Truth and Hammer

Category: Health

  • Neuroscientists Strongly Recommend Regular Visits to the Beach

    Neuroscientists Strongly Recommend Regular Visits to the Beach

    Visits to the beach psychologically restore us, enabling us to better handle the stress of everyday life, study finds

    City life stresses us out psychologically and physically, but an occasional retreat to the sea can help us avoid stress-related health problems, researchers say.
    “Beaches and waterfront parks offer more restorative benefits to people than gyms, entertainment venues and the built urban environment,” says J. Aaron Hipp, professor of community health at North Carolina State University.
    In a survey of over 1000 California beachgoers, Hipp and his team found those who experienced the most stress in daily life found the beach the most psychologically restorative.

    Earlier studies have already proven the ability of natural environments to psychologically restore us, reduce heart rate, improve mood and concentration, and boost our sense of overall well-being and quality of life, but Hipp’s studylooked specifically at the power of the surf and sand.

    “Blue spaces” — such as riversides and the seashore — afford visitors the opportunity to recover from stress and restore the mental faculties needed to meet the demands of everyday life, says the study, published in The Journal of Environmental Psychology. 

    But not all “blue spaces” are the same, Ripp and his team found. The level of restorativeness of coastal parks is dependent upon environmental quality.

    “Mild temperature days and low tides offer the most restorative environments,” Hipp said.

    The odds of finding the beach psychologically restorative were 30% lower during high tide, possibly due to less sand and more crowding.

    Beachgoers were also three times less likely to find their visits rejuvenating if they perceived poor air or water quality.

    The study’s authors recommended societies maintain parks and access to natural areas as a part of “preventive mental health care.”

    Visits to the beach psychologically restore us, enabling us to better handle the stress of everyday life, study finds City life stresses us out psychologically and physically, but an occasional retreat to the sea can help us avoid stress-related health problems, researchers say. “Beaches and waterfront parks offer more restorative …

    source:  https://returntonow.net

  • Health Benefits of Apple

    Health Benefits of Apple

    Health Benefits of Apple: Every time I say no, to an apple, my mother reminds me of one saying “An Apple a day, keeps the doctor away” And I am scared of hospitals and doctors so, I always try to keep them away at any cost. So let’s eat an apple and start our article health benefits of apples.. health benefits of apples, apple nutrition facts

    This luxurious fruit rich in essential nutrients for the body is not only delicious to eat but also dripping and energizing. Consumption of apple helps keep you healthy and keep your diseases free. Eating apple increases your immune system and improves digestion. health benefits of apples, apple nutrition facts, apple benefits for health

    Do you know

    Before going in details, Let’s have an Overall Picture:benefits of apple for skin, apple help

    Let’s have a bite of an Apple and discuss its amazinggg….. benefits. Shall we?

    Health Benefits Of Apples:

    Control Diabetes: If you consume Apple every day, you have 28% fewer chances of having diabetes. In this, the elements present in apple recovers the lack of glucose in the body so that you never need to take insulin.

    Good For Heart: Apple is a very good companion to the heart. It prevents heart damage from oxidation and prevents it from growing before it develops. It reduces the amount of cholesterol in the body and keeps the amount of sugar in control. It is also very helpful in maintaining the regular flow of blood. According to the University of California researchers, drinking two apples daily or eating 12 oz of the juice of apples daily reduces the risk of heart disease-related death to a great extent.

    Bone Disease: It is believed that fruits help to maintain a high density of bones and apple is also an exception. Calcium and potassium present in the apple (the amount of calcium-rich in good apple) help in making the bones strong and flexible. Therefore, to avoid the problem of Osteoporosis and Rheumatoid Arthritis, which is often accompanied by increasing age, consume apple on a regular basis.

    Anaemia Disease:  Anaemia causes a lack of blood in the body. There is no blood production and hemoglobin is also reduced, so that blood gets red. Iron contains an iron that helps in hemoglobin. If you cannot eat an apple daily, eat it every day for a few days, the problem of lack of iron and anemia disease will be removed. health benefits of apples, apple nutrition facts, benefits of apple for health, benefits of apple for skin

    Reduce Risk of Developing Cancer: The elements present in the apple, prevent breast cancer from occurring. It gives the numerical cells in the body of the person to fight cancer.

