Around Maddy

Great news! You don’t have to starve yourself to get that perfect, fat-free frame. Because even if you lose weight through dieting alone, your
body won’t easily burn fat. To rev up your fat-burning engines, focus less on how often you empty your plate and more on how often you walk.

Burn it: When a group of sedentary and overweight older adults recently tested three weight loss systems — exercise only (mostly walking), diet only, and exercise plus diet — the results were predictable. When it came to fat burning, the walkers won hands down over those who simply watched what they ate.

A Little Helps: Just 30 minutes of daily walking gives you a host of health benefits besides extra fat burning, including more disease protection and better stress prevention.

Control your Cravings: The trick to avoiding a candy binge? Surprising as this sounds: Put the minipacks away, and take a small handful from a big bag instead.
Treats in small-size packages can trick even careful eaters into overindulging. In a recent study, people concerned about their waistlines ate more high-calorie snacks when given small bags instead of big ones.

Persuasive Packs: In a recent study, minipacks of foods like candies and little cookies led people to go overboard because they viewed the smaller portions as “healthier” versions of high-calorie treats. And careful eaters were less likely to even open big bags of candy, unlike snack packs. Which means small bags may do a better job of luring you into high-calorie munching in the first place.

Portion Control: According to the study, minis don’t seem to make everyone overeat — only those who are concerned about managing their weight. People who weren’t concerned about gaining weight munched more snacks from large bags than small ones. Either way, what it all boils down to is portion control. And practicing this eating trick can make you a master at it.

source: TOI

You would have never thought that a kiss could help keeping dental worries at bay or a gratifying sexual act at night make you feel fit and fresh the next morning. But that's what studies across the web claim.

Healthy sex leads to a healthy life. You may have tried copious measures to get that extra glowing skin and shiny hair. You must have also worked out rigorously to achieve that perfect ten figure you've desired. But the key to your mind and heart is fulfilling sex. Even for those who lose their temper or are always in a depressed state of mind, 'sex' can be the solution.

A happy sexual life with your partner not only gets you in shape with better skin texture and silken tresses, it also burns extra calories, keeps you fit, combats asthma, relieves headache, reduces depression and tranquilises your mind. From make-up experts, hair stylists, sexologists and fitness connoisseurs – there's a common consensus that a vigourous sexual life leads to a healthy life – both physically and emotionally. We get them share more on this...

There have been several notions stating that 'sex' produces certain hormones that bring happiness, which lead to a fit body and a healthy mind. Shedding some light on this, Dr. Sanjay Chugh, specialist on sexual issues, states, "Sex contributes to general good health. Any sexual intimacy that is enjoyable and pleasurable promotes well being by providing several physical and psychological benefits. It is believed that sex boosts chemicals in the body that protects us against diseases. Research also suggests that sex and masturbation can help ease joint and muscle pain, combat depression, promote heart health and lengthen one's life span."

Dr. Samir Parikh, clinical physiatrist adds, "The basic fact is that a good sex life also means in a larger picture, a good relationship with one's partner and this makes the partner happier, less stressed and by virtue of that physically healthier."

Not just this, sex also accelerates blood circulation and one's basic metabolic rate, which further enhances the well-being of our mind and soul and helps us calm down.

On these emotional benefits, Dr Chugh adds, "A satisfying sexual relationship strengthens the bond between couples, making them feel secure and loved. The feeling of emotional connectedness adds to ones sense of belonging, which in totality helps them achieve a positive physical, psychological and spiritual state that is necessary for one's general health."

Elaborating further, on a scientific angle, Dr Avdesh Sharma, a consultant psychiatrist, and an expert on relationship issues shares, "Sex is a way of bonding at the physical, mental and emotional level and leads to health (including psychological) benefits. If it is used as a mechanical process, it may have limited benefits. There are physiological benefits of positive changes in parameters like pulse, heart rate, reduction in blood pressure (after an increase in B.P. specially if vigourous sex is tried), dilation of blood vessels and capillaries of the skin, leading to a 'glow', burning of a few calories (depending on the duration of the act and vigour), exercising of some of the muscles, thus improving lung capacity (during heavy breathing)."

However, we also need to understand that sexual acts work more in terms of improving resistance, but are not a safe guard or a treatment to illnesses. Any sexual act can neither be used as a treatment nor would it change your stresses of life, which one would need to resolve irrespective.

