Nature Knows and Psionic Success

Last weekend, my sister and I took Harlow and Neve to a free music and arts event at Kiddie Academy . If you haven’t heard of it, Kiddie Academy is a nationally recognized provider of educational child care and the event was a sneak peek into their year-round Music & More curriculum. I used to take the kids to music classes all the time when they were toddlers and it was fun to see that Harlow has still not outgrown the joy of singing along to familiar songs performed by a one-man band. I thought the kids had fun and would have left it at that, but then my sister (the school psychologist) broke down for me exactly why exposing your kids to the arts is SO important. In fact, the Music & More curriculum at Kiddie Academy was developed to improve children’s memory, cognitive development, learning skills and expressive ability. Through music and the arts, as well as a variety of other avenues, Kiddie Academy treats every experience as an opportunity for a child to learn. And here I was thinking the event was just about watching your kid dance around to Old MacDonald! I asked my sister to explain all the underlying benefits that music has on the developing brain. Not everyone knows there is actual science behind most children’s songs! Here’s what she had to say: ———————– When a parent exposes their child to music at a young age, they are probably thinking that they are helping their child develop an appreciation for music, which will hopefully inspire them to play an instrument later on. As a mom of two young children, I think this is a great reason, but since I am also a school psychologist, I know that the benefits of music far exceed […]

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The human brain is an organ that, from youth to old age, changes and adapts constantly. This means that, if you stimulate it correctly, it’s possible to improve its cognitive ability, learn new things and to improve your memory. However, to strengthen your brain, it’s also necessary to incorporate some daily habits and exercises . The truth is that the brain is very similar to any muscle in the body . If you don’t use it and exercise it regularly, it will atrophy and lose its functional capacity. Improving your quality of life is in your hands. Therefore, you can strengthen your brain more easily and you can expand your mind . What Can You Do to Strengthen Your Brain? If you want to keep your brain strong, you should keep the following tips in mind. Take note because they can make a big difference! 1. Reduce stress. The first tip to strengthen your brain is to reduce stress. Keep in mind that many studies have shown that chronic stress can have detrimental effects on this organ . One of the best ways to avoid stress is by practicing meditation and mindfulness. All you’ll need are 10-20 minutes a day, so it doesn’t take up that much of your time. Additionally, you can include breathing exercises, meditation or yoga. Discover: What Happens When You do Regular Yoga? 2. Try cognitive training exercises. The mind stays sharp when your brain’s plasticity is nurtured. This is our brain’s ability to constantly change. This brain capacity can stay the same, and even improve, when we do cognitive training exercises. In addition, you can return to your studies or even learn a new language. Even just playing board games helps stimulate your brain and your hand-eye coordination. These hobbies provide the ability to […]

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There are various scientific reasons to call coconut tree as the “tree of life.” Over the past years, more than 1,500 studies have been conducted to provide evidence that it could promote a healthy life. Part of the scientific community focused on the benefits of coconut oil. Made from copra or fresh coconut flesh, it is considered as one of the healthiest food in the world or even a superfood. Coconut oil contains healthy fats, such as caprylic acid, lauric acid and capric acid. Currently, there are a few types of coconut oil available in the market, such as the most beneficial virgin coconut oil and the refined coconut oil, which is not recommended due to the presence of potentially harmful chemicals. Coconut Oil Health Benefits 1. Protects kidney and liver Coconut oil provides a natural antibiotic that could fight UTI symptoms and kidney infections. It also directly protects the liver from damage, according to Dr. Axe . Aside from the oil extract, coconut water also helps eliminate kidney stones and facilitate the healing process. 2. Prevents cardiovascular problems Coconut oil contains high amounts of natural saturated fats, which help convert bad cholesterol into good cholesterol. That effects occurs with daily consumption of 2 tablespoons of virgin coconut oil, according to one study. Having levels of good cholesterols in the body leads to good heart health and lowers the risk of heart disease. 3. Fights cancer The people fighting cancer can add coconut oil to their diet since it can offer ketones and lauric acid — both are known for their anticancer effects. 4. Promotes better memory A study in 2004 showed that coconut oil could reduce memory problems and improve a person’s recall ability. The oil can fuel brain cells more efficiently as its fatty acids can be […]