    White Teeth: Apple cannot replace your brush but by chewing it, your teeth get whiteness. Doing this does not cause bacteria in the mouth and there will be no other disease like it, will never occur again.

    Weight Loss: Obesity is the root cause of many diseases and it is a great headache for us to reduce it. In the minds of those who are fat, they always keep thinking that what they can eat and what not, how to calm their hunger. Fiber is high in the apple, which does not increase the weight.

    Hair Problems: According to some research, apple can be helpful in removing many problems associated with hair. Such as hair fall, dandruff in the head, hair loss of natural glow etc. Apple contains elements called biotin which is considered beneficial in hair growth. Procyanidin B-2, present in the apple, increases the thickness of the hair as well as making the hair tall and thick.

    Healthy Liver: Apple has alkaline elements that extract poisonous elements from the liver. By the way, apple peel contains pectin element which keeps digestion correct.

    Face Beauty: By eating the apple regularly, the black spots on the face are removed, the glow comes on the face and you feel healthy. benefits of apple for health, benefits of apple for skin, apple help

    Good Vision: Velvet Apples, rich in Vitamin A, can help prevent night blindness in children. Apart from this, Apple can also play an appropriate role in removing dark circles under the eyes.

    Strong Immune System: Apple is found of vitamins and minerals which help to increase the body’s immunity. It strengthens the body’s immune system, thereby helping the body fight bacteria and viruses.

    Strengthen Stomach: We ate many poisonous substances that do not affect the body immediately, but it has a bad effect on our body. The stomach becomes strong by eating daily Apple.

    Protecting from Stones: The stones in the kidney can be removed by eating fruit. By eating daily apple fruit, there is prevention from stone in the body!

    Asthma:  Flavonoid is found in apple which is very beneficial for the lungs. Flavonoid keeps the lungs healthy and strengthens them, causing lungs to function properly. By having Apple every day, you can avoid asthma.

    Tip:
    Several benefits of apples are reported and doctors are advised that we should eat one apple every day. However, if it is not consumed in sufficient quantity, there are also apple disadvantages. If we consume an excessive amount of apples, we will have to bear the loss. Therefore, it is important that we know how can apple damage us and we should eat it in what amount.

    BEST TIME TO EAT APPLE:

    As far as possible the empty stomach should be eaten and it is advisable to consume it with its peel. Many people think of throwing the peel as a worthless thing, but it is not right to do so because peels also contain many important elements.

    It is better to eat the time of the morning than food, and the time of the evening is also good. Do not eat half an hour after eating food. According to some experts, there is no harm in taking some amount of milk after it. Many people also drink it by making juice or shake.

    Side Effects Of Apple:

    Amount of sugar in the Blood:  Apple is a great source of carbohydrates, fiber, and other nutrients. These carbohydrates are used for energy in the body. According to research, a medium-sized apple contains 25 grams of carbohydrates and 5 grams of fiber. However, if we consume excessive apples then the amount of fat in the body increases. By eating too many apples, with fat in the body, the sugar in the blood also increases which is harmful to the health. Therefore, a certain amount of apples should be consumed only.

    Empty stomach Risk:  Fructose is found in a number of apples. This is a type of sugar substance. It goes into the body and creates a syrup. The interesting thing is that glucose goes into the body and gets into the blood, but the fructose is not found and remains only in the liver.

    Apple Seeds Bad For Health: It has been found that Apple is only beneficial until its seeds are not eaten. This is because a substance called cyanide is found in its seed which reaches the body during the digestive process.

    Tip: For this reason, we should always remember that we should not consume apple seeds. According to the research, if we consume nearly 1 cup of apple seeds, then the amount of cyanide is so high and our death can also occur.

    If you want to avoid loss from apple, it is important that you eat apples at the right time and at the right amount.

    Apple is a great source of carbohydrates, fiber and other nutrients. These carbohydrates are used for energy in the body. According to research, a medium-sized apple contains 25 grams of carbohydrates and 5 grams of fiber. So what’s the matter of late, start eating apple from today itself. ‘

    Health Benefits of Apple: Consumption of apple helps keep you healthy and keep your diseases free. Apple do have some side effects also.

    source: trendingmantra.com

  • Transparent Solar Panels Will Turn Windows Into Green Energy Collectors

    Transparent Solar Panels Will Turn Windows Into Green Energy Collectors

    Researchers from Michigan State University developed completely transparent solar panels, which can have numerous applications in architecture, and other fields like mobile electronics or the automotive industry.

