Credit: iStock Though the temperatures are still soaring in many areas of the country, you might be seeing the signs of school starting around you. School buses are on the streets, fresh notebooks and packs of pens are being placed front and center in stores. As you head into another year of teaching and learning, … Continue reading The Physiology of Teaching and Learning
Brain Physiology
Listening to Your Heart AND Your Head: Is There a Connection between Heart Health and Alzheimer’s Disease?
Credit: iStock The adage “should you listen to your heart or to your head?” describes making decisions based on emotions (heart) versus logic (head). While the saying signifies two different sides to a decision-making process, the link between the heart and head may be more connected than you think when it comes to disease. Heart … Continue reading Listening to Your Heart AND Your Head: Is There a Connection between Heart Health and Alzheimer’s Disease?
Spotlight On: Stroke
Credit: iStock Every year about 800,00 people living in the U.S. have a stroke. Stroke is a public health concern that costs the U.S. billions of dollars and remains one of the leading causes of death. A stroke is sometimes called a “brain attack” because it interferes with oxygen and glucose (sugar) delivery to the … Continue reading Spotlight On: Stroke
Keep the Rhythm Steady: Changes to Your Body’s Rhythms Could Increase Your Risk of Neurodegenerative Disease
Credit: iStock Circadian rhythms are the natural internal processes that regulate our sleep-wake cycle and other physiological functions such as hormone secretion and metabolism. Maintaining healthy circadian rhythms is essential for our overall health and well-being, but modern lifestyles can make this challenging. Exposure to artificial light, shift work and irregular sleep schedules can all … Continue reading Keep the Rhythm Steady: Changes to Your Body’s Rhythms Could Increase Your Risk of Neurodegenerative Disease
Physical Inactivity: We Got To Move It, Move It
Credit: iStock Did you know that some data suggest physical inactivity increases your risk of dying from any cause more than smoking? Although this argument is still debated, in theory, you could go for a run and have a cigarette and be less likely to die than someone who does neither (you still shouldn’t smoke). … Continue reading Physical Inactivity: We Got To Move It, Move It
Spotlight On: The Brain
Credit: iStock Our understanding of the human brain has come a long way since scientists first started studying this intricate organ. Throughout history, the brain has been thought to have different purposes and varying levels of importance, with some thinking that it was not really important at all. But steadily, researchers grew to understand more … Continue reading Spotlight On: The Brain
Spotlight On: Hearing
Credit: iStock From the calming sound of birds chirruping to a warning honk of a car, your sense of hearing is integral to your understanding of the world around us. Certain sounds can help you sleep, calm your mind, cause feelings of panic or stress, or even evoke nostalgic memories. You might wonder why this … Continue reading Spotlight On: Hearing
Touching a Nerve: Piezo Receptors
Credit: iStock “Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. … Fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. … If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.” —David, … Continue reading Touching a Nerve: Piezo Receptors
How Your Brain Reacts to the Sounds of the Season
Credit: iStock With Thanksgiving now behind us, the sounds of Christmas seem to flood the airwaves. Some songs are lively and joyful, while others are slow and contemplative. But whatever the tune, there’s an undeniable familiarity that comes with hearing those omnipresent songs associated with “the most wonderful time of the year.” For some, these … Continue reading How Your Brain Reacts to the Sounds of the Season
Halloween, Physiology Style
Credit: iStock As soon as the calendar turns over to October (and sometimes even before!) retail and media outlets remind us Halloween is coming. Wherever we look, it seems to be costumes, candy and scary movies abound. But did you know that many of the things that come to mind when we think of Halloween … Continue reading Halloween, Physiology Style