Category: Health Report

Healthy Effects of Blueberries

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Blueberries are delicious desserts for most of us. But did you realize that they also have properties that improve your health? In this post, we will explore the health effects of eating blueberries.

  1. History of Blueberries
  2. Blueberries and Health Overview
  3. Blueberries and Brain Health
  4. Blueberries and Cardiovascular Health
  5. Blueberries and Diabetes Protection
  6. Ways to Eat Blueberries
  7. How to Grow Blueberries
  8. Summary

History of Blueberries

Today’s Blueberries in supermarkets are likely to be southern highbush blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum), one of many blueberries in Northern America. Blueberries started to be commercially produced from the collaboration between Elizabeth White and Frank Coville in the early 1900s. Since research on blueberries found health effects, they became widely popular in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Blueberries and Health Overview

So what are the beneficial effects of blueberries? Blueberries contain a range of flavonoids, such as anthocyanin, catechin, and quercetin. These flavonoids have antioxidant properties, which can neutralize inflammatory and cell-damaging effects of free radical oxygens. These free radical oxygens are naturally produced in the body when cells use oxygen to generate energy. Inflammation and cell damage created by these free radicals can lead to cardiovascular disease, neurodegeneration, and cancer. Flavonoids, especially anthocyanin, can protect against these effects.

Blueberries and Brain Health

A systematic review of Randomized Control Trials (RCT) studies conducted in 2020 has shown the protective effects of blueberries on cognitive impairment among children and older adults. The authors cited studies that found small results of eating raw blueberries improving memory recall and visual cognition but did not find any improvement in mood, attention, or reading efficacy among children aged 7-10 years old. Among young adults, consuming blueberries was found to improve their mood.

Another systematic review study conducted in 2020 found an improvement in cognitive performance in elderly adults after 12 weeks of consuming blueberries or grape juice. They improved memory recall, and executive function and detected greater brain activity via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Blueberries and Cardiovascular Health

Consuming blueberries was found to reduce LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, and adiponectin, which may lead to adverse cardiovascular health outcomes. The antioxidant properties of blueberries also reduced inflammation markers and endothelial cell damage, which reduces the risk of forming blood clots, which may lead to coronary artery disease or acute ischemic stroke, where a blood clot blocks a blood artery in the brain.

Blueberries and Diabetes Protection

Blueberries were also shown to have protective effects against diabetes. It reduces insulin resistance and increases the likelihood of healthy weight loss.

Ways to Eat Blueberries

There are different ways to consume blueberries. Blueberries are available in supermarkets in their own fresh form but also in dried and frozen form. While only a tiny amount of nutrients are lost when dried, companies that produce dried blueberries may add extra sugar and other preservatives to make the dried blueberries taste better. Frozen blueberries may lock in some nutrients that are not readily available to the body when consumed. Eating fresh blueberries is the best, but dried or frozen blueberries are good for you too.

Eating blueberries alone is best, but you can add them to muffins and pies. However, do know that other ingredients in those foods may make the food less healthy for you.

How to Grow Blueberries

Blueberries can be expensive, and you may be interested in growing the blueberries yourself. Blueberries can grow in various climates. Some of them have adapted to warmer temperatures too.

Here is the time schedule for growing blueberries recommended by the University of Minnesota:

  • March—Prune bushes before new growth begins
  • April and May—Plant new blueberry bushes.
  • May and June—Apply mulch for the growing season.
  • July—Harvest.
  • July through September—Apply soil amendments.
  • September and October—Apply mulch for winter protection
  • November and December—Put fencing around plants for protection

If you want to grow blueberries but have a limited budget, no worries! After crushing it, you can simply plant one of the blueberries bought from the supermarket into pot soil. Make sure to water it occasionally, and change to a bigger pot once it grows!

Summary

We hope that this post helped you understand the benefits of berries. e explored ways that blueberries can have a positive impact on our health. Next time you go grocery shopping, please keep in mind these benefits! Please note that blueberries’ effects are still subject to ongoing research, which sometimes produce null results. If you are concerned about your health, please consult your physician.

Disclaimer: This web post is for information purposes. If you have medical needs, please contact your primary care physician.

