Sweet-toothed children 'may have depression'

While most children like sweets, those with an extra-sweet tooth may be depressed or at higher risk of future alcohol problems, researchers say.

The US team report in the journal Addiction that certain children are especially drawn to very sweet tastes.

These were children who had a close relative with an alcohol problem or who themselves had symptoms of depression.

But it is unclear if the preference for the very sweet is down to genuine chemical differences or upbringing.

The researchers say sweet taste and alcohol trigger many of the same reward circuits in the brain.

It may be that even higher levels of sweetness are needed to make depressed children feel better Lead researcher Julie Mennella

Lead author Julie Mennella said: "We know that sweet taste is rewarding to all kids and makes them feel good.

"In addition, certain groups of children may be especially attracted to the intense sweetness due to their underlying biology."

Experts say alcoholics tend to have a sweet tooth.

But the link is less clear in children. Other US researchers have shown that a preference for the sweetest drinks was found in the ones undergoing growth spurts.

In the latest study, the scientists at the Monell Chemical Senses Center asked 300 children aged five to 12, of whom half had a family member with alcohol dependency, to taste five sweet water drinks containing different amounts of sugar.

The children were asked to say which tasted the best and were also asked questions to check for depressive symptoms.

A quarter had symptoms that the researchers believed suggested they might be depressed.

Sweet tooth

Liking for intense sweetness was greatest in the 37 children who had both a family history of alcoholism and reported depressive symptoms.

The taste difference may be explained by differences like parental control over sweet consumption Taste expert Professor Tim Jacob

These children preferred the drink containing the most sugar - 24% sucrose, which is equivalent to about 14 teaspoons of sugar in a cup of water and more than twice the level of sweetness in a typical cola.

This was a third more intense than the sweetness level preferred by the other children.

The researchers then decided to test whether the children's taste difference had any impact on their reaction to pain or discomfort - past studies have suggested sweets may help act as analgesics as well as mood lifters.

They found non-depressed children were able to tolerate keeping their hands in very cold water for longer if they had a sugar hit.

However, the extra sugar did nothing to the depressed children's pain threshold.

Cardiff University's Professor Tim Jacob, an expert in smell and taste, said the findings were interesting, but that it was hard to make firm conclusions or generalisations from one study alone.

He said the findings could be down to brain chemistry, but might also be explained by behaviour and upbringing.

"While it is true that sweet things activate reward circuits in the brain, the problem is that sweets and sugar are addictive, because the activation of these reward circuits causes opioid release, and with time more is needed to achieve the same effect.

"But the taste difference may be explained by differences like parental control over sweet consumption."

Taken From : BBC NEWS

Your Weight Loss Tweet.. Directly from the scale.

Tweet Your Weight Loss Progress to the World

As the world's first WiFi connected personal weight scale, users can set up alerts to automatically post their updates to Twitter, further motivating them by sharing their progress with followers.

Withings, French start-up, just announced Twitter integration into its first-of-its-kind WiFi Body Scale. As the world's first WiFi connected personal weight scale, it automatically records the user's body weight, lean & fat mass, and calculated body mass index (BMI) to their secure webpage and/or free Withings iPhone application, WiScale. Now, with this new added feature, users can set up alerts to automatically post their updates to Twitter accounts, further motivating them by sharing their progress with followers.

"This social media feature was the next logical step in the evolution of the WiFi scale for our customers," said Cedric Hutchings, Withings General Manager. "Here at Withings we are committed to roll out new features and services on the field thanks to automatic updates. Adding this social functionality makes the WiFi scale by Withings the first true flagship of the Internet of Objects."

By default, the Twitter feature will not be activated when you purchase your scale, it will have to be enabled by the user on www.withings.com. During the Twitter set up process, a user can set their Twitter alerts to post automatically at each measure, daily, weekly or monthly (see image here). The tweet will read the users current weight and how many pounds they have left to reach their set goal, whether they need to loose or gain! Since the scale tracks up to eight users per scale, only the users that enable this feature will benefit from the online peer motivation. More information on the Twitter feature here: Withings Blog.

The scale is currently available on www.withings.com.

Source : Boomerous.com

Seven Ways to Destress

Do you stress out soon? Want to de-stress instantly??

Must have heard a lot of tips and stories on as to how to do it. Did those de-stressing tips work for you?
Follow these instant stress relieving tips.. would take no more than 5 minutes

1. Take a walk, a quick one

Take a quick walk, maybe to the road outside or the mag store nearby. The aim here is to get yourself away from the immediate source of stress and to calm down. A few minutes to gather your thoughts is all you need to get some perspective.

