HEALTH AND WELLNESS

                                    Most of the progress in understanding sleep mechanics has been made in the last 50 years. What has been learned explodes some long-standing misconceptions. One is the assumption that since many bodily functions slows down during rest; sleep is little more than a state of inactivity.        By studying brain-wave patterns, medical researchers have learned that there are repeated cycles and stages of sleep. Far from being inactive, the human brain runs at high speed during certain periods of sleep. Healthful sleep involves going through these cycles four or more times every night and spending a sufficient amount of time in each cycle.          A normal night’s sleep is most easily divided into 2 types: what is commonly called REM [rapid eye movement, or dream] sleep and non-REM [nondream] sleep. You can tell a person is in REM sleep when the bulge of his eyeballs can be seen rapidly moving under his eyelids.         Non-REM sleep can be f

                                     [1] THE BLUBBER OF MARINE MAMMALS          For decades, scientists could not understand how dolphins could swim at the speed of nearly 40 kilometers an hour. The animals simply did not have enough muscle, the scientists thought. But dolphins have a secret, part of which lies in their blubber, a complex substance also found under the skin of porpoises, whales, and other marine animals           Blubber is a thick, dense layer of highly organized connective tissue with a lot of fat cells. It covers practically the whole creature, and it is strongly attached to the musculature and skeleton by highly organized, fan-shaped networks of tendons and ligament. These networks, in turns, are composed of elastic fibers and collagen, a protein that is also found in skin and bones. Blubber, therefore, is much more than a layer of insulating fat. It is a highly sophisticated combination of various living tissues.         How, though, does blubber hel

                                         One can survive for several weeks without food but only about five days without water! Up to three quarters of our body weight is water. For example, the brain is 75 to 85 percent water, and the muscles are 70 percent water. Among other things, water helps us to digest and absorb food, carrying nutrients to the cells. It removes toxins and other waste, lubricates joints and the colon, and regulates body temperature. But did you know that drinking enough water is also a factor in weight loss?                                                      DRINKING WATER TO LOSE WEIGHT               First of all, water has no calories, is fat free and cholesterol-free, and is low in sodium. Second, it is an appetite suppressant. Third, water helps the body to metabolize stored fat. How? Well, when the kidneys do not have enough water, they cannot function properly. The liver steps in as a backup, but doing so hinders its ability to metabolize fat

     The nine-month wait is finally over, and the baby so longed for is about to be born. The expectant mother’s cervix has remained firmly shut, keeping the fetus safely in the womb. But now her cervix thins, softens, and relaxes. The miracle of birth begins.     What is behind the marvelous process of childbirth? Of the several factors involved, two are especially amazing. First, OXYTOCIN , a hormone produced in the brain, is released. Both men and women produce this substance, but a great quantity of it is released in the pregnant mother when labor begins, causing the cervix to dilate and the uterus to contract.        Just how the pituitary gland of the expectant mother knows when to begin releasing this hormones is a mystery. The book incredible Voyage- Exploring the Human Body states: somehow her brain senses that gestation is complete and that it is time for the powerful uterine muscles … to take on their brief but heroic job.        A second factor involved in thi

                                      Although depression sometimes has an obvious trigger, it often intrudes on a person’s life without warning. Your life is suddenly darkened by a cloud of sadness for no apparent reason. Nobody you know has died, and nothing distressing has occurred. Yet, you feel dejected and listless. And nothing will make the cloud go away. You are overwhelmed by feelings of despair, and you don’t know why.         Depression is nothing to be ashamed of. Yet, Jon in Brazil felt ashamed to be diagnosed with depression. In fact, eight years later I still feel ashamed of myself, she admits. In particular, she finds it difficult to deal with her emotional anguish. The suffering is sometimes so intense, that I feel physical pain. All the muscles in my body hurt. At such times it is impossible to get out of bed. And then there are the times when Jon cannot stop crying. I sob with such intensity and become so exhausted, she says, that it feels as though my bloo