tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4933171468359066972024-03-21T13:15:05.206-07:00joeLAB.comjoeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.comBlogger721125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-31842572827165101312024-02-01T14:57:00.000-08:002024-02-01T14:57:49.186-08:00Gut microbes can boost the motivation to exercisesource <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/12/221214113857.htm" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/12/221214113857.htm</a>
Gut microbes can boost the motivation to exercise
Study in mice uncovers gut-to-brain pathway that increases exercise performance
Date:
December 14, 2022
Source:
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Summary:
Some species of gut-dwelling bacteria activate nerves in the gut to promote the desire to exercise, according to a study in mice. The study reveals the gut-to-brain pathway that explains why some bacteria boost exercise performance.
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Some species of gut-dwelling bacteria activate nerves in the gut to promote the desire to exercise, according to a study in mice that was led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The study was published today in Nature, and reveals the gut-to-brain pathway that explains why some bacteria boost exercise performance.
In the study, the researchers found that differences in running performance within a large group of lab mice were largely attributable to the presence of certain gut bacterial species in the higher-performing animals.
The researchers traced this effect to small molecules called metabolites that the bacteria produce -- metabolites that stimulate sensory nerves in the gut to enhance activity in a motivation-controlling brain region during exercise.
"If we can confirm the presence of a similar pathway in humans, it could offer an effective way to boost people's levels of exercise to improve public health generally," said study senior author Christoph Thaiss, PhD, an assistant professor of Microbiology at Penn Medicine.
Thaiss and colleagues set up the study to search broadly for factors that determine exercise performance.
They recorded the genome sequences, gut bacterial species, bloodstream metabolites, and other data for genetically diverse mice.
They then measured the amount of daily voluntary wheel running the animals did, as well as their endurance.
The researchers analyzed these data using machine learning, seeking attributes of the mice that could best explain the animals' sizeable inter-individual differences in running performance.
They were surprised to find that genetics seemed to account for only a small portion of these performance differences -- whereas differences in gut bacterial populations appeared to be substantially more important.
In fact, they observed that giving mice broad-spectrum antibiotics to get rid of their gut bacteria reduced the mice's running performance by about half.
Ultimately, in a years-long process of scientific detective work involving more than a dozen separate laboratories at Penn and elsewhere, the researchers found that two bacterial species closely tied to better performance, Eubacterium rectale and Coprococcus eutactus, produce metabolites known as fatty acid amides (FAAs). The latter stimulate receptors called CB1 endocannabinoid receptors on gut-embedded sensory nerves, which connect to the brain via the spine.
The stimulation of these CB1 receptor-studded nerves causes an increase in levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine during exercise, in a brain region called the ventral striatum.
The striatum is a critical node in the brain's reward and motivation network.
The researchers concluded that the extra dopamine in this region during exercise boosts performance by reinforcing the desire to exercise.
"This gut-to-brain motivation pathway might have evolved to connect nutrient availability and the state of the gut bacterial population to the readiness to engage in prolonged physical activity," said study co-author, J. Nicholas Betley, PhD, an associate professor of Biology at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts and Sciences.
"This line of research could develop into a whole new branch of exercise physiology."
The findings open up many new avenues of scientific investigation.
For example, there was evidence from the experiments that the better-performing mice experienced a more intense "runner's high" -- measured in this case by a reduction in pain sensitivity -- hinting that this well-known phenomenon is also at least partly controlled by gut bacteria.
The team now plans further studies to confirm the existence of this gut-to-brain pathway in humans.
Apart from possibly offering cheap, safe, diet-based ways of getting ordinary people running and optimizing elite athletes' performance, he added, the exploration of this pathway might also yield easier methods for modifying motivation and mood in settings such as addiction and depression.
The study was led by Penn Medicine scientist Lenka Dohnalová. Other Penn Medicine authors include: Patrick Lundgren, Jamie Carty, Nitsan Goldstein, Lev Litichevskiy, Hélène Descamps, Karthikeyani Chellappa, Ana Glassman, Susanne Kessler, Jihee Kim, Timothy Cox, Oxana Dmitrieva-Posocco, Andrea Wong, Erik Allman, Soumita Ghosh, Nitika Sharma, Kasturi Sengupta, Mark Sellmyer, Garret FitzGerald, Andrew Patterson, Joseph Baur, Amber Alhadeff, and Maayan Levy.
