INTRODUCTION: One-third of US adults report sleeping less than the recommended amount, and approximately 20% live with a mental illness. The objective of our study was to examine the association between inadequate sleep and frequent mental distress in a population-based sample of US adults. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study by using 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data that included 273,695 US adults aged 18 to 64. Inadequate sleep was defined as 6 hours or less in a given night, and frequent mental distress was defined as self-reporting 14 days of mental health status as “not good” within the last month. We used weighted logistic regression to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs. RESULTS: Thirteen percent of study participants experienced inadequate sleep, and 14.1% experienced frequent mental distress. Participants who averaged 6 hours or less of sleep per night were about 2.5 times more likely to have frequent mental distress when controlling for confounders (OR, 2.52; 95% CI, 2.32-2.73) than those who slept more than 6 hours. CONCLUSION: Inadequate sleep was associated with significantly increased odds of frequent mental distress. Our findings suggest that further research is necessary to evaluate the temporal relationship between inadequate sleep and frequent mental distress.

OBJECTIVES: Sleep health and executive function are multifaceted constructs that decline with age. Some evidence suggests that poor sleep health may underlie declines in executive function, but this relationship is not consistently found in cognitively normal older adults. The authors systematically investigated distinct sleep health domain associations with specific aspects of executive function. METHODS: Community-dwelling older adults completed clinical interviews, comprehensive neuropsychological assessments, and subjective sleep measures. Four sleep health domains were investigated: satisfaction/quality, sleep efficiency, sleep duration, and daytime sleepiness/fatigue. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses, adjusting for significant covariates, examined whether the sleep health domains differentially predicted executive function. RESULTS: Separate analyses found that greater sleep efficiency was associated with better response inhibition, while greater daytime sleepiness/fatigue was associated with worse cognitive flexibility. Categorical differences in sleep duration indicated that average durations, compared with short and long durations, had better executive function performance across measures. Sleep satisfaction/quality was not statistically associated with executive function. CONCLUSIONS: These findings have implications for sleep assessment and its intervention. Routine screening of sleep duration, efficiency, and daytime fatigue may be particularly useful in identifying those at greater risk of executive dysfunction. Targeting specific problems in sleep may serve to improve cognitive control and efficiency in older adults. Future research is warranted to establish the optimal hours of sleep duration for cognitive health.

Across different faith traditions, Sabbath day observance shares a close relationship with theological conceptions of rest. Sabbath-keeping, with its promise of rest, may be a valuable spiritual practice in the context of teaching as prior research has consistently documented the adverse effects of teacher burnout. Yet no research has examined Sabbath-keeping and its connections to teaching practices and teacher burnout. We aim to fill this gap with a quantitative study of Sabbath-keeping and burnout among 1,300 teachers in Christian schools throughout the USA, Canada, Indonesia, and Paraguay. We report their conceptions of Sabbath and how those conceptions inform their teaching practice. We find an inverse and statistically significant relationship between Sabbath-keeping and burnout that is robust across several model specifications, suggesting that Sabbath-keeping may be helpful in reducing burnout among educators.

Most vacations seem to have strong, but rather short-lived effects on health and well-being (H&W). However, the recovery-potential of relatively long vacations and the underlying processes have been disregarded. Therefore, our study focused on vacations longer than 14 days and on the psychological processes associated with such a long respite from work. In the present study, we investigated (1) how health and well-being (H&W) develop during and after a long summer vacation, (2) whether changes in H&W during and after vacation relate to vacation activities and experiences and (3) whether changes in H&W during and after vacation relate to sleep. Fifty-four employees reported their H&W before, three or four times during and five times after vacation. Vacations lasted 23 days on average. Information on vacation experiences, work-related activities and sleep was collected during vacation. Vacation activities were assessed immediately after vacation. H&W increased quickly during vacation, peaked on the eighth vacation day and had rapidly returned to baseline level within the first week of work resumption. Vacation duration and most vacation activities were only weakly associated with H&W changes during and after vacation. Engagement in passive activities, savoring, pleasure derived from activities, relaxation, control and sleep showed strong relations with improved H&W during and to a lesser degree after vacation. In conclusion, H&W improved during long summer vacations, but this positive effect was short-lived. Vacation experiences, especially pleasure, relaxation, savoring and control, seem to be especially important for the strength and persistence of vacation (after-) effects.

Insufficient sleep syndrome, shift work disorder, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) not only significantly impact the health of affected individuals, but also pose a threat to public safety. This article describes the clinical manifestations and impact of these sleep disorders, particularly as they pertain to workers’ health and those with safety-sensitive positions. Sleep deprivation, circadian rhythm disruptions, and excessive daytime sleepiness-hallmarks of insufficient sleep, shift work disorder, and OSA, respectively-all lead to a series of cognitive deficits and impaired concentration that affect workers in a wide variety of fields. We describe the health consequences of these disorders along with treatment strategies, with a focus on current regulatory standards and the under-recognition of OSA in commercial drivers. Given its large scale, there is a need for improved guidelines and regulations for the screening, diagnosis, treatment, and long-term follow-up of OSA in commercial motor vehicle drivers. Increased recognition of the ways in which these sleep disorders impact workers will pave the way for significant improvements in occupational health and safety.

While most individuals spend a substantial amount of time sleeping, Japan is among the developed countries whose residents register the fewest number of hours of sleep. I thus examine the causal effects of sleep on labor productivity, utilizing panel datasets for Japanese men. The potential endogeneity of deciding how many hours to sleep is addressed by using fixed effects panel data models with an instrumental variable estimation technique. Exploiting the annual variation in the average sunshine duration between cities as an instrument, I then show that a one-hour increase in the weekly number of hours of sleep increases the wage rate by up to 6–8% on average. These results suggest that sleep duration could enhance labor productivity.

In the course of evolution, health is prioritized for human well-being and economies. Epidemiological and experimental studies suggest that modern life habits, including eating habits, and living and working conditions, can deteriorate health through circadian misalignment. This has been most commonly observed with urban societies and working classes of non-standard working schedules (NSWSs), such as shift work, night work, and overtime work. Poor health conditions with NSWSs generate economic burden for the modern society. Therefore, we attempt to provide a systematic approach to understanding the relations among the circadian clock, health, and economics. To understand these connections, we review the mechanisms of the human circadian clock and how modern living conditions can misalign the circadian system and associated health consequences. We also emphasize the importance of health for the modern economy and the economic costs of health disorders associated with circadian disruption and NSWSs.

High quality of sleep may mitigate the impact of pathophysiological mechanisms in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) through functional connectivity reorganization of neural networks underlying higher cognitive functions. Thirty-eight patients with MCI stratified into high and low quality of sleep in accordance with a self-reported questionnaire for sleep habits, and 38 controls underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Independent component analysis was used to reconstruct the default mode network and frontoparietal network (FPN). High quality of sleep was associated with increased FPN connectivity among patients with MCI. Moreover, a positive coupling of connectivity between networks was found in MCI reporting high quality of sleep, congruently with the pattern observed in controls, whereas this coupling was disrupted in MCI with low quality of sleep. An association between FPN connectivity and language scores was observed in MCI. These findings suggest a relationship between sleep quality and FPN connectivity in MCI that may underlie compensatory mechanisms to overcome advancing neurodegeneration.

BACKGROUND: Sleep deprivation is a condition in which an individual does not get enough sleep, leading to a variety of negative effects on their physical and mental health. In the United States, sleep deprivation is a common problem, with many people not getting the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Excessive daytime sleepiness is also a common condition in the United States. It is characterized by a persistent feeling of fatigue or drowsiness during the day, despite getting enough sleep at night. The current study aims to document the frequency of sleepiness symptoms amongst the general US population. METHODS: A web-based survey was conducted to assess the frequency of daily anxiety symptoms amongst adults residing in the United States. Questions from the Epworth Sleepiness Scale were used to quantify the burden of daytime sleepiness. JMP 16.0 for Mac OS was used to perform statistical analyses. Our Institutional Review Board gave the study an exempt determination (#2022-569). RESULTS: In total, 9% of people qualified as having lower normal daytime sleepiness, 34% qualified as having higher normal daytime sleepiness, 26% qualified as having mild excessive daytime sleepiness, 17% qualified as having moderate excessive daytime sleepiness, and 17% qualified as having severe excessive daytime sleepiness. LIMITATIONS: The present findings are based on cross-sectional survey data. CONCLUSION: Although sleep is one of the most crucial bodily activities, our study of young adults found that more than 60% had moderate to severe sleep deprivation/daytime sleepiness as reported on the Epworth Sleepiness scale.

PURPOSE: US adults who report experiencing insufficient sleep are more likely to suffer from metabolic disorders such as hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and obesity than those with sufficient sleep. Less is understood about the underlying molecular mechanisms connecting these phenomena. A systematic, qualitative review of metabolomics studies exploring metabolic changes in response to sleep insufficiency, sleep deprivation, or circadian disruption was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. METHODS: An electronic literature review in the PubMed database was performed considering publications through May 2021 and screening and eligibility criteria were applied to articles retrieved. The following keywords were used: “metabolomics” and “sleep disorders” or “sleep deprivation” or “sleep disturbance” or “circadian rhythm.” After screening and addition of studies included from reference lists of retrieved studies, 16 records were identified for review. RESULTS: Consistent changes in metabolites were observed across studies between individuals experiencing sleep deprivation compared to non-sleep deprived controls. Significant increases in phosphatidylcholines, acylcarnitines, sphingolipids, and other lipids were consistent across studies. Increased levels of amino acids such as tryptophan and phenylalanine were also noted. However, studies were limited to small samples of young, healthy, mostly male participants conducted in short inpatient sessions, limiting generalizability. CONCLUSION: Changes in lipid and amino acid metabolites accompanying sleep deprivation and/or circadian rhythms may indicate cellular membrane and protein breakdown underlying the connection between sleep disturbance, hyperlipidemia, and other metabolic disorders. Larger epidemiological studies examining changes in the human metabolome in response to chronic insufficient sleep would help elucidate this relationship.

Sabbath-keeping has several holistic health benefits when done for intrinsic reasons. Most research on Sabbath-keeping is about individuals where Sabbath-keeping is customary. This organic inquiry describes how a Sabbath promoted transformation for ten women where Sabbath-keeping was not the norm. Six themes emerged: Sabbath-keeping enhanced self-awareness, improved self-care, enriched relationships, developed spirituality, positively affected the rest of a Sabbath-keeper’s week, and Sabbath-keeping practices and philosophies also evolved over time. The author argues that reviving the best parts of Sabbath-keeping is an effective, accessible, holistic practice that can contribute to the well-being of individuals, communities, and the earth.

