Category: Health

Health

Reducing Exhaustion in Entrepreneurs Through Mindfulness Exercises

Raymond Cheung ‘22 Entrepreneurs play an essential role in developing innovations and redefining the way businesses operate. However, entrepreneurship is arduous and often causes entrepreneurs to work until they are exhausted to achieve their goals. Although it may not be possible to prevent exhaustion, mindfulness exercises can potentially mitigate the effect of exhaustion. Researchers at Oregon State University present promising findings of the effect of … Continue reading Reducing Exhaustion in Entrepreneurs Through Mindfulness Exercises

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2018-19, Disease, Health

South Asians Have the Highest Rates of Heart Disease

By Nicole Zhao ’20 Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women worldwide. However, people of South Asian descent have a higher death rate from heart disease than any other group. Following a variety of diets, from omnivorous to vegetarian, South Asians are four times more likely to be diagnosed with heart disease even at normal body weight and tend … Continue reading South Asians Have the Highest Rates of Heart Disease

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Disease, Health

Sleep Modulates Hematopoiesis and Protects Against Atherosclerosis

By Nicole Zhao ’20 Numerous pathological conditions such as obesity, diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease have been connected to insufficient or interrupted sleep. However, little is known about the specific mechanisms by which sleep maintains health. In this study, it was found that sleep regulates hematopoiesis and protects against atherosclerosis in mice. Hematopoiesis is the process of forming blood cellular components from stem cells. Research … Continue reading Sleep Modulates Hematopoiesis and Protects Against Atherosclerosis

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Health

How audio training can impact the spatial cognition of visually impaired children

By Kavindra Sahabir ‘21 One of the biggest challenges for helping anyone with a sensory impairment is training the brain in making up for the missing sense. In the case of people born with a sensory impairment, it is easier to undergo such training successfully at earlier ages due to the plasticity of the brain, which allows for changes to take effect quicker. A study … Continue reading How audio training can impact the spatial cognition of visually impaired children

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Health, Molecular Biology

Metabolic Reactions Activated During 58-hour Fasting

By Ellie Teng ‘21 Fasting is an ancient component in numerous religions and cultures. Individuals seeking weight loss often practice fasting, making it a prominent topic in the nutrition field. A team of scientists from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University and Kyoto University recently found that fasting comes with innumerable health benefits. Blood samples from four healthy individuals who fasted for … Continue reading Metabolic Reactions Activated During 58-hour Fasting

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Health

Fruit and Vegetable Consumption and Well-being

By Ellie Teng ‘21 Fruits and vegetables have always been linked to good physical health, but results from the UK Household Longitudinal Survey demonstrate a positive association between fruits and vegetables, and psychological well being. Controlling for diet, health, and lifestyle, researchers found a clear relationship between the amount of fruits and vegetables consumed and mental state. In conducting the survey, researchers identified the three … Continue reading Fruit and Vegetable Consumption and Well-being

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Figure 1. Lutein is a naturally occurring pigment found within foods such as kiwifruits. A study from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign suggests that an intake of lutein can reduce cognitive decline in adults.
2016-17, Health, Neuroscience

The Effects of Carotenoids on Cognitive Ability

By Caleb Sooknanan ’20 Lutein — a carotenoid or pigment from green foods such as spinach and kiwifruit — can be quantified in central nervous system tissue, making it a useful way of evaluating diet’s effect on the brain. However, scientists are still determining whether higher lutein amounts yield cognitive ability improvements. Doctor Naiman A. Khan and researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign … Continue reading The Effects of Carotenoids on Cognitive Ability

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Figure 1. Scientists strive to create wearable smart devices that can detect physiological phenomena in real time. According to a study from UC Berkeley, new ear devices can be 3D printed and used to indicate patients’ true body temperatures.
2016-17, Engineering, Health

3D-Printed Ear Devices Detect Core Body Temperature

By Caleb Sooknanan ’20 Healthcare sensors are frequently used to detect skin temperature, but more research is needed to design a device that can pinpoint core body temperature levels and help doctors predict the likelihood of fever, fatigue, and other physiological phenomena. Professor Ali Javey and researchers at the University of California, Berkeley designed a printable smart device that — when placed on a patient’s … Continue reading 3D-Printed Ear Devices Detect Core Body Temperature

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Figure 1. Human gut microbe, P. histicola has therapeutic effects against Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
2016-17, Biology, Health

Gut microbe as Potential Treatment for Multiple Sclerosis

By Rideeta Raquib ’19 The human gut is colonized by many microorganisms and each of them plays a role in maintaining various physiological functions, such as regulating digestion and fat absorption. It has been found that a vast number of inflammatory diseases around the world are associated with an instability of the gut microbiome. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic and University of Iowa suggest that … Continue reading Gut microbe as Potential Treatment for Multiple Sclerosis

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Figure 1. Zika vaccine developed from Nicotiana benthamiana plant extract
2016-17, Biology, Health

Improved Zika Vaccine Produced by Tobacco Plant extract

By Rideeta Raquib ’19 The Zika virus (ZIKV) is a deadly virus transmitted through mosquito bites that at its climax has infected more than 1.5 million people in Brazil in 2015. The virus continues to spread with approximately 200 ZIKV cases reported in the United States this year. In order to combat the epidemic, new ZIKV vaccines have been developed to inactivate the virus. However, … Continue reading Improved Zika Vaccine Produced by Tobacco Plant extract

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Figure 1 A protein involved in malaria development identified
2016-17, Biology, Health

Novel Findings to Tackle Malaria

By Rideeta Raquib ’19 Malaria is a deadly disease caused by single-celled parasites of the genus Plasmodium. Once the body is infected, sporozoites migrate to the liver and replicate to merozoites. A sporozoite in a motile, sporelike phase during a parasite’s asexual reproduction. A merozoite is the growth stage, which occurs in the bloodstream. The toxins released by merozoites destroy red blood cells and can … Continue reading Novel Findings to Tackle Malaria

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Caption: Parent and child stress hormone levels may be bidirectionally concordant, with both influencing the other’s HPA axis activity.
2016-17, Health

Parent and child cortisol levels show concordance in certain conditions

Aaradhana Natarajan, 2020 The hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, or HPA axis, is a neuroendocrine pathway that is linked to emotional functioning and health. Researchers at the University of Maryland College Park, led by Dr. Stephanie Merwin, recently investigated whether or not the HPA axis functioning of a child showed correlation to that of their parents. They accounted for both the child’s temperament and parent’s psychological history in … Continue reading Parent and child cortisol levels show concordance in certain conditions

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