Cognitive Benefits of Napping

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As young kids, we have enjoyed naps frequently. As we grow older, napping becomes less frequent. Some people may even actively avoid napping, concerned that they may not get sleepy enough to fall asleep at night. Yes, sleeping on time at night is important. But did you realize that sleeping on time is also essential? This post will explore appropriate ways to take a nap and the cognitive benefits of napping.

  1. What are the Cognitive Benefits of Napping?
  2. How Do You Nap?
  3. Types of Naps
  4. Summary

What are the Cognitive Benefits of Napping?

Just as having enough sleep gives cognitive benefits, there are a lot of benefits to getting a nap. Let’s first explore the cognitive benefits of taking a nap.

  • Napping and cognitive function level: a 2020 study on the Chinese population aged over 60 years old found that those who regularly took naps scored higher in the Mini-Mental State Examination test, which is often used to assess the risk of dementia risk. While napping has a protective effect, it could also be an indicator of cognitive impairment. A 2019 UCSF study suggests that napping could be an early indicator of cognitive impairment.
  • Napping and diseases: A study done in 2018 found that taking naps reduces the risk of Parkinson’s Disease. A 2015 study found that taking naps may also reduce cardiovascular diseases.
  • Napping and emotion: a study at the University of Michigan found that napping leads to less impulsiveness and increased frustration tolerance.

How Do You Nap?

One of the ways to get started with napping is to learn how to nap appropriately. Here are a few key points to keep in mind as you go for your nap:

  1. According to the Johns Hopkins Sleep Disorder Center’s medical director, Charlene Gamaldo, taking a nap between 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM will benefit the most because of the sleep cycle timing.
  2. Taking a nap in a cool, dark, and silent place may increase the quality of your nap.
  3. Napping time should like between 20 minutes to 40 minutes. Setting an alarm before you fall asleep might be a good idea. Otherwise, it may lead to 2 types of side-effects of napping:
  4. Talk to your physician about whether any medication interferes with your nap. Certain arthritis, mental health, and blood pressure medications may interfere with sleep quality.

Types of Naps

  • Power Nap: a term coined in 1990 to encourage naps during work hours; taking 10 minutes or less after lunch is recommended to relieve drowsiness.
  • Recovery Nap: it’s a kind of nap that’s recommended to make up for lost hours of sleep
  • Coffee Nap: a nap taken after sipping coffee or tea. It takes about 20-30 minutes for the caffeine effect to take place, and it may rejuvenate energy.

Summary

In this blog post, we explored the potential benefits of taking a nap, how we can nap efficiently, and what side effects could happen if we take it at the wrong time or longer than necessary. Each person may have different physiological needs, so consult your physician about napping if you want to dive deeper into the world of napping!

Disclaimer: This web post is for information purposes. If you have medical needs, please contact your primary care physician.

Cognitive effects of Reading

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As you are reading this post, you may wonder, “How am I absorbing this information?” In short, there are a lot of complicated processes that is involved in reading a text and incorporating the knowledge into our brains. In this post, we will explore what components and processes are involved in reading and are cognitive benefits of reading texts such as books, articles, and blog posts like this one.

  1. What is reading?
  2. Components of reading
  3. Cognitive effects of reading
  4. Summary

What is reading?

While reading is natural for most people, understanding what it really is, and what processes are involved can help you read more efficiently.

  1. National Accessible Reading Assessment Project (NARAP) claims that there are 3 types of reading:
    1. Reading is decoding and understanding written text
    2. Reading is decoding and understanding text for particular reader purposes
    3. Reading is the process of deriving meaning from text.
  2. Irena Kuzborska from the University of York breaks down the reading process into Knowledge Base, Cognitive Process, and Metacognitive Processes.
    1. The knowledge base comprises Background Knowledge, such as people and places, and Linguistic Knowledge, such as grammar and syntax.
    2. Cognitive Processes are composed of Comprehension Processing Strategies, such as building inferencing and organizing text-level structures, and Linguistic Processing Strategies, such as chunking into phrases and accessing the meaning of words.
    3. Metacognitive Processes are composed of executive control and goal-setter, such as adjusting reading style to the appropriate purpose and genre of the reading.  