The majority of the world’s population now lives an urban existence, spending as much as 95% of their lives indoors. The olfactory atmosphere in the built environment has been shown to exert a profound, if often unrecognized, influence over our mood and well-being. While the traditionally malodorous stench to be found indoors (i.e., prior to the invention of modern sanitation) has largely been eliminated in recent centuries, many of the outbreaks of sick-building syndrome that have been reported over the last half century have been linked to the presence of a strange smell in the environment. At the same time, however, there is also growing evidence that consumer behavior can be manipulated by the presence of pleasant ambient odors, while various aromatherapy scents are said to improve our mood and well-being. This Anglophone review focuses primarily on indoor western urban developed spaces. Importantly, the olfactory ambience constitutes but one component of the multisensory atmosphere and ambient odors interact with the visual, auditory, and haptic aspects of the built environment. Surprisingly, the majority of published studies that have deliberately chosen to combine ambient scent with other sensory interventions, such as, for example, music, have failed to increase store sales, or to enhance people’s mood and/or well-being, as might have been expected. Such negative findings therefore stress the importance of considering multisensory congruency while, at the same time, also highlighting the potential dangers that may be associated with sensory overload when thinking about the effect of ambient smell on our well-being.

Daytime napping are used by elite athletes in both training and match-day settings. Currently, there are limited interventional studies on the efficacy of napping on physical performance in elite team-sport athletes. Therefore, the objective was to investigate the effect of a daytime nap (<1 h) on afternoon performance of peak power, reaction time, subjective wellness, and aerobic performance in professional rugby union athletes. A randomised cross-over design was carried out amongst 15 professional rugby union athletes. Athletes performed nap (NAP) and no nap (CON) conditions on two occasions, separated by one week. Baseline testing of reaction time, subjective wellness, and 6-s peak power test on a cycle ergometer was completed in the morning, followed by 2 x 45-minute training sessions, after which athletes completed the NAP or CON condition at 1200h. Following the nap period, baseline measures were retested in addition to a 30-minute fixed intensity interval cycle and a 4-minute maximal effort cycling test. A significant group x time interaction was determined for 6-s peak power output (+157.6 W, p<0.01, d=1.53), perceived fatigue (-0.2 AU, p=0.01, d=0.37) and muscle soreness (-0.1 AU, p=0.04, d=0.75) in favor of the NAP condition. A significantly lower perceived exertion rating (-1.2 AU, p<0.01, d=1.72) was recorded for the fixed intensity session in favour of NAP. This study highlights that utilizing daytime naps between training sessions on the same day improved afternoon peak power and lower perceptions of fatigue, soreness, and exertion during afternoon training in professional rugby union athletes.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Working outside the conventional “9-to-5” shift may lead to reduced sleep and alertness impairment. Here, we developed an optimization algorithm to identify sleep and work schedules that minimize alertness impairment during work hours, while reducing impairment during non-work hours. METHODS: The optimization algorithm searches among a large number of possible sleep and work schedules and estimates their effectiveness in mitigating alertness impairment using the Unified Model of Performance (UMP). To this end, the UMP, and its extensions to estimate sleep latency and sleep duration, predicts the time course of alertness of each potential schedule and their physiological feasibility. We assessed the algorithm by simulating four experimental studies, where we compared alertness levels during work periods for sleep schedules proposed by the algorithm against those used in the studies. In addition, in one of the studies we assessed the algorithm’s ability to simultaneously optimize sleep and work schedules. RESULTS: Using the same amount of sleep as in the studies but distributing it optimally, the sleep schedules proposed by the optimization algorithm reduced alertness impairment during work periods by an average of 29%. Similarly, simultaneously optimized sleep and work schedules, for a recovery period following a chronic sleep restriction challenge, accelerated the return to baseline levels by two days when compared to the conventional 9-to-5 work schedule. CONCLUSIONS: Our work provides the first quantitative tool to optimize sleep and work schedules and extends the capabilities of existing fatigue-management tools.

OBJECTIVE: Little is known about the relationship between habitual sleep duration, cardiovascular health (CVH) and their impact on healthcare costs and resource utilization. We describe the relationship between sleep duration and ideal CVH, and the associated burden of healthcare expenditure and utilization in a large South Florida employee population free from known cardiovascular disease. METHODS: The study used data obtained from a 2014 voluntary Health Risk Assessment among 8629 adult employees of Baptist Health South Florida. Health expenditures and resource utilization information were obtained through medical claims data. Frequencies of the individual and cumulative CVH metrics across sleep duration were computed. Mean and marginal per-capita healthcare expenditures were estimated. RESULTS: The mean age was 43 years, 57% were of Hispanic ethnicity. Persons with 6-8.9hours and >/=9 hours of sleep were significantly more likely to report optimal goals for diet, physical activity, body mass index, and blood pressure when compared to those who slept less than 6 hours. Compared to those who slept less than 6 hours, those sleeping 6-8.9hours and >/=9hours had approximately 2- (odds ratio 2.1, 95% confidence interval: 1.9-3.0) and 3-times (odds ratio 3.0, 95% confidence interval: 1.6-5.6) higher odds of optimal CVH. Both groups with 6 or more hours of sleep had lower total per-capita expenditure (approximately $2000 and $2700 respectively), lower odds of visiting an emergency room, or being hospitalized compared to those who slept < 6 hours. CONCLUSION: Sleeping 6 or more hours was associated with better CVH, lower healthcare expenditures, and reduced healthcare resource utilization.

INTRODUCTION: One-third of US adults report sleeping less than the recommended amount, and approximately 20% live with a mental illness. The objective of our study was to examine the association between inadequate sleep and frequent mental distress in a population-based sample of US adults. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study by using 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data that included 273,695 US adults aged 18 to 64. Inadequate sleep was defined as 6 hours or less in a given night, and frequent mental distress was defined as self-reporting 14 days of mental health status as “not good” within the last month. We used weighted logistic regression to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs. RESULTS: Thirteen percent of study participants experienced inadequate sleep, and 14.1% experienced frequent mental distress. Participants who averaged 6 hours or less of sleep per night were about 2.5 times more likely to have frequent mental distress when controlling for confounders (OR, 2.52; 95% CI, 2.32-2.73) than those who slept more than 6 hours. CONCLUSION: Inadequate sleep was associated with significantly increased odds of frequent mental distress. Our findings suggest that further research is necessary to evaluate the temporal relationship between inadequate sleep and frequent mental distress.

OBJECTIVES: Sleep health and executive function are multifaceted constructs that decline with age. Some evidence suggests that poor sleep health may underlie declines in executive function, but this relationship is not consistently found in cognitively normal older adults. The authors systematically investigated distinct sleep health domain associations with specific aspects of executive function. METHODS: Community-dwelling older adults completed clinical interviews, comprehensive neuropsychological assessments, and subjective sleep measures. Four sleep health domains were investigated: satisfaction/quality, sleep efficiency, sleep duration, and daytime sleepiness/fatigue. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses, adjusting for significant covariates, examined whether the sleep health domains differentially predicted executive function. RESULTS: Separate analyses found that greater sleep efficiency was associated with better response inhibition, while greater daytime sleepiness/fatigue was associated with worse cognitive flexibility. Categorical differences in sleep duration indicated that average durations, compared with short and long durations, had better executive function performance across measures. Sleep satisfaction/quality was not statistically associated with executive function. CONCLUSIONS: These findings have implications for sleep assessment and its intervention. Routine screening of sleep duration, efficiency, and daytime fatigue may be particularly useful in identifying those at greater risk of executive dysfunction. Targeting specific problems in sleep may serve to improve cognitive control and efficiency in older adults. Future research is warranted to establish the optimal hours of sleep duration for cognitive health.

Across different faith traditions, Sabbath day observance shares a close relationship with theological conceptions of rest. Sabbath-keeping, with its promise of rest, may be a valuable spiritual practice in the context of teaching as prior research has consistently documented the adverse effects of teacher burnout. Yet no research has examined Sabbath-keeping and its connections to teaching practices and teacher burnout. We aim to fill this gap with a quantitative study of Sabbath-keeping and burnout among 1,300 teachers in Christian schools throughout the USA, Canada, Indonesia, and Paraguay. We report their conceptions of Sabbath and how those conceptions inform their teaching practice. We find an inverse and statistically significant relationship between Sabbath-keeping and burnout that is robust across several model specifications, suggesting that Sabbath-keeping may be helpful in reducing burnout among educators.

Most vacations seem to have strong, but rather short-lived effects on health and well-being (H&W). However, the recovery-potential of relatively long vacations and the underlying processes have been disregarded. Therefore, our study focused on vacations longer than 14 days and on the psychological processes associated with such a long respite from work. In the present study, we investigated (1) how health and well-being (H&W) develop during and after a long summer vacation, (2) whether changes in H&W during and after vacation relate to vacation activities and experiences and (3) whether changes in H&W during and after vacation relate to sleep. Fifty-four employees reported their H&W before, three or four times during and five times after vacation. Vacations lasted 23 days on average. Information on vacation experiences, work-related activities and sleep was collected during vacation. Vacation activities were assessed immediately after vacation. H&W increased quickly during vacation, peaked on the eighth vacation day and had rapidly returned to baseline level within the first week of work resumption. Vacation duration and most vacation activities were only weakly associated with H&W changes during and after vacation. Engagement in passive activities, savoring, pleasure derived from activities, relaxation, control and sleep showed strong relations with improved H&W during and to a lesser degree after vacation. In conclusion, H&W improved during long summer vacations, but this positive effect was short-lived. Vacation experiences, especially pleasure, relaxation, savoring and control, seem to be especially important for the strength and persistence of vacation (after-) effects.

Insufficient sleep syndrome, shift work disorder, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) not only significantly impact the health of affected individuals, but also pose a threat to public safety. This article describes the clinical manifestations and impact of these sleep disorders, particularly as they pertain to workers’ health and those with safety-sensitive positions. Sleep deprivation, circadian rhythm disruptions, and excessive daytime sleepiness-hallmarks of insufficient sleep, shift work disorder, and OSA, respectively-all lead to a series of cognitive deficits and impaired concentration that affect workers in a wide variety of fields. We describe the health consequences of these disorders along with treatment strategies, with a focus on current regulatory standards and the under-recognition of OSA in commercial drivers. Given its large scale, there is a need for improved guidelines and regulations for the screening, diagnosis, treatment, and long-term follow-up of OSA in commercial motor vehicle drivers. Increased recognition of the ways in which these sleep disorders impact workers will pave the way for significant improvements in occupational health and safety.