The study was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health (S10-OD021750, DP2AG067492, R01-DK-129691, , P01-DK119130 and R01-DK115578), the Pew Charitable Trust, the Edward Mallinckrodt, Jr. Foundation, the Agilent Early Career Professor Award, the Global Probiotics Council, the IDSA Foundation, the Thyssen Foundation, the Human Frontier Science Program, and Penn Medicine, including the Dean's Innovation Fund.
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Materials provided by University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
Dohnalová, L., Lundgren, P., Carty, J.R.E. et al. A microbiome-dependent gut–brain pathway regulates motivation for exercise. Nature, 2022 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05525-z
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University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. "Gut microbes can boost the motivation to exercise." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 14 December 2022. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/12/221214113857.htm>.joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-32173139960545228312023-02-03T11:11:00.004-08:002023-02-03T11:11:52.858-08:00Can We Put the Brakes on Parkinson’s Progression?reposted from https://www.parkinson.org/blog/awareness/parkinsons-progress
Can We Put the Brakes on Parkinson’s Progression?
May 05, 2022
put breaks pd progression blog
Researchers are lasered in on slowing and someday stopping Parkinson's disease (PD) in its tracks. Explore what they've discovered, see what the future might hold and learn how some of the strongest weapons in the fight against Parkinson's progression are practices you can put in place today.
This article is based on Can We Put the Brakes on PD Progression, a Parkinson’s Foundation Expert Briefing webinar presented by Joash Lazarus, MD, Multiple Sclerosis Center of Atlanta.
PD symptoms stem from a protein, called alpha-synuclein, that clumps and accumulates in certain areas of the brain. This process depletes dopamine, which is critical to many body processes, including smooth, coordinated movements. Though dopamine declines for everyone who lives with Parkinson's, each person experiences disease symptoms differently.
Parkinson's symptoms can impact your life in numerous ways. Using a range of therapies and supports as needed can make all the difference. Personalized medicines, social support groups, mental health care and participation in clinical trials have all shown benefit to people with Parkinson's.
But is there a way to slow Parkinson's progression? While scientists are evaluating everything from medications to mindfulness practice for clues, they've discovered some of the biggest benefits start at home.
Healthy Eating and Regular Exercise: A Powerful Combo
Making nutritious food the mainstay of your meals and enjoying regular exercise has countless proven benefits. Studies show targeted nutrition may slow Parkinson's advancement. Eating a whole-food, plant-based, Mediterranean-style diet — including fresh vegetables, fruit and berries, nuts, seeds, fish, olive and coconut oils and more — may be linked to slower PD progression.
When you live with PD, exercise is also critical to optimal health. In fact, the Parkinson’s Outcomes Project shows at least 2.5 hours a week of physical activity can slow PD symptom progression. Research reveals regular exercise also shows neuroprotective effects in animal models with Parkinson's.
Exercise benefits people of all ages. As people get older, their risk for falls increase. For people with PD, the chance of falls is two to three times higher. Up to half of these falls can result in major injury. Exercise is the only thing to notably minimize a person’s risk of falling. Regular physical activity can also boost balance, improve heart and lung function, increase memory, thinking and problem solving, minimize depression and more.
Here's how to make exercise work for you:
Maximize benefits by exercising moderately to vigorously 150 minutes a week.
Plan a weekly routine that includes aerobic activity, strength training, balance and stretching exercises.
Visit a physical therapist with Parkinson’s expertise for a functional evaluation and exercise recommendations.
Reference this Parkinson’s Exercise Recommendations PDF in English or Spanish to help guide your physical activity plan.
Specialized Parkinson's movement and speech therapies, such as the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) BIG and LOUD programs, have also shown potential to lessen symptoms and slow PD progression.
Exploring Therapy Advances
People with Parkinson's take a variety of medications to manage symptoms. PD researchers have spent decades working to discover therapies powerful enough to slow or stop Parkinson's. Some of these include:
Rasagiline
The 2009 ADAGIO study looked at whether rasagiline — a monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B) inhibitor (these can minimize the enzyme MAO-B's breakdown of dopamine and ease movement symptoms) — could put the brakes on disease progression for people in early-stage Parkinson's. The results suggested the possibility that a 1 mg daily dose of rasagiline might hold disease-modifying potential, but a 2mg daily dose did not.