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High blood pressure is one of the biggest risk factors for heart disease — the number one cause of death in America. Part of the reason is that blood pressure, especially systolic (the top number), naturally creeps up as your arteries stiffen with age — leaving you at high risk for heart attack, kidney damage, and even cognitive problems. Of course, while it’s been shown that 30 minutes per day of aerobic exercise can lower blood pressure, it can be hard to fit even that half hour a day in, which is probably why only about 5 percent of adults meet that minimum. But what if there was something far easier — a “workout” that only took 5 minutes a day rather than that 30 minutes and wouldn’t even cause you to break a sweat? It may seem like a pipe dream, but it’s now a reality thanks to researchers at the University of Colorado at Boulder. With their workout, you can realize a significant drop in your blood pressure without lifting a single weight or jogging a single step. Inspiratory muscle strength training Back in the 1980s, scientists developed a workout that would help wean critically ill people off ventilators. Called Inspiratory Muscle Strength Training or IMST , the exercise involves breathing in vigorously through a hand-held device, known as an inspiratory muscle trainer. Basically, it’s like sucking really hard through a straw that sucks back (resistance) and it helps to strengthen the muscles you use to breathe in. The patients were told to spend 30 minutes a day doing the IMST workout. But in 2016, researchers at the University of Arizona had a different idea… They wanted to see if doing just 30 inhalations a day, which takes about 5 minutes, with a higher level of resistance […]

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By Dr. Mercola, A cluster of cancer cases among young children at Weston Elementary School in Ripon, California, has reignited the conversation about whether electromagnetic field (EMF) radiation from cell towers might be a contributing factor. 1 In 2016, at the age of 10, Kyle Prime was diagnosed with kidney cancer. Five months later, his classmate, Mason Ferrulli, was diagnosed with brain cancer. This year, two more children at the school have received cancer diagnoses. Three teachers have also been diagnosed with various forms of cancer since 2016, along with two preschool-age children that live near the school, and a former student, who was diagnosed with brain cancer at the age of 22. 2, 3 The parents of Prime and Ferrulli believe the Sprint cellphone tower located on campus might have played a role, even though tests reveal it’s functioning normally and emitting radiation below the government standard. “It is classified as a possible carcinogen. 4 That tells us that there is some evidence out there. We’re not naive to the fact that there could be other components out there — other environmental influences… but the bottom line that we feel in regards to this tower is it doesn’t belong there… if there’s any indications that its unsafe,” Monica Ferrulli told CBS News. 5 Cellphone Radiation Safety Guidelines Are Outdated Indeed, for those of you who are familiar with the health effects of EMFs and the way the government safety standards are set, such results are little proof of safety. As noted by Joel Moskowitz, director of the Center for Family and Community Health at UC Berkeley (an area that has taken a stricter stance on EMF awareness and safety), the U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) “guidelines for cellphone radiation adopted in 1996 are outdated and were mostly based […]

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The brain is the center of the nervous system and it helps the entire body to function, to be able to take responsibility of day to day lives the brain is said to take energy for its own purposes before distributing it to other body parts, called selfish brain prioritization. Initially this selfish brain prioritization theory was used to gather information on obesity, but now it’s also connected to how the brain functions to support bodily activities. University of Cambridge researched tested this theory by asking a team of rowers to simultaneously do memory tasks while doing physical rowing; results showed participant physical ability was significantly lower than memory performance while doing the test. Researchers concluded while the rowers were multitasking the brain did take more resources to be able to function better. Findings suggest as the brain can demand resources we may not have an innate level of intelligence. As the brain does take the energy it needs first from the body’s resources, it may be possible that energy can be used to continue to improve cognitive abilities into adulthood. Exercise and eating well provide the body with nutrients and activity to keep the body and mind healthy. The link between food intake and brain function has been explored and well established. Exercise routines like 30 minute moderate intensity aerobic sessions have been shown to increase neuroplasticity which is responsible for the ability to learn new things. Providing a goal to achieve a certain level of intelligence can be helpful for motivation; never think that your IQ level will remain the same throughout life, rather think of it as a work in progress that it can be improved through constant learning and experience. Mycibacterium vaccae a natural bacterium found in dirt has been shown to effectively increase cognitive […]

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You’ve likely experienced the effects of stress—sweaty palms, racing heart, shallow breathing—and are familiar with the sense of overwhelm it can bring. The stress response is part of the “fight or flight” mechanism that has helped our species thrive. However, the demands of modern life make this adaptive response problematic for our long-term well-being. This article explores the physiological underpinnings of stress, its impact on various bodily systems and useful strategies for navigating it. Stress 101 The body’s stress response is governed by the sympathetic nervous system. When faced with acute danger, your body responds with a cascade of physical and hormonal changes that prepare you to respond. Some of these changes include: Increased blood pressure and heart rate A surge of the hormones epinephrine, norepinephrine and cortisol Reduced blood flow to visceral organs and increased blood flow to musculoskeletal system Heightened muscle tension Inhibition of immunity, digestion and reproductive functions (Sapolsky, 1994) When confronting immediate, life-threatening danger, these physiological responses are protective. They help mobilize the body’s available resources to increase the chance for survival. Anything not immediately necessary, such as growth, digestion and reproduction, gets downregulated. Unfortunately, when the perceived threat is no longer acute, but stems from constant daily pressures, these responses can threaten your well-being. Eventually, the body’s stress response may wreak more havoc than the stressor itself, impacting numerous health outcomes (American Psychological Association, 2019). Chronic Stress and Weight There is a strong correlation between high stress levels and increased weight (Harding et al., 2014; Block et al., 2009). A variety of factors underlie this relationship. While some of the hormones associated with the stress response inhibit hunger, others increase it. Cortisol typically spikes in the latter parts of the stress response and stays elevated during the recovery phase. This hormone increases hunger and […]