While most individuals spend a substantial amount of time sleeping, Japan is among the developed countries whose residents register the fewest number of hours of sleep. I thus examine the causal effects of sleep on labor productivity, utilizing panel datasets for Japanese men. The potential endogeneity of deciding how many hours to sleep is addressed by using fixed effects panel data models with an instrumental variable estimation technique. Exploiting the annual variation in the average sunshine duration between cities as an instrument, I then show that a one-hour increase in the weekly number of hours of sleep increases the wage rate by up to 6–8% on average. These results suggest that sleep duration could enhance labor productivity.

In the course of evolution, health is prioritized for human well-being and economies. Epidemiological and experimental studies suggest that modern life habits, including eating habits, and living and working conditions, can deteriorate health through circadian misalignment. This has been most commonly observed with urban societies and working classes of non-standard working schedules (NSWSs), such as shift work, night work, and overtime work. Poor health conditions with NSWSs generate economic burden for the modern society. Therefore, we attempt to provide a systematic approach to understanding the relations among the circadian clock, health, and economics. To understand these connections, we review the mechanisms of the human circadian clock and how modern living conditions can misalign the circadian system and associated health consequences. We also emphasize the importance of health for the modern economy and the economic costs of health disorders associated with circadian disruption and NSWSs.

High quality of sleep may mitigate the impact of pathophysiological mechanisms in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) through functional connectivity reorganization of neural networks underlying higher cognitive functions. Thirty-eight patients with MCI stratified into high and low quality of sleep in accordance with a self-reported questionnaire for sleep habits, and 38 controls underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Independent component analysis was used to reconstruct the default mode network and frontoparietal network (FPN). High quality of sleep was associated with increased FPN connectivity among patients with MCI. Moreover, a positive coupling of connectivity between networks was found in MCI reporting high quality of sleep, congruently with the pattern observed in controls, whereas this coupling was disrupted in MCI with low quality of sleep. An association between FPN connectivity and language scores was observed in MCI. These findings suggest a relationship between sleep quality and FPN connectivity in MCI that may underlie compensatory mechanisms to overcome advancing neurodegeneration.

BACKGROUND: Sleep deprivation is a condition in which an individual does not get enough sleep, leading to a variety of negative effects on their physical and mental health. In the United States, sleep deprivation is a common problem, with many people not getting the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Excessive daytime sleepiness is also a common condition in the United States. It is characterized by a persistent feeling of fatigue or drowsiness during the day, despite getting enough sleep at night. The current study aims to document the frequency of sleepiness symptoms amongst the general US population. METHODS: A web-based survey was conducted to assess the frequency of daily anxiety symptoms amongst adults residing in the United States. Questions from the Epworth Sleepiness Scale were used to quantify the burden of daytime sleepiness. JMP 16.0 for Mac OS was used to perform statistical analyses. Our Institutional Review Board gave the study an exempt determination (#2022-569). RESULTS: In total, 9% of people qualified as having lower normal daytime sleepiness, 34% qualified as having higher normal daytime sleepiness, 26% qualified as having mild excessive daytime sleepiness, 17% qualified as having moderate excessive daytime sleepiness, and 17% qualified as having severe excessive daytime sleepiness. LIMITATIONS: The present findings are based on cross-sectional survey data. CONCLUSION: Although sleep is one of the most crucial bodily activities, our study of young adults found that more than 60% had moderate to severe sleep deprivation/daytime sleepiness as reported on the Epworth Sleepiness scale.

PURPOSE: US adults who report experiencing insufficient sleep are more likely to suffer from metabolic disorders such as hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and obesity than those with sufficient sleep. Less is understood about the underlying molecular mechanisms connecting these phenomena. A systematic, qualitative review of metabolomics studies exploring metabolic changes in response to sleep insufficiency, sleep deprivation, or circadian disruption was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. METHODS: An electronic literature review in the PubMed database was performed considering publications through May 2021 and screening and eligibility criteria were applied to articles retrieved. The following keywords were used: “metabolomics” and “sleep disorders” or “sleep deprivation” or “sleep disturbance” or “circadian rhythm.” After screening and addition of studies included from reference lists of retrieved studies, 16 records were identified for review. RESULTS: Consistent changes in metabolites were observed across studies between individuals experiencing sleep deprivation compared to non-sleep deprived controls. Significant increases in phosphatidylcholines, acylcarnitines, sphingolipids, and other lipids were consistent across studies. Increased levels of amino acids such as tryptophan and phenylalanine were also noted. However, studies were limited to small samples of young, healthy, mostly male participants conducted in short inpatient sessions, limiting generalizability. CONCLUSION: Changes in lipid and amino acid metabolites accompanying sleep deprivation and/or circadian rhythms may indicate cellular membrane and protein breakdown underlying the connection between sleep disturbance, hyperlipidemia, and other metabolic disorders. Larger epidemiological studies examining changes in the human metabolome in response to chronic insufficient sleep would help elucidate this relationship.

Sabbath-keeping has several holistic health benefits when done for intrinsic reasons. Most research on Sabbath-keeping is about individuals where Sabbath-keeping is customary. This organic inquiry describes how a Sabbath promoted transformation for ten women where Sabbath-keeping was not the norm. Six themes emerged: Sabbath-keeping enhanced self-awareness, improved self-care, enriched relationships, developed spirituality, positively affected the rest of a Sabbath-keeper’s week, and Sabbath-keeping practices and philosophies also evolved over time. The author argues that reviving the best parts of Sabbath-keeping is an effective, accessible, holistic practice that can contribute to the well-being of individuals, communities, and the earth.

The majority of the world’s population now lives an urban existence, spending as much as 95% of their lives indoors. The olfactory atmosphere in the built environment has been shown to exert a profound, if often unrecognized, influence over our mood and well-being. While the traditionally malodorous stench to be found indoors (i.e., prior to the invention of modern sanitation) has largely been eliminated in recent centuries, many of the outbreaks of sick-building syndrome that have been reported over the last half century have been linked to the presence of a strange smell in the environment. At the same time, however, there is also growing evidence that consumer behavior can be manipulated by the presence of pleasant ambient odors, while various aromatherapy scents are said to improve our mood and well-being. This Anglophone review focuses primarily on indoor western urban developed spaces. Importantly, the olfactory ambience constitutes but one component of the multisensory atmosphere and ambient odors interact with the visual, auditory, and haptic aspects of the built environment. Surprisingly, the majority of published studies that have deliberately chosen to combine ambient scent with other sensory interventions, such as, for example, music, have failed to increase store sales, or to enhance people’s mood and/or well-being, as might have been expected. Such negative findings therefore stress the importance of considering multisensory congruency while, at the same time, also highlighting the potential dangers that may be associated with sensory overload when thinking about the effect of ambient smell on our well-being.

Daytime napping are used by elite athletes in both training and match-day settings. Currently, there are limited interventional studies on the efficacy of napping on physical performance in elite team-sport athletes. Therefore, the objective was to investigate the effect of a daytime nap (<1 h) on afternoon performance of peak power, reaction time, subjective wellness, and aerobic performance in professional rugby union athletes. A randomised cross-over design was carried out amongst 15 professional rugby union athletes. Athletes performed nap (NAP) and no nap (CON) conditions on two occasions, separated by one week. Baseline testing of reaction time, subjective wellness, and 6-s peak power test on a cycle ergometer was completed in the morning, followed by 2 x 45-minute training sessions, after which athletes completed the NAP or CON condition at 1200h. Following the nap period, baseline measures were retested in addition to a 30-minute fixed intensity interval cycle and a 4-minute maximal effort cycling test. A significant group x time interaction was determined for 6-s peak power output (+157.6 W, p<0.01, d=1.53), perceived fatigue (-0.2 AU, p=0.01, d=0.37) and muscle soreness (-0.1 AU, p=0.04, d=0.75) in favor of the NAP condition. A significantly lower perceived exertion rating (-1.2 AU, p<0.01, d=1.72) was recorded for the fixed intensity session in favour of NAP. This study highlights that utilizing daytime naps between training sessions on the same day improved afternoon peak power and lower perceptions of fatigue, soreness, and exertion during afternoon training in professional rugby union athletes.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Working outside the conventional “9-to-5” shift may lead to reduced sleep and alertness impairment. Here, we developed an optimization algorithm to identify sleep and work schedules that minimize alertness impairment during work hours, while reducing impairment during non-work hours. METHODS: The optimization algorithm searches among a large number of possible sleep and work schedules and estimates their effectiveness in mitigating alertness impairment using the Unified Model of Performance (UMP). To this end, the UMP, and its extensions to estimate sleep latency and sleep duration, predicts the time course of alertness of each potential schedule and their physiological feasibility. We assessed the algorithm by simulating four experimental studies, where we compared alertness levels during work periods for sleep schedules proposed by the algorithm against those used in the studies. In addition, in one of the studies we assessed the algorithm’s ability to simultaneously optimize sleep and work schedules. RESULTS: Using the same amount of sleep as in the studies but distributing it optimally, the sleep schedules proposed by the optimization algorithm reduced alertness impairment during work periods by an average of 29%. Similarly, simultaneously optimized sleep and work schedules, for a recovery period following a chronic sleep restriction challenge, accelerated the return to baseline levels by two days when compared to the conventional 9-to-5 work schedule. CONCLUSIONS: Our work provides the first quantitative tool to optimize sleep and work schedules and extends the capabilities of existing fatigue-management tools.