2. Read Something you wont relate to ur work

Fiction is ideal (especially anything funny or uplifting). Reading fiction takes you out of the here-and-now and into a different world. You can forget everything that’s troubling you, for just ten minutes, as you concentrate on the story.


3. Meditate or Pray

Often, the best thing we can do to instantly de-stress is to simply stop. Many life coaches and stress advisors recommend meditation: there’s no mystery to it, just sit and try to clear your mind of thoughts (perhaps concentrating on a calming image or a word or phrase, if that helps you). I also like to pray – like chant something as preferred in many religions.


4. Youtube

Yeah, Youtube... or maybe any other video site. The aim is to watch something funny or hilarious and If you have a favorite YouTube clip, then give yourself five minutes to indulge. You’ll find that you return to your work – or whatever the source of the stress is – feeling much better equipped to handle it.


5. Make A Herbal Tea

If you’re feeling uber-stressed, caffeine isn’t going to help. A warm, soothing mug of herbal tea might, though. The act of making yourself a drink can be calming: it gets you away from your desk, and it gives you a chance to concentrate on something physical. You’ll probably also feel a psychological boost from doing something positive and nurturing for yourself.


6. Punch A Pillow

Depending on where you are when you’re feeling stressed, and on your personality, throwing a few punches at a pillow might help. Think of the stress leaving you through your fist with every punch. (If you’re in the office, please don’t be tempted to use a co-worker as a substitute pillow ... even if said co-worker has caused your stress.)


7. Take Slow, Deep Breaths

This is probably the most recommended one, but doesn't usually seem to go by our stress levels and 5 mins seem to be less. When we get stressed, we tend to breath more quickly, taking shallow breaths. Concentrate on your breathing (you might want to do this in conjunction with meditation or prayer). Imagine breathing from your stomach, not your chest. Take slow, deep, fulfilling breaths. Calming your body down physically in this way is likely to have a knock-on effect on your frazzled mental state.

taken from an article by Ali Hale

World No Tobacco Day

World No Tobacco Day is observed around the world every year on May 31. The member states of the World Health Organization created World No Tobacco Day in 1987. It draws global attention to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use and to its negative health effects. The day aims to reduce the 5.4 million yearly deaths from tobacco related health problems. From 1988 the WHO has presented one or more World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) Awards to organizations or individuals who have made exceptional contributions to reducing tobacco consumption. On May 31st, 2008 the WHO called for a complete ban on tobacco advertising; the organization said studies establish a relationship between exposure to cigarette advertisement and starting smoking.



source: wikipedia

What is nicotine addiction?

Nicotine is the tobacco plant's natural protection from being eaten by insects. It is a super toxin that, drop for drop, is more lethal than strychnine or diamondback rattlesnake venom, and three times deadlier than arsenic. Yet, amazingly, by chance, this natural insecticide's chemical structure is so similar to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine that once inside the brain it fits a host of chemical locks permitting it direct and indirect control over the flow of more than 200 neurochemicals.

Within eight seconds of that first-ever inhaled puff, through dizzy, coughing and six shades of green, nicotine arrived at the brain's reward pathways where it generated an unearned flood of dopamine, resulting in an immediate yet possibly unrecognized "aaah" reward sensation. Sensing it would cause most first-time inhalers to soon return to steal more. Nicotine also fit the adrenaline locks releasing a host of fight or flight neurochemicals and select serotonin locks impacting mood.

for more, You can visit the link below for more detailed information.
why quit

[INDIA] Pictorial warnings on tobacco products

NEW DELHI: All tobacco products will have to carry compulsory pictorial warnings on their packs from today highlighting the health hazards of its consumption, a long- awaited step aimed at cutting down on the killer habit.

The government order in this regard has come despite stiff resistance from tobacco.

The products will have to clearly display a "scorpion" and "lungs" as pictorial warnings. The picture should cover at least 40% f the principal display area of the pack.

The products cannot carry any message that directly or indirectly promotes a specific tobacco brand or tobacco usage in general, the health ministry had said earlier this month.

The government had in August last year asked the manufacturers of cigarette, bidi and gutka products to display a skull-and-bone sign and a warning saying "tobacco smoking kills" on the packets so as to sensitize the public against smoking and consuming these items.

However, it could not be implemented at that time. Then the government fixed December one as the deadline.

According to WHO estimates, 65% of men in India consume tobacco, with 22% chewing and 8% smoking as well as chewing. There has been an increase in the consumption of tobacco among women, with about three per cent smoking 'bidis' or cigarettes and 22% chewing tobacco. manufacturers.

Source : TOI