on July 20th, 2008
Children who were exclusively breast-fed become smarter than those who were fed supplements also. Researchers from Belarus and Canada studied nearly 14,000 children, half of whom were exclusively breast fed, and the rest given breast milk with other supplements. A standardized IQ test taken when the kids were six years old showed that exclusively breast-fed kids scored an average of 7.5 points higher on verbal intelligence, 2.9 points higher on non-verbal intelligence, and 5.9 points higher on overall intelligence.
on July 19th, 2008
Mentally challenging jobs keep your brain sharper and help ward off dementia. It will help preserve cognitive abilities through retirement, regardless of one’s intelligence, age or education. Researchers at Duke University Medical Center looked at the IQ scores of 1,036 male twins when they joined the US army and compared them with the scores they got after retirement. Continue reading »
on July 18th, 2008
Greater wealth is linked to lower risk of stroke among men aged 50 to 64, reports journal Stroke. A study observed around 20,000 stroke-free participants for a period of 8.5 years; 1542 of them suffered stroke during the study period. Ten per cent of the participants with the least wealth were three times more likely to suffer a stroke, compared with the wealthy ones. Researchers feel “wealth may increase individual’s sense of control over their lives, reducing psychosocial stress and subsequently stroke risk”.
on July 17th, 2008
Babies born to women who were stressed out during pregnancy have a greater risk of developing asthma and all allergies later in life. Harvard Medical School researchers measured the levels of Immunoglobulin E (IgE, an antibody involved in allergic and asthmatic reactions) in the umbilical cord blood of 387 babies and found that women who had high levels of stress during pregnancy gave birth to babies with higher levels of IgE.
on July 16th, 2008
Highly successful stockbrokers have high levels of the male hormone testosterone. Researchers at Cambridge University followed 17 male traders in London for eight days and took their saliva samples at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Later, tests showed that the testosterone levels of these man were very high on days they had a higher-than-average success in the stock market. High testosterone levels boosted their confidence and energy, leading to risk-taking and winning. However, high testosterone levels for prolonged periods can induce hasty risk-taking.