Numerous studies have highlighted the physical and mental health benefits of contact with nature, typically in landscapes characterized by plants (i.e., “greenspace”) and water (i.e., “bluespace”). However, natural landscapes are not always green or blue, and the effects of other landscapes are worth attention. This narrative review attempts to overcome this limitation of past research. Rather than focusing on colors, we propose that natural landscapes are composed of at least one of three components: (1) plants (e.g., trees, flowering plants, grasses, sedges, mosses, ferns, and algae), (2) water (e.g., rivers, canals, lakes, and oceans), and/or (3) rocks and minerals, including soil. Landscapes not dominated by plants or liquid-state water include those with abundant solid-state water (e.g., polar spaces) and rocks or minerals (e.g., deserts and caves). Possible health benefits of solid-state water or rock/mineral dominated landscapes include both shorter-term (e.g., viewing images) and longer-term (e.g., living in these landscapes) exposure durations. Reported benefits span improved emotional and mental states and medical treatment resources for respiratory conditions and allergies. Mechanisms underlying the health benefits of exposure consist of commonly discussed theories in the “greenspace” and “bluespace” literature (i.e., instoration and restoration) as well as less discussed pathways in that literature (i.e., post-traumatic growth, self-determination, supportive environment theory, and place attachment). This is the first review to draw attention to the potential salutogenic value of natural landscapes beyond “greenspace” and “bluespace.” It is also among the first to highlight the limitations and confusion that result from classifying natural landscapes using color. Since the extant literature on natural landscapes – beyond those with abundant plants or liquid-state water – is limited in regard to quantity and quality, additional research is needed to understand their restorative potential and therapeutic possibilities.

Repeated consumption of high-energy nutrient poor foods can lead to undesirable health outcomes such as obesity. Taste plays an important role in food choice, and a better understanding of the links between the taste of foods, individual taste preferences, food choices, and intakes will aid in our understanding of why some people might select and consume unhealthy foods. The present review focuses on three main questions: (1) do nutrient poor and nutrient rich foods significantly differ in taste profile? (2) are humans predisposed toward developing a liking or preference for certain taste profiles? (3) how are individual variations in liking of the basic taste qualities related to long term food intake and adverse health outcomes such as obesity? Results indicated that nutrient poor foods were likely to be sweet, salty and fatty mouthfeel, while the taste profiles of nutrient rich foods were diverse. Although humans are born with a universal liking for sweet and aversion for bitter taste, large individual differences exist in liking of all the basic taste qualities. These individual differences partly explain differences in short term intakes of foods varying in taste profiles. However they fail to sufficiently explain long term food choices and negative health outcomes such as obesity. Future studies should focus on how the full sensory profile of food which includes taste, smell and texture interacts with individual characteristics (e.g., taste or health motivations, taste preferences) to affect consumption of nutrient rich and nutrient poor foods.

Many university students have been struggling with multiple challenges that may cause mental fatigue. Exposure to the natural environment is found to have restorative effects on mental fatigue, which can be explained by its benefits in physiological, psychological, and cognitive aspects. While the natural environment contains both visual and auditory elements, research on the effects of auditory elements, such as nature sounds, is underdeveloped and limited to laboratory settings. It remains unclear what are the effects of exposure to nature sounds in daily life settings. The study was conducted with 71 students from a university, who were randomly assigned to the experimental group using a nature-sound mobile application in daily life and the control group not using the application. After a 4-week exposure to the intervention, the students in the experimental group outperformed their counterparts in the control group on psychological well-being reflected in positive affect, as well as cognitive performance reflected in flow state, attention (in terms of alerting) and working memory (in terms of accuracy and reaction time). The findings reveal the positive impact of exposure to relaxing nature sounds on university students’ psychological well-being and cognitive performance, as well as the potential of mobile applications to provide easy exposure to nature sounds.

OBJECTIVES: Older people are recommended to take oral vitamin D supplements, but the main source of vitamin D is sunlight. Our aim was to explore whether active encouragement to spend time outdoors could increase the levels of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and increase the mental well-being of nursing home residents. DESIGN: A cluster randomized intervention trial. SETTING: Nursing homes in southern Sweden. PARTICIPANTS: In total 40 people >65 years. INTERVENTION: The intervention group was encouraged to go outside for 20-30 minutes between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. every day for two months during the summer of 2018. MEASUREMENTS: We analyzed serum 25(OH)D before and after the summer. Data from SF-36 questionnaires measuring vitality and mental health were used for the analyses. RESULTS: In the intervention group, the baseline median (interquartile range (IQR)) of serum 25(OH)D was 42.5 (23.0) nmol/l and in the control group it was 52.0 (36.0) nmol/l. In the intervention group, the 25(OH)D levels increased significantly during the summer (p=0.011). In the control group, there was no significant change. The intervention group reported better self-perceived mental health after the summer compared to before the summer (p=0.015). In the control group, there was no difference in mental health. CONCLUSION: Active encouragement to spend time outdoors during summertime improved the levels of serum 25(OH)D and self-perceived mental health significantly in older people in nursing homes and could complement or replace oral vitamin D supplementation in the summer.

Gardening programmes aim to promote improved engagement and quality of life in persons with dementia. Although a substantial literature has amassed documenting the overall positive outcomes associated with therapeutic gardening and horticulture for persons with dementia, little is known about the specific aspects of the gardening process that engender these benefits, and how and why they are important. The purpose of this research was to explore, using interpretative phenomenological analysis, the experiences of therapeutic gardening for persons with dementia, and their perspectives on the senses and emotions elicited in the gardening process that promote well-being. The themes that emerged in our analysis are to varying degrees substantiated in the literature: the usefulness of activating the senses, particularly those of touch and smell; the significance of being occupied in meaningful, productive work; the importance of cultivating a sense of curiosity, wonder, and learning; the positive gains derived from socialization in a group context; the peace and hope derived from being ‘in the moment’; and the positive mental and physical well-being derived from participating in the outdoor garden. Our findings support the integration of therapeutic gardening as a valuable practice for people with dementia.

As older adults experience physical and mental changes, they may have difficulty keeping up with tasks that were once routine and may be faced with a growing accumulation of once important possessions that are no longer needed. Problems with clutter have been associated with stress and life dissatisfaction. Helping older adults realize the benefits of decluttering their living environment and providing them with advice on how to do this can help them feel accomplished and in control. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 58(4), 16-18.].

The majority of the world’s population now lives an urban existence, spending as much as 95% of their lives indoors. The olfactory atmosphere in the built environment has been shown to exert a profound, if often unrecognized, influence over our mood and well-being. While the traditionally malodorous stench to be found indoors (i.e., prior to the invention of modern sanitation) has largely been eliminated in recent centuries, many of the outbreaks of sick-building syndrome that have been reported over the last half century have been linked to the presence of a strange smell in the environment. At the same time, however, there is also growing evidence that consumer behavior can be manipulated by the presence of pleasant ambient odors, while various aromatherapy scents are said to improve our mood and well-being. This Anglophone review focuses primarily on indoor western urban developed spaces. Importantly, the olfactory ambience constitutes but one component of the multisensory atmosphere and ambient odors interact with the visual, auditory, and haptic aspects of the built environment. Surprisingly, the majority of published studies that have deliberately chosen to combine ambient scent with other sensory interventions, such as, for example, music, have failed to increase store sales, or to enhance people’s mood and/or well-being, as might have been expected. Such negative findings therefore stress the importance of considering multisensory congruency while, at the same time, also highlighting the potential dangers that may be associated with sensory overload when thinking about the effect of ambient smell on our well-being.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Using the concepts of Ulrich’s theory of supportive design and Malkin’s healing environment, an eye tracking experiment was designed in order to measure respondents’ reactions while looking at visualisations of various interiors, with the aim of verifying whether certain parameters of an interior are related to emotional reactions in terms of positive stimulation, and the sense of security and comfort. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 12 boards were designed, incorporating standard features of an interior, i.e. (1) proportions, (2) lighting, (3) colour scheme of a room, as well as (4) the colours and spatial arrangement of furnishings. Respondents’ reactions were recorded with an eye tracker Tobii TX300 and supplemented by self-descriptions of emotional reactions. RESULTS: The results showed that the varying spatial and colour arrangements presented in the interior visualisations provoked different emotional responses, confirmed by pupil reaction parameters, as measured by the eye tracking device. CONCLUSIONS: Architectural space can have a diverse emotional significance and impact on an individual’s emotional state. This is an important conclusion from the point of view of optimising and creating the so-called supportive and healing environment. The results have implications for the interpretation of the pupil diameter as an index of emotional reactions to different architectural space visualisations. Testing the eye tracker as a method helpful in diagnosing the emotional reactions to features of the interior is justified, and can provide an effective tool for early diagnosis of the impact of architectural space on the well-being of individuals. It can also be a good form of testing the emotional significance of architectural designs before they are implemented.

The results of the present study establish the temporal pattern of age-related vascular dysfunction across the adult lifespan in sedentary mice consuming a non-Western diet, and the underlying mechanisms The results demonstrate that consuming a Western diet accelerates and exacerbates vascular ageing across the lifespan in sedentary mice They also show that lifelong voluntary aerobic exercise has remarkable protective effects on vascular function throughout the lifespan, in the setting of ageing alone, as well as ageing compounded by Western diet consumption Overall, the results indicate that amelioration of mitochondrial oxidative stress and inflammation are key mechanisms underlying the voluntary aerobic exercise-associated preservation of vascular function across the lifespan in both the presence and absence of a Western dietary pattern ABSTRACT: Advancing age is the major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, driven largely by vascular endothelial dysfunction (impaired endothelium-dependent dilatation, EDD) and aortic stiffening (increased aortic pulse wave velocity, aPWV). In humans, vascular ageing occurs in the presence of differences in diet and physical activity, but the interactive effects of these factors are unknown. We assessed carotid artery EDD and aPWV across the lifespan in mice consuming standard (normal) low-fat chow (NC) or a high-fat/high-sucrose Western diet (WD) in the absence (sedentary, SED) or presence (voluntary wheel running, VWR) of aerobic exercise. Ageing impaired nitric oxide-mediated EDD (peak EDD 88 +/- 12% 6 months P = 0.003 vs. 59 +/- 9% 27 months NC-SED), which was accelerated by WD (60 +/- 18% 6 months WD-SED). In NC mice, aPWV increased 32% with age (423 +/- 13 cm/s at 24 months P < 0.001 vs. 321 +/- 12 cm/s at 6 months) and absolute values were an additional approximately 10% higher at any age in WD mice (P = 0.042 vs. NC-SED). Increases in aPWV with age in NC and WD mice were associated with 30-65% increases in aortic intrinsic wall stiffness (6 vs. 19-27 months, P = 0.007). Lifelong aerobic exercise prevented age- and WD-related vascular dysfunction across the lifespan, and this protection appeared to be mediated by mitigation of vascular mitochondrial oxidative stress and inflammation. Our results depict the temporal impairment of vascular function over the lifespan in mice, acceleration and exacerbation of that dysfunction with WD consumption, the remarkable protective effects of voluntary aerobic exercise, and the underlying mechanisms.

