Its that time of year again….the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.  The moment girls wait for all year.  The skinny, “perfect” models strut down the runway.  It is nothing but glamorous.  But for the women watching, how does this make them feel about themselves?  Some love it and it makes them feel like models themselves.  But some, on the other hand, go down a different route…

As of now, there is no scientifically proven cause of eating disorders.  They’re seen as superficial to many people and are not taken as seriously as the diseases actually are. But that does not mean the media does not have a huge part in it, because it definitely does.  Percentages of women who have an eating disorder have increased immensely over the past few years.  “More than 5 million American suffer from eating disorders.  Five percent of females have anorexia, bulimia or binge eating.” (ADA).  These numbers have only gone up since then!  Anorexia and bulimia are two of the most common and known eating disorders.

What does this have to do with the media?  Well, the media is obsessed with what the best look is and will do anything to make money off an insecurity.  It is almost impossible to go anywhere without seeing an airbrushed model on a magazine or the newest diet that could “make you drop forty pounds in ten days!!”  There are unrealistic.  If these diets were truthful, then one would have dominated the industry already.  (ADA)

“Mass media provides a significantly influential context for people to learn about body ideals and the value placed on being attractive. (NEDA).  Also known as, the media puts the idea in people’s heads that being attractive goes hand in hand with being thin.  Over 80% of Americans watch television at least three hours a day, daily.  Teenagers, however are always on their phones and come across some form of media approximately 7 hours a day.  Teenagers are constantly exposed to these hot models and magazine covers telling them how to get “hot”.

Some scientists believe that the media has nothing to do with the development of eating disorders, but how can that be true?  With the desire to be thin in every direction and now at almost every age, it is almost like if you aren’t thin, you are an outcast.  From shows like “The Biggest Loser”, anyone who watches them can be influenced.  Even children can watch these shows and question their body.

So does the media actually cause eating disorders?  Yes, it can.  Teenagers can be influenced by these celebrities and nice bodies and feel so insecure about themselves that they starve themselves to “look like that”.  Although it is extremely wrong, it is happening in society today.  Companies like Aerie  are starting new campaigns where they do not edit their model’s pictures.  Maybe this could finally put a stop to this horrible influence on teens.

Works Cited:

1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21802573

2. http://www.anad.org/get-information/about-eating-disorders/eating-disorders-statistics/

3. https://www.adolescenthealth.org/SAHM_Main/media/Topics-in-Adolescent-Health/ADA_Position_Paper_Nutrition_Intervention.pdf

4. https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/factors-may-contribute-eating-disorders

5. http://www.ulifeline.org/articles/400-eating-disorders-why-do-they-happen

6. http://www.cnbc.com

7. http://womenonthefence.com

8. http://totuscontrol.pl

9. http://feed-eating-disorders

10. http://www.thelingerieaddict.com

Have you ever had a really good dream?  One you wish you could dream all over again?  I always wished I could control my dreams, maybe bring me back to a really good one.  I wondered if it was possible, so I decided to do some research.

Deirdre Barrett is the author of “The Committee of Sleep: How Artists, Scientists and Athletes Use Dreams for Creative Problem-Solving-and How You Can, Too” and did an interview with the Scientific American on dreams.  She described the scientific definition of a dream as a “narrative experience that occurs during sleep” (Barrett).  She was then asked if it is possible to control our dreams, where she said that yes it is possible.  She said it depends on what type of dream: lucid, nightmare, etc.  To solve a problem in a dream, one must think of that particular problem before they go to sleep.  One could also place something next to their bed that would help remind them of the problem, such as a person he/she is in a fight with.  Also important, when one wakes up, they mustn’t get right out of bed.  They must lay for a second, and the dream will come back to them.  Another interesting thing Barrett spoke about was if someone wants to dream of a particular person or experience.  You have to get a picture of who you want to dream about, or a specific line they would say (anything relating to them) or the experience you had.

Controlling lucid dreams take a very different approach.  Lucid dreams in general are risky, and much harder to control.  Lucid dreams occur during your REM stage, when you are actually aware that you are dreaming.  Since you are aware that you are dreaming, you then might try to control your dream.  It is a lot harder to control this because you are
still sleeping, and these dreams can get a
little out of control sometimes.

The video below tells of how you can control your dreams:

Here are some more ways to control your dreams from Yahoo Health:

1.Write down your dreams in the morning.  That way, you will eventually recognize patterns in them.  

2. Pay more attention to your daily activities.  You have to understand your life.

3. Get a habit.  Something to do everyday and get the hang of.

So now that we know how to control dreams in general, let’s get in a little more in depth.  Ever wanted to have a flying dream?  Well, since flying is not something humans normally do, your body is going to have to grow on it.  So jump around in your dream, higher and higher, and eventually you will fly.  What about changing the scenery?  Visualize where you want to go.  Whether it is Greece on the other side of the door, or look into a mirror and see a shopping mall.  As long as you believe that destination is truly there, you will be taken there.  Traveling through time can be made easy with a time travel machine you think up or fly into the clouds and end up in a different time period.  To find objects you want, just reach inside your pockets, bags, in front of you; it is guaranteed to be in one of those places considering your mind is controlling it.  Last but not least, if you want to talk to your unconscious self, it would be much easier to put yourself into a dog or cat form, and then talk to that animal as yourself.  It sounds crazy but hey, it works!

Although more research must be done on controlling dreams, we now know it is possible, no matter how crazy it seems.  Just put in a little effort next time you sleep, and you never know, you could be controlling your dreams in no time!  Sleep tight!

