Peak Health Wellness Insights Issue 37
Mental Resilience
Cooperation can be contagious particularly when people see the benefit for others
Studies show that seeing someone do something helpful or kind for another person motivates the witness to do more helpful acts as well. This motivation is stronger when they witness the beneficial effect of the action for a third party rather than personally benefiting from the prosocial behaviour. It is believed that this partially due to the power of ‘goal contagion’, which means witnessing prosocial behaviour leads one to assume a similar goal as the observed behaviour. In this case, the shared goal is caring for another person's well-being.
Sleep
Does poor sleep cause obesity or does obesity cause poor sleep?
While previous research has suggested that poor sleep quality impacts your hunger hormones, making it more likely that you will consume extra calories, new research has found that this relationship might be inverse. They believe our desire to sleep is triggered by a need to conserve energy, so if we consume excessive calories during the day (which usually leads to obesity) it may negatively impact our propensity for sleep. In essence, people who eat excessively during the day, will have elevated energy levels, which will weaken the body’s desire and need for sleep. They also found that the ability for the body to mobilise fat impacted sleep; those who were unable to mobilise fat stores easily also struggled to sleep, suggesting there could be a signalling issue between fat cells and the part of the brain that controls sleep in obese people as well.
Nutrition
Higher fibre saves lives, but food processing may remove benefits
Research has found that eating more fibre improves life expectancy and can be especially beneficial for those with Type 2 diabetes. Fibre can be found in foods such as whole grains, legumes, vegetables and whole fruit. Adding this into one’s diet has been shown to improve blood glucose and cholesterol levels, as well as reduce body weight in adults who are prediabetic or have type 1 or type 2 diabetes. However, these benefits are diluted if these foods are heavily processed, which is the form that they are commonly found in in supermarkets (think instant oats and wholemeal bread). Be careful about how processed the foods you buy are - as a rule of thumb, always opt for the version of the food that is closest to its most natural state.
Fitness
The death marker protein cleans up your muscles after exercise
Research has found that physical activity keeps our muscles healthy by activating a specific protein called Ubiquitin to ‘clean up’ our muscles. Ubiquitin works by targeting worn out or damaged muscles for degradation, which can then be replaced by freshly synthesised proteins. This means exercise boosts the body’s ability to circulate and replenish the building blocks of our muscles. This incredible new finding adds to the ever-increasing knowledge about why physical activity is healthy for the body.
Productivity Tip
Create a work environment that makes you your happiest
Maybe that means putting photos of loved ones near your desk, or your favourite candle, or images of places that you love. When you are in a good mood, you will be more productive.
Habit Hack of the week
As we learned from Lyndsay, make it a habit to stand up intermittedly throughout the day
Extended periods of sitting are terrible for overall health. Making it a habit to stand up every hour for even for just a few moments will be incredibly beneficial for your productivity, body, mood, circulation, and muscles.