14, May 2014

How you sleep: What does it mean?

The way you sleep may not be a hot topic around the dinner table—or any other table for that matter—but maybe it should be. 

Studies show that there are various insights to be gleaned from how someone sleeps. Here we examine a few, and explain what you might be able to learn about yourself from your own sleep habits.

Personality

A study conducted by Chris Idzikowski, who heads the Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service in the UK, focused on the six most common sleeping positions and how they reflected people's personalities. Here they are, in order of prevalence.

"The Fetus" is the most common position, with the sleeper lying curled up on their side. It is said to reflect someone with a tough exterior shell but a soft, sensitive core.

"The Log" position is that of someone lying on their side with their arms down. "Log" sleepers are sociable and outgoing, but gullible.

"The Yearner" sleeps on their side as well, but with their arms stretched out in front of them. This positions tends to reflect a cynical straight shooter: someone who is hesitant to commit or trust but once they do, they're all in and mean business.

"The Soldier" position is on the back with the hands at the side. This is a common one for more reserved, less dramatic folks.

"The Starfish" is the least common position, but when you find a "Starfish" sleeper, hang onto them! This position is associated with people who are selfless, generous, humble individuals.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

14.05.2014

Even neighbour's foreclosed property can give you BP

Are you living next to a property that is caught in legal tangles? Go get your blood pressure checked as living near foreclosed property may increase your risk of higher blood pressure, an alarming research indicates. 

Foreclosures are legal courses of action that are taken against people who can not make house payments. 

Neighbourhood environment is an important social determinant of cardiovascular health, including blood pressure, researchers said. 

"The increases in blood pressure observed could be due in part to unhealthy stress from residents' perception that their own properties are less valuable, their streets less attractive or safe and their neighbourhoods less stable," explained Mariana Arcaya, Yerby post-doctoral research fellow at Harvard Centre for Population and Development Studies in Cambridge, Massachusetts. 

Safety could also be a concern that affects their ability to exercise in these neighbourhoods. 

Researchers reviewed data from 1,740 participants. They distinguished between real-estate-owned foreclosures and foreclosures purchased by third-party buyers. 

Researchers found each additional foreclosed property within 100 metres of participants' homes was associated with an average increase of 1.71 mm Hg in systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure reading). 

The association only applied to properties that were real-estate owned and there was no effect from foreclosed properties more than 100 metres from participants' homes. 

Other risk factors include genetics, advanced age, poor nutrition and excessive body weight and alcohol consumption. 

Stress and other factors may also contribute to high blood pressure, said the study published in American Heart Association's journal Circulation.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

14.05.2014

Always desire to learn something useful

Sophocles