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.
Scientists manipulate brain activity to boost confidence
What does confidence look like in the brain? And can we use this information to help boost confidence in those who suffer from low self-esteem or self-doubt? A new study sheds light on these questions with a new brain-scanning technique that can read and amplify the brainwaves of a high-confidence Read More...
The beating heart of solar energy
The notion of using solar cells placed under the skin to continuously recharge implanted electronic medical devices is a viable one. Swiss researchers have done the math, and found that a 3.6 square centimeter solar cell is all that is needed to generate enough power during winter and summer to Read More...
May we suggest one resolution for this new year? Cut back on sugar!
If you want to make one lifestyle change to invest in your health this year, cutting back on your sugar consumption may very well be your best bet. In his new book “The Case Against Sugar” Gary Taubes convincingly argues that sugar is at the root of all “the diseases of westernization,” Read More...
Garment once used for astronauts is now saving women in developing countries
Excessive bleeding after giving birth is a particular problem amongst mothers in developing countries, accounting for up to 60 percent of maternal mortality cases. That’s why researchers have recreated a suit originally used to help astronauts during extreme acceleration into a version that Read More...
Graphene can help hunt down cancer
Graphene is a strong and wonderfully versatile material that might help produce drinking water on the cheap, turn carbon dioxide into liquid fuels and build batteries. And just recently, scientists at the University of Chicago have found that it can also help to detect cancer. Apparently, the atoms Read More...
Pregnancy causes lasting changes in a woman's brain
Growing a human being is no small feat—just ask any newly pregnant woman. Her hormones surge as her body undergoes a massive physical transformation, and the changes don’t end there. A study published Monday in Nature Neuroscience reveals that during pregnancy women undergo significant Read More...
Raise your levels of the ‘sunshine vitamin’ and beat the blues
Being in the sun makes people happy. And that makes sense, according to science. The higher your vitamin D level is, the better you feel. Vitamin D not only helps build strong bones, promotes calcium absorption and reduces inflammation, new research adds to the vitamin’s myriad benefits: a Read More...
Plant proteins, healthy fats and more 2017 food trends
If the food trends of 2016 could be summed up in three words, they would be: protein, paleo and local. What food trends will we be seeing in 2017? At the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo in Boston in October, I was among more than 10,000 nutrition professionals who got an inside scoop on the Read More...
Fighting food waste with second skin for fragile fruit made from… food waste
Fresh fruit and vegetables are healthy. Yet, the fresh produce is enormously expensive and wasteful. An estimated 40 percent of all fruits and vegetables grown in the U.S. ends up in the trash. What makes it to your local grocery store is often coated in layers of wax to keep it as fresh—or, Read More...
Rooftop hydroponic systems produce cheaper, healthier greens than rural farms
Rooftop farming is a promising new trend to bring healthy and cheap food to urban areas. This type of farming all but removes soil from the equation, with each plant housed in plastic containers hovering above a tank, their stringy roots dangling into a circulating pool of nutrient-boosted tap Read More...