Components of reading

There are neurological and psychological components to reading. Here are a few of the major components of the reading process:

  1. Phonics: Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education defines it as teaching the code-based portion of reading and spelling that symbol-sound relationships.
  2. Decoding: is an ability to translate a word from print to speech
  3. Fluency: is an ability to identify rhythm, phrasing, intonation, as well as accuracy and reading rate

Cognitive effects of reading

While some studies indicate the benefits of reading for preventing cognitive decline in those with early mild cognitive impairment or dementia, some studies did not show effectiveness. Below are a few examples showing the benefits of reading:

  1. In 2021, a 14-year follow-up survey study in Taiwan found that leisurely reading activities were associated with better cognitive outcomes (telling the time/location, remembering personal information, and counting backward).
  2. In 2010, the University of Liverpool found that reading in groups and engaging in stimulating activities together could significantly improve the mental health of depressed patients.  
  3. A 2015 study at Northern Arizona University found that Intergenerational Program (IGP), which involves putting together school-aged children and older adults to read together, did not show any improvement in cognitive function level or mood but did improve the quality of the relationship between older adults and children.

Summary

In this post, we explored what reading is, what is involved in reading, and explored the potential benefit of reading. Although this is not an exhaustive list, we hope this has helped you understand what is involved in reading and what could be some of the benefits of reading!

Imagination & Goal Attainment

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Today we will explore how imagination helps your goal attainment. Many of us may have encountered advice on how to achieve our goal: “imagine how happy you will be when you attain your goal!” Could this be true? Or could this act of imagination backfire? Read this post to learn more about the effects of imagination on goal attainment!

  1. What is Imagination & Creativity?
  2. What are the Effects of Imagination?
  3. How To Imagine Effectively?
  4. Summary

What is Imagination & Creativity?

First, let’s define what creativity, imagination, and fantasy means. Throughout the article, we will focus on using imagination for productivity.

  • Definition of creativity: creativity is defined as the generation of ideas that are original and valuable. Creativity relies on imagination.
  • Definition of Imagination: According to Merriam-Webster, imagination means “power of forming a mental image of something … never wholly perceived in reality,” or simply, “a creation of the mind.”
  • Definition of fantasy: fantasy is a process of creating something unrealistic in response to psychological need. It is distinct from imagination in a sense that while the imagination is related to reality, fantasy is related to unreality.

What are the Effects of Imagination?

As Albert Einstein said, “imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

  • Imagination and goal attainment:
    • A 2017 study on imagining carrying out a task successfully helps improve a performance by improving self-regulatory behavior. Similarly, a study found that learners imagining a procedure or concept performs better than learners studying the material.
    • A 2000 study on school children aged 8-12 years showed that those who mentally elaborated a desired academic future and present reality were more likely to stick to their goal commitments than those who either only indulged in the desired future or merely dwelling on the present.
    • Another experiment in the same study showed that specifying where, when and how they would start goal pursuit were comparatively more successful in meeting their goal.
    • It also showed that connecting anticipated situations with goal-directed behaviors (such as if-then statements) than merely thinking about opportunities to act makes the children more likely to act on their goals.
  • Imagination and mental health:
    • What could be the effect of goal-directed imagination on mental health? A 2021 study on 153 adults showed that goals that were more attainable, under control, and expected to bring more joy and had imaginations with more clarity, detail, and positivity had higher well-being and lower depressive symptoms.
    • Depressed individuals may have more negative, overgeneralized, and imprecise imagination. A 2013 study explains that points out that depressed individuals are more likely to give fewer examples of positive, detailed, and specific future events than non-depressed individuals.
  • Imagination and memory:
    • One of the types of memories is a visual memory. It is no surprising then that visual memory is associated with imagination. An MRI study (? source) points out that process of imagining can improve retaining short-or-long-term memories.
    • A 2015 study showed that for those aged more than 85 years old, cognitive stimulation therapy that incorporates imagination and creativity may also reduce risk of memory problems.
  • Social effects (interpersonal relationship quality)
    • A 2014 study showed that daydreaming about a others whom the daydreamer had a high quality relationship was associated with increased happiness, love, and connection
    • A 2013 study found that imagination can also boost a relationship between a certain brand and a consumer. Whether having similar brand improve the relationships between people have not been studied yet.