Works Cited:

1. http://www.dawn.com

2. www.lifehacker.com.au

3. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-control-dreams/

4. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/van-winkles/what-is-lucid-dreaming-an_b_7663492.html

5. http://www.howsleepworks.com/types_rem.html

6. http://www.world-of-lucid-dreaming.com/how-to-control-your-dreams.html

7. http://dreamstudies.org/

Being a girl in state college who loves to tan, of course one of the first things I did here was sign up for a monthly package of indoor tanning.  I tan indoors in my hometown too, and I used to wear wink-ease, which were little disposable eye protections for your eyes while tanning.  Within the past year or so, I stopped wearing eye protection.  I recently went to the eye doctor because my sight has gotten so much worse, and I think it is because of the lack of eye protection when tanning.  So, I set to find out.
When you think about it, people always wear sunglasses to protect their eyes, so why not wear something when tanning indoors?  It is the same idea.  According to the Health Physics Society,  tanning indoors exposes eyes 100x more than the sun does to ultraviolet radiation.   In the tanning bed, the ultraviolet radiation has direct contact with your eyes.  Photokeratitis is a short-term issue for your eyes from tanning.  It is when your eyesight becomes hazy, your eyelid swells, there is eye tearing, and pain.  Eye cancers can also be caused by indoor tanning, as well as skin cancers.

Another effect of UV light on the eye could be pterygium, which is when the conjunctiva grows on the surface of the eye.  It could become harder for one to see because the pterygium now goes over the middle of the cornea, which is what you see out of.  You can get rid of this through surgery, but it can keep coming back.

Philip R. Rizzuto, MD, from the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, stated, “UV damage to the eyes may result in the development of cataracts . . . as well as cancer of the uvea, which is the middle layer of tissue under the white of the eye,”. (Eye Smart)  Another problem that can occur is you can get a corneal flash burn.  This is when a lot of UV rays cause your cornea to burn.   The eye will then become watery, hazy, painful, red, or the eyesight could become worse.

Not many studies have been done on indoor tanning and eye damage.  Scientists say it is harmful, but no actual studies (worthy of commenting on) have really been done.  If I were a scientist researching this field, I would conduct a controlled experiment. It would not be able to be a double blind procedure because the controlled group would know if they had eye protection or not while tanning.  I would get a large group of people, maybe 400, and test their eyesight.  They all must have 20/20 vision and be in good health.  They would all tan three times a week in the same level bed.  Half of them would wear eye protection and the other half would not.  After a month, an optometrist would check their vision once more.  They would then report who’s vision worsened and who’s did not.  This would be a very good way to test my hypothesis.

Next time you want to hit the tanning bed, think about how it could be affecting not only your whole body, but your eyes as well.  After doing my research on this post, I think I have decided not to sign up for tanning next month…

Works Cited:

1. http://www.who.int/uv/faq/uvhealtfac/en/index3.html
2. http://valleyeyecareaz.com/what-indoor-tanning-can-do-to-your-eye-health/
3. http://money.cnn.com/2012/06/28/pf/taxes/tanning-tax/
4. http://blog.coolibar.com/tanning-bed-legislation-where-are-we-now/
5. http://awomanshealth.com/just-say-no-to-indoor-tanning/

Have you ever been hungry and decided to pop a piece of gum in your mouth?  But wouldn’t that just make you hungrier?  Chewing gum stimulates the gastric juices, meaning there is more saliva.  You then swallow the saliva and your stomach thinks there is food coming down.  When no food comes down, you become hungry.  It is like chewing food but spitting it out.  The body thinks it is getting food and nutrients but ends up getting nothing.

To test this, one experiment was done that made contributors chew gum before every meal and track their food in a food diary.  The results were that the ones who chewed gum before eating their meals ate less, but the meals they consumed had a lot more calories and a lot less nutritious foods.

Another study took a completely different route.  This University of Rhode Island study showed people who chew gum eat 68 fewer calories at their lunch, while avoiding sugary foods.  Louisiana State University says chewing gum can help control appetite, decreasing their normal calorie amount by 40 calories.

One more article showed that chewing gum does not lessen amount of food ingested or hunger.  They said although they technically ate less meals, they just ate more at those meals.  They also said people who chew gum eat more junk food because the minty taste makes healthy foods taste bad, similar to brushing your teeth then drinking orange juice.

Almost every study about chewing gum is different.  For example, “Appetite” in May 2007 studied that chewing gum 15 minutes per hour after lunch made people want salty snacks not sweet ones.  Then, in October 2011, “Appetite” did another study with chewing gum 15 minutes per hour after lunch and found that those people ate 10% less in general for their snack three hours later.

There really is no right answer to this problem.  Personally, I would think it would make one hungrier because they are chewing and not swallowing anything.  Maybe some better studies could be done.  They could feed people of the same health, diet, and age the same exact meals and then give half of them gum to chew and half of them not.  This would be a controlled double-blind trial, making it able to be more accurate.  After a month of doing this, one could check what the control groups ate after they chewed the gum later in the day.  They would be given a plate of food each night and told to eat as much as they were hungry for.  Then, scientists could check the results and see how chewing gum really affects one’s appetite.

With so many different conclusions, it could be hard to settle on a decision.  Who knows, maybe one day my personal experiment will be done and that will be the final answer.  Only time will tell…

Works Cited:

1. http://www.livestrong.com/article/375863-does-chewing-gum-suppress-your-appetite/
2. http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/chewing-gum-won-lose-weight-study-article-1.1293789
3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21718732
4. http://www.thetwoangles.com/13-harmless-natural-appetite-suppressants/
5. angrynutrition.com

Getting tonsils removed (also known as tonsillectomies) is not a new procedure.  This has been going on for centuries.  People get them removed because they get sick too often, have trouble breathing, or wake up in the middle of the night due to their tonsils and irritation.  But is this really a safe procedure?  Would it be better just to keep them in?