OBJECTIVE: Post-COVID-19 patients complained of pain, fatigue, breathlessness, and reduction in quality of life which required planned intervention. This study aimed to compare the impact of 10 weeks of low vs. moderate-intensity aerobic training on physical fitness, psychological status, and quality of life in post-COVID-19 older subjects. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 72 patients were randomized into 3 equal groups, moderate-intensity exercise (MIG, n = 24), low-intensity exercise (LIG, n = 24), and control group (CG, n = 24). The exercise was done 40 min/4 times per week for 10 weeks. We measured exercise capacity using the six-minute walking test, 1 min sit-to-stand test, post-COVID-19 functional scale (PCFS), and quality of life using the SF-36 questionnaire and HAMILTON Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). RESULTS: There was no difference between groups regarding the demographic and most clinical characteristics of the subjects. Compared with CG there were statistically significant improvements in studying groups (MIG and LIG) with (p < 0.05) in most outcomes and the improvement was higher in MIG than in LIG in most outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: 10-week moderate-intensity and low-intensity aerobic training programs are effective with superior effect to moderate-intensity. Moderate-intensity aerobic exercise is more effective and feasible in post-discharge COVID-19 older subjects regarding exercise capacity, quality of life, and psychological status than low-intensity aerobic exercise.

BACKGROUND: To assess how timing, frequency and maintenance of being physically active, spanning over 30 years in adulthood, is associated with later-life cognitive function. METHODS: Participants (n=1417, 53% female) were from the prospective longitudinal cohort study, 1946 British birth cohort. Participation in leisure time physical activity was reported five times between ages 36 and 69, categorised into: not active (no participation in physical activity/month); moderately active (participated 1-4 times/month); most active (participated 5 or more times/month). Cognition at age 69 was assessed by tests of cognitive state (Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination-III), verbal memory (word learning test) and processing speed (visual search speed). RESULTS: Being physically active, at all assessments in adulthood, was associated with higher cognition at age 69. For cognitive state and verbal memory, the effect sizes were similar across all adult ages, and between those who were moderately and most physically active. The strongest association was between sustained cumulative physical activity and later-life cognitive state, in a dose-response manner. Adjusting for childhood cognition, childhood socioeconomic position and education largely attenuated these associations but results mainly remained significant at the 5% level. CONCLUSIONS: Being physically active at any time in adulthood, and to any extent, is linked with higher later-life cognitive state, but lifelong maintenance of physical activity was most optimal. These relationships were partly explained by childhood cognition and education, but independent of cardiovascular and mental health and APOE-E4, suggestive of the importance of education on the lifelong impacts of physical activity.

IMPORTANCE: Cerebrovascular changes are already evident in young adults with hypertension and exercise is recommended to reduce cardiovascular risk. To what extent exercise benefits the cerebrovasculature at an early stage of the disease remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether structured aerobic exercise increases brain vessel lumen diameter or cerebral blood flow (CBF) and whether lumen diameter is associated with CBF. DESIGN: Open, parallel, two-arm superiority randomized controlled (1:1) trial in the TEPHRA study on an intention-to-treat basis. The MRI sub-study was an optional part of the protocol. The outcome assessors remained blinded until the data lock. SETTING: Single-centre trial in Oxford, UK. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were physically inactive (<150 min/week moderate to vigorous physical activity), 18 to 35 years old, 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure 115/75 mmHg-159/99 mmHg, body mass index below 35 kg/m(2) and never been on prescribed hypertension medications. Out of 203 randomized participants, 135 participated in the MRI sub-study. Randomisation was stratified for sex, age (<24, 24-29, 30-35 years) and gestational age at birth (<32, 32-37, >37 weeks). INTERVENTION: Study participants were randomised to a 16 week aerobic exercise intervention targeting 3×60 min sessions per week at 60 to 80 % peak heart rate. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: cerebral blood flow (CBF) maps from ASL MRI scans, internal carotid artery (ICA), middle cerebral artery (MCA) M1 and M2 segments, anterior cerebral artery (ACA), basilar artery (BA), and posterior cerebral artery (PCA) diameters extracted from TOF MRI scans. RESULTS: Of the 135 randomized participants (median age 28 years, 58 % women) who had high quality baseline MRI data available, 93 participants also had high quality follow-up data available. The exercise group showed an increase in ICA (0.1 cm, 95 % CI 0.01 to 0.18, p =.03) and MCA M1 (0.05 cm, 95 % CI 0.01 to 0.10, p =.03) vessel diameter compared to the control group. Differences in the MCA M2 (0.03 cm, 95 % CI 0.0 to 0.06, p =.08), ACA (0.04 cm, 95 % CI 0.0 to 0.08, p =.06), BA (0.02 cm, 95 % CI -0.04 to 0.09, p =.48), and PCA (0.03 cm, 95 % CI -0.01 to 0.06, p =.17) diameters or CBF were not statistically significant. The increase in ICA vessel diameter in the exercise group was associated with local increases in CBF. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Aerobic exercise induces positive cerebrovascular remodelling in young people with early hypertension, independent of blood pressure. The long-term benefit of these changes requires further study. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02723552, 30 March 2016.

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer’s disease is the most common neurodegenerative disease in the world, characterized by the progressive loss of neuronal structure and function, whose main histopathological landmark is the accumulation of β-amyloid in the brain. OBJECTIVE: It is well known that exercise is a neuroprotective factor and that muscles produce and release myokines that exert endocrine effects in inflammation and metabolic dysfunction. Thus, this work intends to establish the relationship between the benefits of exercise through the chronic training of HIIT on cognitive damage induced by the Alzheimer’s model by the injection of β amyloid 1-42. METHODS: For this purpose, forty-eight male Wistar rats were divided into four groups: Sedentary Sham (SS), Trained Sham (ST), Sedentary Alzheimer’s (AS), and Trained Alzheimer’s (AT). Animals were submitted to stereotactic surgery and received a hippocampal injection of Aβ1-42 or a saline solution. Seven days after surgery, twelve days of treadmill adaptation followed by five maximal running tests (MRT) and fifty-five days of HIIT, rats underwent the Morris water maze test. The animals were then euthanized, and their gastrocnemius muscle tissue was extracted to analyze the Fibronectin type III domain containing 5 (FNDC5), PPARG Coactivator 1 Alpha (PPARGC1A), and Integrin subunit beta 5 (ITGB5-R) expression by qRT-PCR in addition to cross-sectional areas. RESULTS: The HIIT prevents the cognitive deficit induced by the infusion of amyloid β 1-42 (p<0.0001), causes adaptation of muscle fibers (p<0.0001), modulates the gene expression of FNDC5 (p<0.01), ITGB5 (p<0.01) and PPARGC1A (p<0.01), and induces an increase in peripheral protein expression of FNDC5 (p<0.005). CONCLUSION: Thus, we conclude that HIIT can prevent cognitive damage induced by the infusion of Aβ1-42, constituting a non-pharmacological tool that modulates important genetic and protein pathways.

Aging is accompanied by a decrease in physical capabilities (e.g., strength loss) and cognitive decline. The observed bidirectional relationship between physical activity and brain health suggests that physical activities could be beneficial to maintain and improve brain functioning (e.g., cognitive performance). However, the exercise type (e.g., resistance training, endurance training) and their exercise variables (e.g., load, duration, frequency) for an effective physical activity that optimally enhance cognitive performance are still unknown. There is growing evidence that resistance training induces substantial brain changes which contribute to improved cognitive functions. A relative new method in the field of resistance training is blood flow restriction training (BFR). While resistance training with BFR is widely studied in the context of muscular performance, this training strategy also induces an activation of signaling pathways associated with neuroplasticity and cognitive functions. Based on this, it seems reasonable to hypothesize that resistance training with BFR is a promising new strategy to boost the effectiveness of resistance training interventions regarding cognitive performance. To support our hypothesis, we provide rationales of possible adaptation processes induced by resistance training with BFR. Furthermore, we outline recommendations for future studies planning to investigate the effects of resistance training with BFR on cognition.

Exercise may prevent or delay aging-related memory loss and neurodegeneration. In rodents, running increases the number of adult-born neurons in the dentate gyrus (DG) of the hippocampus, in association with improved synaptic plasticity and memory function. However, it is unclear whether adult-born neurons remain fully integrated into the hippocampal network during aging and whether long-term running affects their connectivity. To address this issue, we labeled proliferating DG neural progenitor cells with retrovirus expressing the avian TVA receptor in two-month-old sedentary and running male C57Bl/6 mice. More than six months later, we injected EnvA-pseudotyped rabies virus into the DG as a monosynaptic retrograde tracer, to selectively infect TVA expressing “old” new neurons. We identified and quantified the direct afferent inputs to these adult-born neurons within the hippocampus and (sub)cortical areas. Here, we show that long-term running substantially modifies the network of the neurons generated in young adult mice, upon middle-age. Exercise increases input from hippocampal interneurons onto “old” adult-born neurons, which may play a role in reducing aging-related hippocampal hyperexcitability. In addition, running prevents the loss of adult-born neuron innervation from perirhinal cortex, and increases input from subiculum and entorhinal cortex, brain areas that are essential for contextual and spatial memory. Thus, long-term running maintains the wiring of “old” new neurons, born during early adulthood, within a network that is important for memory function during aging.

BACKGROUND: Despite growing evidence regarding the association between exercise training (ET) and functional brain network connectivity, little is known about the effects of ET on large-scale within- and between-network functional connectivity (FC) of core brain networks. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the effects of ET on within- and between-network functional connectivity of the default mode network (DMN), frontoparietal network (FPN), and salience network (SAL) in older adults with intact cognition (CN) and older adults diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The association between ET-induced changes in FC and cognitive performance was examined. METHODS: 33 older adults (78.0±7.0 years; 16 MCI and 17 CN) participated in this study. Before and after a 12-week walking ET intervention, participants underwent a graded exercise test, Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWAT), Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT), a narrative memory test (logical memory; LM), and a resting-state fMRI scan. We examined the within ((W)) and between ((B)) network connectivity of the DMN, FPN, and SAL. We used linear regression to examine associations between ET-related changes in network connectivity and cognitive function. RESULTS: There were significant improvements in cardiorespiratory fitness, COWAT, RAVLT, and LM after ET across participants. Significant increases in DMN(W) and SAL(W), and DMN-FPN(B), DMN-SAL(B), and FPN-SAL(B) were observed after ET. Greater SAL(W) and FPN-SAL(B) were associated with enhanced LM immediate recall performance after ET in both groups. CONCLUSION: Increased within- and between-network connectivity following ET may subserve improvements in memory performance in older individuals with intact cognition and with MCI due to Alzheimer’s disease.