"The extra edge of sex may be due to the feeling of being wanted, an expression of emotions and certain hormonal and physiological changes that happen as an expression of love for another individual. Unfortunately, the benefits of sexuality are usually quoted out of context and people may look at this as a panacea for everything. But sexuality without emotions have limited value," concludes Dr Avdesh Sharma.


Fun Facts about Sex

Here are some lesser known fun facts about sex.

Have sex stay fit : Sex may seem like the safest sport you can take up. It de-stresses you, keeps you rejuvenated, elevates your moods and stretchs, tones and exercises your body muscles.

Expert opinion : Dr Ishi Khosla, clinical nutritionist, Director Whole Foods asserts, "Sexual acts certainly lead to a normal mental well-being and a healthy state of mind. This in turn creates a physically fit body. If there's an ill-health or manifestation of any problem, it would reflect on your outer body."

Dr Samir Parikh adds, "You would still need a balanced lifestyle, which means that if you compare two equals in terms of lifestyle age and other factors as a constant, then it's possible that a sexually active person feels better."

Sex burns extra calories : It is indeed a form of exercise and naturally burns one's calories too.

Expert Opinion : Dr Geetu Amarnani, wellness expert at Kolmet Hospital, opines, "While having sex, the BMP (basic metabolic rate) increases and that ultimately helps in burning the calories, so it's widely believed that one can shed that extra flab through sexual encounters."

Sex for glowing skin and hair : When women make love they produce the hormone oestrogen which makes their hair shine and their skin smooth.

Expert Opinion : Make-up expert Sylvie, also an expert on sexual issues asserts, "As sex helps releasing the extra level of frustration and stress on one's mind and body, so logically it leads to a glow on your face and your skin texture looks better too. Also, hormones in our body are activated at a faster rate than usual during sex, which helps in better blood circulation, adding that extra shine to one's skin and hair."

Sex brings relief from headaches, reduces depression and tranquilises your mind : A satisfying love-making session releases tension that restricts blood vessels in the brain. It brings you out of a depressed state of mind and acts as a tranquilliser.

Expert Opinion : Dr Sanjay Chugh, "The pleasure that is derived from a satisfying sexual act tends to relax one's mind, taking away headache. It releases endorphins into the bloodstream, producing a sense of euphoria and leaving you with a feeling of well-being. Good sex leaves the person feeling relaxed and satisfied thus acting like a tranquiliser."

A kiss to keep dental problems at bay : It is medically accepted that a kiss encourages saliva to wash food from the teeth and lowers the level of the acid that causes decay. It also prevents the build-up of plaque.

Expert Opinion : Dental expert, Dr. Vandana Jyoti opines, “Anything that increases salivation will help in bringing down the acid level, which causes damage to one’s teeth. It also prevents cavity. Other than a kiss, chewing gum and more of lemon intake also tend to act in the same manner. But one has to be extra careful, as it might act the other way round, in terms of spreading germs, if either of the two persons involved in a kiss is suffering from a tooth infection.

A crippling and painful experience like grief can also activate pleasure areas of the brain, according to a new study.

While most people let go of their loss, for a substantial minority, any reminder of their loss - a picture, a memory - brings on a fresh wave of grief and yearning.

The question is, why do some grieve and ultimately adapt, while others can't get over the loss of someone held dear?

University of California (Los Angeles) scientists suggest that such "complicated" grief activates neurons in the reward centres of the brain, possibly giving these memories addiction-like properties.

"This study is the first to compare those with complicated and non-complicated grief, and future research in this area may help psychologists do a better job of treating those with complicated grief", said Mary-Frances O'Connor of UCLA and co-author of the study.

"The idea is that when our loved ones are alive, we get a rewarding cue from seeing them or things that remind us of them," O'Connor said. "After the loved one dies, those who adapt to the loss stop getting this neural reward.

"But those who don't adapt continue to crave it, because each time they do see a cue, they still get that neural reward. Of course, all of this is outside of conscious thought, so there isn't an intention about it," she said.

The researchers looked at 23 women who had lost a mother or a sister to breast cancer. (Grief is very problematic among survivors of breast cancer patients, particularly among female family members). They found that, 11 had complicated grief, and 12 had the more normal, non-complicated grief.

Each of the participants brought a photograph of their deceased loved one and were shown this picture while undergoing brain scanning by functional MRI. Next, they were scanned while looking at a photograph of a female stranger.

