Cinnamon to Boost learning AbilityIJ
Including cinnamon in your kids’ food might help improve their learning ability, says a study led by an Indian-origin researcher. “This would be one of the safest and easiest approaches to convert poor learners to good learners,” said lead researcher Kalipada Pahan, professor at Rush University in Chicago, US. Some people are born good learners, some become good learners by effort, and some find it hard to learn new tasks even with effort. “Understanding brain mechanisms that lead to poor learning is important to developing effective strategies to improve memory and learning ability,” Pahan added. However, the study did not find any significant improvement among good learners from cinnamon. “Individual difference in learning performance is a global issue,” Pahan said adding, “We need to further test this approach in poor learners. If these results are replicated in poor learning students, it would be a remarkable advance.” The study was published in the Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology.
Young women falling prey to cancer
In a new study, researchers have revealed shocking facts as young Indian women are falling prey to cancer. Of the total women suffering from cancer, 46 per cent are less than 50 years old, and the trend is worsening due to modern lifestyle changes, such as multiple sex partners, late marriage, and late pregnancy. The number of cases of breast and cervical cancers have risen exponentially in the past few years. “Two per cent of the Indian women suffering from cancer are in 20 to 30 years age group, 16 per cent are in 30 to 40, 28 per cent are in 40 to 50. Almost 46 per cent patients are below 50,” said Sameer Kaul, senior consultant at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital.
Use vacations to change sleep habits
It probably won’t be possible to repay your sleep debt in just a week or two of vacations, but it could be a good time to implement new and improved sleeping habits, says Professor Henri Tuomilehto, a sleep specialist at Oivauni Sleep Clinic. He stresses to patients the importance of good sleep habits throughout the year, and points out that a vacation is not a quick fix for bad sleep. “People tend to work very hard before the holidays, thinking that’s when they’ll have time to sleep. Sadly, it doesn’t work that way. If you’ve slept poorly over a long period of time, your holidays will get spent on just recovering.” However, it’s not all bad news, with Tuomilehto suggesting that although a vacation won’t repay the sleep debt, it is a good time to start implementing good sleep habits. “If you’ve neglected your sleep all year, you can’t really expect things to suddenly change when you start your holidays.”