    Researchers have tried to create such a device before as well, but the final results were never satisfying.

    The team focused on the see-through factor, so they developed a transparent luminescent solar concentrator, or TLSC, which can be placed over a clear surface like a window. It can harvest solar energy without affecting the transmittance of light.

    The technology uses organic molecules which absorb light wavelengths which are not visible to the human eye, such as infrared and ultraviolet light. Richard Lunt, assistant professor of chemical engineering and materials science at MSU’s College of Engineering, says:

    “We can tune these materials to pick up just the ultraviolet and the near infrared wavelengths that then ‘glow’ at another wavelength in the infrared. The captured light is transported to the contour of the panel, where it is converted to electricity with the help of thin strips of photovoltaic solar cells.”

    Since the vertical footprint is bigger than the rooftop one, especially in glass towers, these devices could make the most out of the buildings’ facades. They would not affect the architectural design but will represent a far more efficient technology.  Yet, they can also be integrated into old buildings as well.

    According to the New York Times:

    “If the cells can be made long-lasting, they could be integrated into windows relatively cheaply, as much of the cost of conventional photovoltaics is not from the solar cell itself, but the materials it is mounted on, like aluminum and glass. Coating existing structures with solar cells would eliminate some of this material cost.

    If the transparent cells ultimately prove commercially viable, the power they generate could significantly offset the energy use of large buildings, said Dr. Lunt, who will begin teaching at Michigan State University this fall.

    “We’re not saying we could power the whole building, but we are talking about a significant amount of energy, enough for things like lighting and powering everyday electronics,” he said.”

    Further research has been funded by the Center for Excitonics, an Energy Frontier Research Center financed by the Department of Energy.

    source:  Healthy Food House

  • A Pop-Up Japanese Cafe With Robot Servers Remotely Controlled by People With Disabilities

    A Pop-Up Japanese Cafe With Robot Servers Remotely Controlled by People With Disabilities

    Hello World! Today we find ourselves at a robot cafe in Japan, but it’s not the robot cafe you’re thinking of. This cafe’s servers are OriHime robots. I’m Takemura from the Public Service Projects Department at Nippon Foundation. We help people with disabilities find work. This cafe is operated by people with ALS and other severe disabilities that remotely control the robots. Hello, konnichiwa, hello! Welcome to Japan! Please take your drinks one by one from my tray.

    It’s hot, so please be careful. Thank you very much. Please feel free to use the sugar and milk on the table. People with ALS slowly lose their ability to control their muscles. And at some point, they’ll need to use a breathing machine to live, and without technology, they’ll need a helper to do most things. The concept that everyone only has a single body never felt right to me. If we had more than two bodies we could do a lot of things. There are 3 people who control their avatars only using eye movements. So people with ALS who can only use their eyes can operate robots. Oh, right, these two here use their hands to operate their avatars.

    So this cafe was a trial cafe running for only two weeks, but the aim is to launch a permanent cafe by the time the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games come to town. The workers are located all over Japan and can see, hear, and talk with the customers via their avatars over the internet. Where are you from? From Canada. – Ah Canada! – Vancouver, do you know Vancouver? Maple syrup. I’m from Gifu. Ah Gifu! I have never been to Gifu yet. My name is Naoko Kazu (Katsu?) – Naoko Kazu (Katsu?)! – Please call me Naa-chan Ah, Naa-chan.

    Nice to meet you. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu. Nice to meet you too! Onegaishimasu. My company makes body double robots. So called “avatars” in English. Using those avatars, people who are hospitalized could do… for example I didn’t go to school for 3 1/2 years, but if I had this avatar, perhaps I could have looked at the blackboard, listened to the teachers, and interacted with my fellow classmates. I could have been to field trips, and together, enjoyed school festivals. I should explain, that even though Yoshifuji san is healthy now, at age 11 he became ill. At this time he wasn’t good at communicating with people and was bullied.

    My life was like a living hell. I couldn’t even step out of my house. I only stared at my ceiling. There were times that I wanted to die. We want to eliminate people’s loneliness. Because when you can’t participate in society, you feel loneliness. Then how can you participate in society? So we made avatars. And how can we use the avatars we made? With telework, being at home, you could get a job and develop stuff, but it can be really difficult without a lot of knowledge. It’s also difficult to get connections because you don’t meet people.

