ScienceDaily: Living Well News

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• Off the shelf, on the skin: Stick-on electronic patches for health monitoring
• Smoking may dull obese women’s ability to taste fat, sugar
• Race now or later? Calculating best time to compete after altitude training
• People with higher bonuses don't give more to charity
• Do you always agree with the topics newspaper editors choose to cover?
• Chowing down on watermelon could lower blood pressure, study suggests
• Women do not apply to 'male-sounding' job postings
• What influences us most when choosing wine?
• Body positive movement: Consumerist revolution?
• Morning rays keep off pounds
• Running, cardio activities in young adulthood may preserve thinking skills in middle age
• Beyond proficiency: How early English exposure influences non-native speakers
• Call for circumcision gets a boost from experts
• Food pantry clients struggle to afford diapers, detergent, other non-food items
• E-cigarettes: No smoke, no danger?
• Sport makes muscles and nerves fit
• Eyes in the cereal aisle: How Cap'n Crunch's gaze is influencing your purchasing
• Probiotics do not help infants with colic, study finds
• Unvaccinated infants act as 'kindling' to fuel epidemics
• Age-related decline in sleep quality might be reversible
• Child's obesity, cognitive function linked, study finds
• Obesity primes colon for cancer, according to study
• Heat waves reduce length of pregnancy
• Psychological factors turn young adults away from HIV intervention counseling
• Weaker gut instinct makes teens open to risky behavior

Off the shelf, on the skin: Stick-on electronic patches for health monitoring Posted: 03 Apr 2014 06:26 PM PDT Wearing a fitness tracker on your wrist or clipped to your belt is so 2013. Engineers have demonstrated thin, soft stick-on patches that stretch and move with the skin and incorporate off-the-shelf electronics for sophisticated wireless health monitoring. The patches stick to the skin like a temporary tattoo and incorporate a unique microfluidic construction with wires folded like origami to allow the patch to bend and flex.

Smoking may dull obese women’s ability to taste fat, sugar Posted: 03 Apr 2014 12:45 PM PDT Cigarette smoking among obese women appears to interfere with their ability to taste fats and sweets, a new study shows. Despite craving high-fat, sugary foods, these women were less likely than others to perceive these tastes, which may drive them to consume more calories. "Obese people often crave high-fat foods," she said. "Our findings suggest that having this intense craving but not perceiving fat and sweetness in food may lead these women to eat more. Since smoking and obesity are risk factors for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, the additional burden of craving more fats and sugars, while not fully tasting them, could be detrimental to health."

Race now or later? Calculating best time to compete after altitude training Posted: 03 Apr 2014 11:18 AM PDT A number of studies focus on the optimal time to begin altitude training before competition, but few address the best time to come down from altitude and how long athletes should wait to reacclimatize before competing. Researchers search for the answers in the new review article.

People with higher bonuses don't give more to charity Posted: 03 Apr 2014 07:57 AM PDT People who receive higher bonuses are less likely to give to charity than those on lower earnings, research from economists has demonstrated. The study shows higher earners are less inclined to give, and donate a similar share of their money compared to those on lower incomes. The researchers also found that people getting high bonuses tended to attribute their windfall to their own hard work or achievement, even if in fact it was actually just down to good fortune.

Do you always agree with the topics newspaper editors choose to cover? Posted: 03 Apr 2014 07:57 AM PDT Research suggests social media users don't always agree with newspaper editors about which topics are the most important, a new article reveals. New results show significant differences in the topics emphasized by newspaper editors and social media users. While users of social media platforms favor sharing opinion pieces, along with national, local and world news, the editors themselves emphasized sport, the economy, entertainment and celebrity stories.

Chowing down on watermelon could lower blood pressure, study suggests Posted: 03 Apr 2014 06:54 AM PDT Watermelon could significantly reduce blood pressure in overweight individuals both at rest and while under stress. "The pressure on the aorta and on the heart decreased after consuming watermelon extract," the small study concludes.

