Mindfully Healing

Inhaling the essential oil could help reduce the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. Orange essential oil is a potential treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, new research suggests. The oil — derived from the skin of an orange — could provide a better option than drugs, which generally have unwanted side effects. Ms Cassandra Moshfegh, the study’s first author, said: “Relative to pharmaceuticals, essential oils are much more economical and do not have adverse side effects. The orange essential plant oil showed a significant effect on the behavioral response in our

“At 10 months, the differences between these two groups were striking.” – Dr Pamela Maher A natural compound found in strawberries can reduce the mental effects of ageing. The antioxidant fisetin, when given to mice, was found to reduce their mental decline with age and inflammation in their body. Fisetin is also found in many other plants, such as apples, onions, cucumbers and persimmons. Dr Pamela Maher, who led the research said: “Companies have put fisetin into various health products but there hasn’t been enough serious testing of the compound.

…and what your profile picture says about your personality. Social media profile pictures can reveal clues about personality, according to new research. Thousands of Twitter user’s pictures were included in the study, along with an analysis of their personality. Here is how to spot each of the five aspects of personality: 1. Conscientiousness More conscientious people used pictures that were more natural, colourful and bright. They expressed the most emotions of all the different personality types. This probably reflects the fact that conscientious people like to do what is expected

This Alzheimer’s early warning sign could provide a way of warding off the neurodegenerative disease. Poor sleep could be an early sign of Alzheimer’s in people who are otherwise healthy, new research finds. Scientists have found links between certain biological markers of Alzheimer’s and sleep disturbances. Dr Barbara B. Bendlin, who led the study, said: “Previous evidence has shown that sleep may influence the development or progression of Alzheimer’s disease in various ways. For example, disrupted sleep or lack of sleep may lead to amyloid plaque buildup because the brain’s

From Texas to Tehran and from Dakar to Beijing, the results were the same. Women who are almost underweight are most attractive to men, a recent study finds. Dr Lobke Vaanholt, one of the study’s authors, said: “Although most people will not be surprised that extreme thinness was perceived as the most attractive body type, since this prevails so heavily in media, culture and fashion, the important advance is that now we have an evolutionary understanding of why this is the case.” For the research, people in 10 different countries

The eye movements that indicate whether someone is thinking of you as a friend or potential lover. People’s eyes scan our bodies differently depending on whether they want to date us or just be friends, new research finds. The study tracked the eye movements of 105 heterosexual young people as they looked at photos of strangers. Both men and women looked more at the head and chest of a person they were considering dating, the study found. In comparison, they looked more at someone’s legs and feet when they were

The study found links between signatures and the darker parts of narcissism, such as authoritativeness and exploitativeness. People with bigger signatures are more likely to be narcissists, new research finds. The conclusion comes from a study of the signatures of 500 chief financial officers. They found that the CFOs with the largest signatures were more likely to bend the truth. In this case by misreporting the company’s earnings or relaxing internal controls. Dr Charles Ham, one of the study’s authors, said: “In an ideal setting, you would be in direct

There will be a test, so I hope you are paying attention. When a person starts to blink more rapidly, it suggests their mind is wandering, research finds. Blinking sets up a tiny barrier against the outside world, allowing the brain to focus on something different. The researchers were inspired by neuroscientific findings that parts of the brain are less active when the mind wanders. Dr Daniel Smilek, the study’s first author, said: “And we thought, OK, if that’s the case, maybe we’d see that the body would start to

Depression symptoms were reduced in almost half the people given the injection. A single botox injection has been found to substantially improve depressive symptoms, research finds. Botox is typically used to decrease the appearance of wrinkles in the face. But, researchers have found that it can also help to treat the symptoms of depression. Professor Norman E. Rosenthal, who led the study, said: “This research is groundbreaking because it offers those who suffer from depression and their doctors an entirely new approach to treating the condition — one that doesn’t

Why early life stress causes depression. Early life stress decreases the adult ability to feel enthusiasm and experience pleasure. This is one of the reasons that experiencing stress early in life is a major risk factor for depression. Studies show that neglected or abused children are almost twice as likely to experience depression later in life. One of the causes is thought to be how neglect and abuse affects the way the brain processes reward. Dr. Jamie Hanson, the study’s first author, explained: “Our analyses revealed that over a two-year