Despite the study's uncertainties, it still showed ample evidence that rasagiline better controlled symptoms for people with PD, which is why it's used in concert with levodopa, currently the most powerful medication for Parkinson's and a treatment mainstay since its discovery in the 1960s.
Levodopa
Levodopa is a proven effective therapy throughout the Parkinson's journey. In the past, people often delayed starting levodopa therapy based on the myth that it would stop working after a few years. A 2019 study looked at whether starting levodopa earlier or later could change the course of Parkinson's. While research showed levodopa didn't slow PD, it proved starting the medication early on in Parkinson's is safe.
Deep Brain Stimulation
When people who live with PD begin to experience severe motor fluctuations, tremors and dyskinesia, involuntary muscle movements that can't be controlled by optimal medication doses, a surgically implanted deep brain stimulation (DBS) device can deliver electrical pulses to the brain, easing symptoms and boosting quality of life.
Results of a 2020 study proved people with Parkinson's disease can also get long-term symptom relief with DBS. The research shows people who have DBS therapy early on — coupled with optimal medication — generally do better with dyskinesia control. Despite the profound benefits of DBS, it's not proven to delay disease progression.
As researchers work to solve the Parkinson's puzzle, empower yourself by prioritizing your well-being. Wholesome food paired with regular exercise habits and comprehensive team-based treatment are the building blocks of a better life with PD.
Additional Information
The Parkinson’s Foundation Exercise Guidelines for People with Parkinson’s offers tips to stay in top shape.
Learn more about PD therapies in Medications: A Treatment Guide to Parkinson’s Disease.
Get moving with Fitness Fridays — Parkinson's Foundation PD-tailored at home workouts.
Dig in to why what and how you eat matters with Mindfulness: Nutrition and Mindful Eating, part of our Mindfulness Mondays series.joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-90189341039318742502023-02-03T11:10:00.001-08:002023-02-03T11:10:05.989-08:00Pineapple Pesticide Linked to Parkinson's Diseasereposted from https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/pineapple-pesticide-linked-parkinsons-disease-n477346
Pineapple Pesticide Linked to Parkinson's Disease
The pineapple pesticide made its way into milk in Hawaii and then into men's brains. A study is the latest to link pesticides to Parkinson's.
Image: Pineapples lay in the middle of a large plantation
Pineapples lay in the middle of a large plantation in January 2014.Kaveh Kazemi / Getty Images, file
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Dec. 9, 2015, 6:55 PM EST / Updated Dec. 9, 2015, 6:55 PM EST
By Maggie Fox
A pineapple pesticide that made its way into milk in Hawaii also made its way into men’s brains, and those men were more likely to develop Parkinson’s disease, a new study finds.
It’s the latest in a very long series of studies linking various pesticides to Parkinson’s, which is caused by the loss of certain brain cells.
And the study also seems to support a mystifying observation: smokers seem to be protected against Parkinson’s.
For the study, Dr. Robert Abbott of the Shiga University of Medical Science in Otsu, Japan, and colleagues studied 449 Japanese-American men living in Hawaii who were taking part in a larger study of aging. They gave details of how much milk they drank as part of a larger survey, and they donated their brains for study after they died.
“For people living with Parkinson's, understanding the impact of environmental factors is crucial."
The men who drank more than 16 ounces of milk a day had the fewest brain cells in a part of the brain called the substantia nigra, which is damaged in Parkinson’s, they reported in the journal Neurology.
The researchers also looked for the pesticide heptachlor, which was taken off the market for most uses in the U.S. in 1988.
"Among those who drank the most milk, residues of heptachlor epoxide were found in nine of 10 brains as compared to 63.4 percent for those who consumed no milk," the researchers wrote.
It’s known the milk in Hawaii was contaminated, probably from the feed given to the cattle. "The researchers could not test whether the milk the men drank was contaminated with pesticides (heptachlor, in this case), and no one knows how long or how widespread the contamination was before being detected," the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation said in a statement on its website.
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"The potential link between drinking milk, pesticides and development of Parkinson’s disease needs further investigation," the foundation said.