This study done for Cochrane by Burton MJ, Glasziou PP, Chong L, and Venekamp RP in November of 2014 tested just how safe and effective tonsillectomies really are.   This study was a randomized control trial that compared tonsillectomies with non-surgical treatment in adults and children with frequent tonsillitis.  They decided to do seven trials.  There were 156 adults with two trials and 986 children with 5 trials with low risk of bias.  They took this data and decided there was an average of three sore throats with the children, compared to 3.6 in the control group.  They also decided there were 3.6 fewer with adults getting  surgery within six months after they had surgery.

They concluded that children who get tonsillitis a lot may get a little bit of a benefit from getting them removed.  It can avoid .6 more episodes in one year compared to the non-surgical way.
To avoid sore throats, if a child gets them frequently, they will of course benefit more from the surgery.  For adults though, the experiment was not enough to tell.

Even the scientists themselves suggested the data was not 100% accurate.  They said a lot of the children did not continue with the experiment until the end or ended up in the wrong control group.  The adult trial was just not as accurate as it should have been, because once one is an adult, the surgery can be a lot more painful than for a child.

This study could have been done in a better fashion.  The children could have signed consent forms to stay throughout the whole trial.  They also should have separate studies on children and adults, not within the same experiment.  Considering children and adults react differently to this surgery, it would be pointless to test them together.  Also, they should have made sure their control groups were in similar health in general before testing them as the same.  They did have a good amount of people being tested, the larger number the better.

Another study that is similar that could be done is if one is a child with large tonsils, but is not having problems, should they get them removed just in case of sickness in the future?  This is an interesting question.  Scientists could take two groups, one of kids with large tonsils getting tonsillectomies and the other of kids with large tonsils who don’t.  They are both in good health and continue to be for the next 15 years.  Then, when checked on, scientists could check if their health was better from getting the surgery.  That could be an interesting experiment to think about.

Works Cited:

1. http://www.curemytonsilstones.com
2. http://www.newkidscenter.com
3. https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003013.htm
4. http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/news/20110102/new-guidelines-on-when-kids-need-tonsillectomies
5. http://www.entnet.org/content/tonsillectomy-facts-us-ent-doctors

Alcohol is known as a depressant.  This means it is a so-called downer, or lowers neurotransmission levels, so that stimulation or arousal can be lowered in different areas of the brain.  Energy drinks, like Red Bull, are known as stimulators, which means they can raise levels of physiological or nervous activity.  Energy drinks can almost “cover” the effects of alcohol, making one think they are too alert to be drunk and decide to drink more.  Most studies are done on if drinking Red Bull and vodka together is bad for you, but did anyone ever test if energy drinks could have a good effect when combined with alcohol?  As a matter of fact, they did!

A study was done in April 2006 by Sionaldo Eduardo Ferreira, Marco Tulio de Mello, Sabine Pompeia, and Maria Lucia Oliveira de Souza-Formigoni on the effects of energy drinks and alcohol together.  They wanted to test if the use of energy drinks could lower the intensity of the depressant effects of alcohol.  The depressant effects could be things such as just bad motor coordination, or can be bigger things such as depression.  The study took twenty-six healthy people and randomly put them in two groups.  One group was given .6g/kg of alcohol and the other group was given 1.0g/kg of alcohol.  They were both given 3.57mL/kg of Red Bull.  They did the experiment three times, seven days apart, with alcohol and Red Bull, just alcohol, or just Red Bull.  They then tested intoxication, breath alcohol concentration (BAC), motor coordination, and visual reaction time.  This was a controlled treatment and a double-blind procedure.

This experiment had many results.  The alcohol and Red Bull together lowered the person’s headaches, dry mouth, weakness, and impaired motor coordination greatly compared to just alcohol alone.  But the energy drink did not extremely lower the effects of alcohol on motor coordination and visual reaction time.  The energy drink did not change the breath alcohol concentration in either of the groups.  These scientists concluded that even though some symptoms of the alcohol were not as intense after the alcohol and Red Bull,  the motor coordination and visual reaction time were not reduced because of it.  Having one dose of Red Bull lowered how intense some symptoms of alcohol are, but did not really lower all of the problems with alcohol consumption.  In the end, they decided there needed to be more testing done to really confirm their experiment.

This was an okay study, but I feel it could have been done differently.  Maybe they should have used more than one type of energy drink.  They could have gotten a bigger control group, that way a little portion of people out of it could each try the experiment with a different energy drink.  They could have also tested the emotional aspects of the alcohol and the vodka, such as if the person was happy or sad after consuming the Red Bull and vodka.  In the end, they did not necessarily have an answer to their question.  They should have also done more than three run-throughs with the trial.  Three is not enough to have a definite answer.  Until next time…

Works Cited:

1. http://www.dreamstime.com/stock-images-vodka-redbull-mix-image27451494
2.  http://memegenerator.net/instance/57658116
3.  http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/store/10.1111/j.1530-0277.2006.00070.x/asset/j.1530-0277.2006.00070.x.pdf?v=1&t=ihpjxdz8&s=369cc9a04591970b0dad87ea3ed42afa4aedcc50&systemMessage=Wiley+Online+Library+will+have+be+unavailable+on+Saturday+5th+December+from+10%3A00-14%3A00+GMT+%2F+05%3A00-09%3A00+EST+%2F+18%3A00-22%3A00+SGT+for+essential+maintenance.+Apologies+for+the+inconvenience.

