A study of the relationships of nearly 5,000 people tracked for decades in the Framingham Heart Study shows that good cheer spreads through social networks of nearby family, friends and neighbors.

By Karen Kaplan (LA Times)

They say misery loves company, but the same may be even more true of happiness. 

In a study published online today by the British Medical Journal, scientists from Harvard University and UC San Diego showed that happiness spreads readily through social networks of family members, friends and neighbors. 

Knowing someone who is happy makes you 15.3% more likely to be happy yourself, the study found. A happy friend of a friend increases your odds of happiness by 9.8%, and even your neighbor’s sister’s friend can give you a 5.6% boost. 

Continue Reading »

Just in time for the holidays, some medical advice most people will like: Take a nap. Interrupting sleep seriously disrupts memory-making, compelling new research suggests. But on the flip side, taking a nap may boost a sophisticated kind of memory that helps us see the big picture and get creative.

“Not only do we need to remember to sleep, but most certainly we sleep to remember,” is how Dr. William Fishbein, a cognitive neuroscientist at the City University of New York, put it at a meeting of the Society for Neuroscience last week.

Good sleep is a casualty of our 24/7 world. Surveys suggest few adults attain the recommended seven to eight hours a night.

Way too little clearly is dangerous: Sleep deprivation causes not just car crashes but all sorts of other accidents. Over time, a chronic lack of sleep can erode the body in ways that leave us more vulnerable to heart disease, diabetes and other illnesses.

Continue Reading »

by Jullien Gordon

It’s simple. Change your mindset from working FOR your company to working WITH your company. Employment is a partnership, not an obligation, no matter how bad the economy is.

The first thing any non-stock holding employee has to accept is that no matter where you work and how much you make, you’re being undervalued…at least financially. No company in the world (except ones that get 700 billion dollar tax payer bail outs from the government) can pay you more than the value you are creating for them. Even if you were earning $250,000 a year, you have to be making at least twice that for the company in revenue for it to stay in business.

Most people say that they “work for” a company. Though the difference between working FOR a company and working WITH a company is verbally minute, the mindset shift is huge. Check out the mental differences between someone who works WITH versus someone who works FOR and see where you are on the spectrum. People who work FOR companies in times like these are vulnerable whereas people who work WITH them have a stronger position.

Continue Reading »

When you think of losing weight and getting healthy, you think about lacing up your running shoes and heading to the gym. But the next time you think about getting healthy, try a new vision that includes whispering sounds of the rainforest, rejuvenating smells of eucalyptus, the relieving heat of water soaking through your skin and the relaxing pressure of experienced hands releasing knots under your neck and back. In other words, treat yourself to a session at the spa.

The No. 1 contributor to many degenerative diseases is stress, and taking a regular session at the spa, once a week or even once or twice a month, can help you de-stress and improve your health. Chronic stress can lead to ulcers, chest pain, weight loss, weight gain, loss of appetite, digestive problems, canker sores, cold sores, acne, rashes, eczema, high blood pressure, miscarriage, depression, anxiety, substance abuse, heartburn, headaches, back aches, stiff muscles, constipation and diarrhea. 

Source: Urban Influence Magazine | Continue Reading »