treasured always. You might simply send it or hand deliver it out of the blue. Whatever you choose, your letter will no doubt be received and treasured with a grateful heart.

Source:Daily Om

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Healthy Tips

Hangovers: Prevention, Intervention and Cures

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Prevention:    For those who are really worried about a hangover, the best piece of advice is don’t get drunk. But, here’s some tips on drinking…..….click & see

1. Don’t keep up with the boys. Women do not have the tolerance for alcohol that men do, even when they are the same size. For men the standard is two drinks per evening. For women a better limit should be one drink for smaller women (less than 120 lbs.) and one and a half for all others. A drink is defined as one mixed drink, 4 oz of wine, or 12 oz of beer. A “half drink” is a light beer, or a wine cooler.

2. Drink clear alcohol. Dark alcohol tends to contain a substance called cogeners. These types of alcohols are more likely to cause hangover symptoms. White wine, vodkas, light rum are examples of clear alcohols. Red wine, dark rum, sherry, brandy are high in cogeners. Beer is in between, mostly depending on how dark it is. This difference has no effect on how drunk a woman can get, only the liklihood and severity of hang-overs.

3. The food thing. Everyone knows this already. Eat something before and during alcohol consumption. This slows the absorption of alcohol. Fats and carbohydrates are best for slowing absorption. Sugars intake prevents hang-overs. Cakes and pastries are the party food that has lots of all three.

4. The water thing. Dehydration is a big part of hang-overs. Combat it while you are drinking. Intersperse the measily ration of drinks a woman has, with water-based drinks. Try to avoid ones with caffeine and acids. Carbonation? Depends on how easily upset the woman’s stomach gets. If she has a weak stomach, skips the bubbles. Get some more sugar in here too.

5. Think about how fattening getting drunk and preventing the hangover is. Six alcohol drinks, 2 brownies, and 4 sugar-based drinks–a whopping 2100 calories. Will a woman’s social life improve by becoming a fat, drunk woman?

Post-Drunk, Pre-Sleep Intervention

1. More Water. The dehydration of getting drunk actually stimulates the body to absorb water from the brain, which in fact shrinks a bit. This causes the headaches, dry mouth, and part of the general malaise of the hangover. By drinking water prior to going to sleep a person helps prevent dehydration, and speeds up the flushing of alcohol from the body. Some people even suggest drinking Gatorade or a sports drink before going to bed. Sugar based drinks can help too. Again, no caffeine, such as coffee should be avoided as they only act to further dehydrate a person and sleep will be the best escape anyway. Avoid carbonation and acidic drinks (like orange juice) if the stomach is upset. Apple juice, Hawaiian Punch, and Gatorade are good drinks. Milk can be hard to digest at this point. If nauseated, clear water at room temperature, taken in small sips will be the easiest to hold down.

2. More Sugar. This helps because alcohol breaks down sugar stores in the liver that need to be replaced. Without these sugar stores we often feel lightheaded and weak.

3. Pepto Bismol or Antacid.If you are suffering from an upset stomach, brand names such as Pepto-Bismol, Tums or Maalox can help counter the discomfort. – click & see 

4. Maybe Some Ibuprofen. If stomach is not upset and there is no history of ulcers or bleeding problems, and the woman is NOT a regular, heavy drinker, a couple of ibuprofen or similar pain-relievers can help. Be careful. Both alcohol and these medications irritate the stomach and increase the tendency to bleed. It isn’t worth adding to the problem. Advil, Aleve are acceptable alternatives.

5.Tylenol or aspirin probably won’t touch it. In addition, Tylenol (actominophen) can cause liver damage and should be avoided if the woman is a regular, heavy drinker. This is defined as 3 or more drinks a day. Asprin can also contribute to stomach bleeding.

6. Put extras of all the above next to the mattress, which should be put on the floor. Put a solid sided wastebasket or bucket nearby too. Unhook the phone.

The Treatments:

Usually your body will crave just what it needs.
A method that combines all of these helpful hints:
Step 1. Start with Pepto Bismol
Step 2. A large glass of water (16-32 oz a standardized-size canned drink is 12 oz) OR A large glass of orange juice, if the stomach is OK (with or without extra sugar added)
Step 3. A big chocolate chip cookie or brownie
Step 4. Followed by 2 ibuprofen (if meet the above criteria)
Step 5. Remember this moment
Step 6. Repent
Step 7. Unhook the phone, go back to bed.

Source:     /www.estronaut.com

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News on Health & Science

Midlife Weight Gain

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As you progress through mid-life you will find your metabolism does slow down. You will need fewer calories to maintain the same weight–about 400-500 less by the time you are eighty. This and the tendency to decrease physical activity in mid-life contributes to weight gain. In addition, weight gain will tend to be concentrated more in the lower body–the lower abdomen, hips, buttocks and thighs. The average woman will gain one to two pounds per year……....click & see

But, weight gain is not inevitable. You can maintain a constant weight with an appropriate plan of diet and exercise. This is important, especially for women, as one study found that increased weight between the ages of thirty and fifty was the single greatest risk factor for breast cancer, later on in life.
In mid-life, how and when you eat may be as important as how much. One study showed that mid-life women who consumed their calories in about six small meals had faster metabolisms and lower weights than their counterparts who ate three large meals. Eating earlier in the day as opposed to later also allows you to consume the same amount of calories with less stored as fat. And, as always, if less of your calories are from fat, then you will tend to be thinner.

Regular aerobic exercise or yoga under the guidance of an expart is a way to boost your metabolic rate and counteract the slowing due to aging. It lowers your risk of heart disease, breast cancer, and osteoporosis, as well. Even if you haven’t had an exercise program up to now, you can benefit. While cardiovascular fitness will improve with as little as twenty minutes of aerobic exercise or yoga three times a week, forty-five minutes per day is necessary to make an impact on weight.

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Positive thinking

The Pursuit Of Conscious Wholeness

Striking the right balance between our physical and spiritual aspects is one of the most challenging aspects of existence. We are dual beings by nature, spiritual entities bound to earth by physical bodies. In our lifetimes, we are charged with the duty of nurturing and tending both with equal devotion and love. Yet while both aspects of the self are deserving of honor and respect, there is a tendency for people who are more spiritually focused to ignore, avoid, or dismiss their bodies. Similarly, many individuals are entirely ensconced in the carnal realm and pay no attention to the needs of the soul. In both cases, an adjustment is essential and in order. We are whole only to the degree that we embrace both sides of our beings……...click & see

If the soul is the inward manifestation of our consciousness, the body is the living, breathing expression of that consciousness. The physical self provides the home in which the spiritual self takes root and flourishes. Just as we must tend to the seed of the soul to ensure that it grows strong, so, too, must we care for the protective shell that is the body to make certain it is capable of playing its role in our development. Though there will no doubt be times in our lives when we feel more comfortable focusing on the spiritual self or the physical self, denying the fundamental importance of one or the other can lead to ill health, emotional distress, and a sense of incompleteness. Both facets of the human experience play a vital role in our well-being.

The body and the soul are the yin and yang of our current reality. They are, at this point of human evolution, irreparably bound together, and many spiritual teachers agree that the body is one of the greatest vehicles through which to access the soul. In fact, many believe that our spirit has chosen to be embodied as an essential part of our spiritual development. Consequently, it is the responsibility of each person on the planet to forge a marriage between the two, so that these disparate aspects bring out the best in each other, creating a vibrant, dynamic, and workable whole.

Source:Daily Om

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