Everyone knows the rule, eight 8-ounce cups of water keeps the doctor away…or something like that.  Anyway, water is important.  To maintain a healthy diet, and to just be a healthy individual, you must drink water.  But how much is too much?  Is there even a too much?

Yes, this is a thing.  You can drink too much water.  This is known as water intoxication and yes, it can be deadly.  To kill a 165 pound person, it takes 6 liters of water.  Drinking too much water can cause salt to enter the blood, causing hyponatremia.  This can lead to the official water intoxication, when a person begins feeling muscle weakness, nausea, headaches and mental disorientation.  All of this water makes it hard for the kidneys to flush it.  So the water adds up and makes the cells swollen.  The problem occurs when the cells in the brain swell.

This is especially prevalent in athletes.  Athletes are always training and trying to have healthy diets.  While doing this, they may end up drinking too much water, resulting in exercise-associated hyponatremia (EAH).  EAH is when one’s kidneys cannot process the amount of water that is given to them.  Swelling, and leading to death.  This can happen to a lot of athletes and is something they should be aware of.  Symptoms of EAH could be nausea, puffiness, confusion, agitation, weight gain, seizures, delirium, or even comas.  Athletes are supposed to drink 1.5 to 2.5 more cups of water than regular people.

One case of water intoxication was a 64 year old woman who had mitral valve disease.  One night, she drank between 30 and 40 cups of water.  She died that night.  She literally overdosed on water; it can happen.  Another case was a 35 year old man was found dead on his bathroom floor after drinking an immense amount of water.  His brain was swollen from the water.

Overhydration is another type, which can be seen as increased water intake or when the body retains too much water.  There are ways to stop this!!! Know when your body has had enough. Know the right amount of water to drink.  Do your research, and you will be fine and drinking a healthy amount of water.

Works Cited:

1. http://www.medicaldaily.com/drinking-too-much-water-can-be-deadly-new-guidelines-healthy-water-consumption-warns-340604
2. http://www.medicaldaily.com/water-intoxication-just-how-much-h2o-does-it-take-kill-person-312958
3. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hyponatremia/basics/definition/con-20031445
4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1770067/
5. http://www.healthline.com/health/overhydration#Prevention7
6. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-511475/Man-35-drank-death-consuming-water.html
7. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1nwSuWr_q8
8. http://cupcakepedia.com/wp-content/plugins/category-grid-view-gallery/includes/CatGridPost.php?ID=15796

These days, people are ALWAYS on their phones.  Walking down the street, sitting on the bus, at the dinner table, always texting.  I couldn’t help but think, is this hurting my eyesight?  I already have bad eyes, but I have noticed them get increasingly worse.  So, I decided to check it out.

From my studies, I have learned that looking at one’s phone can strain the eyes immensely.  This happens especially when reading small fonts or browsing the internet for long hours at a time.  Studies show that if you already wear glasses, looking at phones can make it worse for you.  They have been said to have to make up for the strain from the phone on the eyes.  Both of them straining together is never good.

Besides headaches, irritation, eye dryness, and redness, this can lead to more serious things like myopia.  Myopia is near-sightedness, meaning the eye can not bend light the right way to see things clearly.  This can happen most commonly to people who read books or long texts on their phones.  They are bound to get a headache eventually from the strain.

This is all short-term, but what about long-term?  Phones give off HEV light, known as blue light.  This blue light is defined by Digital Trends as “that portion of the visible light spectrum that comprises light with the shortest wavelengths, which carry the greatest potential to damage living tissue.” (Hill 2015)  This means it is very dangerous to living tissue currently in the eyes.  This HEV light can damage the tissue in the retina, possibly causing permanent eye damage, but it has not yet been confirmed.

A 2014 study found that the average US citizen spends 7.4 hours looking at screens throughout the day.  An average night of sleep is 7.7 hours.  See the problem here?  But considering the increase in technology within the last 10 years, it is not surprising that Americans spend this much time on their phones.

Although it seems almost impossible to cut down on looking at your phone, one way is by using the 20/20/20 rule.  This means taking 20 seconds of relaxing after every 20 minutes and turning your eyes to something 20 feet away.  You would be surprised to see how much better you feel after trying this out!

One experiment that could be done would be getting 20 adults to use their phones regularly and count how many hours they are on their phones.  Then the next week take away these devices entirely, and record their feeling after it was over.  See if these adults feel any physical relief.  Who knows, maybe it will be a significant difference!

Works Cited:

1. http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/does-your-phone-damage-your-eyes-an-experts-advice/
2. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/health-news/Is-your-smartphone-affecting-your-eyesight/articleshow/29346618.cms
3. http://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/myopia.htm
4. http://www.geteyesmart.org/eyesmart/diseases/myopia-nearsightedness/
5. http://www.visionmonday.com/business/labs/article/protecting-eyes-from-bad-blue-light-vm-090913/
6. http://kpcbweb2.s3.amazonaws.com/files/85/Internet_Trends_2014_vFINAL_-_05_28_14-_PDF.pdf?1401286773
7. https://www.thevisioncouncil.org/sites/default/files/VC_DigitalEyeStrain_Report2015.pdf
8. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/most-americans-suffer-from-digital-eye-strain/
9. http://www.littlegatepublishing.com/2014/01/digitaleyedamage/
10. http://smartphones.wonderhowto.com/how-to/reduce-eye-strain-when-using-smartphones-0161648/

Have you ever noticed when people are sad they like to listen to sad music?  And when people are in a really great mood they put on some dancing music to dance their heart out?  This is something people do in everyday life.  If you love music like I love music, you know this is exactly what you do.  But can the music actually affect your mood? Here’s what I found:

Listening to the blues & reggae can actually make you less nervous

I am a person who is constantly anxious.  I used to try to listen to calming music, like slow music, but most of the time it would end up being sad music, which is not what I wanted.  According to mamiverse.com, the blues can actually slow down your fast-beating heart a little.  This also applies if you are angry about something and you listen to reggae.  Reggae is known as relaxing music to help calm you down a little.