Faith, belief, and religion can powerfully shape how people live with and heal from illness. Engaging in religious practices, from gathering for services to reading the holy texts and engaging in private prayer, can serve as a critical way of coping or building resilience amidst everyday social, moral, and medical challenges. In this article, we investigate why, what, and how people living with chronic illness in an urban South African township prioritise healing practices of the Church over the Clinic. We conducted 88 in-depth qualitative interviews to understand how people think about health, chronic illness, and healing. Most people described complex socio-spiritual beliefs and practices that many prioritised or practiced apart from biomedical care. This included religious practices, such as prayer and drinking church water, as well as one’s spirituality, which was an essential way in which people found healing. Recognising how socio-spiritual practice fosters healing and wellness is critical for thinking about health and healing for Soweto residents.

The purpose of this proof-of-concept study was to examine the outcomes and acceptability of a spiritual intervention for moral injury led by veteran peers in a Veteran Service Organization (VSO), called “Heroes to Heroes.” From baseline to 1-year follow-up, 101 veterans who participated in the intervention completed the evaluation surveys at four time points assessing psychological outcomes (moral injury, posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD] symptoms, and life satisfaction), spiritual outcomes (spiritual struggles and spiritual transcendence), and their perceived helpfulness of the program. In addition, we conducted four focus groups with six to eight alumni to more fully understand veterans’ views and experiences of the program. Focusing on the longitudinal surveys, latent growth modeling analyses revealed veterans generally improved across the psychological and spiritual outcomes in the study. Specifically, veterans reported steady decreases in moral injury outcomes, PTSD symptoms, and spiritual struggles along with increased life satisfaction and spiritual transcendence over the 1-year period. An inductive content analysis of veterans’ responses to open-ended items in the surveys and focus group interviews revealed four possible mechanisms or facilitators of these outcomes: (a) social connectivity and belonging (e.g., shared vulnerability and camaraderie); (b) behavioral engagement in core aspects of their spirituality (e.g., sacred practices and visiting sacred places); (c) spiritual transformation and growth (e.g., closeness with God and divine forgiveness); and (d) appreciation for diversity (e.g., religious and military). Overall, these findings affirm the potential effectiveness and acceptability of the VSO’s peer-led spiritual intervention for promoting the holistic healing among veterans who are contending with emotional and spiritual wounds of war. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: We assessed the relationship between positive aspects of religiosity and reduced stress in caregivers, and negative aspects of religiosity and increased caregiver burden. Method: Using data from the Biopsychosocial Religion and Health Study, we performed multiple linear regression analysis on 584 caregivers. Results: Mental health, but not physical health, was predicted by caregiver burden. Caregivers who viewed God as loving and not controlling and felt a sense of community with their church family had less burden. Caregivers who engaged in negative religious coping had a greater decline in mental health than those who saw God as loving and not controlling and who gave emotional support to others. Discussion: Some aspects of religion appear to play an important role in alleviating the mental stresses of being a caregiver.

AIM: The purpose of this article is to enhance our understanding of prayer healing by studying a case which was described as a ‘remarkable healing’ by a medical assessment team at the Amsterdam University Medical Centre (UMC) in the Netherlands. METHOD: This retrospective, case-based study of prayer healing investigated numerous reported healings using both medical files and patient narratives. A medical assessment team evaluated the associated medical files, as well as any experiential data. The instances of healing could be classified as ‘remarkable’ or ‘unexplained.’ Experiential data were obtained by qualitative, in-depth interviews. The study was transdisciplinary in nature, involving medical, psychological, theological, and philosophical perspectives. The object was to understand such healings within the broader framework of the science-religion debate. RESULTS: We present the case of a female patient, born in 1959, with Parkinson disease who experienced instantaneous, nearly complete healing in 2012 after intercessory prayer. At that point the disease was at an advanced stage, rapidly progressive, with major debilitating symptoms. High doses of oral medication were required. Following this healing there was no recurrence of her former symptoms, while the remaining symptoms continued to improve. She regained all of her capacities at work, as well as in daily life. The medical assessment team described her recovery as ‘remarkable.’ The patient reported that she had always ‘lived with God,’ and that at a point when she had given up hope, ‘life was given back to her.’ This recovery did not make her immune to other illnesses and suffering, but it did strengthen her belief that God cares about human beings. CONCLUSION: This remarkable healing and its context astonished the patient, her family, and her doctors. The clinical course was extraordinary, contradicting data from imaging studies, as well as the common understanding of this disease. This case also raised questions about medical assumptions. Any attempt to investigate such healings requires the involvement of other disciplines. A transdisciplinary approach that includes experiential knowledge would be helpful. Against the background of the science-religion debate, we feel that the most helpful approach would be one of complementarity and dialogue, rather than stoking controversy.

BACKGROUND: In addition to the typical challenges of daily life, Muslim Americans have experienced high levels of stress and clinical disorders relating to discrimination from the 9/11 attacks and ongoing political stigma. Despite mounting mental health concerns, Muslim Americans have encountered multifaceted barriers to accessing mental health services and remain underserved. AIMS: This study sought to explore the relationship between religiousness and beliefs about mental illness among Muslim Americans to predict their clinical help-seeking attitudes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present study gathered a nationwide sample of Muslim Americans through online data collection to assess how the relationship between religiousness and help-seeking was mediated by acculturation and biomedical beliefs about mental illness. RESULTS: Analyses found that Islamic religiousness and biomedical beliefs predicted more openness to mental health treatment. Additional analyses found that integration with mainstream culture was correlated with higher confidence in services. DISCUSSION: The findings of this study provide clinicians a nuanced understanding of how biological beliefs about mental illness may align with Islamic spiritual values and foster culturally responsive communication and healthcare. Barriers to treatment may be addressed for males and other underserved demographics through integrated treatment that recognizes their understandings of health, illness, and treatment. CONCLUSION: Overall, results of the study provide support for recognizing religion along with demographic background as a cultural consideration to enhance treatment efficacy.

Analyses of the 2020 combined European and World Values Surveys (124,958 respondents from 77 countries) found that people who believed in God tended to be happier, more satisfied with lives, and healthier than non-believers. Believers trusted people close to them (e.g., neighbors) more than non-believers, although non-believers tended to trust people in general and trust people from other countries more than believers. Non-believers tended to be more ideologically prosocial than non-believers (e.g., belonging to an environmental organization, advocating freedom of speech vs. control). Such differences were stronger in countries in which there were more vs fewer believers. Moreover, these differences remained after controlling for individual differences in sex, age, education, income, and left-right political orientation.

Religious and spiritual practices have been identified as a main source of mental health support for Latinxs to improve overall health and well-being. This qualitative secondary data analysis sought to elucidate how Mexican patients and family members engaged in religious and spiritual practices to help alleviate patients’ experiences of mental illness. Three main findings are discussed: (1) positive religious coping such as entrusting God with one’s suffering, consejos (i.e., emotional support and advice giving), and positive social supports through religious communities; (2) negative religious coping such as harmful views of God as punishing; and (3) indigenous healing practices such as engagement with curanderos (medicine doctor) and limpias (i.e., herb-based cleanses). The authors discuss these findings in the context of tensions between culturally sanctioned healing and the perception of psychotherapeutic effectiveness reported by Mexican patients and their family members. The authors also provide future directions for incorporating patients’ religious and spiritual practices into multiculturally competent treatment.

Prayer, considered by some to be the essence of religion, has been a universal behavior throughout human history. Scholars have increasingly recognized that there are different types of prayer and various prayer purposes, but little work has been done to examine their mental health consequences beyond an examination of prayer frequencies. In this study, we draw on nationally representative data from Wave 6 of the Baylor Religion Survey (2021) to examine whether four subtypes of prayer are associated with anxiety: prayer efficacy (the belief that prayer can solve personal and world problems); devotional prayer (praise of God and prayer for the well-being of others); prayers for support (e.g., better health, financial aid); and prayer expectancies (whether God answers prayers). Results suggest that prayer efficacy, prayers for support, and one form of devotional prayer (asking God for forgiveness) all correlate with higher anxiety, while another form of devotional prayer (praise of God) and prayer expectancies are associated with lower anxiety in the American population. We note the importance of capturing multidimensional phenomenon that comprise religious prayer life within the extensive religion and health literature.

PURPOSE: Psychosocial resources have been considered to be associated with survival among frail older adults but the evidence is scarce. The aim was to investigate whether psychosocial resources are related to survival among non-robust community-dwelling older people. METHODS: This is a prospective study with 10- and 18-year follow-ups. Participants were 909 non-robust (according to Rockwood’s Frailty Index) older community-dwellers in Finland. Psychosocial resources were measured with living circumstances, education, satisfaction with friendship and life, visiting other people, being visited by other people, having someone to talk to, having someone who helps, self-rated health (SRH) and hopefulness about the future. To assess the association of psychosocial resources for survival, Cox regression analyses was used. RESULTS: Visiting other people more often than once a week compared to that of less than once a week (hazard ratio 0.61 [95% confidence interval 0.44-0.85], p = 0.003 in 10-year follow-up; 0.77 [0.62-0.95], p = 0.014 in 18-year follow-up) and good SRH compared to poor SRH (0.65 [0.44-0.97], p = 0.032; 0.68 [0.52-0.90], p = 0.007, respectively) were associated with better survival in both follow-ups. Visiting other people once a week (compared to that of less than once a week) (0.77 [0.62-0.95], p = 0.014) was only associated with better 18-year survival. CONCLUSIONS: Psychosocial resources, such as regularly visiting other people and good self-rated health, seem to be associated with better survival among non-robust community-dwelling Finnish older people. This underlines the importance of focusing also on psychosocial well-being of frail older subjects to remain or promote their resilience.

