Lost Your Keys? Sleep On it

 It’s sad but true that as we get older our memory is not what it was, though personally I prefer the theory of my colleague Dame Dr Shirley Bond.  At our hormone health seminars when asked if failing memory was a symptom of menopause she said it was more due to the fact that the older we get the more we have crammed in our memories and I agree with that.  It’s like trying to pull a favourite sweater out of an overcrowded wardrobe, sometimes you can’t even see it – especially if your wardrobe is filled with black clothes like mine!

I was taught a trick by a French gypsy to help find things; you think of the object, blow into your left palm and then close your hand into a fist.  Whatever first comes to your mind is where you will probably find the lost object, however unlikely it seems – no guarantees but it works for me more often than not.

 Now science has got in on the act and offers a useful little tip if you are frequently losing your keys.   What you have to do is record the sound of your keys jangling and then play it to yourself on an ipod, or mobile phone when you are sleeping.  This discovery was reported by neuroscientists at Northwestern University, in the US who carried out a small study, with 12 volunteers.  

 Whatever new skill you want to learn, it’s a very efficient idea to reinforce your learning while you sleep.  The only thing that worries me is that those of us who live alone haven’t got anyone to switch the ipod on during the night – and your partner might not be too thrilled to have to stay awake and do it either!  Wonder if I can train the cats?

How To Have A Healthy Heart

Apart from the usual suspects of diet and exercise, there is now new scientific evidence for a very old, natural, practice.. Heart rate variability, which is a sign of a healthy heart, has been shown to be higher in those who regularly practice yoga.

The autonomic nervous system regulates the heart rate through two routes, the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. The former causes the heart rate to rise, while, the parasympathetic slows it so that when working well together, the two ensure that the heart rate is steady but ready to respond to demands such as when we eat, our fight or flight response, or arousal.

The research was carried out at the Indian Institute of Technology in Roorkee, in Uttrakhand, and although there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to suggest that yoga practice may improve health through breathing exercises, stretching, postures, relaxation, and meditation this sis the first time its effect on the heart has put through a scientific trial.

The volunteers were all healthy men aged between 18 and 48, half of whom practiced yoga regularly and the others not at all. They were given electrocardiograms (ECG) and found that the regular practitioners had stronger and better control of their parasympathetic system which gave them more autonomic control over their heart rate and so a healthier heart.

Go find a local yoga class, or use one of the excellent DVD’s on the subject. For beginners I would suggest Barbara Curries Seven Secrets of Yoga for a quick and simple workout as I have been using it for years, and it is available on Amazon second hand for an amazing 1p at the moment! www.amazon.co.uk

Health Bite:
Another great ingredient you need for a healthy heart is vitamin D, and low levels may also increase the risk of atherosclerosis.

It seems that most people suffering from heart disease are chronically deficient in vitamin D and you can easily rectify that by getting some sunshine every day – not always easy in our climate – or by taking a vitamin D3 supplement.

Nutritionists recommend a supplement for those deficient of around 1,000 – 4000 IUs per day, but not when you are getting plenty of sunshine.

Vitamin D is also known to be a preventive agent for around 77% of all cancers so you get a double health bonus. Now, about booking that sunshine cruise,…