Health
Finding good health news amidst a pandemic can be quite daunting. That’s not the case with The Optimist Daily, where positive news is in high supply. Our Health section covers the latest good news from the health sector, featuring solutions ranging from mental and physical health to immunity, nutrition, and cutting edge medical research.
Why we have daylight saving time and how you can help your body adjust to it
Daylight savings time 2021 If you live in the US, tomorrow marks the official end of daylight saving time, also known as “fall back.” Despite widespread pushback against the concept of daylight savings, it is still practiced in 48 states (Hawaii and Arizona opt out). Today, we’re sharing the Read More...
The case taking for 'meme breaks'
Social media tends to get a bad rep for several reasons, like its addictive qualities and negative impact on our mental health. While social media does have its downfalls, a new study reveals that a certain facet of the internet, memes, actually helps us, especially in terms of alleviating stress Read More...
Rare genetic variant explains pain-free childbirth in some women
Childbirth is the most painful experience of many women’s lives, but for a select few, the process is far less unpleasant. Researchers from the University of Cambridge have found that a small proportion of women with a rare genetic variant have a higher threshold for pain during Read More...
New invention slashes time in diagnosing antibiotic resistance
Thanks to the overuse of antibiotics and the intelligence of microorganism evolution, antibiotic-resistant pathogens are on the rise. According to the CDC, over 2.8 million antibiotic-resistant infections arise annually in the US. The cost of this problem is estimated to be around $4.6 billion per Read More...
Nutritious and cozy: In-season superfoods to fuel you through the coldest months
"Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home." - Edith Sitwell It’s important to eat a well-balanced diet all year, but as we head into the coldest months of the year, eating well is even Read More...
This simple Blue Zone habit can improve your longevity
How often do you find yourself sitting on the floor in your day-to-day life? It turns out, sitting on the floor, while it may not be the most comfortable, is a simple way to improve your longevity. According to Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner, cultures that tend to keep their furniture to a Read More...
Benin becomes the first West African country to legalize abortion
On October 20, after a long and grueling parliamentary session, Benin became the first West African country to legally provide access to safe abortion. Before, abortion was only permitted if the pregnancy endangered the life of the pregnant woman, was the result of rape, or was conceived in an Read More...
New online tool aims to improve early breast cancer detection for Black women
In America, Black women are more likely to have breast cancer and at early ages, but despite this increased risk, there is a critical gap in early detection rates between Black women and their white counterparts. To address this disparity, researchers from Boston University and Tufts University Read More...
Sleepy Hong Kong citizens can hop on this napping bus tour to dreamland
In 2020, the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s Center for Communication and Public Opinion Survey made it very clear that stress-induced sleep deprivation was a widespread problem. Almost seven out of 10 respondents disclosed that they were experiencing insomnia, and of those, 60 percent of them Read More...
Study: Pandemic lockdowns offered mental health relief for some teens
The isolation of the pandemic took a toll on global mental health, but for many of us, the mandatory break had some mental health benefits as well. It gave us an opportunity to hit ‘pause,’ spend more time focusing on self-care and enjoy some much-needed rest time. Researchers from the Read More...