Too much sun can give you depression, Reports found

London: You've heard of seasonal affective disorder, or Sad, when dark, cold winter days trigger the blues. But last week the UK's daily reported on another depression trigger: too much sun.

The journal cited up to 600,000 Britons suffering from "summer Sad," which is linked to sensitivity to heat and hormonal imbalances that can lead to lethargy and depression. An estimated 1.5 million Americans may suffer from summertime sad as well.

On July 1 website also reported on the phenomenon, noting that those affected with summer SAD sleep less, eat less, and lose weight, and may be extremely irritable during the long days of summer. For wintertime SAD, the reverse happens: More sleep, weight gain, and intense high-carb cravings often accompany a low mood.

"Summer-onset depression is thought to affect less than 1 percent of the population, making it much rarer than the winter variety experienced by an estimated 5 percent of people," states website.

WebMD cites that about 10 percent of people with SAD in the wintertime also get it in reverse in the summertime. The website also notes that some studies have found that in countries near the equator, such as India, summer SAD is more common than winter SAD.

Summer SAD is nothing new. It was first recognized in 1986 when mental health professionals suspected that heat and humidity contributed to depression.

Other summer depression triggers? WebMD cites disrupted schedules, body image issues, and financial worries due to expenses of summer holidays, babysitters, and camps for kids for working parents.

Ideas for relieving symptoms: Experts recommend staying cool with cold showers, air conditioning, swimming in cold lakes, or heading north to cooler climes if you can. Since people tend to drink more alcohol in the summer, according to daily, is mindful of your consumption, since alcohol is a depressant.

The long summer days may also be misaligning your circadian rhythms, experts say, so another treatment plan could involve a "combination of getting early morning sunlight (30 to 60 minutes daily), which shifts the body clock forward, and low-dose melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate sleep-wake cycles," notes website.

However if your symptoms are severe, you may benefit from antidepressants. Talk to your physician if you're struggling with a low mood this summer. More

Too much salt intake is not bad for health, says study

London: For years, doctors have been saying that too much salt is bad for health. Yet, a new study claims that it's safe to eat and cutting its daily intake does nothing to lower the risk of developing heart disease.

High levels of salt have long been linked to a greater risk of developing hypertension, heart attacks and strokes.

It is reported that now, researchers at the University of Exeter claim to have found evidence that although blood pressure is reduced when salt intake is cut, there is actually no long-term health benefits.

They reviewed seven researches that looked at 6,489 people, which they said was a large enough set of data from which to draw conclusions.

Most researches recommended a reduction of 50 percent of normal salt intake. A person's daily salt intake from the research papers reviewed was on average 8-9g a day, so the reduction was to around 4g.

But this had no long-term health benefits that may usually be expected from eating less salt, findings revealed.

"Intensive support and encouragement to reduce salt intake did lead to a reduction in salt eaten and a small reduction in blood pressure after more than six months. What we wanted to see was whether this dietary change also reduced a person's risk of dying or suffering from cardiovascular events," lead author Prof Rod Taylor said.

Most experts say too much salt has detrimental health effects and cutting one's intake may have beneficial effects in people with normal and high blood pressure. But Prof Taylor said he could not find enough evidence for the theory.

He said, "We believe that we didn't see big benefits in this study because the people in the trials we analysed only reduced their salt intake by a moderate amount, so the effect on blood pressure and heart disease was not large.

"(But) it's really important that we do some large research trials to get a full understanding of the benefits and risks of reducing salt intake."

The findings have been published in the latest edition of 'The Cochrane Library' journal. More

Air pollution can damage brain, cause depression

London: Long-term exposure to air pollution could damage the brain and cause depression, besides triggering learning and memory problems.

Mice tests showed that, in the long term, dirty air could cause actual physical changes to the brain which resulted in negative effects. 

While other studies have looked at the impact of polluted air on heart and lungs, this is one of the first to look at the effect on the brain, said doctoral student Laura Fonken from the Ohio State University who led the study. 

"The results suggest that prolonged exposure to polluted air can have visible, negative effects on the brain which can lead to a variety of health problems," she said, reports the journal Molecular Psychiatry.

