Mindfully Healing

It can feel really good but it is reducing productivity by up to 40%. Multitasking can reduce productivity by up to 40%, research finds. And now brain scans show why. Changing from one activity to another interferes with brain activity. This makes the end result much worse than if we focus on one thing at a time. Dr Iiro Jääskeläinen, a neuroscientist and one of the study’s authors, said: “We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to measure different brain areas of our research subjects while they watched short segments of

The three dietary supplements that are most effective for treating anxiety. Dietary supplements which contain passionflower, kava or combinations of L-lysine and L-arginine can help reduce anxiety, according to a review published in the Nutrition Journal. The supplements generally had mild to moderate effects without producing any serious side-effects. The review included results from 24 separate studies with over 2,000 participants. The researchers also concluded that St John’s Wort and magnesium were not effective in treating anxiety (Lakhan & Vieira, 2010). Dr Shaheen Lakhan, the study’s first author, said: “Our

If pushed to choose, would you say this image contains a circle or not? People who tend towards saying the shape above is a circle are generally more liberal, a new study finds. People in the study who tended to say this was a circle were also: for the legalisation of cannabis, for gay marriage, for a government-funded welfare state. Those who said the shape above was not a circle tended to be more politically conservative. Naturally, they were also more likely to be for strengthening drug laws and ‘small’

Those who had played the game had 62% fewer intrusive memories in the following week. Playing Tetris — a retro tile-matching puzzle game — can help reduce the formation of intrusive memories after a traumatic event, new research finds. Participants in the study had all been involved in a car accident in the last six hours. They were waiting in the E.R. in Oxford, England. While waiting to be seen, some were encouraged to play Tetris. A comparison group just filled in an activity log of what had happened since

Resistance and aerobic exercise were tested alongside tai chi and yoga. Aerobic and resistance exercise together is the best combination for boosting brain power, new research finds. The results come from a review of 39 studies of people over 50-years-old doing all different types of exercise and activities, including: aerobic and resistance training, tai chi, and yoga. The results showed that all types of exercise improved the brain power of those over 50. Aerobic exercise boosts cognitive abilities, while resistance training was particularly good at boosting memory and executive function.

A well managed natural environment is particularly important to people. Being in the natural environment is linked to higher satisfaction with life, new research finds. People were particularly satisfied if they felt their natural environment was being well managed. Dr Kelly Biedenweg, the study’s first author, said: “Whether people feel like things are fair and they have a voice in process of making decisions and whether governance is transparent — those are the foundations of why people even can interact with nature.” The results come from a survey of 4,000

Sleep pattern linked to better ideas, focus and planning. For a boost to your attention and creativity, keep your sleep regular, new research suggests. Regular sleep patterns are linked to higher focus, better ideas and stronger forward planning. People who skimp on sleep, then ‘catch-up’ with more sleep later suffer cognitive problems. The study was carried out on students studying interior design. Dr Michael Scullin, a study author, explained: “When completing term projects, students restrict sleep, then rebound on sleep, then repeat. Major projects which call for numerous tasks and