The men who smoked and who also drank milk showed none of the brain cell loss.
"This study is unique because it brings together two critical but different pieces of information — environmental exposure and physical changes in the brain — to understand potential contributors of Parkinson’s disease," James Beck, vice president of scientific affairs at the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, said in a statement.
“The potential link between drinking milk, pesticides and development of Parkinson’s disease needs further investigation.”
"For people living with Parkinson's, understanding the impact of environmental factors is crucial as nearly 85 percent have no idea why they developed Parkinson’s. There is no clear genetic link," Beck said.
The Parkinson's Disease Foundation estimates that 1 million Americans have the condition, marked by tremor, rigid muscles and problems with movement. There is no cure, although early treatment can delay the worst symptoms.
"For scientists, the opportunity to study brains generously donated by the participants of this study was crucial to establishing a potential link between different environmental exposures and Parkinson’s, and will be crucial to solving the disease overall," Beck said.
Maggie Fox
Maggie Fox is a senior writer for NBC News and TODAY, covering health policy, science, medical treatments and disease.joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-32378597916684795782023-01-31T09:13:00.005-08:002023-01-31T09:13:59.830-08:00Mitochondrial Metabolism Dictates Neurons’ Growth Ratereposted from
Mitochondrial Metabolism Dictates Neurons’ Growth Rate
Altering the rate of respiration in mitochondria changes how fast neurons grow, making mouse neurons grow more like human ones and vice versa, a study finds.
a human neuron illuminated in bright green on a black background.
A black and white headshot of Katherine Irving
Katherine Irving
Jan 30, 2023 | 4 min read
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A human cortical neuron
RYOHEI IWATA
Human brains grow extraordinarily slowly—a trait many neuroscientists speculate is related to our distinctive intellect. But how and why a human neuron takes years to grow when a mouse neuron grows for mere weeks has remained unclear. Now, scientists have uncovered one piece of the puzzle: Neuron growth is mediated by its mitochondria’s metabolism, according to a January 26 study in Science. The finding could not only help answer fundamental questions about brain development, the study authors say it could widen treatment options for developmental disorders.
“This is the most exciting study I’ve read in a while,” says Suzana Herculano-Houzel, a biologist and neuroscientist at Vanderbilt University who wasn’t involved in the research. “It opens a path for finding answers to, what is to me, one of the biggest questions we have: What makes different brains different?”
For senior study author and developmental biologist Pierre Vanderhaeghen, the underlying cause of human neurons’ prolonged growth had long lay tantalizingly out of reach. Nearly a decade ago, he and colleagues at the Free University of Brussels in Belgium put human cortical neurons inside mouse brains, expecting them to grow faster. But to their surprise, the human neurons still grew slowly when transplanted. This suggested to Vanderhaeghen, who also works at the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology and the Catholic University of Leuven, that the cause of a neuron’s glacial growth was intrinsic to the neuron itself and not the consequence of signals from the surrounding brain, he explains.
Moreover, he and his colleagues at the time noted that every single aspect of the neuron, from its dendrites to its synapses to its axon, grows in synchrony, indicating that the growth is regulated by a ubiquitous, basal component of the cell. Other research had posited that mitochondria may somehow play important roles in the development of cells. So he and his team set out to investigate whether mitochondria are involved in regulating neuron growth.
A purple human neuron with white mitochondria dotting the surface
A human neuron with mitochondria stained in white
RYOHEI IWATA
First, though, they needed to ensure they could accurately pinpoint the age of any given neuron. Knowing a neuron’s age is vital for gauging its growth over time, but getting an exact birthdate for each neuron had been next to impossible, Vanderhaeghen explains, as neurons don’t develop at the same rate as one another, even when their original stem cells are created at the same time. However, stem cells can only become neurons after promoter NeuroD1 is activated. So Vanderhaeghen and colleagues came up with a genetic tool that uses an engineered recombinase enzyme called CreER that identifies when NeuroD1 is turned on and immediately tags the neuron—essentially flagging its “birth.” With the ability to date the neurons, Vanderhaeghen and his team could start testing the effect mitochondria have on neuron growth rates.
