English and Italian researchers investigating the relationship between duration of sleep and mortality from all causes, have performed a systematic review of 16 relevant studies. The studies looked at a total of 1.4 million people, following them up for between 4 and 25 years.
It emerged that people who generally slept for less than six hours per night, were 12% more likely to die prematurely, than those who consistently managed six to eight hours. Longer sleep durations (exceeding nine hours) were associated with a 30% greater risk of death.
(Sleep Duration and All-Cause Mortality: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies. Sleep Journal May 2010.)
American researchers have concluded that older people who follow a Mediterranean diet (typically characterised by a high intake of fish, fruit, vegetables, legumes, cereals and unsaturated fat, a low intake of dairy and meat, and a moderate intake of alcohol), are less likely to develop mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and less likely to progress from MCI to Alzheimer’s disease (AD).
Data from 1393 cognitively normal individuals, and 484 individuals with MCI, overall average age 77, was analysed for the study, and participants were followed for an average of over 4 years.
Over that period, 275 of the initially cognitively normal people, developed MCI. Compared to those people with only a low adherance to a Mediterranean diet, those with the highest adherance, had though, a 28% lower risk of doing so. Even those with a moderate adherance showed a 17% lower risk.
Over a similar period, 106 of the 484 individuals with MCI went on to develop AD. Again compared to those with only a low dietary adherance, people with the highest adherance showed a 48% lower risk of progressing from MCI to AD. Those with a moderate adherance showed a 45% lower risk.
(Mediterranean Diet and Mild Cognitive Impairment. Arch Neurology Feb 2009)
American researchers have discovered that regions of the brain responsible for regulation of our emotions, are larger in people who have been long-term meditators, compared to those who do not meditate. They used high resolution MRI to scan the brains of 22 participants, all of whom had practised meditation extensively, and compared their scans with those of age-matched controls. Those who meditated had been doing so for between 5 and 46 years, most practised daily, sessions ranged from 10 to 90 minutes, and encompassed a variety of styles.
In the meditators, regions of the brain important in emotional regulation and response control, were significantly larger. Most of the regions identified were in the right hemisphere, associated with sustaining attention and therefore relevant in meditation. The researchers conclude that these enlargements may account for meditators’ ability to cultivate passive emotions, retain emotional stability and engage in mindful behaviour.
(The Underlying Anatomical Correlates of Long-Term Meditation: Larger Hippocampal and Frontal Volumes of Grey Matter. Neuroimage 2009 January, E-pub ahead of print.)
A systematic review and meta-analysis by Italian researchers, suggests that adherance to a Mediterranean diet can provide protection against major chronic diseases, including heart disease, cancer, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s diseases.
Twelve studies, involving more than 1.5 million people followed for periods ranging from 3 to 18 years, were analysed. The results showed that people who adhered strictly to the Mediterranean diet enjoyed significant health benefits, including a 9% decrease in overall mortality, a 9% decrease in death from cardiovascular disease specifically, a 13% reduction in incidence of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, and a 6% reduction in cancer.
(Adherance to Mediterranean Diet and Health Status: Meta-Analysis. BMJ 2008 September.)
An American study has found that partners in happy marriages have lower blood pressure than single people. Blood pressure was monitored over a 24 hour period in 204 married and 99 single men and women. High marital quality was found to be associated with lower blood pressure, lower stress levels, less depression and higher satisfaction with life generally.
Single individuals however, had lower blood pressure than those in unhappy marriages. Having a supportive network of friends did not appear to moderate the effects of being single or unhappily married.
(Is There Something Unique About Marriage? The Relative Impact of Marital Status, Relationship Quality, and Network Social Support on Ambulatory Blood Pressure and Mental Health. Ann Behav Medicine 2008 April.)
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