Dr. Howard Smith Reports

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/zq8SI0miOgg

Manipulating your facial expression to show serious, focused determination, a game face, will actually improve your performance on intellectual challenges.  A University of Tennessee psychology study looked at 62 participants as they solved Mandala puzzles.

Putting on the game face that so many athletic coaches demand of their players did actually speed the subjects’ thought processes and puzzle solution by some 20%.  Skin conductance measurements showed that game face actually reduced the participants’ stress levels

Remember that game face depends on the game you’re playing.  When I walk in to treat my pediatric patients, it’s show time.  I adjust best crazy tie and put on a broad smile.

Matthew T. Richesin, Michael D. Oliver, Debora R. Baldwin, Lahai A.M. Wicks. Game Face Expressions and Performance on Competitive Tasks. Stress and Health, 2019; DOI: 10.1002/smi.2899

#Gameface #winning #puzzles #acting

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/zq8SI0miOgg

Manipulating your facial expression to show serious, focused determination, a game face, will actually improve your performance on intellectual challenges.  A University of Tennessee psychology study looked at 62 participants as they solved Mandala puzzles.

Putting on the game face that so many athletic coaches demand of their players did actually speed the subjects’ thought processes and puzzle solution by some 20%.  Skin conductance measurements showed that game face actually reduced the participants’ stress levels

Remember that game face depends on the game you’re playing.  When I walk in to treat my pediatric patients, it’s show time.  I adjust best crazy tie and put on a broad smile.

Matthew T. Richesin, Michael D. Oliver, Debora R. Baldwin, Lahai A.M. Wicks. Game Face Expressions and Performance on Competitive Tasks. Stress and Health, 2019; DOI: 10.1002/smi.2899

#Gameface #winning #puzzles #acting

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/DSErGGTJmQI

Instrumental music insulates your body’s nervous system from pressures of traffic jams, nasty other drivers, and sudden stops.  This the result of a small Brazilian study just published in Complementary Therapies in Medicine.

The investigators measured the effects of driving an unfamiliar car during a nerve-racking urban rush hour on the hearts of young, relatively inexperienced drivers.  Driving with peaceful music eliminated stress on the drivers’ autonomic nervous system as measured by heart rate variability.

If driving, commuting on mass transit, school pressures, your boss, or virtually any noxious experiences are literally driving you crazy, try some jazz or classical music.  Those calming melodies will neutralize the toxins of life.

Myrela AleneAlvesaDavid M.GarnerabJoice A.T.do AmaralcFernando R.OliveiradVitor E.Valentia.  The effects of musical auditory stimulation on heart rate autonomic responses to driving: A prospective randomized case-control pilot study.  Complementary Therapies in Medicine. 46, October 2019, Pages 158-164.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2019.08.006

#Music #Stress #heart #driving

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/DSErGGTJmQI

Instrumental music insulates your body’s nervous system from pressures of traffic jams, nasty other drivers, and sudden stops.  This the result of a small Brazilian study just published in Complementary Therapies in Medicine.

The investigators measured the effects of driving an unfamiliar car during a nerve-racking urban rush hour on the hearts of young, relatively inexperienced drivers.  Driving with peaceful music eliminated stress on the drivers’ autonomic nervous system as measured by heart rate variability.

If driving, commuting on mass transit, school pressures, your boss, or virtually any noxious experiences are literally driving you crazy, try some jazz or classical music.  Those calming melodies will neutralize the toxins of life.

Myrela AleneAlvesaDavid M.GarnerabJoice A.T.do AmaralcFernando R.OliveiradVitor E.Valentia.  The effects of musical auditory stimulation on heart rate autonomic responses to driving: A prospective randomized case-control pilot study.  Complementary Therapies in Medicine. 46, October 2019, Pages 158-164.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2019.08.006

#Music #Stress #heart #driving

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/5JaCIuYeWaw

Taking extra testosterone can double a man’s risk of dangerous leg blood clots, and that risk is tripled if he is younger than 65.  A study just published in JAMA Internal Medicine studied use of the supplement in nearly 40,000 men over a 7 year period.

Leg blood clots can travel up into the lungs and trigger a pulmonary embolism.  This blockage of blood into the lungs that kills up to 100,000 Americans each year.

Men take testosterone to increase physical and sexual vitality despite good scientific proof.  On the other hand extra hormone can enlarge a man’s breasts, reduce his sperm production, enlarge his prostate, and trigger sleep apnea.

I wouldn’t recommend it guys!

Walker RF, Zakai NA, MacLehose RF, et al. Association of Testosterone Therapy With Risk of Venous Thromboembolism Among Men With and Without Hypogonadism. JAMA Intern Med. Published online November 11, 2019. doi:https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.5135

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/sexual-health/in-depth/testosterone-therapy/art-20045728

https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/dvt/data.html

#testosterone #DVT #bloodclot #pulmonaryembolism

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/5JaCIuYeWaw

Taking extra testosterone can double a man’s risk of dangerous leg blood clots, and that risk is tripled if he is younger than 65.  A study just published in JAMA Internal Medicine studied use of the supplement in nearly 40,000 men over a 7 year period.

Leg blood clots can travel up into the lungs and trigger a pulmonary embolism.  This blockage of blood into the lungs that kills up to 100,000 Americans each year.