How To Imagine Effectively?

Have you ever had a writer’s block, where you cannot come up with an innovative topic to write about even as you wish you come up with something to write about? One of the reasons why we face a writer’s block could be because we were not intrinsically motivated to write. According to the Imagination Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, individuals who are intrinsically motivated tend to be more creative; those who engage in creative activities for the sake of the activities themselves are better able to come up with original and valuable ideas. Wanting to help others may also increase the likelihood of becoming more creative.

  • Activities to boost imagination
    • Question: instead of passively consuming information, actively ask questions validity of the information. Ownership of ideas can help improve imagination
    • Investigate: actively seek out information for your need for your purpose
    • Collaborate: to promote multidisciplinary thinking, work with people from different backgrounds, exchanging and probing information
    • Experiment: using the information at hand, explore new possibilities and discuss with collaborators what could be new ways to apply the knowledge
    • Reflect: creative writing, self-reflection, listening to inspiring non-lyrical music, immersing into creative films/book can boost your imagination. Taking a walk or meditating could be helpful too.
  • Other activities
    • A 2009 study found that staring at color blue may help improve more imagination, while staring at color red may increase likelihood of paying more attention to details.

Summary

We have explored the benefits of imagination in attaining goals, improve memory, and steps that we can easily take to boost imagination and creative activity. Imagination can be a way to proactively create one’s own life path. If you feel you would benefit from proactively constructing your future, try boosting your imagination!

Disclaimer: This web post is for information purposes. If you have medical needs, please contact your primary care physician.

Meditation: Can We Protect Our Mind?

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Meditation has become a very popular way to de-stress in recent years. With readily available apps, you can start exploring meditation too. This post will outline the effects of meditation.

  1. Meditation: the Popularization
  2. Effects of Meditation
  3. Meditation: Health Benefit
  4. Summary

Meditation: the Popularization

Meditation has drawn popular interest from academics such as Herbert Benson and Jon Kabat-Zinn starting in the 1960s and 1970s. The Relaxation Response, a book written by Herbert Benson in 1975, helped popularize Transcendental Meditation, a technique developed by Maharishi Mahesh in the 1950s. Jon Kabat-Zinn created a standardized 8-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course in the 1970s at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center.

Effects of Meditation

meditation’s effect on mood and sleep

One of the known benefits of meditation is its calming effects of reducing anxiety. A neuroimaging study in 2012 using fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) by Gaëlle Desbordes, a neuroscientist at Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) showed changes in the amygdala, a brain region that regulates emotion, among those who practiced for 2 months of meditation. Another study in 2012 by Sara Lazar using fMRI at MGH showed thickening of the brain after an 8-week meditation course.

Another benefit of meditation is its protective effects on heart health. A study conducted by Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at MGH and affiliate medical centers indicates that people who meditated over an 8-week period had changes in genes that regulate inflammation, glucose metabolism, and blood pressure (however, there are weaknesses to how the study was conducted).

meditation’s cost-effectiveness

Meditation: Health Benefit

A treatment that incorporates meditation practice called Multicomponent Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) can help adults who have chronic insomnia. Both the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the American College of Physicians recommended CBT-I. It involves 6-8 sessions during which cognitive, behavioral, and psychoeducational interventions are conducted to help adjust thoughts and behaviors about sleeping. Meditation is conducted to reduce stress, anxiety, and increased relaxation with focused attention.

Summary

Since its popularization in the 1960s and 1970s, meditation has been embraced by many for helping to reduce stress. While there are ongoing studies on its health effects, some studies appear to show benefits. We explored the effects of meditation in this post. Our future posts may explore more about other aspects of meditation. Thank you for reading our post!

This post was inspired by Health Life Guru and Health Tips Now. Please check

Disclaimer: This web post is for information purposes. If you have medical needs, please contact your primary care physician.

How to Improve Cognitive Level

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While many people resign to the fact that cognitive function level declines with age, there are small changes in daily life we can do to reduce its effect. These lifestyle changes will not only improve your cognitive function level but also reduce the likelihood of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. This post will pinpoint small changes we can embrace to improve our cognitive level.