Rock & classical music can change your average mood to a great one

If you are tired and a little down, putting on some old punk music can take you back to the good old days, giving you a nice energy boost!  Always a plus.  I was pretty mind blown myself finding out that classical music could boost one’s mood.  I always thought of classical as calming and relaxing.  Turns out, it can actually increase brain power.

Heavy metal does not always put one in an aggressive mood

Heavy metal has seen to increase people’s self-esteem, but Iowa State University did a study and found that heavy metal could give anti-social feelings.  Some studies say heavy metal helps people deal with stressful situations.  It can either cause violent feelings or relaxed feelings, depending on each individual separately.

Country has actually been seen to cause depression

Even suicide.  Most of the lyrics in country songs are sad.  So even if you are in a good mood, just putting on a country song can sadden you.  Although they are sad, people can relate.  Especially if these songs are about heartbreak, people can listen and feel the singer’s pain.

Broadway music is inspiring

It makes sense.  I am from New York City, and I always used to go to Broadway plays in the city. I left every play inspired and wanting to change the world.  The music floats through your body and the words speak to you.  These singers are also amazingly talented, so much that you feel the tingling in your bones.  Who wouldn’t leave a play like that inspired?

This is mostly common sense, but there needs to be more studies on it.  One study looked at people who were given happy and sad “icons” while listening to happy and sad music.  They were told to pick which face was shown, but they would pick a sad face when listening to sad music, even if the face shown was happy.  This concludes that the music really does affect one’s mood.

Another experiment that could be done could be 10 people in sad moods listening to happy music, and 10 people in happy moods listening to sad music.  Then, scientists could check their moods afterwards and see if they changed.  My hypothesis is that they will change most likely.  But I guess we’ll have to wait and see 🙂

Works Cited:

1. http://mamiverse.com/how-types-of-music-genres-affect-mood-64945/
2. https://psuc53.wordpress.com/2012/03/11/the-psychological-effects-of-heavy-metal-music-2/
3. https://music-changingmoods.wikispaces.com/
4. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-athletes-way/201212/the-neuroscience-music-mindset-and-motivation
5. http://www.spafromscratch.com/relax-with-music/
6. http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/print_project_1178_138

Personally, I hate working out without music.  I feel as if the music almost motivates me.  I lift to the beat of the music, or run to it.  I always, always, put upbeat music and make it loud.  It makes me want to really work out!

Studies have shown that music has been seen to actually distract the body from the pain one feels when working out.  Hense, making it easier to workout for longer periods of time.  Studies also say that the faster the music, the faster your body wants to move.  So if one, for example, were walking on a treadmill, if he/she was walking to a beat, if the beat was faster they would walk faster, burning more calories.

Listening to music can also focus someone.  It can make them put all of their thoughts and effort into that one activity, making a more impressive workout.  Going along with the song can also keep someone on track and on the same pace the whole time.  If you follow the beat, it makes your workout sturdier.  Doing this, can also put you in a better mood.  If you are someone who absolutely HATES working out, then being distracted by the music can make you forget you are working out and make you 🙂  Especially if you are someone who love loves loves listening to music.

In a study done in July 2013, researchers looked at the study of music on making your brain excited.  They concluded that listening to music actually makes the body want to move around, aka, exercise.  In case we are forgetting, music also drowns out the other people loudly working out, making you focus on your own workout more!

Another study was done where scientists studied cyclists listening to music for the first half of their course, for the second half, or for none of it.  They concluded that the cyclists that listened for the second half went 1-1.25km/h faster than the others.  This concludes that music really does influence the brain when working out!

From everything I have researched, I have decided my hypothesis was correct: listening to music DOES affect your workout, and in a positive way!  One other way to test my hypothesis could be putting together an experiment.  10 males & 10 females work out with music, and 10 males & 10 females work out without music, and check their workout success for 5 days and see what I come up with.  Could be interesting.  So next time you are running out the door to the gym, make sure to grab your headphones, you want to get the most out of your workout!

Works Cited:

1. http://www.popsugar.com
2. www.healthyrevelations.com
3. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/01/why-exercise-workout-music-playlist_n_4173931.html
4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23660433
5. http://greatist.com/fitness/should-you-listen-music-when-working-out
6. http://www.weightlossresources.co.uk/exercise/workouts/music-increase-exercise-endurance.htm
7. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/psychology-workout-music/

Admit it…you love your naps.  You come home from a long two classes and just need to take a nap before your next two.  But is that nap helping you get through the day?  Or actually making it harder for you?

This article from WedMD actually says napping can be even better than drinking coffee for a boost in energy!  Apparently, caffeine is known to cut back memory performance, creating more mistakes.  So even though you will have more energy, you will not be as focused.  But also, napping for 20 minutes can make someone more awake and focused, and napping for 30 to 60 minutes helps with decision-making work, while napping for longer than that (60-90 minutes), helps make new connections in the brain once you are awake.  The only problem with napping more than 30 minutes is you will wake up and feel groggy 🙁

In 2006, a study was done where naps were looked at.  The scientists used a no-nap control and 5, 10, 20, and 30 minutes of sleep.  They used 24 people who did not normally nap but got a good night’s worth of sleep.  In the end, they decided the 10-minute nap was the best one because it did not leave a person feeling groggy when they woke up.