    You need a place to meet people, interact with them, and spend time together. So we created a cafe. Yuka-san, can you see over here? Yes, I can clearly see everyone’s clothes. Yeah, everyone has their camera on me. I can see very well. I have ALS, which doesn’t allow me to freely move my muscles. But I can still use my hands right now. So I can still use my mouse to control things. When I have a tracheotomy and can’t talk on my own, there’s a talk button I can use. I will talk using it. What are you talking about? What are you doing? (alternate translation) What’s going on? (another translation) Something like that. At first, they were shy with no confidence, but as time went by they started to gain confidence, which was a happy surprise. Even though it’s a robot, at the beginning it was as if they were looking down.

    But now it’s like they’re standing up straight with confidence. Unexpectedly, customers really enjoyed the experience, which we were happy to see. I’m also very happy, thank you very much! Thank you! I’m so glad to know that you like cheese and mabo dofu. That’s right. By 2020, you might see them working at ANA check-in counters, and actually we’ve been talking with a coffee company, In 2020 people visiting Japan from all over the world may be able to see OriHime working in various places.

    Now Japan is an old society where people live for a long time. Average life expectancy is very long in this country. But the reality is that there are people living with tubes, prolonging their life, whether or not they’re conscious, treatment is the main goal. But using this technology, my friends with ALS can go places using their avatar robots, operating them with their eyes. There are ALS patients that can work at a place like this, and in fact there are those who are already working and making money. Living in bed, not able to talk, only using their eye movement, people can communicate using SNS, putting their art into art exhibitions. There are people like that. Of course, there are no right answers. For a human being, it’s important that someone needs you. But one day our bodies will eventually stop working.

    Then if we had another body, in the future we could take care of ourselves (using our avatars). Bye bye. Thanks for watching, see you next time, bye! How is technology being used to give people independence where you’re from? .

    source:  YouTube

  • 5 Reasons Why Finland Is A Global Education Leader

    5 Reasons Why Finland Is A Global Education Leader

    Within the usa, we love to brag about becoming no. 1 Except when it comes to training that’s where we on a regular basis rank around 37th worldwide Frankly, most of us are fortunate we can cause USA sufficiently to chant it in sporting events nevertheless know very well what country does consistently price the best worldwide in training? Finland. It Seems That. That is right. The tiny Nordic country best known for providing the world Nokia phones, angry wild birds and terrible heavy metal music is truly a leader in globe training just does Finland have the highest highschool graduation price in European countries but on Global exams, Finish college students regularly rank around the very top in Reading, mathematics and research in addition to Finns do this without overloading young ones with endless hours of homework or turning class into meaningless drudgery. Why does Finland have the most ass-kicking informative system on earth Here are the 5 reasons that arranged Finland aside factor number 1: No kid gets left. Actually. Finland provides all individuals specially low income individuals with an enormous social safety net the final government directs a pitty box of items to each and every household with a baby kid following from that point on, childcare is greatly subsidized permitting most individuals to send their children for some kind of early childhood training Finland’s community schools in addition concentrate on ensuring every student achieves standard competence in topics which they study whereas within the united states college students and class districts are expected to vie against one another for limited sources, undoubtedly producing a method of winners and losers this difference between approach is just one of the main reasons why the achievement gap that is present between the rich and poor in US schools is more compact in Finland than anywhere else worldwide cause number two.

    They’re just like more chill man. Finnish kids don’t even begin class until they change 7 and once they’re in school they get nearly triple the actual quantity of recess time as US college students. They truly are seldom designated homework until high-school and they hardly ever simply take standardise exams actually, Finnish college students are only necessary to simply take one standardise test and that isn’t up until the end of highschool cause Number three. Teachers are now actually (get this) respected getting a teacher isn’t really effortless in Finland there are just 8 universities offering the Masters programes necessary to make a teaching credential and only one out of ten individuals get acknowledged so it is no surprise that instructors in Finland receive about the same amount of regard as doctors and solicitors plus, courtesy powerful unions, Finnish instructors only spent 4 hours daily in classroom and simply take couple of hours a week for specialist development additionally they need not handle merit pay which was the main cause behind lots of much talked about instances within the united states where instructors and administrators cheating on standardise exams cause number 4.

