Issue 17 - October 15, 2022
Welcome to the newest issue of the bi-weekly newsletter, For the Health of It. In each issue, we cover spectrums of health, wellness, and even a little science. We're also adding a few of our favorite news articles that have been circulating recently.
In this issue read about mindful eating, the biggest height study to come out for genetics, and the new FDA drug that was help funded through the ice-bucket challenge.
Have a good day!
Celebrity Health Spotlight
The influence of celebrities on culture is undeniable, but would you trust a pop star to help give you advice on mental health?
The latest celebrity venture in the mental health field comes from rapper Megan Thee Stallion with Bad B*tches Have Bad Days Too, a free resource hub of lifelines, text lines and therapist directories. Colombian singer J Balvin’s, Oye, is a creative wellness app available in English and Spanish. There’s also Selena Gomez’s Wondermind, a free mental health platform focusing on educational resources and ending the stigma around mental illnesses. Other celebrities — including Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, Michael Phelps and Harry Styles — have partnered with mental health apps such as BetterHelp, Talkspace or Calm. Read more to see how experts weigh in.
This Week's Health Hack
Eat without distractions (Yes, your phone counts as a distraction.)
For most of us, mealtime is spent multi-tasking: We mindlessly munch on chips while scanning Facebook or inhale a plate of pasta while watching Netflix. Mindful eating is the opposite. It’s the practice of paying full attention to the eating experience: recognizing your hunger and fullness cues, noticing your emotions, observing the aromas, flavors, and textures of the foods. When you eat mindfully, you naturally slow down, eat less, and enjoy improved digestion. The first step toward becoming a mindful eater is to remove distractions, so close your laptop, put away your phone, shut off the TV, and turn your full attention to the food in front of you.
This week in Genetics
A new study has made it easier to assess how tall children might grow up to be. The research is the largest ever genetic analysis of height and used the DNA of more than five million people from 281 contributing studies.
Experts suggest the study plugs a sizeable gap in the understanding of how genetic differences account for differences in height. Read on for more!
Now in the News
Here’s some of our favorite moments in the news cycle this week.
Chronic pain, a disease process that is so complex that we are only just beginning to understand its triggers, has recently been gaining recognition as a medical condition on its own. But how does living with chronic pain feel? And how do the body and brain deal with it?
Conducting multi-gene testing on breast cancer patients when they are diagnosed is cost effective and could potentially save the lives of thousands, according to a new study. But many patients are not offered the testing based on existing criteria, which means people carrying cancer genes are not given the opportunity to find out if they are carriers.