The authors looked for activity in the nucleus accumbens, a region of the brain most commonly associated with reward. They found that while both groups had activation in the pain network of the brain after viewing a picture of their loved one, only individuals with complicated grief showed significant nucleus accumbens activations.

(These findings have been reported in the journal NeuroImage.)

A new marriage guidance book is causing quite a stir in America. Authored by Mira Kirshenbaum, an American psychotherapist with 30 years experience in marriage counselling, it says that an extra-marital affair can actually help save your marriage, acting as an SOS call to encourage an unhappy couple to work on their troubled union.

In her latest book, When Good People Have Affairs , Kirshenbaum also argues that society today lacks a sympathetic view of infidelity and that adulterers are well-intentioned people who have simply made a mistake, reports The Belfast Telegraph.
"Cheating on your spouse isn't a moral act, but most men and women who have affairs are good people who made a mistake," writes Kirshenbaum. "They never thought that it would happen to them but, suddenly, they're in this complicated, dangerous situation."

She also insists that adulterers should never own up about their cheating because doing so will only cause more pain and heartache.

Kirshenbaum believes that the 'right kind' of affair can have a positive effect. "You could think of it as a necessary medical procedure. If your marriage is in cardiac arrest, an affair can be a defibrillator."
But Kirshenbaum - whose husband betrayed her when he had an affair - has been criticised by some peers. "The defibrillator is applied to somebody's heart when it has actually stopped and they are at the point of death," said Professor Leila Collins, a counselling psychologist and principal lecturer at Middlesex University. "If a relationship is at the point of death you terminate it."

Collins also points out that infidelity is rarely between the two people involved - that often spouses, innocent children and the wider family circle become unwitting collateral damage.

Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, a columnist whose partner left her a student 14 years her junior, said Kirshenbaum's book made her "blood boil". "As one of the millions betrayed then abandoned by an adulterous partner, I cannot stomach the ceaseless compulsion to shed guilt and shame, the editing-out of the hurt and chaos caused within the family, the long-term damage to kids," she wrote in the Evening Standard.

In the book, Kirshenbaum lists some 'hair-raising' statistics that may cause some married couples to pause for thought: overall, she claims, some 47% of married men are likely to become emotionally or sexually involved with someone else, as are 35% of women.

For those concerned that their infidelity means the imminent demise of their marriage, she lists a few pointers. She says you should stay with your partner if your affair falls into certain categories, including trysts that are 'accidental', related to a mid-life crisis or some kind of attempt at 'revenge'.

source: TOI

WASHINGTON: A new study has revealed that frequent intercourse can cut erectile dysfunction (ED) risk in men.

Researchers from Finland have revealed that men who had intercourse more often were less likely to develop ED.

Over the period of five years, the team studied 989 men between 55 to 75 years from Pirkanmaa, Finland.

They found that men who had intercourse less than once per week were twice as likely to suffer from erectile dysfunction. Further, the risk of erectile dysfunction was inversely related to the frequency of intercourse.

Out of 1000 cases, 79 cases had men who had sexual intercourse less than once per week, which dropped to 32 cases per 1000 in men having intercourse once per week.

The number further dropped to 16 per 1000 in those reporting intercourse 3 or more times per week.

In addition, the frequency of morning erections predicted the development of complete erectile dysfunction, with an approximate 2.5-fold risk among those with less than 1 morning erection per week compared with 2 to 3 morning erections per week.

"Regular intercourse has an important role in preserving erectile function among elderly men, whereas morning erection does not exert a similar effect," said Juha Koskimaki of Tampere University Hospital, Department of Urology, Tampere, Finland.

"Continued sexual activity decreases the incidence of erectile dysfunction in direct proportion to coital frequency," Koskimaki added.

The study indicates that regular intercourse protects men from the development of erectile dysfunction, which may, in turn, impact general health and quality of life. The study is published in the July issue of The American Journal of Medicine.

source: TOI

LONDON: If clumps of your hair suddenly start falling out due to a common form of premature baldness, please don't fret -- scientists have pioneered a treatment to clone hair.

According to them, the technique, known as follicular cell implantation, works by replicating remaining hair strands and it could eventually help bald people to regain a full head of their own hair, The Daily Telegraph reported.

In fact, the technique has the potential to re-grow a limitless supply hair for individuals who have become bald during cancer treatment, from suffering severe burns, or the onset of age, the researchers said.

However, the treatment may require more than 1,000 tiny injections to produce that number of hair in extensively bald patients, but it promises to be quicker and less invasive than current hair transplant techniques.

