Health
Finding good health news amidst a pandemic can be quite daunting. That’s not the case with The Optimist Daily, where positive news is in high supply. Our Health section covers the latest good news from the health sector, featuring solutions ranging from mental and physical health to immunity, nutrition, and cutting edge medical research.
Study: Being married can protect you from heart failure
A team of researchers says that marriage may have actual health benefits for your heart. Based on their study of nearly a million U.K. adults, the researchers reported that loving a spouse is linked to a better chance of surviving a heart attack. They suspect marriage helps buffer against big heart Read More...
Yes, talking to this machine significantly reduces depressive symptoms
Although we don’t know much about depression, we do know that talking seems to help—especially under the guidance of a licensed mental health doctor. But therapy can be expensive, inconvenient, and often hard to approach. For those looking for an alternative way to treat depression, the Woebot Read More...
South Korea is creating 'healing forests' to improve its citizens’ health
Park Hyun-Soo didn’t look like a man on chemotherapy. Forty-one and with a full head of black hair, he can hike the socks off anyone, but he prefers to take his time. Not exactly a forest ranger, Park is part of a new breed of Korean Forest Agency employee known as a forest healing Read More...
These repurposed shipping containers are growing fresh produce in Brooklyn
An indoor urban farm is producing fresh produce in the unlikeliest of places: In the back of a parking lot in Brooklyn. The urban farm consists of ten repurposed shipping containers equipped with vertical hydroponic growing systems and LED lights that allow the climate inside the container to be Read More...
Common antioxidant found to slow down usual signs of aging in the skin
People have long searched far and wide for a natural way to keep the skin looking young, and now it seems scientists have finally found it in the form of a common antioxidant. The antioxidant, methylene blue, helps the skin retain more water and increases its thickness—thus reducing lines and Read More...
Study: A low-carb diet is key to fighting cancer, heart disease and arthritis
Yet another study shows that reducing carbohydrates (“carbs”) such as bread and pasta, kickstarts your immune system to fight disease. When we digest carbs, we create sugar. That’s vital for energy. However, one of the sugar components, glucose, also interferes with some of the body’s Read More...
Can mindfulness reduce fear of labour and postpartum depression?
Many women feel anxious about giving birth. Fear of the unknown and over-sharing by others (“I felt I was ripped apart,” one mother told my antenatal group) can make labour daunting. Being frightened of childbirth can prolong labour – by an average of 47 minutes, but it feels Read More...
Treating depression with software
A treatment for depression using Emotional Faces Memory Task (EFMT), a technology originally developed by two Mount Sinai researchers, resulted in a significantly greater reduction of major depressive disorder (MDD) symptoms compared to a control group, according to initial clinical results Read More...
Pesticides can cause brain damage and organic food is the future, EU report says
After members of the European Parliament asked experts whether organic food was truly healthier than conventionally grown food, the experts returned with an array of studies highlighting the danger of pesticides in non-organic food. One study found that pregnant women who had traces of pesticides Read More...
How to maintain, or even improve, your memory as you age
As you age, some slowdown in memory and processing is to be expected. That can mean a forgotten birthday, an accidentally retold story, a temporarily misplaced wallet. Such run-of-the-mill forgetfulness may increase over the years but is usually not — as you may fear — a sign that Read More...