This power nap has it’s benefits.  One study by the University of Athens Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health said that people who do not nap ended up with a higher coronary mortality.  So power naps can be very good for the heart!  They can also help cognitive function, which makes sense because if you are tired you are not thinking straight.  Power naps also reduce stress and anxiety, which is perfect for a stressed out Penn State student!  Ever feel a weird food craving randomly?  A brief nap could solve that problem.  Naps can also help improve physical performance.  If you really want to go to the IM building after class but you think you’re too tired, take a power nap and then hit the gym!  You’ll be surprised to see how much better you feel.

Although many people believe napping is bad, I feel from my studies napping has seemed to be a great idea.  I was thinking of an experiment that could be done here at Penn State.  I could get 10 students who nap and 10 who don’t and see how their grades, social life, and energy level are affected.  Then, I could take my research and create my conclusion.  Maybe an idea for next semester…

Works Cited:

1. http://www.hairybaby.com/i-love-naps
2. http://indulgy.com/post/zDlDOczW2/i-love-naps
3. http://draxe.com/power-nap/
4. http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/the-secret-and-surprising-power-of-naps?page=2
5. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16796222

No, I am not left-handed.  Actually, no one in my family is a “lefty” (except one of my cousins).  So I decided to do this blog for her.  When I think about left-handedness, I believe, personally, that it is in one’s genes.  That was my hypothesis going into this; one is born left-handed and it gets passed down.

During my research, I fell upon an article from the Scientific American, where Clare Porac, who is actually a professor of psychology here at Penn State (WE ARE!) pointed out that left-handedness begins either in genes or by biological causes.  One theory she found was that natural selection created lots of people with language and speech control on the LEFT side of their brain.  The LEFT side of the brain is known to control the RIGHT hand and written language.  They say there are two alleles, the D gene and the C gene.  The D gene is the right-handed gene and the C gene is the left-handed gene.  If someone has the C gene, they have a fifty-percent chance of being left-handed, which is minimal in this case.

In a resent article from PLOS Genetics, they did a genome-wide association study meta-analysis and discovered that certain genes are related to left/right body asymmetry.  They used mice to test this hypothesis, very similar to humans.  So since this seems to be a genetic thing, why is left-handedness still occurring?  That is because this left-handedness occurs as a result of a lot more genes than just dominant and recessive ones like the old days.  Wonderopolis.org says, “since scientists have noticed that left-handedness tends to run in families, it’s assumed that left-handedness has a genetic component to it. In other words, left-handers are born that way.”

Another study took a little different of a toll on this idea.  This study, done in 1972 by British psychologist Marian Annett, was also known as the Right Shift Theory.   She concluded that left-handers do not inherit the gene for left-handedness, instead they get the absence of neurological bias toward the dominant left hemisphere.  She also said random events during one’s childhood, such as a school telling a kid to use their right hand to write and not left, may actually lead to a little bit of influence on the actual handedness.  This means that genetics make more of a difference for right handers because they have more dominant handedness genes in general.  

Maybe in the future, some more testing can be done.  Maybe…is it possible for someone to change their handedness on their own?  We could get one group of right-handed people and try to train them to write with their left-hand and see if it works.  You never know unless you try, right?  So in conclusion, they are many reasons scientists believe one is left-handed.  From my research, I have learned that the majority of these people believe it comes from genes.

Works Cited:

1. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-causes-some-people-t/
2. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/why-are-some-people-left-handed-6556937/?no-ist
3. http://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/article?id=10.1371/journal.pgen.1003751
4. http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/why-are-some-people-left-handed
5. http://www.rightleftrightwrong.com/theories_genetic.html

I personally love hand sanitizer.  My roommate and I probably apply hand sanitizer five or more times a day.  We usually use the scented ones from Bath & Body Works, they smell sooooo good!  But I was thinking, how could something that smells that good really be helping you that much?

Hand sanitizer usually contains about 60 to 65% alcohol.  The alcohol is either ethyl alcohol or isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol).  Besides that, they have humectants that help keep skin from getting too dry, and emollients which moisturize by putting back some water that was taken away by the alcohol.

Hand sanitizer is known to kill germs.  Some people are worried that the hand sanitizer kills the “good germs” too.  “Good germs” are also known as “resident microflora”.  “Bad germs” are known as “transient microflora”.  Most hand sanitizers kill both types of germs.  They tend to kill more of the transient microflora.  Although they kill some resident microflora as well, this type of germ is regenerated quickly by the human body and are important for health.  The only way to kill the bad germs is too kill a small amount of the good ones too.

Although hand sanitizer is a very good way to stay clean and healthy, it is NOT an alternative to washing your hands.  It can be used IN ADDITION to washing your hands.  To correctly wash your hands, you need to rub your hands together with soap and water for 20 seconds.  After that is done, you can apply the sanitizer all over your hands until they are dry.  They are saying if you do both, you will be a clean individual!

Hand sanitizer does have some possible bad sides to it.  Some sanitizers can weaken the immune system, disrupt your hormones, cause alcohol poisoning if swallowed, or cause resistance to antibiotics.  But these are very rare in sanitizers.  If you buy a known brand and look through your ingredients, you will be fine.