The purpose of the study is to determine whether administering healing touch (HT) is more effective than deep breathing (DB) for reducing acute care nurses’ stress during a shift. A randomized cluster trial assessed 150 nurses’ vital signs and Visual Analog Scale for Stress (VASS) levels pre, post, and at follow-up to achieve a power of .7 and medium affect size. Open-ended questions following the intervention enriched quantitative findings describing the experience, facilitators, and barriers to potential use in nursing. The generalized estimating equation 1 (GEE1) comparisons of mean change over time, found that nurses in the HT intervention, had significantly lower VASS stress scores at posttreatment (-0.95, p  =  .0002) and at follow-up (-0.73, p  =  .0144) than the DB group, and the respiratory rate (RR) rate differences were nearly significant at post-intervention and significant at follow-up, respectively (1.36, p  =  .0568 and -2.28, p  =  .0011), indicating lower RR after HT. These findings support the use of HT as an effective stress reduction strategy as a relevant strategy to sustain a viable nurse work force post-COVID-19.

Touch has been linked empirically to healing outcomes; therefore, developing theories about the dynamics between touch and healing is important for nursing. A practice-based theory is described within a Unitary Science perspective emerging from the findings of a qualitative descriptive study of the experiences of persons with advanced cancer receiving touch (massage and simple touch) during hospice care. Seventeen participants were interviewed. Through content analysis and retroductive constructivist theory development, healing through touch was described as a dynamic process cocreated by healer and healee, characterized by the simultaneous activities of sensing , reflecting , and connecting . Interpretation of findings from a unitary lens led to an overarching theme of touch as sanctuary and explication of theoretical alignment with the concepts of wholeness, awareness, and presence.

Touch has been linked empirically to healing outcomes; therefore, developing theories about the dynamics between touch and healing is important for nursing. A practice-based theory is described within a Unitary Science perspective emerging from the findings of a qualitative descriptive study of the experiences of persons with advanced cancer receiving touch (massage and simple touch) during hospice care. Seventeen participants were interviewed. Through content analysis and retroductive constructivist theory development, healing through touch was described as a dynamic process cocreated by healer and healee, characterized by the simultaneous activities of sensing , reflecting , and connecting . Interpretation of findings from a unitary lens led to an overarching theme of touch as sanctuary and explication of theoretical alignment with the concepts of wholeness, awareness, and presence.

AIM: To assess the effects of laying on of hands (LooH) as a complementary therapy to kinesiotherapy, on pain, joint stiffness, and functional capacity of older women with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) compared to a control group. METHODS: In this randomized controlled clinical trial, participants were assigned into 3 groups: LooH with a spiritual component (“Spiritist passe” Group – SPG), LooH without a spiritual component (LooH Group – LHG), and a control group receiving no complementary intervention (Control Group – CG). Patients were assessed at baseline, 8 weeks, and 16 weeks. Primary outcomes were joint stiffness and functional capacity (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index [WOMAC]), and pain (WOMAC and visual analog scale). Secondary outcomes were anxiety, depression, mobility, and quality of life. Differences between groups were evaluated using an intention-to-treat approach. RESULTS: A total of 120 women (mean age = 69.2 ± 5.2 years) with KOA were randomized (40 participants per group). At 8 weeks, SPG differed significantly from the LHG for WOMAC Functional Status (between-group difference in the change = 0.97; 95% CI: 0.35 to 1.59, P = .001); Anxiety levels (between-group difference in the change = 1.38; 95% CI: 0.11 to 2.65, P = .027); and also from the CG for all outcomes with exception of WOMAC Stiffness. After 16 weeks, SPG differed significantly from the LHG only for WOMAC Functional Status (between-group difference in the change = 0.92; 95% CI: 0.32 to 1.52, P = .001]) and also from the CG for all outcomes with exception of WOMAC Stiffness and timed up-and-go. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that LooH with a “spiritual component” may promote better long-term functional outcomes than both LooH without a “spiritual component” and a control group without LooH.

BACKGROUND: Adherence to treatment regimen is one of the behaviors related to diabetes, which has predicted successful control of the disease and reduced its intensity as well as negative consequences. This study aimed to determine the relationship between spiritual well-being and hope, and adherence to treatment regimen in patients with type II diabetes referred to diabetes clinics. METHODS: In this descriptive-correlational study, 227 diabetic patients referred to healthcare centers and diabetes clinics affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences were selected via cluster sampling (clinics) followed by convenience sampling (patients). The study data were collected using a demographic information form, spiritual well-being scale developed by Ellison and Paloutzian, Herth hope scale, and adherence to treatment regimen questionnaire. Then, the data were entered into the statistical software and were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. RESULTS: The results indicated that most participants had moderate spiritual well-being, high hope, and low adherence to treatment regimen. Additionally, spiritual well-being was directly associated with hope and reversely related to adherence to treatment. A significant reverse correlation was also observed between hope and adherence to treatment. CONCLUSION: Considering the fact that spiritual well-being and hope were reversely associated with adherence to treatment regimen, further studies should be done in this field. Also patients’ image of God and their interpretations of being sick might not be appropriate and need correction.

INTRODUCTION: Gratitude has been identified as a key factor in a number of positive health-related outcomes; however, the mechanisms whereby gratitude is associated with well-being among older adults with chronic pain are poorly understood. Using the Positive Psychological Well-Being Model as a theoretical framework, the objective of the present study was to examine the serial mediating effects of social support, stress, sleep, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) on the relationship between gratitude and depressive symptoms. METHODS: A total sample of 60 community-dwelling older adults with chronic low back pain (cLBP) provided blood samples for high-sensitivity TNF-α and completed the Gratitude Questionnaire, Perceived Stress Scale, and the PROMIS Emotional Support, Sleep Disturbance, and Depression forms. Descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, and serial mediation analyses were performed. RESULTS: Gratitude was negatively associated with perceived stress, sleep disturbance, and depression, and was positively associated with social support. No significant association was observed between gratitude and TNF-α. After controlling for age and marital status, analyses revealed that perceived stress and sleep disturbance sequentially mediated the association between gratitude and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: Perceived stress and sleep disturbance may be potential mechanistic pathways by which gratitude impacts negative well-being. Targeting gratitude as a protective resource may be a potential therapeutic tool to improve psychological and behavioral outcomes in older adults with cLBP.

Gratitude activities have been shown to increase well-being and other positive outcomes in numerous experiments to date. The current study tested whether self-directed gratitude interventions that vary by type (i.e., social vs. nonsocial) and format (i.e., long-form letters vs. shorter lists) produce differential benefits. To that end, 958 Australian adults were assigned to one of six activities to complete each day for 1 week, including five gratitude activities that varied by type and format and an active control condition (i.e., keeping track of daily activities). Regressed change analyses revealed that, overall, long-form writing exercises (i.e., essays and letters) resulted in greater subjective well-being and other positive outcomes than lists. Indeed, those who were instructed to write social and nonsocial gratitude lists did not differ from controls on any outcomes. However, participants who wrote unconstrained gratitude lists-that is, those who wrote about any topics they wanted-reported greater feelings of gratitude and positive affect than did controls. Finally, relative to the other gratitude conditions, participants who wrote gratitude letters to particular individuals in their lives not only showed stronger feelings of gratitude, elevation, and other positive emotions but also reported feeling more indebted. This study demonstrates that not only does gratitude “work” to boost well-being relative to an active neutral activity, but that some forms of gratitude may be more effective than others. We hope these findings help scholars and practitioners to develop, tailor, implement, and scale future gratitude-based interventions. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42761-022-00160-3.

Background Psychological health is as an important contributor to recovery after cardiovascular disease, but the roles of both optimism and depression in stroke recovery are not well characterized. Methods and Results A total of 879 participants in the SRUP (Stroke Recovery in Underserved Populations) 2005 to 2006 Study, aged ≥50 years, with incident stroke admitted to a rehabilitation facility were included. Optimism was assessed by the question: “Are you optimistic about the future?” Depression was defined by Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale score >16. Participants were categorized into 4 groups: optimistic/without depression (n=581), optimistic/with depression (n=197), nonoptimistic/without depression (n=36), and nonoptimistic/with depression (n=65). Functional Independence Measure scores were used to assess stroke outcomes at discharge, 3 months after discharge, and 1 year after discharge with adjusted linear mixed models to estimate score trajectories. Participants were a mean age of 68 years (SD, 13 years), 52% were women, and 74% were White race. The optimistic/without depression group experienced the most recovery of total Functional Independence Measure scores in the first 3 months, 24.0 (95% CI, 22.5-25.4), followed by no change in the following 9 months, -0.3 (95% CI, -2.3 to 1.7), similar to the optimistic/with depression group with rapid recovery in 0 to 3 months, 21.1 (95% CI, 18.6-23.6) followed by minimal change in 3 to 12 months, 0.7 (95% CI, -2.8 to 4.1). The nonoptimistic groups demonstrated slow but continued recovery throughout the 12-month period, with overall change, 25.4 (95% CI, 17.6-33.2) in the nonoptimistic/without depression group and 17.6 (95% CI, 12.0-23.1) in the nonoptimistic/with depression group. There was robust effect modification between optimism and depression (P(interaction)<0.001). Conclusions In this longitudinal cohort, optimism and depression are synergistically associated with functional recovery after stroke. Measuring optimism status may help identify individuals at risk for worse poststroke recovery.

How can gratitude interventions be designed to produce meaningful and enduring effects on people’s well-being? To address this question, the author proposes the Catalyst Model of Change-this novel, practical, and empirically testable model posits five socially oriented behavioral pathways that channel the long-term effects of gratitude interventions as well as how to augment gratitude experiences in interventions to boost treatment effects and catalyze these behavioral pathways. Specifically, interventions that enhance the frequency, skills, intensity, temporal span, and variety of gratitude experiences are likely to catalyze the following post-intervention socially oriented behaviors: (a) social support-seeking behaviors, (b) prosocial behaviors, (c) relationship initiation and enhancement behaviors, (d) participation in mastery-oriented social activities, and (e) reduced maladaptive interpersonal behaviors, which, in turn, produce long-term psychological well-being. A unique feature of the Catalyst Model of Change is that gratitude experiences are broadly conceptualized to include not just gratitude emotions, cognitions, and disclosures, but also expressing, receiving, witnessing, and responding to interpersonal gratitude. To this end, gratitude interventions that provide multiple opportunities for social experiences of gratitude (e.g., members expressing gratitude to each other in a group) might offer the greatest promise for fostering durable, positive effects on people’s psychological well-being.