Men take testosterone to increase physical and sexual vitality despite good scientific proof.  On the other hand extra hormone can enlarge a man’s breasts, reduce his sperm production, enlarge his prostate, and trigger sleep apnea.

I wouldn’t recommend it guys!

Walker RF, Zakai NA, MacLehose RF, et al. Association of Testosterone Therapy With Risk of Venous Thromboembolism Among Men With and Without Hypogonadism. JAMA Intern Med. Published online November 11, 2019. doi:https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.5135

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/sexual-health/in-depth/testosterone-therapy/art-20045728

https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/dvt/data.html

#testosterone #DVT #bloodclot #pulmonaryembolism

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/md9yTWb2Jos

You and I have talked many times about the fact that exercise, almost any exercise other than reaching for a donut, will help you live longer.  Now a study from Denmark published in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings pinpoints just which forms of exercise will add extra years to your life.

The investigators reviewed data from more than 8500 participants in the Copenhagen City Heart Study.  Although 12% of that group were total couch potatoes, 75% of those remaining participated in at least one form of physical activity.

When the data was tallied, it turns out that playing tennis seems to add the most extra years to your life at nearly 10 years.  Following that we have badminton at 6 years, soccer at nearly 5 years, cycling at nearly 4 years, swimming, jogging, and calisthenics at 3 years.   Bringing up the rear was health club exercise at 1.5 years.  Remember that this study merely reports an association between longer life and different types of recreational activity.

It appears that social interaction as well as aerobic activity adds the most years.  Exercising with others may well be the most beneficial as it not only burns calories but it may curb stress.

https://www.mdlinx.com/internal-medicine/article/3433

#exercise #sports #longevity #tennis #badminton #soccer #cycling #swimming #jogging

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/9_LxyguWH5U

Deep sleep, the slow wave, non-REM variety, is the best sleep for literally cleansing your brain according to a new study from the University of Rochester.  The scientists studied the effects of deep sleep in a mouse model inducing that state with the unique combination of general anesthetics ketamine and xylazine.

The combination of deep slow wave sleep and the low level cardiovascular activity that accompanies it triggers the so-called glymphatic system, the brain’s unique plumbing apparatus that flushes waste from our brain cells.  This essential purging fails to occur during sleep deprivation and is also less likely to occur as we age when it becomes more difficult to achieve deep sleep.   

Other studies suggest that the onset of Alzheimer’s is associated with less deep sleep and this may be due to poor glymphatic system activity.

You can help yourself get deep sleep at any age with the following tips.  Before bedtime: no eating, caffeinated beverages, exercise, blue light exposure.  While you sleep: keep room cool @ 60-68 degF; keep your nose clear with saline mist; keep air humidified.  Always: maintaining a regular wake-sleep schedule.

University of Rochester Medical Center. "Not all sleep is equal when it comes to cleaning the brain." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily #27 February 2019. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/02/190227173111.htm.

https://www.sleepscore.com/extend-dee...

https://www.alexfergus.com/blog/how-t...

#deepsleep #nonREMsleep #slowwavesleep #braincleansing #sleepdeficit #glymphatic

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/n287C8md9t0

It’s generally thought that background music stirs creativity.  Not so says a study from several universities in the UK and Sweden just published in the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology.

A total of 84 university students and staff were presented with tests of creative ability, so-called Compound Remote Associate Tasks or CRAT for short.  Subjects were exposed to instrumental music only, songs with completely unfamiliar foreign language lyrics, or hit songs with familiar lyrics.  The control sounds were library background buzz and absolute quiet.

The study results showed that the familiar songs with lyrics negatively impacted creativity the most followed by instrumentals and then foreign language songs.  Test performances were the same in absolute silence and in the low din of the library.

The researchers hypothesize that the changing state of sound is most responsible for reducing creativity as the music reduces the performance of verbal working memory.  I personally love listening to music while writing.  If you do too, we may both be blunting our creative energies.  Some sacrifices are worth making, but knowledge is power.

Emma Threadgold, John E. Marsh, Neil McLatchie, Linden J. Ball. Background music stints creativity: Evidence from compound remote associate tasks. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 2019; DOI: 10.1002/acp.3532

#creativity #distraction #insight #music #quiet

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/n287C8md9t0

It’s generally thought that background music stirs creativity.  Not so says a study from several universities in the UK and Sweden just published in the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology.

A total of 84 university students and staff were presented with tests of creative ability, so-called Compound Remote Associate Tasks or CRAT for short.  Subjects were exposed to instrumental music only, songs with completely unfamiliar foreign language lyrics, or hit songs with familiar lyrics.  The control sounds were library background buzz and absolute quiet.

The study results showed that the familiar songs with lyrics negatively impacted creativity the most followed by instrumentals and then foreign language songs.  Test performances were the same in absolute silence and in the low din of the library.

The researchers hypothesize that the changing state of sound is most responsible for reducing creativity as the music reduces the performance of verbal working memory.  I personally love listening to music while writing.  If you do too, we may both be blunting our creative energies.  Some sacrifices are worth making, but knowledge is power.

Emma Threadgold, John E. Marsh, Neil McLatchie, Linden J. Ball. Background music stints creativity: Evidence from compound remote associate tasks. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 2019; DOI: 10.1002/acp.3532

#creativity #distraction #insight #music #quiet