Yes they can. And according to the latest research, they do it as effectively as medications.
This is great news for people like me who love a sneaky disco nap. And it’s great news for any of you taking blood pressure medication. After all, who wouldn’t love to be taking less medications!
In a 2019 article on the website MedicalNewsToday, 212 people were studied. These were not the healthiest people – average age of 62, plenty of smokers and people with type 2 diabetes. Yet even with these complicating factors, the study found …

A recent article on the Sydney Morning Herald website has summarised “the best available research on preventing cognitive decline and dementia”.
There are a variety of recommendations based on statistical data showing the common traits and pastimes of Australians. The researchers looked at the behaviours of people who went on to develop dementia and tried to find the differences between them and people who did not, to see what might make a difference, and why.
According to the article “more than a third of Australians aged between 70 and 90 will develop …

The New York Times posted a really interesting article this week (click here if you want to read it), about the effectiveness (or otherwise), of common surgical procedures. We kind of assume that a doctor won’t recommend surgery for us unless we really need it, and unless it’s going to fix us. After all, there are significant risks and costs involved in surgery, so there must be compelling reasons for them to recommend it, right? Turns out that may not be the case.
As they noted, surgery is not regulated in the …

As you saw in my previous article , breathing can help improve the tone of the Vagus Nerve. This has been linked to reduced stress and anxiety levels, reduced heart rate, reduced blood pressure, and even reduced risk of dying from cancer.
A 2016 article talked more about the link between stress and cancer, saying that stress acts as a ‘fertiliser’ by increasing the number of lymphatic vessels draining from the tumour, but increase flow in existing vessels. “So not only do you get new freeways out of the tumour but …

My number 1 health tip for 2015 was to MOVE MORE, and no doubt you would’ve seen one of the countless articles talking about how bad prolonged sitting is for your health. Some articles called prolonged sitting worse for your health than smoking or obesity, and 60 Minutes did a great story which I posted outlining the benefits of moving more.
If 2015 was all about MOVING, 2016 is all about BREATHING. Well, breathing and Bruno Mars. I love that guy.
When we talk about breathing, in very basic terms we are …

A new study has found that working more than 55 hours a week “significantly increases your risk of having a stroke”. abc.net.au broke the story this week, citing a study conducted on over 600,000 people over the past 8 and a half years.
Key findings of the study included:

People working 55 hours a week had a 33 per cent greater risk of having a stroke than people who worked a standard 35 – 40 hour week.
The more hours people worked beyond standard hours, the higher their chance of having a stroke …

An article in The New York Times this week has shed light on the changes that take place in the brain in response to exercise. The story focused on a series of brain scans performed on a lady who started exercising at the age of 77 and went on to set numerous world records in masters track and field competition.
In short, when compared to other 90 somethings who were studied, her brain showed:
Fewer abnormalities in the white matter (the cells that help to transmit messages from one part of the …

I pity the fool that volunteered for this study. 153 healthy, that’s right, HEALTHY, men and women VOLUNTEERED, if you can believe it, to be given the virus that develops into the common cold. Imagine doing that to yourself. I think they had a cotton bud with the flu virus inserted into their nostril or something. Good times!
Anyway, I am loving their work, for we all get to benefit from the results. Prior to being given the virus, their sleep habits were measured for 14 nights, both in terms of …

Seasons Greetings one and all! How good is the Pacman Christmas Tree! I certainly get the impression from talking to many of you that it has been a full on year, so I hope you get to enjoy a well deserved break and take some time to recover and prepare for 2016.
Just to let you know I will be working all the way up to and including Christmas Eve, then back on Monday the 4th of January.
Hope you have a great Christmas and a happy and HEALTHY New Year!
 

Last week 60 Minutes ran a story on the perils of prolonged sitting. For a long time I’ve been a firm believer that the length of time you spend sitting is a lot more important then the position you sit in. This is true for musculoskeletal conditions like back pain, neck pain and headaches, but now we’re seeing that this is true for general health conditions like cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes. This only takes 12 minutes and is well worth your time. Get up and move Australia!
To watch the story click here.