    They believe significantly less is more. and I’m rhyming today Finns believe when it comes to training, patience, hands-on reading and emphasizing problem-solving tend to be more vital than listening to lectures, meaningless examination preparations and memorization of info that college students will probably forget once they leave the exam place I’m sure it’s a very insane concept correct? following Finnish instructors don’t race through lessons to stuff the maximum amount of information as you possibly can into college students heads to ensure the college students are able to spit that information right back on a standardise examination instead they provide priority to moving gradually and using the maximum amount of time as essential to thoroughly research fewer subject areas in a lot greater depth cause number five: They have fewer social ills Finland may not be the socialists utopia every Bernie Sanders voter dreams intensely about but it’s very near almost everyone in Finland is middle class so earnings inequality is not almost the trouble indeed there as opposed in the US nearly all Finnish young ones arrived at school well fed, rested and able to learn there aren’t any steel detectors, no police patrolling the institution hallways and certainly none for this Finland comes with a lot less immigrant college students that’s kinda like Donald Trump’s fantasy I guess singular in forty college students in Finnish schools features immigrant moms and dads contrast that number for the United States community schools where that figure is one in five that means there are perhaps not almost as many young ones in Finland schools that happen to be learning mathematics, technology and background in an absolutely brand-new language mostly well in addition learning that brand-new language itself therefore should we in the US just admit the Finns know training better than we would and go on and abandon our system and embrace theirs? Needless to say not.

    That’s absurd For one thing where would we discover sufficient instructors exactly who talk Finnish? zing but what we have to confess is that when it comes to training we just lack all the responses and in case we do we’d most likely cheated to have all of them There’s numerous techniques to study on countries like Finland which do circumstances really in different ways but I have a proven track record of attaining greater results we just need to be much more ready to accept exactly what informative innovators are performing worldwide whenever we could only prevent shouting ‘we are no. 1″ for a lengthy period to concentrate for an alteration

    source:  YouTube

     

  • When You Eat Just 5 Walnuts, This Will Happen In 4 Hours!

    When You Eat Just 5 Walnuts, This Will Happen In 4 Hours!

    When You Eat Just 5 Walnuts, This Will Happen In 4 Hours! Walnuts are considered as a superfood and you should definitely include it in your regular diet. It consist of the high content of healthy fats and also provides the necessary nutrition to the body. It is a rich source of vitamins and minerals and improve the health in a remarkable way. Here is the beneficial content of walnuts which includes: Vitamin E. Antioxidants. Omega- 3 fatty acids. Phenols. Polyunsaturated fats. Thus, it has a miracle impact on your health when consumed regularly. Here are the list of health benefits you can gain from the intake of walnuts. Lower Stress Levels: It is true that consumption of walnuts will make your stress vanish in no time. If you often have issues due to the high stress level of you often react very strongly in a stressful situation then walnuts are there to rescue you. Walnuts with calm down the stress reaction of your body and help you to overcome the negative physical side effects of stress on your body.

    Brain Protection: The omega-3 fatty acids content of walnuts is at higher end which is very useful to fight ADHD, cancer and depression. The regular consumption of walnuts also helps to reduce the impact of Alzheimer’s disease. The study published in New England Journal of Medicine stated that the consumption of walnuts has lower bad cholesterol level and keep the brain functioning stronger. Stronger Heart: Want to improve the health of your heart? Go for walnuts. It consists of the high level of antioxidant which fight the free radicals and save you from the degeneration and heart troubles. In a recent study, Dr. Penny Kris Eterton has explained that only intake of a handful of walnuts for 4 days in a week can reduce the heart disease very significantly. Also, it is mentioned in the study that intake of a handful of walnuts can improve the blood vessels condition in just 4 hours. Weight Loss: Polyunsaturated fats in walnuts are very helpful to prevent arteries blockages and its impact on health.

