Tea, Books vs Electronic Toys, Weight & Sleep, More…

Posted on January 30, 2016 by bob in NewsUCanUse

Reducing Stress in Military Families

During the holidays families of troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Uganda and other hot spots e-mailed photos of their holiday feasts to loved ones overseas, and asked them to respond with pictures of their own holiday celebrations. It was part of FOCUS – Families OverComing Under Stress – an eight-week family training program developed at the University of California Los Angeles.The goal is to ease the stress on military families grappling with challenges of multiple deployments and combat-related injuries, all of which can stir destructive and difficult-to-control emotions.

A study analyzing the program found it reduced by one-half the number of troops, spouses and children suffering from the most problematic psychological and emotional symptoms. And the improvements actually increased over time.

FOCUS is conducted by specially trained behavioral health professionals at military bases, teaching the entire family methods for overcoming misunderstandings, diminishing tensions, handling difficult emotions and banding together.

—  Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, U. of California, Los Angeles

Measuring Age

Conventional measures of age usually define people as ‘old’ at one chronological age, often 65. In many countries it’s used as a cutoff for everything from pension age to health care systems. It’s a demographic measure which defines everyone over 65 as depending on the population between ages 20 and 65. A new study suggest there are better measures to determine ‘old-age.’

Research shows defining people as old at 65 no longer fits real-world data, as people live longer, healthier lives. For example, health care costs on average increase significantly for people in their last few years of life. Yet as people live longer, those last few years come later and later, and people may stay healthy well into their 60s and 70s. When projections of future health care costs use age 65 as the cutoff, they may massively overestimate future costs to a health care system.

Also, more people over 65 – the traditional retirement age – are still working. In response to increased life expectancy many countries have begun increasing their public pension ages. Researchers hope the study will lead to more appropriate policies regarding the concept of age.

— International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Chicago

Health and Brewing Tea

Next to water, tea is the most-consumed beverage in the world. According to a recent Journal of Food Science study, the healthful antioxidant properties of tea are affected by the temperature and length of time leaves are steeped, differing across types of tea. Researchers tested white, green and black tea, varying the time and temperature for each.

White tea produced more antioxidants with longer brewing times, but didn’t need an increase in temperature. Black tea had more antioxidants when brewed quickly in hot water. Green tea had the most antioxidant activity with prolonged cold steeping, approximately two hours. Overall, white and green tea produced more antioxidants than black tea.

Researchers hope their findings will be used to develop a standard method of preparing different types of tea to maximize the health benefits.

— Journal of Food Science, Institute of Food Technologists

Lose Weight, Sleep Better

A recent study concluded that weight loss due to dietary changes can improve sleepiness regardless of your weight. Previous studies have linked obesity with persistent sleepiness, lack of energy during the day, and poor sleep quality, all of which can be successfully combatted with weight loss treatment. But until now, researchers have known little about the link between excessive weight, poor dietary habits, and sleep/wake abnormalities. Poor sleep is also associated with chronic health problems including depression, obesity, and hypertension.

The study’s author suggests body weight is a less important factor than changes in weight for regulating sleepiness, and as individuals pursue positive dietary changes, they may start to feel more awake during the day and be motivated to live a healthier lifestyle.

­— Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania

Books Better Than Electronic Toys

In a new study, electronic toys for infants producing lights, words and songs were associated with decreased quantity and quality of language compared to playing with books or traditional toys such as a wooden puzzle or shape-sorter. The study was published online in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics, and noted its own important limitations, including the study’s small size. However, the study joins a larger body of research supporting the benefits of reading books with very young children.

The study found that while playing with electronic toys there were fewer adult words used, and less back-and-forth conversation, than when playing with traditional toys or books. Children also vocalized less while playing with electronic toys than with books. The largest, most consistent difference was between electronic toys and books, followed by electronic toys and traditional toys.

— JAMA Network Journals

How Safe Are E-cigarettes?

Lab results from e-cigarette tests show they damage cells in ways that could lead to cancer, including breaks in DNA strands. . The damage occurred even with nicotine-free versions of the product. Researchers noted their work was based on someone continuously smoking for hours, a higher amount than would normally be delivered. However, the study raises doubt about the safety of e-cigarettes over conventional tobacco cigarettes.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not regulate e-cigarettes like it does conventional tobacco products, but it has warned of possible health risks. So far, evidence is limited on what exactly e-cigarettes contain and whether those chemicals are safe, particularly in terms of cancer.

— Veterans Affairs Research Communications