Be Happier: 10 Things to Stop Doing Right Now

Be Happier: 10 Things to Stop Doing Right Now

From here,

Do not blame,
Do not impress,
Do not cling,
Do not interrupt,
Do not whine, ......................................................

早睡, 運動, 少飲料, 有助長高

北醫小兒科醫師楊晨每天都在治療長不高的小孩，她兒子身高超過180公分，高於預期，長高秘訣是早睡、運動、少喝休閒飲料。

楊晨今天說，孩子生長激素分泌作用  的最佳時間  晚上10時到半夜、運動後、兩餐中間，建議小學生及學齡以下的孩子 晚間9時就上床睡覺，中學生晚間10時，以及每天運動30分鐘，兩餐之間不吃零食。

她也嚴格限制孩子不吃糖，因為糖會抑制生長激素分泌，而運動與早睡則會刺激生長激素及退黑激素，讓孩子長得高又壯。

Please see the article here.

Another blog here also provides more info about her talk and the formula of the height of a kid.

Decoding the Science of Sleep

Do you know naturally we used to have first sleep ( from after darkness to around midnight, wake-up and then have a 2nd sleep)?

Check this article.

In a new branch of sleep medicine, scientists have identified how to get a good night's sleep naturally. Most of the suggestions come down to changing your behavior. One thing you can do is go to bed at the same time every night. Also, studies have shown that people should avoid the bluish light from computer screens, TVs and smartphones—which our brains interpret as sunlight—for at least an hour before bed. And, by doing yoga or other relaxation techniques that put the mind at ease, subjects in studies have dramatically improved both their sleep quality and quantity.

Don't sit too long

This is an article from WSJ on 7/11/2012.

Stand Up To Read This

If you’re on the subway, don’t scramble to find a seat. If you’re reading, why not stand up? And if you work in an office, install motion sensors that turn lights on and off.

Those are just three pieces of advice from I-Min Lee, a co-author of a study published Tuesday in the online journal BMJ Open that shows that sitting down for more than three hours a day can cut a person’s life expectancy by two years, even if he or she is physically active and refrains from dangerous habits like smoking.

Watching TV for more than two hours a day can also shave life expectancy by another 1.4 years, according to the report, which analyzed five underlying studies of nearly 167,000 people over a range of four to 14 years.

The study adds to a growing body of evidence that points to the potential consequences of leading a sedentary lifestyle. Last year, scientists found a link between sedentary jobs, or jobs that don’t require a lot of energy expenditure, with colon and rectal cancer. Scientists uncovered similar findings in March, when they found that cancers linked to obesity and lack of physical activity rose every year from 1999 through 2008.

In light of these findings, Dr. Lee, a researcher in the department of epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health, recommended that people avoid sitting for prolonged periods of time. In addition to limiting the amount of time you spend watching TV, Dr. Lee offered an interesting tip.

“My office is long in dimension, so the sensor is quite a distance from where I sit.  It has been annoying me that the lights go off periodically, since it doesn’t sense me.  Maybe that’s a good thing – every so often, I have to go jump up and down to activate the sensor!” she said in an email.  And, she added,  ”make the sensor less ‘sensitive’ – so it is more apt to make the lights go off.”

And there’s another bonus: “Besides making one get up and move, it’s energy saving,” Dr. Lee said.

如何才能睡好覺？做到「3不｣

如何才能睡好覺？專家：睡前1小時別碰手機、電腦

 「淺眠」、「睡不飽」、「翻來覆去」…，現代人的睡眠狀況愈來愈多，根據一份最新調查顯示，高達97.2%民眾在睡前一小時內有使用智慧型手機、電視、電 腦等3C產品的習慣，且因為這個因素有高達8成以上的受訪者因此而延後就寢時間，且其中有3~4成的人躺在床上超過30分鐘才能入睡，已出現程度大小不一 的睡眠障礙。

此外，調查還發現，有6成的人覺得自己睡不好、也睡不夠，超過四分之一每天睡不到6小時。另有超過半數受訪者回答沒有定時就寢的習慣，分析顯示，睡眠時間 不固定的人，睡眠品質也會比較差；而在全部的受訪者中，有34%需躺在床上30分鐘以上才能入睡。但，即便如此，卻只有20%認為「規律上床是一種美德， 時間到了就該去睡」。
而當問到如果前一晚睡不好，對第二天會有什麼影響，29%的人回答會反應變慢、專注力變差，26.8%的人則表示會精神不濟、一直打瞌睡，還有12%的人說晚上睡不好，第二天會心情變down，臉很臭、愛生氣！
但，究竟如何才能真正睡好覺？長庚醫院睡眠中心臨床心理師吳家碩表示，人體的睡眠系統通常需要1個小時來運作，使身體為睡眠做好準備，因此睡前的活動型態 對睡眠品質有非常直接的影響。然而，臨床觀察還發現，睡前使用智慧型手機、iPad、電腦等3C產品，會使肩頸及手腕痠痛、心情處於興奮高亢的狀態，都會 讓人不易放鬆、影響入睡時間，而3C產品的近距離光源更會抑制腦內褪黑激素分泌，造成讓入睡困難。
吳家碩建議，要有優質、無負擔的睡眠，就必須讓身心靈真正放鬆。同時，他也呼籲國人謹記「睡前321 頭腦不當機」的美眠守則，在「睡前的黃金1小時｣做到「3不｣：不使用3C產品，不加班工作過度用腦、也不要再做刺激性的活動。以及「2要」：要養成良好 的睡眠習慣，像是讓心情放空、運用腹式呼吸、漸進式肌肉放鬆法調整身心的節奏，並且定時上床；也要營造良好舒適的睡眠環境，將房間燈光調整為橘黃色、選擇 一張均勻撐托各部位的獨立筒床墊，就能輕鬆享受一夜美眠，才能讓頭腦靈光不當機。