The procedure is being developed by Intercytex, a British company based in Manchester, which is among many competing to find a cure for hair loss -- a condition which affects 40 per cent of men over 50.

Trial results have indicated that the cell therapy can increase hair count in at least two thirds of patients after six months, and four out of five if the scalp is stimulated beforehand through gentle abrasions which encourage growth.

The therapy could be made available to patients within five years, the researchers hoped.

source: TOI

WASHINGTON: Those who find it difficult to tell their partners how much they love them need not worry anymore, thanks to a new ‘Cyrano Suit’ that can provide enough confidence to a shy man to express his feelings confidently.

The suit has been designed to give its wearer the scripts/notes to act and perform as sensible and gentlemen with confidence.

It also provides the wearer the lines that may help him reveal his un-shown true feelings.

Apparently, the suit is also capable of suggesting what topics one should discuss with the woman in front of him.

Its designer Eugene Ahn claims that she has embedded a series of sensors in the suit’s arms and chest, which detect physical interaction with a woman.

She says that the system also uses a hacked receipt printer to deliver romantic lines straight to the breast pocket of the wearer.

“What it prints depends on the distance to the woman,” Wired News quoted her as saying.

LONDON: Forcefully flashing your teeth at work is dangerous for health, scientists have warned.

According to German researchers, forcing staff to be happy and polite all the time is likely to make them sick.

They believe most at risk are flight attendants, salesmen, call centre operators, waiters and other workers in close contact with the public.

Professor Dieter Zapf, a researcher at Frankfurt University, Germany, said fake friendliness led to depression, stress and hit the immune system.

This can trigger more serious ailments such as high blood pressure and other cardiovascular problems.

"Every time a person is forced to repress his true feelings there are negative consequences," the Mirror quoted him, as saying.

In order to reach the conclusions, for over two years, 4,000 volunteers including shop workers and flight attendants, were put in an imaginary call centre and abused by clients.

Some could answer back, while others had to stay polite and friendly.

Those allowed to stand up to clients had a rapid heartbeat for a brief period, but those who had to remain friendly found their hearts were still racing long after the client had hung up.

Researchers decided "being friendly against one's will causes nothing but stress".

Prof Zapf said: "We are all able to rein in our emotions, but it becomes difficult to do this over a protracted period as cabin attendants are forced to on long-haul flights.

"These people need space away from the passengers where they can be on their own and let feelings run free.

"We have to get away from the 'customer is king' attitude and show more respect to those in service industries."

source: TOI

Come Mother's Day on May 11 and youngsters throng shops across the city to buy their choicest of cards and surprise their moms. Days like Father's Day, Best Friend Day, Rose Day, Valentine's Day and many more such days are being increasingly observed with fervour by Gen-X.

"But when dealing with relationships, do we really need the dates to remind us about the bonds we share in our personal lives?" asked Pradip Basu, Joint Director, Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Kolkata. Samiara Sen lives as a paying guest in south Kolkata though her home is in this city.

Her reason to stay on her own is that she needs to meet her family only on weekends, and not everyday after college.

But she never forgets to wish her mother on Mother's Day (May 11), her father on Father's Day (June 22) and her sister on Sister's Day (May 2).

"I love my mother very much. Mother is God in the lips and hearts of children," Samiara says though she does not consider spending quality time with her mother, working in a bank.

"What are we achieving by sending cards when we dump our parents in old-age homes in their later lives; when we think that our old grandparents are old furniture that needs to be discarded?" says Basu.

"Increase in the observation of these days is nothing but marketing strategy to catch hold on the peppy generation to make money. It hurts to see that relationships have become a commodity with a price tag," he said. Basu added that the trend of sending e-cards and SMSes are taking a toll on the real meaning of relationships. "Emotions are slowly vanishing from the heart," he lamented.

The list of days are endless with the likes of Boss Day (16 October), Hair Stylist Day (April 30), Daughter and Father take a walk together Day (July 7), Handshake Day (June 28), Step Mom Day (May 01), Father-in-law Day (July 30) and Kiss Day (April 28). Sreya Sengupta, a 3rd year student of a private engineering college, however, says "I don't give cards to my father on Father's day".

"It's enough that I care for my father. I don't need a special day to show my love for him." Sahana Acharya, a teacher of a reputed girls school, says she has no problem in receiving cards from her two sons, both students. "But will they look after me when I'm old?"