Mindfully Healing

“I sort of feel that my breathing is going with the song, my heart is beating slower and I’m feeling just more aware of the song…” Getting goosebumps or a lump in your throat while listening to music is relatively rare, research finds. It could be an indication that your brain is unique, according to recent research that examined how the feeling of chills is triggered. People who feel chills from music have an enhanced ability to feel emotions. This could be down to a structural difference in the brain.

It could be a sign of bravery and health. Women find small facial scars attractive when looking for a short-term relationship, research finds. Previously it was thought scars made men look less attractive in this context. However, it seems women may link scars to bravery and health. For long-term relationships, male scarring made no difference to women’s perceptions of attractiveness. When men looked at pictures of women with small scars and without, it made no difference, whatever type of relationship they were considering. Dr Rob Burriss, the study’s first author,

The effect was tested on many ethnicities: French Caucasian women, Chinese Asian women, Latin American women and South African women. When women’s facial features stand out more, they look younger, new research finds. What the researchers call ‘facial contrast’, was linked to an appearance of youth, regardless of ethnic group. Naturally, people’s facial features merge into each other with age. Ms Aurélie Porcheron, the study’s first author, said: “Facial contrast refers to how much the eyes, lips and eyebrows stand out in the face in terms of how light or

Do any of these myths about the brain catch you out? Surveys of teachers have revealed that many believe seven common myths about the brain, likely because the simple explanations are often attractive, even if totally wrong. The results come from surveys of teachers in the UK, Turkey, Holland, Greece and China, reported in the journal Nature Reviews Neuroscience (Howard-Jones, 2014). See if any catch you out… 1. Myth: Right-brained/left-brained Around 70% of teachers believed that a person is either ‘right-brained’ or ‘left-brained’. This popular neuromyth has been debunked by

Working on commitment may NOT be the key for couples having problems with their relationship. Genes are the main reason why divorce runs in families, new research finds. Psychologists used to think that the potential for divorce was transmitted from one generation to the next by psychological means. But the new research finds that it is really genetics that are at the root — although psychological factors are important. For example, neurotic people tend to see their partners in a more negative light. The personality trait of neuroticism is passed

These do not make you look warm and competent. A smiling emoji in a business email makes the sender look incompetent, new research finds. It also does not make the sender look like a warmer person either. Dr Ella Glikson, the study’s first author, said: “Our findings provide first-time evidence that, contrary to actual smiles, smileys do not increase perceptions of warmth and actually decrease perceptions of competence. In formal business e-mails, a smiley is not a smile.” The series of experiments were conducted on 549 people from 29 different

Simple techniques taught to parents are the key to an effective new therapy for autism. Very early treatment of infants with the first signs of autism can substantially reduce the symptoms such that, by age 3, most have no developmental delays, a new study finds. ‘Infant Start’ is the name of the new behavioural therapy, mostly delivered by the children’s parents, developed by autism experts at the University of California – Davis and Duke University in North Carolina. The results of a pilot study of the therapy have just been

The common drug could treat schizophrenia, ADHD, bipolar disorder, addiction and other mental health problems. Nicotine can normalise brain connections that are disrupted in schizophrenia, new research finds. It could help to explain why those with schizophrenia frequently smoke so heavily. Around 90% of those suffering from schizophrenia are smokers. This compares to a rate of around 20% of the general population and around 50% for those with mental health problems. Many speculated that they could be self-medicating. The research could eventually lead to a new treatment for schizophrenia that

During slow-wave or deep sleep, the brain is cleared of waste products. A single night of disrupted sleep is enough to increase a brain protein linked to Alzheimer’s, new research shows. A full week of poor sleep causes increases in another brain protein that is also linked to Alzheimer’s. The findings may help to explain why poor sleep has been linked to Alzheimer’s. Professor David M. Holtzman, who led the study, said: “We showed that poor sleep is associated with higher levels of two Alzheimer’s-associated proteins. We think that perhaps

This simple test can help to predict Alzheimer’s disease. Being unaware of memory loss is actually an important warning sign for developing Alzheimer’s disease, new research finds. People who were unaware of their own memory problems — known as anosognosia — were 64% more likely to develop Alzheimer’s within 5 years. On the other hand, if you are worried about memory loss, but your partner isn’t, then it’s probably not Alzheimer’s. Dr. Philip Gerretsen, the study’s lead author, said: “If patients complain of memory problems, but their partner or caregiver