Women do not apply to 'male-sounding' job postings Posted: 03 Apr 2014 06:54 AM PDT Even the wording of an employment ad can be a crucial factor whether the job goes to a woman or a man -- as women tend not to apply in case of doubt. They feel less inclined to respond to ads containing frequently used words like 'determined' and 'assertive' because such words are linked with male stereotypes.

What influences us most when choosing wine? Posted: 03 Apr 2014 06:50 AM PDT An Australian wine marketing researcher has examined what influences selection along the wine supply chain. He surveyed consumers, retailers, restaurateurs and distributors in 11 countries. The study found that for Australian liquor retailers, margin and price-point were the primary factors that influenced wine selection; however in restaurants and bars, wine selection was primarily based on the taste of the wine and how well it complemented the food.

Body positive movement: Consumerist revolution? Posted: 03 Apr 2014 05:44 AM PDT The body positive movement seeks to defy media projected bodily stereotypes, celebrate diversity and encourage bodily self-appreciation, warts and all. Does the body positive movement bring deliverance from uniformity or further fuel the consumer-led obsession with self-image?  A new article uses body positive websites: Lady Gaga's 'Body Revolution', 'My Body Gallery' and 'Stop Hating Your Body' to investigate further.

Morning rays keep off pounds Posted: 02 Apr 2014 06:25 PM PDT A surprising new strategy for managing your weight? Bright morning light. People who had most of their daily exposure to bright light in the morning had a significantly lower body mass index (BMI) than those who had most of their light exposure later in the day, reports a new study. The earlier light exposure occurred, the lower the BMI. The influence of morning light on weight was independent of physical activity, caloric intake, sleep timing, age or season.

Running, cardio activities in young adulthood may preserve thinking skills in middle age Posted: 02 Apr 2014 01:23 PM PDT Young adults who run or participate in other cardio fitness activities may preserve their memory and thinking skills in middle age, according to a new study. Middle age was defined as ages 43 to 55 in this study. "These findings are likely to help us earlier identify and consequently prevent or treat those at high risk of developing dementia," researchers said.

Beyond proficiency: How early English exposure influences non-native speakers Posted: 02 Apr 2014 10:39 AM PDT Non-native speakers exposed to English through newspapers, books, TV and classes as well as traveling before moving to the US are more likely to use the language socially and culturally, according to a report. "English-language ability is one of the most important determinants of socioeconomic mobility in the United States, with strong effects on employment, earnings and occupational status," noted the study's lead author.

Call for circumcision gets a boost from experts Posted: 02 Apr 2014 10:38 AM PDT In the United States the rate of circumcision in men has increased to 81% over the past decade. In an important new study, authors have shown that the benefits of infant male circumcision to health exceed the risks by over 100 to 1. Over their lifetime half of uncircumcised males will contract an adverse medical condition caused by their foreskin, the researchers suggest.

Food pantry clients struggle to afford diapers, detergent, other non-food items Posted: 02 Apr 2014 08:16 AM PDT Many food-insecure families also struggle to afford basic non-food household goods, such as personal care, household, and baby-care products, according to a new study. "These families often make trade-offs with other living expenses and employ coping strategies in an effort to secure such household items as toilet paper, toothpaste, soap, or disposable diapers," said the lead author.

E-cigarettes: No smoke, no danger? Posted: 02 Apr 2014 08:15 AM PDT Smokers turn to e-cigarettes to ease nicotine withdrawal, or to avoid harmful chemicals in tobacco smoke. But many use e-cigarettes in public spaces and regular cigarettes everywhere else. Quitting half-way won't help. And researchers do not know that smokeless vapor is safe. E-cigarettes create an inhalable nicotine vapor by heating a liquid nicotine solution. While there are many different e-cigarette devices on the market, the basic parts of a typical device include a battery, a cartridge with nicotine (and possibly flavoring), and a heater that vaporizes the nicotine to be inhaled.