"This could have important and troubling implications for people who live and work in polluted urban areas around the world," Fonken added, according to the news reports. 

Fonken and her colleagues at Ohio State exposed mice to either filtered air or polluted air six hours a day, five days a week for almost half their lifespan which was 10 months. 

After 10 months of exposure, behavioural tests were carried out on the rodents, including a learning and memory test. 

After five days of training they were placed on a brightly lit area and given two minutes to find the dark escape hole where they would be more comfortable. 

The mice which breathed the polluted air took longer to learn where the escape hole was and at later tests they were more likely to forget where it was. 

In another experiment, mice exposed to the polluted air showed more depressive-like and higher levels of anxiety-like behaviours in one test, but not in another. More

World's largest burger weighs 352 kg

Arizona: As a country, the US is known for its big portion sizes in restaurants. But ambitious grillers took that one stage further over the weekend after setting a new world record for the largest commercially available hamburger.

The massive 352-kg burger, which included a 49-kg bun, 9 kg of onions, 5.4 kg of pickles and 13 kg of lettuce beat the previous record holder, a Canadian creation that weighed a measly 269 kg.

The massive burger was made by Nicora and Brett Enright.

The reason to making the whopper was to bring the record back to USA. It was cooked up by organisers of the Alameda County Fair on Saturday in a bid to bring the world record to America in time for Independence Day.

Nick Nicora, of Ovation Food Services said, "The old record was held in Canada and we wanted to bring it home to America on the 4th of July."

Nicora and Brett Enright, of Juicys travelling barbecue catering service, were behind the massive burger.

It contains around 1,375,000 calories enough to feed one person for almost two years.Bits of the mega-burger were sold off for 99 cents (Rs 43) at the fair, with proceeds going to the Alameda County Food Bank.

Fair spokesperson April Mitchell said about 500 people bought bites, and by the end of the night, half of the monster burger was gone.

If anyone wants to buy a burger like this, all he or she has to do is give 48 hours' notice and pay $5,000 (Rs 2.21 lakh).

Officials from the Guinness Book of Records were at the fair to verify if the burger had set a new record.

15 hours
Time it took to make the burger

Did you know?

The burger contains 1,375,000 calories enough to feed one person for almost two years.

Big Bucks

Burger King's £95 (Rs 6,800) sandwich, named simply The Burger flame grilled Wagyu beef, topped with white truffles in an Iranian saffron and truffle bun sets the world record for the most expensive burger. The burger combines Japanese beef with white truffles and Cristal champagne.

Burger mania

The massive burger contains:

>> 49-kg of bun, specially made and imported

>> 9 kg of onions

>> 5.4 kg of pickles

>> 13 kg of lettuce

Foods that help you look younger

I've heard there are certain foods that can help hold onto the years. Please elaborate on those that I should incorporate and avoid.

Most of us want to look young and great, don't we? The truth is that ageing not only affects the way we look, but also our overall health. The process has an impact on all vital body functions. But diseases like osteoporosis and atherosclerosis that commonly accompany old age are not an inevitable part of ageing.

Interestingly, the process of ageing is still a mystery. One theory is that when we are young, we produce plenty of active cells to meet our needs. But, during late adolescence and adulthood, cells inevitably age and die. In fact, free radical cell damage has been significantly associated with ageing.

There's abundant evidence in favour of the theory that the fountain of youth emanates from a proper diet. While no diet can stop ageing, research proves that calorie restriction can greatly slow it down. Studies have shown that animals on lean rations live about 50% longer and show much lower rates of cancer than control groups that are allowed to feed freely.

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While the exact mechanisms to explain the relation between calorie restriction and anti-ageing are not yet clear, it's believed that hormonal and immune system changes may be involved. Calorie restriction reduces metabolic rate, oxidative damage and improves markers of age-related diseases, such as insulin resistance in case of diabetes.

Must read on health: 6 questions you would ask your gynaec if she was your friend

Research shows that regular intake of anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals and good fat is critical for protection from diseases and increasing lifespan. Also, following a mild restriction (say 10%) on your present calorie intake helps.