How to Make a Comfortable Hike

How to Make a Comfortable Hike

(The following suggestions are for the climate around Bay Area CA only)

It is winter now. It can be quite chilly in the morning and hot during the day time. You can sweat on the way up during your hike and feel cold on the way down.

How can you make yourself really comfortable?

Some suggestions for your references.

• Hats, Caps or Masks
• Gloves
• Polyester T-shirt underwear

Polyester wicks moisture and dries quickly to keep you comfortable during active pursuits. Try to avoid cotton underwear which makes feel uncomfortable and cold when it's wet.)

• Hiking boots

If you can't grip the ground properly, you will have hard time on the way down and also have the chance to injure yourslef.

Big 5 has some inexpensive ones ($25 to $40) or check with REI for some Vibram rubber outsoles featuring sticky rubber and deep lugs for stability and braking on various surfaces.

• Trekking poles

It gives you an opportunity to work out your upper body. It helps your lower body joints tremendously on the way down. Usually, one pole is enough. You can get those expensive ones with adjustable length, anti-shock spring and ergometric foam compact grip. It can cost you $60 to $150 for a pair. For a starter, I recommend to get a ski pole at garage sale for $2.

Sleep Well

Would you like to recover fast from the whole day of pressure? How can you sleep well so tomorrow will be a fresh day?

Here is some tips to sleep well.

* Don't work on your job or serious projects two hours before you go to bed. Relax. Read some non-work related books.

* If you can't fall asleep within 20 minutes, get up and do something boring until you feel sleepy .
For example, listen softer music at the dark, stare at moon or stars, etc. Remember not to expose yourself to much light.

* Don't take naps. This will ensure you are tired at bedtime.
If you just can't make it through the day without a nap, sleep less than one hour, before 3 pm.

* Get up and go to bed the same time every day .
Even on weekends! When your sleep cycle has a regular rhythm, you will feel better.

* Refrain from exercise at least 4 hours before bedtime.

Regular exercise is recommended to help you sleep well, but the timing of the workout is important. Exercising in the morning or early afternoon will not interfere with sleep.

* Develop sleep rituals.

It is important to give your body cues that it is time to slow down and sleep. Listen to relaxing music, read something soothing for 15 minutes, have a cup of caffeine free tea, do relaxation exercises.

* Have a light snack before bed

If your stomach is too empty, that can interfere with sleep. However, if you eat a heavy meal before bedtime, that can interfere as well. Dairy products and turkey contain tryptophan, which acts as a natural sleep inducer. Tryptophan is probably why a warm glass of milk is sometimes recommended.

* Take a hot bath 90 minutes before bedtime.

A hot bath will raise your body temperature, but it is the drop in body temperature that may leave you feeling sleepy.

I hope those tips are useful for you. Have a great sleep every night.

10 Best Foods you should eat

The 10 Best Foods You Aren’t Eating

Want to do your body a world of good? It's as easy as expanding your grocery list.

I don't want to reinvent the wheel and claim the credits. Medical experts have done research and make the recommendations.

In summary, they are as follows.

1. Beets: contain potent cancer fighters and are great for heart.

2. Cabbage:disarms cell-damaging free radicals and reduces your risk of cancer.

3. Guava: has an antioxidant that fights prostate cancer -- than any other plant food, including tomatoes and watermelon.

4. Swiss Chard: provides a huge amount of nutrients which can protect your retinas from the damage of aging.

5. Cinnamon: helps control your blood sugar, which influences your risk of heart disease.

6. Purslane: has the highest amount of heart-healthy omega-3 fats of any edible plant and has an antioxidant that may inhibit cancer growth.

7. Pomegranate juice: great for heart and with lots of Vitamin C.

8. Goji berries: have one of the highest ORAC ratings -- a method of gauging antioxidant power -- of any fruit.

9. Dry Plums: contain high amounts of antioxidants that are particularly effective at combating the superoxide anion radical.

10. Pumpkin Seeds: have rich amount of magnesium.

--------- Want more info -----------------

I picked two good articles for you to enjoy.

This is an earlier article which gives you the 10 foods.

This is a later article with explanation of how to eat those 10 best foods.