Sport makes muscles and nerves fit Posted: 02 Apr 2014 06:52 AM PDT Endurance sport does not only change the condition and fitness of muscles but also simultaneously improves the neuronal connections to the muscle fibers based on a muscle-induced feedback. Scientists were also able to induce the same effect through raising the protein concentration of PGC1± in the muscle.

Eyes in the cereal aisle: How Cap'n Crunch's gaze is influencing your purchasing Posted: 02 Apr 2014 06:51 AM PDT Consumers are 16 percent more likely to trust a brand of cereal when the characters on the boxes on the supermarket shelves look them straight in the eye. Not surprisingly, the study also found that the gaze of characters on children's cereal boxes is at a downward, 9.6-degree angle, while characters on adult cereal boxes look almost straight ahead.

Probiotics do not help infants with colic, study finds Posted: 01 Apr 2014 06:04 PM PDT Giving probiotics to infants with colic does not appear to have any benefit, according to a large trial. Infant colic (excessive crying of unknown cause) affects up to 20% of infants and is a major burden to families and health services. Although it spontaneously resolves three to four months after birth, its cause remains elusive and no single effective treatment exists.

Unvaccinated infants act as 'kindling' to fuel epidemics Posted: 01 Apr 2014 06:02 PM PDT Nearly 4 million children under 5 die from vaccine-preventable diseases worldwide each year, and two doctoral ecology students are working to change that. By taking into account seasonal fluctuations in birth rates, massive vaccination campaigns in the developing world could inoculate more unprotected infants and significantly reduce the number of deaths from diseases like measles, according to the researchers.

Age-related decline in sleep quality might be reversible Posted: 01 Apr 2014 02:31 PM PDT Sleep is essential for human health. But with increasing age, many people experience a decline in sleep quality, which in turn reduces their quality of life. Scientists have now investigated the mechanisms by which aging impairs sleep in the fruit fly. Their findings suggest that age-related sleep decline can be prevented and might even be reversible.

Child's obesity, cognitive function linked, study finds Posted: 01 Apr 2014 10:11 AM PDT Obese children are slower than healthy-weight children to recognize when they have made an error and correct it, research shows. The research is the first to show that weight status not only affects how quickly children react to stimuli but also impacts the level of activity that occurs in the cerebral cortex during action monitoring.

Obesity primes colon for cancer, according to study Posted: 01 Apr 2014 09:23 AM PDT Obesity, rather than diet, causes changes in the colon that may lead to colorectal cancer, according to results from a study in mice. The finding bolsters the recommendation that calorie control and frequent exercise are not only key to a healthy lifestyle, but a strategy to lower the risk for colon cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States.

Heat waves reduce length of pregnancy Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:18 AM PDT When temperatures reach 32°C or higher over a period of four to seven days, the risk of early-term delivery is 27% higher than on typical summer days, according to a study. The research team sought to identify, from June through September, the probability of preterm (less than 37 gestational weeks), early-term (37-38 weeks), and full-term (39 weeks or more) deliveries during a heat wave. Specifically targeting summer births, Auger found that nearly 20,000 deliveries occurred in the week following a day when the mercury reached 32°C or higher.

Psychological factors turn young adults away from HIV intervention counseling Posted: 31 Mar 2014 02:05 PM PDT Young people are largely turned off by HIV intervention counseling; this is a serious problem considering high rate of sexually transmitted infections these people are at risk of acquiring. Understanding barriers to retention is necessary to reduce morbidity and improve health outcomes.

Weaker gut instinct makes teens open to risky behavior Posted: 31 Mar 2014 12:36 PM PDT Making snap decisions usually means following your initial reaction -- going with your gut. But some adolescents are more likely to heed outside influences, leaving them vulnerable to risky behaviors. A new study is part of a larger investigation of how teens make decisions based on body sensations and could help design prevention and treatment that hones in on risky decision-making.

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