Mindfully Healing

The most genuine and pleasant type of smile might surprise you. When it comes to a successful smile, less is more, new research finds. The most effective, successful and pleasant smile doesn’t show too much of the teeth. It is a medium or low wattage smile. Certainly, it is not true that the bigger the smile, the better it is, as the study’s authors explain: “…the optimal window (or sweet spot) of smile extent contradicts the principle that “more is always better” with respect to smile extent.” The image below

Prescription drugs taken by millions of people around the world can affect memory. Memory loss is not always a result of ageing. Here are five types of drugs that can affect memory. 1. Antidepressants (tricyclic) The older type of antidepressants — known as tricyclics — have been linked to memory loss. Some of the drug names include: desipramine (Norpramin), imipramine (Tofranil), clomipramine (Anafranil), and doxepin (Sinequan). Around half of people taking them report problems concentrating and one-third say they have memory loss. 2. Anxiety drugs Benzodiazepines include drugs marketed under

People frequently give those with insomnia the worst advice with the best of intentions. Many people give incorrect advice about insomnia to their partners with the best of intentions, new research reveals. Psychologists studied 31 bed partners of people with insomnia. They wanted to see how they tried to support their insomniac partners. What they found was worrying… 74% of people encouraged an earlier bedtime or a later bedtime – Wrong! In fact, treatments for insomnia advise people to keep the same sleep and wake times. It is critical to

Some good can come of this emotion — not so much its close cousin, shame. People who are more prone to feeling guilt are better at reading other people’s emotions, a new study finds. The guilt-prone were able to read all types of facial emotions better, tests revealed. They were particularly good on relatively low-intensity emotions. Subtle facial expressions are (obviously) the most difficult to detect. This is not the first time guilt has been linked to empathy, as the study’s authors explain: “[there is] a large body of prior

The criminal psychopath is not just born: he is also made. ‘Extreme’ styles of parenting are linked to criminal psychopathy in later life, research finds. Interviews with criminals have found that many have a history of either total parental neglect or of rigidly controlling, authoritarian parents. All criminal psychopaths have a history of grotesque physical and/or psychological abuse during childhood. Of course, parents cannot be blamed for everything — after all, some children have awful upbringings and don’t become criminal psychopaths. However, explained Dr Aina Gullhaugen, the study’s first author,

Escape from worries about past and future and find it easier to focus on the present moment. Just ten minutes of mindfulness each day is effective against repetitive anxious thoughts, new research reveals. The practice can also help stop your mind from wandering. People in the study who meditated for only a short period found it easier to focus on their present-moment external experience rather than their internal thoughts. Mr Mengran Xu, the study’s first author, said: “Our results indicate that mindfulness training may have protective effects on mind wandering

Researchers tested how the mere presence of a smartphone affected cognitive capacity. The mere presence of your smartphone makes you more dumb, even when it is on silent, new research finds. It doesn’t even matter if it is turned off! So, leaving your smartphone in another room actually makes you smarter. The study found that when people had their smartphones with them, their cognitive capacity was reduced. Cognitive capacity is the ability to hold and process information in the mind. Dr Adrian Ward, the study’s first author, said: “We see

Some foods can keep your brain young. Blackberries, blueberries and strawberries all reduce cognitive decline related to age, research finds. All three fruits contain high levels of flavonoids. Flavonoids are powerful antioxidants that can also help reduce inflammation in the brain and body. The research was carried out on data from 121,700 women, who were followed up over decades. Dr Elizabeth Devore, the study’s first author, said: “As the U.S. population ages, understanding the health issues facing this group becomes increasingly important. Our study examined whether greater intake of berries

Certain hairstyles made people look more sexy, others more good-natured or even more narrow-minded. Medium-length casual-looking styles are judged as making women look more intelligent, a survey finds. These styles are also linked to being good-natured. Shorter, highlighted hairstyles on a woman make them look more outgoing and confident. However, in one of those inevitable and irritating trade-offs, shorter hair is seen as less sexy on women. The hairstyle that gives an intelligent sheen to a man was medium-length side-parted hair. The bad news for men with these haircuts is