9 Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick

9 Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick

We spotted this provocative blog post from lifestyledezine.com, and while the nine “secrets” aren’t really secrets at all, the underlying theme is sound – biology aside, we have some control over our well-being. Most of these “secrets” are well known and just one (in my reading of the literature) is debatable. Here are the nine.  

1.       Make friends a priority.  It’s not a standard recommendation, but the research is clear – there’s a strong connection between friendships and a healthy immune system.  The lifestyledezine article cites studies out of Harvard, Sweden and Buffalo to fortify the point that individuals with strong friendships (aka “positive social attachments”) were less likely to suffer from heart disease, depression and anxiety, and less prone to suffer memory loss and other cognitive disorders. 

2.       Embrace bacteria. In most circles, “bacteria” remains something of a dirty word, and that’s probably not the healthiest thing.  The article maintains: “ ‘Good’ germs can improve your metabolism, enhance your immunity and reduce inflammation,” and then cites a study out of the University of California, San Diego that found that “the more bacteria you have on the surface of your skin, the better you combat inflammation.” 

3.       Focus on reducing stress.  The lifestyledezine article highlights three studies (out of Duke, USC and the American Psychological Assn.) that support what we’ve learned from the popular press: 1. It’s important to learn relaxation techniques, and the sooner the better (not surprisingly, the APA study found that stress is a top health concern for high school students); 2. Stress increases your chance of contracting an infection; and 3. Exercise can reduce body tension by as much as 20%.  And the article offers two more semi-standard suggestions: laugh often, and eat a diet rich in vegetables (green and raw).

4.       Take more naps.  It’s no secret – we’re a sleep deprived nation and the more sleep we can garner, the better.  Recently a sleep expert offered this tip: if you’re going to take a nap, make it for 20 minutes or less, or 90 minutes or more.

5.       Lean on herbal remedies more than supplements.   As popular as supplements are, and have been for the last decade or two, they are coming under increasing scrutiny, with experts reminding us that minerals and nutrients gathered from our food supply – as opposed to synthetic sources – is the wiser, healthier choice. Adds lifestyledezine.com: “Skip pre-packaged bottled versions and sip unflavored loose-leaf green tea.”

6.       Eat garlic. But not in mixed company.

7.       Eat less.  I knew that.

8.       Stay pH balanced.  I’ll be honest, as careful as I am about watching what I eat, I rarely (read: never) think in terms of my pH balance. The lifestyledezine article says that “when pH levels fall below [the midpoint], the body suffers from a condition called acidosis, which even in minor cases can cause fatigue, rapid breathing, stomach problems and confusion.” No surprise here: most vegetables are alkalizing, balancing the acidic nature of meats and sugars most common in the American diet.

9.       Detox regularly.  This is the “secret” with which I take issue. My reading of the literature sees no scientific basis for this recommendation. Webmd.com quotes Frank Sacks, an epidemiologist at the Harvard School of Public Health: “There is no basis in human biology that indicates we need fasting or any other detox formula to detoxify the body because we have our own internal organs and immune system that take care of excreting toxins." Webmd.com defines detoxing as follows: “Detoxing is based on the concept that your body needs help getting rid of unwanted toxins from contaminants in processed foods and the environment.”

##

Why Do New Things Make Us Feel So Good?

We love new things. New sights, new sounds. New clothes, new books, new liquid refreshments.  Novelty is the key and novelty is probably what makes Facebook and texting, and travel, so appealing.

Neuroscientists have identified a “novelty center” in our brain, and they believe that activating this center not only makes us feel good (by releasing dopamine) but may enhance our ability to learn.

Wrote Belle Beth Cooper, in a piece for LifeHacker.com: “Researchers have long suspected that the human brain is particularly attracted to new information and that this might be important for learning.”

The formal name for the novelty center is the substantia nigra/ventral tegmental area (SN/VTA), which is located in the midbrain and responds to entirely novel stimuli. Explained Cooper, in her lifehacker.com piece: “The SN/VTA only activated when [study participants were] shown absolutely novel stimuli – images that had never been seen before. Other related areas of the brain still reacted to the images, but the reactions decreased slightly with each showing as they became more familiar.”

The study at issue was the work of professors Emrah Duzel and Nico Bunzeck of University College London (UCL) and it reminded me of a study years back in which rats, searching for food, chose a novel route instead of a more expedient one. In other words, the rats were willing to wait for their reward (food) for a chance to explore.  So curiosity and novelty, it seems, is built into the DNA of the entire animal kingdom (a point reinforced nightly when I take our dogs for a walk around Daniel Island).

Said Dr. Duzel, in a press release accompanying his study:  “When we see something new, we see it has a potential for rewarding us in some way. This potential that lies in new things motivates us to explore our environment for rewards. The brain learns that the stimulus, once familiar, has no reward associated with it and so it loses its potential. For this reason, only completely new objects activate the midbrain area and increase our levels of dopamine.”

Duzel and Bunzeck’s findings may eventually find their way to the classroom.  Said Dr. Duzel: “We hope that these findings will have an impact on behavioural treatments for patients with poor memory. Current practice by behavioural psychologists aims to improve memory through repeatedly exposing a person to information – just as we do when we revise for an exam. This study shows that [learning] is more effective if you mix new facts in with the old. You actually learn better, even though your brain is also tied up with new information.”

Eating out: what does this menu want me to do?

This story might be a bit difficult to stomach, but after you read this column, it’s safe to say that you’ll never look at a menu the same way again.  Here’s why.

