Weekly Health Update: Week of Monday, March 7th, 2016
Mental Attitude: Do Horses Know What You Are Feeling?
It appears that horses can distinguish between positive and negative human facial expressions. Psychologists analyzed the reactions of 28 horses when they looked at images of happy or angry male faces and noticed that the horses tended to use their left eye more when looking at photos of angry faces, which is an equine behavior typically associated with negative stimuli. Study co-author Dr. Karen McComb theorizes that “horses may have adapted an ancestral ability for reading emotional cues in other horses to respond appropriately to human facial expressions during their co-evolution. Alternatively, individual horses may have learned to interpret human expressions during their own lifetime.”
Biology Letters, February 2016
Health Alert: New Lyme Disease Bacteria Discovered.
Health officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report they have identified a new Lyme disease-causing bacteria, and it may cause even worse symptoms than the current known Lyme disease-causing bacteria called Borrelia burgdorferi. The newly discovered bacteria is called Borrelia mayonii and appears to be closely related to B. burgdorferi. The CDC says that besides the usual symptoms, the new bacteria seems to cause nausea, vomiting, diffuse rashes (rather than the single so-called “bull’s-eye” rash typically associated with Lyme disease), and a higher concentration of bacteria in the blood. CDC microbiologist Dr. Jeannine Petersen notes, “This discovery adds another important piece of information to the complex picture of tick-borne diseases in the United States.”
The Lancet Infectious Diseases Journal, February 2016
Diet: Iron-Rich Foods.
Iron is essential for healthy red blood cells, and if you fail to get enough from your diet, your health can suffer. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics advises eating the following iron-rich foods: lean beef and pork, chicken, turkey, fish, dark green leafy vegetables, beans, lentils, iron-fortified cereals, rice, and other iron-enriched breads and whole grains.
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, February 2016
Exercise: Do Compression Stocking Work?
A new study investigated the effects of wearing compression stockings on physical performance in men with type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Using multiple measurements and techniques, investigators found no evidence of any beneficial effects caused by wearing compression stockings either at rest or while performing moderately intense exercise.
International Journal of Sports Medicine, February 2016
Chiropractic: Manipulation for Headaches.
A study that included 130 individuals compared cervical and thoracic manipulation to mobilization and exercise for the treatment of cervicogenic headaches (headaches caused by cervical dysfunction). The results of the study revealed that six-to-eight sessions of cervical and thoracic manipulation provided greater reductions in headache intensity, frequency, and duration than a course of treatment involving only mobilization and exercise. The authors of the study add that the benefits of manipulation persisted when the patients were re-examined three months later.
BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, February 2016
Wellness/Prevention: Can Flashes of Light Prevent Jet Lag?
A light-based therapy involving short flashes of light during sleep appears to be a faster and more efficient way to prevent jet lag by tricking the body’s internal clock into adjusting to a different wake/sleep routine. The researchers behind this discovery believe their technique may also help people with other kinds of sleep cycle disruptions.
Journal of Clinical Investigation, February 2016
Charlotte Garzon, D.C.
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