    It reduces the unhealthy carving and thus helps in weight loss. The consumption of walnuts makes you feel full for longer time. Stronger Hair, Healthy Skin and Nails: A shinier hair along with smooth skin are the amazing benefits of walnuts which you will always love to receive. It has huge content polyunsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids which also makes your nails shiny and healthy. Thus, be sure that walnuts are the prime part of your diet and gain the numerous health benefits. You can just chop and eat the walnuts of putting in as a side dish or make it a part of a salad. To be healthy, you just need to consume 5 walnuts every day and you can just be tension free about the health issues. Eat healthily and stay healthy!

    source:  YourTube

  • Healthy Winter Season Foods | Best Foods to Eat During Winter | Healthy Food to Eat in Cold Weather

    Healthy Winter Season Foods | Best Foods to Eat During Winter | Healthy Food to Eat in Cold Weather

    Top five superfoods for winter with a little planning it is possible to eat healthy to provide your body with plenty of nutrients and your palate with plenty of flavor all winter long also eating healthy can protect your skin despite dropping temperatures there are certain superfoods that you must surely include in your winter diet here are the top 5 superfoods for winter number one orange oranges are one of winter’s best citrus fruits they contain high levels of vitamin C an antioxidant that several cells of the immune system required to perform their tasks especially phagocytes and t-cells eating an orange daily will reduce the risk of vitamin C deficiency which may result in a reduced resistance against certain pathogens the potassium in them helps protect your skin against harmful ultraviolet sunrays the amino acids in them also benefit your skin this juicy fruit is also very low in calories enjoy fresh orange daily you can also throw orange slices into a savory salad number two carrots while sitting under a blanket munching on a sweet carrot or sipping hot carrot soup is something that many like to do in fact carrots are one of the must-haves superfoods in the winter season you can use carrots in salads and soups as well as eat them as a standalone vegetable for snacks and side dishes number three beet roots bright red beet roots and their green leaves not only add color to your winter salad or soup dish but also help you remain healthy beet roots are packed with beneficial phytochemicals and antioxidants that protect the immune system by fighting off free radicals that harm healthy cells and their DNA you can eat this bright sweet root vegetable baked steamed or pickled beetroot salad and soup are also popular number four eggs eating whole eggs during the winter months is vital the yolk contains over 90% of an eggs calcium and iron and the white contains almost half the eggs protein in fact eggs contain proper proportions of all nine essential amino acids required by the body the body uses protein as fuel to make antibodies that attack foreign invaders and prevent infections whether boiled poached scrambled or in an omelet eggs are a great way to start your winter mornings just make sure you do not eat raw or semi cooked egg as it may contain bacteria that harm your health number five ginger when it comes to warm beverages during the winter season you simply cannot ignore soothing ginger tea the antioxidant rich ginger is a great way to give your immune system a boost by reducing free radicals in the body ginger also increases blood circulation in the body that is vital for optimum health at the onset of a cold or the flu ginger works as an effective antibiotic it is also effective in reducing inflammation and arthritis symptoms that get worse during the winter months ginger also helps improve digestion and supports smooth and flawless skin in addition ginger helps normalize sugar levels which otherwise can affect your ability to lose weight or eat healthy food if you like a video give us a thumb and subscribe to our channel thank you for watching and share with friends.

    source:  YouTube

  • How Playing an Instrument Benefits Your Brain

    How Playing an Instrument Benefits Your Brain

    Did you know that every time musicians pick up their instruments, there are fireworks going off all over their brain? On the outside, they may look calm and focused, reading the music and making the precise and practiced movements required. But inside their brains, there’s a party going on. How do we know this? Well, in the last few decades, neuroscientists have made enormous breakthroughs in understanding how our brains work by monitoring them in real time with instruments like fMRI and PET scanners. When people are hooked up to these machines, tasks, such as reading or doing math problems, each have corresponding areas of the brain where activity can be observed. But when researchers got the participants to listen to music, they saw fireworks. Multiple areas of their brains were lighting up at once, as they processed the sound, took it apart to understand elements like melody and rhythm, and then put it all back together into unified musical experience. And our brains do all this work in the split second between when we first hear the music and when our foot starts to tap along. But when scientists turned from observing the brains of music listeners to those of musicians, the little backyard fireworks became a jubilee.

    It turns out that while listening to music engages the brain in some pretty interesting activities, playing music is the brain’s equivalent of a full-body workout.  But what is it about making music that sets the brain alight?. Playing a musical instrument engages practically every area of the brain at once, especially the visual, auditory, and motor cortices. As with any other workout, disciplined, structured practice in playing music strengthens those brain functions, allowing us to apply that strength to other activities. The most obvious difference between listening to music and playing it is that the latter requires fine motor skills, which are controlled in both hemispheres of the brain.