Initially, Vanderhaeghen says, the team examined mitochondrial morphology and genetics. But on a whim, they also decided to look at the organelles’ respiration rates—basically, how much oxygen they consume, which is also a measure of how much cellular fuel they produce. They used oxygraphy to monitor the oxygen intake of mouse neurons for the first 20 days after their birth—and were stunned to find that after two weeks, the oxygen consumption rate of neurons had grown to nearly ten times that of human neurons.
From there, Vanderhaeghen says everything fell into place. The team knew they could manipulate mitochondrial respiration pharmacologically, so they sped up metabolism in human cortical neurons in vitro. Vanderhaeghen recalls a moment in the lab looking at the neurons; at only a few weeks old, the accelerated cortical neurons were considerably more mature than a normal human neuron. “To us, this was a big eureka moment,” he says. “There we thought, ‘this is it.’”
The scientists tested the same principle in vivo, speeding up the mitochondrial metabolism of human neurons and implanting them into mice, as well as slowing down the mitochondrial metabolism of mouse neurons both in culture and inside the mice’s brains. The results from both in and out of the brain aligned: Human neurons with increased metabolic rates grew faster than normal, and mouse neurons with decreased mitochondrial metabolic rates displayed slower growth.
Many scientists theorize that the human brain’s slow growth is part of what allows for our unique mental capacities. Knowing that a metabolism regulator can slow or speed up that growth will allow for further studies into what makes us human, Vanderhaeghen posits. He adds that targeting mitochondrial metabolism could one day be considered in the treatment of some developmental disorders, which can arise from brain development that is either too fast or too slow. However, he emphasizes that this study is only the beginning. “I would be very naive to think that mitochondria are the [only] solution” to resolving issues related to developmental timing, he says. “Mitochondria are just one mechanism, and there are probably going to be many others.”
Nonetheless, Herculano-Houzel is excited to see where this research will go. “That is the definition of good science: You answer one question, and that brings up ten new questions you didn’t know you had,” she says. “What happens if you play with energy transfer in a developing brain? Do you directly affect the size of the brain? Do you affect how many neurons are generated? These are all fundamental questions, and they can all be asked now.”
Keywords:
brain developmentbrain plasticitycell biologycortical neurondevelopmental biologydevelopmental delaygrowthhuman cognitionmetabolismmicrobiologymitochondriamouse brainneural developmentneuronal plasticityneuronsNewsNews BriefjoeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-23187520237183240302022-12-20T06:43:00.003-08:002022-12-20T06:43:39.300-08:00Mice With a Healthy Gut Microbiome Are More Motivated to Exercisereposted from
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Mice With a Healthy Gut Microbiome Are More Motivated to Exercise
A neural pathway between the gut and the brain led to the release of dopamine when the mice ran on a wheel or treadmill, but only in the presence of a robust microbiome.
a white mouse sits on a blue exercise wheel, looking out onto the shavings below
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Katherine Irving
Dec 16, 2022 | 4 min read
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© ISTOCK.COM, MARY SWIFT
The gut is a jungle teeming with microorganisms that are instrumental to the process of digesting food, regulating metabolism, and defending against infection. However, research now suggests yet another way that the gut microbiome’s influence extends far past the bounds of its abdominal home. In mice, gut bacteria stimulate the production of dopamine during exercise, without which the mice lack the motivation to continue running, scientists at the University of Pennsylvania reported December 14 in Nature.
“This is the most comprehensive study I have ever seen,” says Theodore Garland Jr., an evolutionary physiologist studying the gut-brain axis in mice at the University of California, Riverside, who wasn’t involved in the research. “[It’s] pulling together lots of different pieces that we knew before in different contexts or in isolation of other parts in a way that hasn’t been done before.”
Exercise is “the single most effective lifestyle intervention that we have that protects us from a very large range of diseases,” says study coauthor Christoph Thaiss, a microbiologist at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Yet despite being a very physical activity, he says the success of an individual’s attempts to exercise often depends on their mental state. “If you look at what elite athletes say, many of them will say that they are not necessarily physically better than their competitors, but their mind is very well prepared,” he says. “But when it comes to preparing athletes, mentally or motivationally, for their competitions, there’s very little scientific evidence of how these methods might work.”