• Your diet should be/have:Low in calories and high in nutrients.
• Particularly rich in phyto-chemicals (anti-oxidants), Vitamin B6, B12, folic acid, zinc, calcium, iron, chromium, vitamin D & E and Omega-3 fatty acids.
• Include plenty of whole-grains, brightly coloured (red, yellow and green) fruits and vegetables. Choose fresh, seasonal and organic foods.
• Protein sources like fish, soya, peas and beans, seeds, nuts, fermented milk and food products.
• Natural sources of fats such as seeds, nuts, coconut, fish and cold pressed oils.
• Functional foods like barley, oats, soya, garlic, onion, mushrooms, berries, yoghurt, etc.
• Probiotic foods like kefir (fermented milk) and yoghurt.
• Prebiotic foods like whole-grains, soya, vegetables, fruits and seeds.
• Minimal, or better still, no processed or refined foods, sugars, hydrogenated fats, preservatives, chemicals, etc.

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Also incorporate these lifestyle changes:

• Ensure a deep and restful sleep through the night.
• Have meals in pleasant surroundings and in enjoyable company.
• Have confectionary and desserts only occasionally.
• Do not skip breakfast, have smaller, frequent meals and early dinner.
• Do not smoke and indulge in substance abuse.
• Make sure you maintain regular physical activity.

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When it comes to health and longevity, the sum of the dietary components is significantly greater than its individual elements. So try to keep all of this in mind and you will stay young and look lovely!

Chewing gum helps recovering from cancer faster

London: Chewing sugar-free gum after operations can help bowel cancer patients get their digestive systems back to normal and recover faster, scientists say.

Studies have found that patients undergoing surgery likely to affect their bowel function were fit enough to go home as much as two days earlier than other patients if they chewed gum. It's also found that chewing gum has helped new moms recovering from caesarean sections, as well as patients undergoing stomach surgery, who can suffer from painful cramps until digestion returns to normal.

Now, surgeons at University College London Hospital are asking patients booked for bowel cancer surgery to bring supplies of sugar-free gum with them, to be chewed three times a day, for an hour, after their operation, BBC News reported.

Consultant colorectal surgeon Alastair Windsor said the trial is part of a programme to find new ways to help patients recover from treatment. He said many patients undergoing many types of surgery likely to affect their digestive system could benefit from bringing gum to hospital, but advised them to ask their own doctor first.

Windsor said: "One of the things that delays people recovering from surgery is that they get what is called an ileas where the bowel goes to sleep. "It seems that chewing gum can stimulate the saliva, which starts enzyme production in the pancreas, and that then stimulates gastro-intestinal activity."

The trial, which began six months ago, has yet to publish results, but the surgeon said so far patients were responding well to it.

Experts say- Sleep helps decision making

London: The notion that a good night's sleep helps when making important decisions is now endorsed by scientists.

They say that a good sleep enhances complex cognitive skills necessary for decision-making.

In a first such study of its kind, researchers probed the effects of sleep on affect-guided decision-making - that is decisions on meaningful topics where subjects care about the outcome, Daily Mail reported Monday.

Lead researcher Rebecca Spencer, of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, taught a group of 54 young people to play a card game for rewards of play money in which wins and losses for various card decks mimic casino gambling.

Subjects who had a normal night's sleep drew from decks that gave them the greatest winnings, four times more often than those who spent the 12-hour break awake, the Mail said quoting the study. Those who were rested also better understood the underlying rules of the game, it said.

"There is something to be gained from taking a night to sleep on it when you're facing an important decision.

"We found that the fact that you slept makes your decisions better," Mail said quoting Spencer.

She and her colleagues believe this sleep benefit in making decisions may be due to changes in underlying emotional or cognitive processes.

"Our guess is that this enhanced effect on decision-making is something that depends on rapid-eye-movement or REM sleep, which is the creative period of our sleep cycle," Spencer added.

The UMass Amherst study used the Iowa Gambling Task, a gambling card game that assesses frontal lobe function, where more emotional decisions originate.

The study was published in the Journal of Sleep Research. Read More