For the first time, a study showed that mindfulness meditation, unlike a placebo, changes both the brains and bodies of regular people (not just long-time meditators). Read more about how a few days of meditation changed areas of the brain that process stress reactions, and how the trial meditators also saw much lower levels of unhealthy inflammation markers in their blood – even months later.
To Prevent Back Pain, Forget Orthotics and Back Belts – Exercise Instead
A large majority of people will suffer serious back pain in their lives, but few studies have examined what really works to prevent it…and what doesn’t. A recent meta-review of studies shines new light: education on its own, orthotics/shoe insoles and back belts provided zero prevention against lower back pain – but exercise’s preventive effect was significant. No matter what kind of exercise program, it basically halved the likelihood of another back pain episode within the next year.
Bad Sleep? Low-Fiber, High-Fat & Sugary Foods May Be to Blame
A new study by Columbia University suggests that eating low-fiber, high-fat and sugary foods leads to waking up at night and less time in “slow wave sleep,” the critical restorative phase. If studies have shown that sleep deprivation leads to bad diet choices (which lead to obesity and diabetes), this new study suggests the whole “bad diet thing” is a vicious circle.
12-Minutes of Daily Yoga Reversed Bone Loss from Osteoporosis
Studies on yoga are typically ill funded (no “Big Pharma” bucks) and hard to administer, as they often require tracking people who regularly do yoga for years. A new study from Columbia University did just the latter: tracked older people from 2005-2015 (80 percent or more who had osteoporosis or its precursor) to see what 12 minutes of daily/near-daily yoga (12 assigned poses) would do. The result: a reversal of bone loss and significantly improved bone density of the spine and femur.
Study Indicates that with Diets, What’s Healthy for One, Can Be Terrible for Another
Diets tend to adopt capital letters: The Paleo or The Zone Diet…suggesting their universal application to all. But a new medical study reveals that people given identical meals (and healthy foods) metabolize them very differently, given their individual gut microbes and how that impacts their glucose response. For instance, some people can have intense blood sugar spikes after eating tomatoes, which, in “common knowledge,” is a low-glycemic food.
Wellness Evidence: Obese Children Who Cut Back on Sugar Turn Their Metabolic Health Around in 10 Days
A new, rigorous study shows that when obese children cut back on sugar (and not carbs or calories), they saw dramatic improvements in blood pressure, cholesterol levels and other key health markers in ten short days. This new research provides some insight on long-debated medical questions. Are all calories created equally? Is it sugar – or the weight gain from eating sugar – that is so bad for people? (can we give the answer to that here also…)