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MCT oil is a main ingredient in the popular bulletproof coffee wellness beverage. Maybe you’ve come across MCT oil in your wellness literature travels (like when reading about bulletproof coffee ), or maybe you haven’t. Either way, we’re here to tell you what it’s all about. MCT stands for the very scientific term “medium-chain triglyceride,” which means that fats, because they’re shorter in length, are more easily digested and tied to a whole slew of health benefits, according to Healthline . MCT oil is a coconut oil extract, with MCTs making up more than half of the fat in coconut oil. RELATED READ: No, drinking kombucha doesn’t ‘speed up’ your metabolism, experts agree According to Medical News Today : MCTs are found in coconut oil and are processed by the body in a different way to long-chain fatty acids. Unlike other fats, they go straight from the gut to the liver. From here, they are used as a source of energy or turned into ketones. BENEFITS Here’s where the health benefits begin to kick in. Ketones, created when the liver breaks down a lot of fat, can be used as fuel for the brain instead of sugar, according to Medical News Today, which explains that the the calories found in MCT oil are used immediately, meaning that it is highly unlikely that they’ll be stored as fat. Preliminary research suggests the oil might have promising effects on the brain function and memory in those with Alzheimer’s disease, Medical News Today reported. The Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation adds that it is also thought to potentially prevent Alzheimer’s and even enhance learning capabilities. Healthline notes that MCT oil may be beneficial for children with autism. Some studies have shown promise that higher-fat and gluten-free diets can improve behavior in autistic children […]

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For years, a low-fat diet has been advised as a way to improve health and reduce the risk of a multitude of diseases. But when you reduce your fat intake too drastically, you can end up with the very health issues you were trying to prevent. In all likelihood, you cut back on both good and bad fats. Adding olive oil to your grocery list adds a good fat to your diet. A healthy amount of fats in our diet is vital for overall health. Did you know that your brain is 60-percent fat? Fatty acids help our bodies function down to the cellular level. The World Health Organization recommends that fats make up 20-35 percent of our total calories per day. But you don’t want to eat just any fat — you need quality fats. One of the healthiest sources of fat is olive oil. What is olive oil? Olive oil is an omega-9 fatty acid high in healthy, monounsaturated fat, particularly in oleic acid. Oleic acid has powerful anti-inflammatory properties. Intake of oleic acid has been proven to lower blood levels of C-Reactive Protein, an inflammatory marker showing the level of inflammation within the body. The monounsaturated fats lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) ― bad cholesterol levels in the blood — and raise high-density lipoprotein (HDL) ― or good cholesterol levels. It also contains oleocanthal, a natural anti-inflammatory compound. It has a potency similar to ibuprofen and works in a similar way. Both are strong anti-inflammatories and pain relievers. The amount of oleocanthal you ingest from olive oil is much less than the corresponding dosage you’d get from ibuprofen, but long-term consumption is still believed to reduce your risk of many diseases. A diet rich in this oil delivers health benefits comparable to non-steroidal and anti-inflammatory medications. You’d […]

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In Days Gone, users play as Deacon St. John, a drifter/bounty hunter who lives on the road. The loading icon in Days Gone is an in-game model of a ring. It appears whenever the game’s surprisingly frequent loading screens appear, spinning in the bottom right corner with a silver sheen. It’s a symbol the game treats with a good deal of reverence. Given to the (apparently) deceased wife of the biker protagonist before her death, it’s something of a leitmotif—always there, lingering just outside of immediate memory. But it’s also a gaudy thing, a self-consciously edgy trinket, shaped like the skull of some dead animal. Days Gone is sincere in its reverence of this object, and the relationship it symbolizes, but it’s also a little tone deaf. Days Gone is so immersed in its own world that it fails to realize how silly it looks. That sense permeates Days Gone , the new game from developer Bend Studio. Exclusive to the PlayStation 4, it’s a game that exists within a familiar form, set in a vast open world teeming with various hostile factions, including a seemingly infinite horde of zombies (called "freakers," which, OK, sure). It is more interesting than it initially appears, but it’s also a little much. It’s a game entirely reverent of the world it creates, but without seeing how that world, well, maybe is a good deal sillier than the game would like you to think. Days Gone is the story of Deacon St. John, a biker who formerly ran with a fictional gang called the Mongrels. After a zombie apocalypse ravages his world, he lives in Oregon with his best biker buddy, Boozer, and the two survive as nomadic guns-for-hire, doing odd jobs, taking bounties, flitting between various fenced-in survivor camps. It’s nothing fans […]

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