    It also combines the linguistic and mathematical precision, in which the left hemisphere is more involved, with the novel and creative content that the right excels in. For these reasons, playing music has been found to increase the volume and activity in the brain’s corpus callosum, the bridge between the two hemispheres, allowing messages to get across the brain faster and through more diverse routes. This may allow musicians to solve problems more effectively and creatively, in both academic and social settings. Because making music also involves crafting and understanding its emotional content and message, musicians often have higher levels of executive function, a category of interlinked tasks that includes planning, strategizing, and attention to detail and requires simultaneous analysis of both cognitive and emotional aspects.

    How do we know that all these benefits are unique to music, as opposed to, say, sports or painting? Or could it be that people who go into music were already smarter to begin with? Neuroscientists have explored these issues, but so far, they have found that the artistic and aesthetic aspects of learning to play a musical instrument are different from any other activity studied, including other arts. And several randomized studies of participants, who showed the same levels of cognitive function and neural processing at the start, found that those who were exposed to a period of music learning showed enhancement in multiple brain areas, compared to the others. This recent research about the mental benefits of playing music has advanced our understanding of mental function, revealing the inner rhythms and complex interplay that make up the amazing orchestra of our brain.

    source:  YouTube

  • A Child’s Brain Establishes Faster with Direct Exposure to Music Education

    A Child’s Brain Establishes Faster with Direct Exposure to Music Education

    A two-year study by researchers at the Brain and Imagination Institute (BCI) at the University of Southern California reveals that direct exposure to music and music instruction accelerates the brain development of young kids in the areas accountable for language development, sound, checking out ability and speech understanding.

    The research study of 6-7-year-old children began in 2012, when neuroscientists started keeping track of a group of 37 kids from an impoverished area of Los Angeles. Thirteen of them received music direction through the Youth Orchestra Los Angeles Program where they practiced up to seven hours each week.

    Eleven children were registered in a community-based soccer program, and another 13 children were not included in any training program at all.

    The scientists compared the 3 groups by tracking the electrical activity in the brains, conducting behavioral screening and kept an eye on changes using brain scans.

    The results revealed that the auditory systems of the kids in the music program had accelerated much faster than the other kids not taken part in music. Dr. Assal Habibi, the lead author of the research study and a senior research associate at the BCI, explained that the auditory system is stimulated by music and the system is also taken part in general noise processing. This is vital to checking out skills, language advancement and successful communication.

    Source: Music Education Functions

  • Did you know that cranial bones move?!!

    Did you know that cranial bones move?!!

    Following on from the work of Dr. Andrew Taylor Still (1828 – 1917) in developing early Osteopathy, Dr. William Sutherland (1873-1954) discovered that there were micro-movements between the cranial bones.

    Contrary to the earlier Victorian beliefs that cranial bones fused in adulthood, he found the cranial bones to be separate and observed the presence of groove marks along the edges where they were in contact with other cranial bones. Within his research, looking at the temporal bone (the cranial bone at the side of the head, underneath the ear), he saw that the contact edge was “beveled like the gills of a fish, indicating respiratory motion for an articular mechanism.”

    In essence, there was a sliding motion occurring between the temporal bone and the parietal bone above. The groove marks not only indicated the presence of movement, but also the direction.

    He found that by using light touch on another persons head, he could feel these small movements as they occurred.

    What he then wanted to know was what would happen if there was compression in the system restricting these movements. It led him to conduct a number of experiments on himself where he bound parts of his head to restrict different directions of movement. What he discovered was that the different compression patterns caused dysfunction in a variety of body systems – one direction affected his digestive system, another his sleep cycles, another his anxiety. In one instance his wife even came into discover him passed out on his office floor. It was at this point she put an end to his self-experiments for putting at risk his own health.

    He had found that compression in the cranium not only affects the head but the function of systems within the whole body.

    In Craniosacral Therapy it is these cranial movements that are felt through light touch. When compression arises either from injury, patterns from birth or restrictions arising from daily stress, gentle contact can help re-establish the balance of movement and restore function, health & vitality to the whole body.

    source:  Expression of Health