I have concluded that as long as your sanitizer has over 60% alcohol, you are set!  SO grab your bag, drop your sanitizer in there, and enjoy your day! 🙂

Works Cited:

1. http://www.purell.com/faq/
2. http://www.thestreet.com/story/12966410/1/5-hidden-dangers-of-hand-sanitizers.html
3. http://www.gojo.com/united-states/about-gojo/newsroom/corporate-statements/facts-about-sanitizers-macinga.aspx?sc_lang=en
4. http://www.homefoodsafety.org/wash/which-is-best-hand-sanitizer-or-soap-and-water

I used to drink at least five coffees per day, maybe even more.  Before I would go out at night, I would drink a huge iced coffee AND a red bull.  That is already not healthy, but with my anxiety, it is even worse.  I realized recently that I was always dizzy and jittery.  I could not figure out why.  All of a sudden one day I could not have my morning coffee (tragic) and realized later that I was not jittery at all!  So I decided to research the connection between caffeine and anxiety.

Coffee is one of the most popular caffeinated drinks.  Coffee increases heart rate and can make a person feel jittery.  Caffeine is also a stimulant, which means it increases alertness and energy.  The effect of caffeine on the body can be related to the feeling one gets when they are experiencing a scary event.  The caffeine starts to make your body have a “fight or flight” way of handling it, meaning to “run away” or to “forcibly resist”, ending up creating a ton of anxiety.

Caffeine acts on the central nervous system.  Adenosine, the brain chemical that lowers neutral activity, is put down once caffeine is taken into the body.  This causes people to be more awake.  But if you have anxiety, the caffeine is too much for your body to handle, and basically “adds fuel to the fire” if you are already stressed.  It has been studied that moving to decaffeinated drinks too fast can lead to headaches, which I personally had happen to me.  They say if you move over slowly, by lowering your caffeine intake every day, it can be a smoother transition.

It is not just coffee, but tea, sodas, and any drinks with caffeine.  Do not think of it as a bad thing though, it means you will probably drink more water! 🙂 I miss the taste of coffee dearly, so now I just drink one or two decaffeinated coffees per day to get the same happy feeling I used to get when I would drink coffee.  So, I have confirmed in my studies, that it WAS in fact the caffeine that made me jittery every day.

Here are some things you can replace your needed caffeine with!

Works Cited:

1. http://www.stressbusting.co.uk/caffeine-and-anxiety/
2. http://www.calmclinic.com/anxiety/causes/coffee
3. http://www.everydayhealth.com/anxiety-pictures/7-surprising-causes-of-anxiety.aspx#05
4. http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/prescription/stimulants.html

I can’t even lie.  As I uploading this picture, I looked at it and probably yawned three times.  People always say if you see someone yawn, you yawn.  Does this mean yawning is actually contagious?

A study by the University of Connecticut in 2010 concluded that that most kids do not contagiously yawn until they’re around four years old.  Also, kids with autism are less likely to yawn contagiously.  What does this mean?  Well, many experts say contagious yawning is not actually related to how tired an individual is, their empathy, or how much energy they have.

The word “yawn” can actually also make people yawn.  Be honest, did you yawn reading this?  Contagious yawning only happens in chimpanzees or humans.  This occurs when the animal sees a yawn, hears a yawn, or thinks about a yawn.

Some experts say if you yawn when you see someone else yawn, it is a sign of empathy and shows bonding socially.  Neurologists went through brain imaging and found that this type of yawning is associated with the part of the brain that shows one’s empathy.  In another study, age seemed to play a big role in contagious yawning.  In the study, more than 80 percent of people younger than 25 yawned contagiously.  Sixty percent of people ages 25 to 49 yawned contagiously.  Although in this study age was seen to play a big role, it ended up being only an 8 percent difference.  As Elizabeth Cirulli, Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine at the Center for Human Genome Variation at Duke University School of Medicine said, “The vast majority of variation in the contagious yawning response was just not explained”.  Each expert had a different approach and ended up with a different conclusion on why yawning is contagious.  And although this is so, all of them believed that yawning is actually contagious.

Want to see if you can control your yawns?  Try and pass the yawn o meter test here! Let me know how you do! 🙂

Works Cited:

1. http://mentalfloss.com/article/64654/why-are-yawns-contagious
2. http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/contagious-yawn.htm
3. http://news.discovery.com/human/health/yawning-social-behavior.htm
4. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-athletes-way/201403/why-is-yawning-so-contagious

I have to admit it, I have yet to go to the library at Penn State.  I would much rather study in my warm, comfortable bed listening to my music and relaxing.  But am I really focusing on my studying?  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Advising & Learning Assistance Center says, “Many students, however, find that they must leave their room in order to study effectively, because their room equals a place to sleep and play, and not a place to learn.”

Think about it.  You sleep in your room.  Do you really want to associate sleep with studying?  If I am studying in my room, I am most likely thinking about sleeping while doing it, (or actually falling asleep).

.  

Libraries are quiet facilities.  They are known to be easy places to go and read in peace.  “And while some students may complain that the library is “boring,” some students need just that…a “boring” place to study.” the Advising Center goes on to say.  This is a very good observation.  Since the library is SO boring, it ends up being a great place to study.  There is no television or music to take you to another world…you almost have to read because there is nothing else to do.  In the back of your mind you want to go back to your dorm anyway, but you know you cannot do so until you study.

From my own observations, I can see that a quiet, distraction-free library is the way to go to increase test scores.  It is not only the environment that helps, but also the librarians.  “Test scores seem to be significantly higher for schools that have full-time certified school librarians as well as for those that have such a librarian with support staff.” (Achterman 2008).