  1. Why Do We Forget As We Age?
  2. What Is The Difference Between Normal Aging And Neurodegenerative Disease?
  3. What Is My Chance Of Dementia?
  4. What Can I Do To Improve My Cognition?
  5. Summary

Why Do We Forget As We Age?

Anyone who has looked for where they had put their keys will be familiar with how easily we can forget things. Older people tend to experience this forgetfulness much more frequently. So why do we forget as we age?

We forget with the reduction of neurons, a major type of brain cells. Although we form millions of neurons in the early years of life, it is said that we start to lose them in our 30s and 40s. A reason why the number of neurons decreases as we age could be because of reduced blood flow to the brain. This may lead to changes in chemicals in the brain, such as reduced epinephrine or blood glucose. Shrinkage of the hippocampus, a brain region that plays an important role in learning and memory, may lead to forgetfulness.

What Is The Difference Between Normal Aging And Neurodegenerative Disease?

Once we start noticing forgetfulness, we may begin to have this worrying thought: “What if I have dementia?”

Memory loss of normal aging involves infrequent forgetfulness. Perhaps once in a while, you will forget about a meeting, a bill payment, or a person’s name. But severe memory loss that makes it difficult to do everyday things like driving, being confused with time, people, and places, or finding your way home, might be a good indication for you to start planning a visit to your doctor.

If you suspect yourself of having a neurodegenerative disease, talk to your doctor. If you are aged over 65 years old and had Medicare Part B for longer than 12 months, you may be eligible for an Annual Wellness Visit to develop a free personalized plan to help prevent dementia. Your doctor may be able to assess your cognitive level with questionnaires like Mini-Mental State Examination.

Such memory-related questionnaires can help differentiate between different stages of dementia. Mild Cognitive Impairment is the stage between the expected decline in memory due to normal aging and the more serious decline due onset of dementia.

What Is My Chance Of Dementia?

Measuring the prevalence of dementia is difficult to measure, especially since the early onset of cognitive impairment is difficult to differentiate from memory loss from normal aging.

With increasing age, the chance of having dementia increases. In 2019, approximately 2% of those aged 70-75 years old had dementia, while 27.7% of individuals aged more than 90 years old had dementia.

There are conditions and activities that may lead to a higher chance of memory loss and neurodegenerative diseases. Excessive drinking of alcohol, smoking cigarettes, and having depression may lead to memory loss. Having chronic illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol level, and depression may lead to an increased likelihood of dementia. Even hearing impairment could increase the likelihood of cognitive impairment.

What Can I Do To Improve My Cognition?

  • Getting enough daily sleep (7-8 hours) is recommended to improve your cognitive function level.
  • A healthy diet, such as eating fruits that have a lot of antioxidants and omega-3-rich foods such as fatty fish and walnuts can improve brain health.
  • Regular aerobic physical exercises, such as tai chi and walking, for 150 minutes each week is recommended.
  • Social engaging activities, such as volunteering or hobbies, that make you happy interacting with others can have protective effects by improving memory and self-esteem.
  • Journaling and creative writing have been shown to improve the quality of life and well-being of older adults.
  • Relaxation techniques, such as meditation or yoga, can help you reduce stress levels, blood pressure levels, and muscle tension, which can help improve your memory function.

Summary

There’s no worry if you are experiencing memory loss. If it is infrequent, it may be a temporary event. However, if you would like to proactively increase your cognitive level and also prevent the later chances of having neurodegenerative disease, consider taking the lifestyle change actions recommended above. With small incremental efforts each day, you can find tremendous improvement in your quality of life.

This post was inspired by Health Life Guru and Health Tips Now. Please feel free to pay a visit to them!

Disclaimer: This web post is for information purposes. If you have medical needs, please contact your primary care physician

Concussion: How To Recover

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If you are a fan of playing sports, you may have come across a person, or you yourself may have been the person, who had a sports-related concussion. While concussion is widely prevalent among those who play contact sports, there is little information on what concussion is and how to treat it. This article will describe common causes and symptoms of concussion, steps one can take to treat the symptoms, and what are ways to prevent concussions in the future.

Continue reading “Concussion: How To Recover” →