It’s called “menu engineering” (also known as menu psychology) and it describes the fine art of preparing menus to maximize profit.  The term took center stage when the economy nose-dived some seven years ago, and while not every restaurant entrepreneur plays the game, most restauranteurs realize that constructing a menu is far more than slapping a few recipes on a page. 

Here are five tricks of the trade, drawn from a range of literature on the subject:

1.       Beware, the dollar sign. Explained Sarah Kershaw, writing for The New York Times: “In the world of menu engineering and pricing, a dollar sign is pretty much the worst thing you can put on a menu, particularly at a high-end restaurant. Not only will it scream ‘Hello, you are about to spend money!’ into a diner’s tender psyche, but it can feel aggressive and look tacky. So can price formats that end in the numeral 9, as in $9.99, which tend to signify value but not quality, menu consultants and researchers say.”

2.       Aunts and Uncles are in.  The menu now says “Mac & Cheese,” but if we change it simply to “Mom’s Mac & Cheese,” sales will go up, according to Marylys Marris, writing for CBS News.  Explained Oxford experimental psychologist Charles Spence, as quoted by Amy Fleming at guardian.co.uk: “Give [the dish] an ethnic label, such as an Italian name, and people will rate the food as more authentic.” And Kershaw, writing for The Times, said customers “are much more likely to buy, say, Grandma’s zucchini cookies, burgers freshly ground at Uncle Sol’s butcher shop this morning and Aunt Phyllis’s famous wedge salad,” according to researchers.  

3.       Music and lavender. Research shows that classical music sells more expensive wine, pop music increases soft drink sales and both slow music and the scent of lavender lead people to hang out longer, according to Fleming’s piece at guardian.co.uk. 

4.       Location, location, location. When you open a menu, where do you look first?  Research identifies the middle of the right page as “prime menu real estate,” according to Marris, writing for CBS News.  Marris quotes her younger son Erza, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, who explained: "Most people who go to a restaurant are going to order an entree anyway. . . . [so the middle of the right page is] where I'd put desserts." Fleming quotes Professor and author Brian Wansink (“Slim by Design”) who said that people “generally scan the menu in a z-shaped fashion, starting at the top-left hand corner.” So it’s important to direct diners to the items you want them to see.  Accordingly, researchers find that sales increase if you place a box around an item, or include a photo of the dish (no surprise). 

5.       Too little choice?  Too much choice?  Researchers out of Bournemouth University have identified the optimum number of choices that customers prefer, and Professor John Edwards says the findings seem to hold across all ages and both genders. In her piece for guardian.co.uk, Fleming summarizes Edwards’ findings: “In fast-food joints, people wanted six items per category (starters, chicken dishes, fish, vegetarian and pasta dishes, grills and classic meat dishes, steaks and burgers, desserts), while in fine dining establishments, they preferred seven starters and desserts, and 10 main courses.” Apparently, having too many items overwhelms the customer, while having too few leaves them wanting.   

##

A stronger marriage, in just 21 minutes a year?

It sounds far-fetched, but a research team of professors from Northwestern, Stanford and Villanova has demonstrated that in just 21 minutes a year (yes, that’s 21 minutes, not hours), a couple can perform a writing exercise that can strengthen their marriage. The study took place over a two-year period and involved 120 married couples ranging in age from their 20s to their 70s.  Couples were married, on average, for 11 years.

Explained lead researcher Eli Finkel, professor of psychology at Northwestern University (as quoted in a press release put out by the Association of Psychological Science): "I don't want it to sound like magic, but you can get pretty impressive results with minimal intervention."

Here’s how the study worked: in year #1, every four months, each couple was asked to write about the most significant disagreement they had had with their spouse in recent months (e.g., over finance, household responsibilities, sex-related concerns, etc.). In year #2, the couples were split into two groups: group #1 continued recording their conflicts as before while group #2 was now told to write their entries from the perspective of a third party (for example, a close friend).  Thus couples in group #2 were not allowed to say things such as “It made me so angry when he was late” but rather “Thomas was one hour late coming home.” 

To establish the proper baseline, each couple was asked, every four months, to report their level of relationship satisfaction, love, intimacy, trust, passion and commitment.

What did the researchers find? 

In the first year of the study, overall martial quality declined for the 120 couples – a finding in sync with a vast body of research that shows that marital bliss diminishes over time.  But after year #2, the decline in marital quality was entirely eliminated for the couples that wrote entries from a neutral perspective. 

Said Finkel: "Previous research shows that relationship satisfaction decreases over the course of a marriage but these writing exercises act as a buffer for unhappiness. . . . The trick is to get outside your own head. By processing conflict from a neutral perspective, you better understand where your partner is coming from and are able to let go of grudges." 

Finkel added: "Not only did this effect emerge for marital satisfaction, it also emerged for other relationship processes -- like passion and sexual desire -- that are especially vulnerable to the ravages of time. . . . And this isn't a dating sample. These effects emerged whether people were married for one month, 50 years or anywhere in between."

The research report discussed, at some length, the relative benefits of marriage, in terms of health and happiness.  But Finkel made note: "Marriage tends to be healthy for people, but the quality of the marriage is much more important than its mere existence. . . . Having a high-quality marriage is one of the strongest predictors of happiness and health. From that perspective, participating in a seven-minute writing exercise three times a year has to be one of the best investments married people can make."

The study, titled “A Brief Intervention to Promote Conflict Reappraisal,” was co-authored by Finkel and Erica Slotter (Villanova), Laura Luchies (Redeemer University College), and Gregory Walton and James Gross (Stanford).

##