Studying in the library can indirectly effect test scores.  That is, if one studies in a environment that is distraction free (like the library), they will take in more information and do better on their tests.  It does not have to just be the library though.  Any place with quiet and serenity makes it easier to study!  FIU News says, “Where you study is important in maximizing how much information you retain. Studying in places that have less noise and people traffic – the upper floors of the Green Library, the law building, the Sky Lounge, a quiet coffee shop/tea lounge – will result in more effective study time and improve your ability to recall information that you went over during that time.”  Therefore, any place that is comfortable and appealing to you can be useful in your studying.  So next time you have a big test, try to go to the library or some other place with no distractions and watch your test scores boost!

If you want to find out the best study environment for you, you can go here!

Works Cited:

1. http://www.wcu.edu/academics/campus-academic-resources/writing-and-learning-commons-walc/course-tutoring-and-academic-skills/academic-strategies/ideal-study-environments-and-factors-that-influence-studying.asp
2. http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslissues/advocacy/AASL_infographic.pdf
3. http://alac.rpi.edu/update.do
4. https://news.fiu.edu/2013/12/8-study-tips-that-will-help-you-overcome-finals-week/70573
5. http://www.ucc.vt.edu/academic_support_students/study_skills_information/study_environment_analysis/index.html

I have to admit…I am a coffee addict.  I get up in the morning and cannot function until there is a nice, hot, cup of joe in my hand.  But recently I have realized just how much coffee I drink, and could not help but wonder…is this bad for me?  Is this an unhealthy lifestyle?  So, I decided to do some research on my favorite drink.

Many people associate coffee with bad health.  Some people say it may cause a caffeine addiction.  Others say it could stunt your growth.  But what is the truth about this lovable beverage?

The coffee I am speaking of is the plain coffee; not the yummy macchiatos from Starbucks.
From my research, I have concluded that reasonable amounts of coffee intake have no negative effects on the body.

The majority of studies have no reason to say coffee is bad for you.  It has been found that coffee can possibly reduce the risk of type two diabetes in a person, can protect against some types of cancer, and can help protect from stroke or depression in women.  Coffee has been able to decrease the pain of some’s exercise, and even help bard off Alzheimer’s disease.  There have not been any relations found with heart disease or cancer and coffee, or with dehydration and coffee. Lindsay Malone, RD, from Cleveland Clinic, says, “the antioxidants in coffee protect your cells and keep them healthy. If you have any DNA damage from, say, secondhand smoke or environmental pollutants, antioxidants can help repair cell damage.”

Cafestol, in coffee, can be seen to be a stimulator of an increase in LDL cholesterol.  This may be a concern if you have a high LDL cholesterol, and in that case, you may want to use a paper filter, so that the cafestol is gone.  So, the only reason coffee can be bad for you at this point in our recent research is if you already have an unhealthy part of your body that coffee or caffeine can effect.  Caffeine can sometimes create a temporary increase in blood pressure, but that only lasts for a short amount of time.  “Leigh Tracy, RD, LDN, of Mercy Medical Center said, “avid coffee drinkers can build up a tolerance to the caffeine and may not experience such effects after a cup,” which makes me realize why after a while, I could end up falling asleep after a cup of coffee.  The caffeine just did not affect me like it used to.

Through my extensive research on my drink of preference, I have concluded that coffee is good for you.  (This is my opinion, there is much research still to come on the topic).  I have realized that just smelling coffee can decrease stress in humans.  (who knew!)  Also, coffee has been known to actually LESSEN the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease which is awesome!  Coffee is actually really good for your liver, seen by a study from 2006 which looked at 125,000 people over 22 years and turned out saying people who drink at least one cup of coffee per day were seen to have twenty percent less of a chance of developing liver cirrhosis!

Coffee has also been seen to make people happier.
So next time you’re double checking if you should be drinking that cup of coffee in the morning, don’t sweat it!  Enjoy and have a great day.

Works Cited:

1. http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=43492
2. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/its-a-myth-theres-no-evidence-that-coffee-stunts-kids-growth-180948068/?no-ist
3. http://misskoalacouture.tumblr.com/post/121253515035/iced-caramel-macchiato
4. http://www.wisegeekhealth.com/what-is-cafestol.htm
5. http://www.livescience.com/43532-is-coffee-bad-for-you.html
6. http://www.rd.com/slideshows/coffee-myths/#slideshow=slide2
7. http://time.com/3145435/is-coffee-bad-for-you/
8. http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/coffee-and-health/faq-20058339
9. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/17/coffee-health-benefits_n_4102133.html

Hi guys!  My name is Caitlin Whelan and I’m from Brooklyn, New York, which is one of the five boroughs of New York City.  I am a freshman here at Penn State currently enrolled in the Division of Undergraduate Studies.  I am not sure what I would like to major in yet but I am exploring hospitality.

I came from a small, all girls, Catholic high school in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn called Fontbonne Hall Academy, which had a graduating class of 130 students.  This made coming to Penn State a big change for me, but one that I was excited for.  During my four years there, I took chemistry, physics, forensics and anatomy.  Although I never really had a passion for science, I really enjoyed forensics.  I believe it may have been my favorite course throughout high school.  I felt this course would be an appropriate course for me because I do not really have a love for science like the science majors do.  I was unsure of which science to take until my advisor told me about this one, which seemed interesting.  I also did not major in science because I was not particularly good at chemistry or physics and both I believe are required to major in science here at Penn State.

Here’s a picture of the Brooklyn Bridge, which connects Manhattan and Brooklyn!