Women's tears dampen men's desire

Women's Tears Tell Men to Back Off

THURSDAY, Jan. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Crying may be nature's way of telling men to give women some space: A new study indicates the smell of women's tears considerably dampens men's sexual desire.
Research by Israeli scientists examining the significance of emotional human tears suggests they are far more than watery drops squeezed from glands around the eyes. Women's tears play a functional role by emitting chemical signals that reduce testosterone levels and sexual arousal in men, the study found.

The year in obvious scientific studies 

 

Kids who have no friends are sad, meth is bad for unborn children and more things we already knew
Along with some truly groundbreaking discoveries, scientists this year told us a few things we already kind of knew.

Here are some of the ultimate "well, duh" findings of 2010:

Meth can harm an unborn child.
Turns out, it's not a great idea for a gal with a bun in the oven to  shoot up with methamphetamine The study, published in the March 17 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience, showed children whose moms abuse meth while pregnant had brain abnormalities that were possibly more severe than those of kids exposed to alcohol prenatally. Perhaps not everyone was aware: Of the more than 16 million Americans over the age of 12 who have used meth, about 19,000 are pregnant women, according to data from the National Surveys on Drug Use and Health.

But wait, there's some substance here: Identifying the vulnerable brain structures may help predict particular learning and behavioral problems in meth-exposed children, the researchers said.

Bullies pick on unpopular kids.
Who'd have guessed? Bullies target kids who are unpopular and less likely to be defended by their peers, a new study finds.
And in elementary school, which this study focused on, kids are only interested in what their same-sex peers think. So, boys will target classmates who are not well-liked by other boys, regardless of what the girls think. Same went for girl bullies. In that way the bullies could gain status by dominating other kids while also staying in the good graces of the in-group.

While the findings are a no-brainer, they do paint a picture of a young, yet strategic, bully who goes out of his or her way to ensure success when taunting, hitting, making fun of and other bully behaviors.

Fish oil won't accelerate weight loss

 

 Fish oil capsules won't help boost weight loss if you're already dieting and exercising, new research in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows.

Among a group of overweight and obese adults enrolled in a diet and exercise program, those who took omega-3 fatty acids didn't lose any more weight than those given placebo capsules, Dr. Laura F. DeFina of The Cooper Institute in Dallas and her colleagues found.

There is evidence from animal studies that omega-3 fatty acids promote weight loss, DeFina and her team note, while studies in people have had mixed results. Because fish oil has many other potential health benefits, including cutting cholesterol, improving insulin sensitivity, and reducing blood pressure, "weight-loss programs associated with the use of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids seemed appropriate," they write.

To investigate whether fish oil enhanced the results of a diet and exercise regime, the researchers randomly assigned 128 sedentary overweight or obese men and women to take five fish oil capsules (providing a total of three grams of omega-3 fatty acids) or five placebo capsules every day for 24 weeks.

Participants were also instructed to do 150 minutes a week of aerobic exercise and 20 to 30 minutes of strength exercises at least twice a week.

The people in the omega-3 group lost 5.2 kilograms, or about 11.5 pounds, on average, compared to 5.8 kilograms (nearly 13 pounds) for the placebo group, not a statistically significant difference. People in both groups lost more than five percent of their body weight, enough to produce health benefits.

At the end of the study, there was no difference between the groups in measures of heart disease risk, such as blood pressure and cholesterol levels. However, omega-3 blood levels in the fish oil group increased to a level "previously found to have a positive cardiovascular effect," the researchers note.

Not everyone actually completed the 24-week program; there were only 81 participants at the end. But the results were similar when the researchers looked only at those 81 people.

"Whereas one may not enhance weight loss by taking supplements with this level of omega-3 fatty acids," they write, "the protective cardiovascular effect should still be realized because of the sheer increase in blood concentrations of the fatty acids."
link.reuters.com

How Long Will My Hot Flashes Last?

A decisive answer to this unfortunately would require a crystal ball; and I don’t have one!  You might get some guidance from your family history; the pattern of menopause is often similar in mothers and daughters, and to some extent in sisters. 
Some women get hot flashes as an early indicator of menopause, some never do.  In some women, they last for weeks, in others, months.  In some, they can- believe it or not- last years.  But that’s where the bad news ends. 
Hot flashes, or flushes, when they do occur are the result of a sudden decline in estrogen levels.  Among its many effects, estrogen stimulates receptors in cells that line blood vessels, and helps regulate blood flow.  If the loss of that supervisory influence does result in hot flushes, it can be replaced in a number of ways.  There are many commercially available hormone replacement preparations and in general, short term use of these for symptom control is both safe and reasonable, although only your doctor can say in your personal case.  Bioidentical hormones may be safer still.

Transform Your Body in 2011

Transform Your Body in 2011

Sculpt your best body ever with this 3-days-a-week workout plan

Most women share the same new year's resolution: get into shape. But if you want to join the ranks of those who actually achieve their goal, follow this workout plan that will revolutionize your body in 4 weeks.
Blast fat and build lean muscle from head to toe with this total-body regimen. The plan combines dumbbell exercises, bodyweight moves, and cardio 3 days a week.
This workout, adapted from The Women's Health Big Book of Exercises, is designed by Ed Scow, CPT, is the owner of ELS Massage and Personal Training in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Buy the only fitness book you'll ever need.

Weeks 1 & 2
Monday:
Warmup
Strength Workout A
Cardio Use a fitness machine (treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, etc.) or run outdoors. Warm up for 4 minutes at a pace of 30 percent of your best effort. Then do 6 intervals of the following: 30 seconds at 80 percent effort, then 1 minute at 40 percent. Finally, cool down with 3 minutes at 30 percent effort.
Wednesday:
Warmup
Strength Workout B
Friday:
Warmup
Strength Workout C
Cardio Use a fitness machine (treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, etc.) or run outdoors. Warm up for 4 minutes at a pace of 30 percent of your best effort. Then do 6 intervals of the following: 30 seconds at 80 percent effort, then 1 minute at 40 percent. Finally, cool down with 3 minutes at 30 percent effort.
Multitask your way to a better bod with these two-in-one exercises.
Weeks 3 & 4
Monday:
Warmup
Strength Workout A
Strength Workout D
Cardio Use a fitness machine (treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, etc.) or run outdoors. Warm up for 4 minutes at a pace of 30 percent of your best effort. Then do 6 intervals of the following: 30 seconds at 80 percent effort, then 1 minute at 40 percent. Finally, cool down with 3 minutes at 30 percent effort.
Wednesday:
Warmup
Strength Workout B
Strength Workout E
Friday:
Warmup
Strength Workout C
Strength Workout F
Cardio Use a fitness machine (treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, etc.) or run outdoors. Warm up for 4 minutes at a pace of 30 percent of your best effort. Then do 6 intervals of the following: 30 seconds at 80 percent effort, then 1 minute at 40 percent. Finally, cool down with 3 minutes at 30 percent effort.
Try these moves to tone every body part.