Abstract Pulses have been part of human nutrition for centuries. They are also used in folk medicine as products with multidirectional medicinal effects. They are annual plants representing the Fabaceae family. Their edible part is the fruit, i.e. the so-called pods. Whole pods or their parts can be eaten, depending on the species and fruit ripeness. Beans, peas, peanuts, chickpeas, lentils, broad beans and soybeans are edible legume species. Legume seeds are characterized by high nutritional value. Compared to seeds from other plants, they have high protein content ranging, on average, from 20% to 35%, depending on the type, growing conditions and maturity of the fruit. This review focuses on various health-promoting properties of legumes and presents their nutritional value and compounds exerting health-promoting effects. Many pulses have a low glycemic index, which is important for prevention and treatment of diabetes. In addition to their low glycemic index and high fiber content, pulses have α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitors, which reduce the absorption of glucose from the gastrointestinal tract. These compounds have antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory effects. Pulses have been shown to contain bioactive peptides with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitory properties; hence, they are useful in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Pulses used in the nutrition of obese individuals provide compounds with pancreatic lipase inhibitory properties, thus promoting weight reduction and control. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

PURPOSE: Many lifestyle and dietary factors have been recognized as risk factors for cancer morbidity and mortality. However, investigations of the association of the frequency of breakfast consumption and cancer are limited. This study aimed to examine the association of skipping breakfast with all-cause and cancer-related mortality in a national cohort of United States men and women. METHODS: Data were from 7,007 adults aged ≥ 40 years who participated in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1994) and had follow-up information on mortality up until 31 December 2015. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 55.4 years, with 54.4% and 79% being women and non-Hispanic whites, respectively. Approximately, 16% of participants rarely consumed breakfast, 23.0% consumed breakfast some days, and 61% consumed breakfast every day. During a median follow-up of 22.2 years, 3,573 deaths occurred with 795 being related to cancer. In models adjusting for sociodemographic factors, smoking, physical activity, body mass index, hypertension, diabetes, cholesterol levels, total energy intake and diet quality, persons who rarely consumed breakfast had a higher risk of cancer-related mortality (HR = 1.52; CI:1.06-2.18) and all-cause (HR = 1.69; CI: 1.42-2.02) compared to those who took breakfast every day. CONCLUSION: In this nationally representative sample, skipping breakfast was associated with elevated risks for all-cause and cancer-related mortality. This study provides evidence for the benefits of regular breakfast consumption in reducing the risk of all-cause and cancer mortality.

PurposeTo assess improvements in eating behaviors and health measures among adults participating in a whole food plant predominant diet, Full Plate Living (FPL) program.DesignRetrospective, post hoc analysis of self-reported 16-week pre-post participant data obtained over a 3 year program period (2017-19).SettingWellness offering for employees in Southwest U.S.SubjectsOf 6,820 enrollees, 4,477 completed the program, further segmented by generational cohorts.InterventionFPL program materials and weekly online video lessons.MeasuresBaseline and follow-up measures included eating behaviors, self-perceived health status and energy, body weight, and confidence in healthy eating and weight loss.AnalysisPaired t-tests were used to examine changes in eating behaviors and health measures. Mixed-effects models were used to examine whether changes among generational cohorts differed.ResultsSignificant pre-post improvements were demonstrated for all measures, including servings of fruits (1.54 to 2.34), vegetables (2.05 to 2.87), beans (.63 to .99), and weight loss (3.5) (P < .001). Self-perceived health and energy values, and confidence in making healthy food choices and losing weight improved (P < .001). Improvements were observed across generational cohorts (P < .001).ConclusionThe FPL healthy eating approach has a beneficial impact on health measures across generational cohorts, and may be an effective addition to lifestyle medicine and corporate wellness offerings. Longer-term program evaluation is warranted.

Increased hydration is recommended as healthy habit with several merits. However, supportive data are sparse. To assess the efficacy of increased daily water intake, we tested the effect of water supplementation on biomarkers in blood, urine, and saliva. Twenty-four healthy Japanese men and 31 healthy Japanese women with fasting blood glucose levels ranging from 90-125 mg/dL were included. An open-label, two-arm, randomized controlled trial was conducted for 12 weeks. Two additional 550 mL bottles of water on top of habitual fluid intake were consumed in the intervention group. The subjects drank one bottle of water (550 mL) within 2 h of waking, and one bottle (550 mL) 2 h before bedtime. Subjects increased mean fluid intake from 1.3 L/day to 2.0 L/day, without changes in total energy intake. Total body water rate increased with associated water supplementation. There were no significant changes in fasting blood glucose and arginine vasopressin levels, but systolic blood pressure was significantly decreased in the intervention group. Furthermore, water supplementation increased body temperature, reduced blood urea nitrogen concentration, and suppressed estimated glomerular filtration rate reduction. Additionally, existence of an intestinal microbiome correlated with decreased systolic blood pressure and increased body temperature. Habitual water supplementation after waking up and before bedtime in healthy subjects with slightly elevated fasting blood glucose levels is not effective in lowering these levels. However, it represents a safe and promising intervention with the potential for lowering blood pressure, increasing body temperature, diluting blood waste materials, and protecting kidney function. Thus, increasing daily water intake could provide several health benefits.

Antioxidants are compounds that inhibit the oxidation of other molecules and protect the body from the effects of free radicals, produced either by normal cell metabolism or as an effect of pollution and exposure to other external factors and are responsible for premature aging and play a role in cardiovascular disease. degenerative diseases such as cataracts, Alzheimer’s disease, and cancer. While many antioxidants are found in nature, others are obtained in synthetic form and reduce oxidative stress in organisms. This review highlights the pharmacological relevance of antioxidants in fruits, plants, and other natural sources and their beneficial effect on human health through the analysis and in-depth discussion of studies that included phytochemistry and their pharmacological effects. The information obtained for this review was collected from several scientific databases (ScienceDirect, TRIP database, PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Web of Science), professional websites, and traditional medicine books. Current pharmacological studies and evidence have shown that the various natural antioxidants present in some fruits, seeds, foods, and natural products have different health-promoting effects. Adopting functional foods with high antioxidant potential will improve the effective and affordable management of free radical diseases while avoiding the toxicities and unwanted side effects caused by conventional medication.

BACKGROUND: Skipping breakfast is common among U.S. adults. Limited evidence suggests that skipping breakfast is associated with atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. OBJECTIVES: The authors sought to examine the association of skipping breakfast with cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. METHODS: This is a prospective cohort study of a nationally representative sample of 6,550 adults 40 to 75 years of age who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III 1988 to 1994. Frequency of breakfast eating was reported during an in-house interview. Death and underlying causes of death were ascertained by linkage to death records through December 31, 2011. The associations between breakfast consumption frequency and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality were investigated by using weighted Cox proportional hazards regression models. RESULTS: Among the 6,550 participants (mean age 53.2 years; 48.0% male) in this study, 5.1% never consumed breakfast, 10.9% rarely consumed breakfast, 25.0% consumed breakfast some days, and 59.0% consumed breakfast every day. During 112,148 person-years of follow-up, 2,318 deaths occurred including 619 deaths from cardiovascular disease. After adjustment for age, sex, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, dietary and lifestyle factors, body mass index, and cardiovascular risk factors, participants who never consumed breakfast compared with those consuming breakfast everyday had hazard ratios of 1.87 (95% confidence interval: 1.14 to 3.04) for cardiovascular mortality and 1.19 (95% confidence interval: 0.99 to 1.42) for all-cause mortality. CONCLUSIONS: In a nationally representative cohort with 17 to 23 years of follow-up, skipping breakfast was associated with a significantly increased risk of mortality from cardiovascular disease. Our study supports the benefits of eating breakfast in promoting cardiovascular health.

The idea that water intake or hydration may play an intrinsic, independent role in modulating metabolic disease risk is relatively recent. Here, we outline the journey from early experimental works to more recent evidence linking water and hydration to metabolic health. It has been known for decades that individuals with existing metabolic dysfunction experience challenges to body water balance and have elevated arginine vasopressin (AVP), a key hormone regulating body fluid homeostasis. Later, intervention studies demonstrated that altering fluid balance in these individuals could worsen their condition, suggesting that hydration played a role in modulating glycemic control. More recently, observational and interventional studies in healthy individuals have implicated the hydration-vasopressin axis in the pathophysiology of metabolic diseases. Individuals with higher AVP (or its surrogate, copeptin) are at higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes and components of the metabolic syndrome, an association that remains even when controlling for known risk factors. Supporting preclinical work also suggests a causal role for AVP in metabolic dysfunction. It is known that individuals who habitually drink less fluids tend to have higher circulating AVP, which may be lowered by increasing water intake. In the short term, water supplementation in habitual low drinkers with high copeptin may reduce fasting glucose or glucagon, generating a proof of concept for the role of water supplementation in reducing incident metabolic disease. A large randomized trial is ongoing to determine whether water supplementation for 1 year in subjects with low water intake can meaningfully reduce fasting glucose, risk of new-onset diabetes, and other cardiometabolic risk factors.

Tryptophan metabolism has shown to involve in pathogenesis of various metabolic diseases. Gut microbiota-orientated diets hold great potentials to improve metabolic health via regulating tryptophan metabolism. The present study showed that the 6-week high fat diet (HFD) disturbed tryptophan metabolism accompanied with gut dysbacteriosis, also influenced the dietary tryptophan induced changes in cecum microbiome and serum metabolome in mice. The colonic expressions of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and interleukin-22 (IL-22) were significantly reduced in mice fed on HFD. Notably, a diet- rich in wheat bran effectively inhibited transformation of tryptophan to kynurenine-pathway metabolites, while increased melatonin and microbial catabolites, i.e. indole-3-propionic acid, indole-3-acetaldehyde and 5-hydroxy-indole-3-acetic acid. Such regulatory effects were accompanied with reduced fasting glucose and total triglycerides, and promoted AhR and IL-22 levels in HFD mice. Wheat bran increased the abundance of health promoting bacteria (e.g., Akkermansia and Lactobacillus), which were significantly correlated with tryptophan derived indolic metabolites. Additionally, beneficial modulatory effects of wheat bran on indolic metabolites in associations with gut dysbacteriosis from type 2 diabetes patients were confirmed in vitro fecal fermentation experiment. Our study proves the detrimental effects of HFD induced gut dysbacteriosis on tryptophan metabolism that may influence immune modulation, and provides novel insights in the mechanisms by which wheat bran could induce health benefits.