New algorithm predicts spike in blood-sugar levels after eating any type of food, like these cookies
See these cookies here? When you eat them, your body would probably react to them in a completely different way compared to if one of your friends would eat them. Why? It's the magic of the spike in blood-sugar levels, depending on our health, our gut microbes, the other things we ate before, and Read More...
Light therapy effective for depression treatment, not just for the winter blues
Up until now, light therapy was considered a treatment option for people who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, also called the winter blues. The logic behind this: When the days get darker and shorter, some people need more light. But a surprising new study shows that light therapy is also Read More...
How to put the giving back into Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is coming up. More and more people are giving their own twist to the tradition. That's why Share Our Strength, a hunger nonprofit, has come up with a loose template to put "the giving" back into the feast. It's asking people to leverage their holiday goodwill by turning their Read More...
Scientists worldwide are working on ways to cut methane from cows
Cows have a rather impressive digestion system. They spend about 8 hours a day eating, and their four stomachs can break down food that many other mammals can't. A problem is that they are rather gassy. Emissions from a burping grown dairy cow can amount to about 260 to 650 grams of methane per Read More...
Insomnia can be treated with tai chi and cognitive behavioral therapy
"Sleep is the fuel of life", as Gayle Green, author of the book Insomniac, says. In the book, Green explains how debilitating sleep deprivation can be. Considering millions of people suffer from insomnia, it's about time we find solutions for it. There are sleeping pills, of course, but with all Read More...
OECD countries agree to restrict financing for overseas coal power plants
Just two weeks before the Paris climate talks commence, representatives from 34 of the world’s developed and major economies reached a compromise to phase out public financing that supports the construction of new coal power plants around the world. Starting in 2017, the Organization for Economic Read More...
The world could run entirely on wind, solar and hydro power by 2050
After much number-crunching, there's now a clear roadmap for 139 countries to supply all the world's energy needed in 2050 by using wind, water and sunlight. Researchers at Stanford University and the University of California collaborated to first analyze how much energy each country would need by Read More...
For a happier life, have sex once a week
Researchers have found that sex once a week is the optimum amount for maximizing happiness in couples. The study, which was compiled over the last 40 years, suggests that sex once a week helps to maintain intimacy and that couples having it less than once a week reported being less happy. “Most Read More...
How Google is embracing team work and workplace wellness
Google coddles its employees with free food, massages and other lavish perks, yet some of its best engineers still grouse about their jobs and bosses as they struggle to get assignments done. The Internet company tackled the puzzling problem with a study that concluded how teams work together is Read More...
A tiny pill monitors vital signs from deep inside the body
After testing all the pieces of a tiny pill-size device, Albert Swiston sent it on a unique journey: through the guts of six live Yorkshire pigs. Pig bodies are a lot like human bodies, and Swiston wanted to know whether the device would be able to monitor vital signs from inside a body. It did. Read More...