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.
Low vitamin D causes health problems
Inadequate levels of vitamin D linked to cancer, heart disease, and Read More...
Sleeping helps learn, study shows
Researchers from NYU’s Langone Medical Center have found that sleep after learning helps strengthen new memories and synapse Read More...
Stress is good for you
1. You need it to think creatively Stress often precedes a creative breakthrough. Enormous frustration about a certain problem can put you in a pressure-cooker situation that ultimately leads to a whole new way of thinking. 2. It improves your immune system When you experience a peak in stress Read More...
Biochemical secrets of the Mediterranean Diet
We’ve all heard that the Mediterranean diet—rich in olive oil and vegetables—is good for our hearts, and now researchers believe they’ve finally found the “secret ingredient” that gives this diet such a powerful effect on health and longevity. When the unsaturated fat in olive oil Read More...
Diabetes: try low-carb, not low-fat, to reduce inflammation
A new study has added an important new insight to the debate about the best diet to control type 2 diabetes, finding that diabetics who followed a low-carb diet both lost weight and reduced the levels of inflammatory molecules in their blood. Since inflammation is thought to play a role in the Read More...
Coffee reduces diabetes risk
What is the best way to prevent diabetes? Research points to coffee. Scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health set out to establish how changes in coffee and tea consumption affected the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and their surprising results show that increasing your coffee Read More...
Sunshine improves survival rate after cancer
We get almost all our vitamin D from the sun, and The Intelligent Optimist has long advocated moderate sun exposure to maintain healthy levels of this essential nutrient. Lack of vitamin D has been linked to a wide range of chronic health problems from allergies to osteoporosis and high blood Read More...
Simple fitness tests predict longevity
Three simple tests performed in middle age may be able to predict survival in old age. The tests are the strength of one’s grip, speed in rising out of a chair and ability to balance on one leg with the eyes closed. Researchers from University College London looked at how performance on these Read More...
Chimneys for a healthier future for the children of India
The boys in this picture live in the center of Dharavi, Mumbai, one of the world’s biggest slums. More than a million people live in Dharavi and it’s an extremely unhealthy place to live because of the severe air pollution. Onno van Schayck, professor of preventative medicine at the University Read More...
High fiber improves heart attack survival
Eating foods high in fiber—like fruit, legumes and grains—after surviving a heart attack can decrease your chances of dying over the years that follow. People who increased their fiber intake the most after suffering from a heart attack were 25% less likely to die from any cause up to nine Read More...