Previous research had already found that the gut microbiome can influence muscle tissue and cardiovascular fitness as well as brain chemistry. But Thaiss aimed to bring such findings together and examine the broader role of the gut microbiome in exercise performance. So, he and his colleagues set up an experiment using 199 outcrossed mice from eight different genetic backgrounds to ensure that any findings weren’t limited to one strain. Using multiple antibiotics, the researchers altered the mice’s microbiome communities: some mice had fully functioning microbiomes, while the others had their gut microbiomes either partially or entirely removed.
See “Tinkering with Gut Microbes Boosts Brain Plasticity in Mice”
They then tested each mouse’s performance while running in two different settings: a treadmill, on which the mice were forced to run for an extended period to test their endurance, and a wheel, on which the mice were allowed to run as often and for as long as they wanted. Although all the mice were equally capable of moving around their cages, the mice with reduced microbiomes tired more quickly when exercising on the treadmill than mice with robust microbiomes. They also spent less time on the wheel, which the researchers attributed to reduced motivation to exercise.
Thaiss then searched for a neural explanation for the behavioral differences among the groups of mice. He and his team used RNA sequencing to analyze the mice’s striatal spiny neurons, which are involved in producing the behavior-reinforcing neurotransmitter dopamine both before and after exercise, and found that many of the genes normally expressed during exercise were dampened without the microbiome. When he performed an experiment limiting dopamine production during exercise by inhibiting these neurons, it had the same effect that limiting or entirely removing the microbiome had in the previous experiment. From these experiments, Thaiss inferred that the production of dopamine was a significant factor in a mouse’s propensity to exercise, and that a mouse’s gut microbiome composition played some role in the regulation of dopamine in its brain. That led him to conclude that the mice lacking gut bacteria didn’t experience the dopamine rush animals usually get through exercise, known as the “runner’s high.”
“If we can remote[ly] control the brain from the perspective of the GI tract, then this becomes a much more accessible problem.”
—Christoph Thaiss, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine
The question then became how microbes in the gut influence dopamine in the brain. To find out, the team inhibited a set of neurons that connects the gastrointestinal tract to the brain using formulated drugs. In the same wheel and treadmill experiments as before, mice with healthy microbiomes but inhibited gut-brain neurons exhibited reduced exercise rates on par with the mice with limited microbiomes, suggesting that it was the stimulation of these neurons that controlled the amount the mice exercised. Finally, the researchers treated mice with specific antibiotics to determine what kinds of microbes were triggering the neurons. They performed a metabolomics analysis to determine which bacterial metabolites triggered the neural response.
They found that metabolites known as fatty acid amides (FAAs) made by some microbes found in a healthy mouse gut were the most active during exercise. These FAAs generate neurotransmitters known as endocannabinoids. The scientists performed more experiments using ingestible inhibitors to determine that the endocannabinoids produced by the bacteria’s FAAs were stimulating receptors in the GI tract neurons during exercise, thereby triggering the neurons that subsequently stimulated dopamine production in the brain.
“It was really elegant the way they structured the entire story,” says Francesca Ronchi, an immunologist at the Institute of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology in Berlin, Germany who wasn’t involved in the study. She adds that she was very impressed by the thoroughness of the paper. “You couldn’t do it better.”
Thaiss says that the next step will be to take this research from mice to humans and determine whether the same pathway exists in us. Garland explains that analyzing motivation in humans is more complicated than it is in mice: a person’s incentive to exercise is based on many more factors, including external ones such as their social environment and influence from family or friends, than is a mouse’s. “We don’t go and give our mice pep talks when they run a lot on the wheel,” he observes. In humans, by contrast, those that are naturally talented at some form of exercise may receive more praise, fueling them to exercise more.
See “Regular Exercise Helps Patients Combat Cancer”
Nonetheless, Ronchi says findings like these could one day reveal ways to stimulate exercise in those who need it, including cancer, Parkinson’s, or Alzheimer’s patients, for whom exercise is a valuable tool in mitigating symptoms. After all, if such a pathway does exist in people, gut microbes may be easier to manipulate or influence than neurons in the brain, Thaiss suggests: Unlike neurons, which are finicky and often inaccessible, gut bacteria could be influenced by an ingestible treatment. “If we can remote[ly] control the brain from the perspective of the GI tract, then this becomes a much more accessible problem,” he says. “But that’s still science fiction for now.”
Keywords:
bacteriaexercisefitnessgut bacteriagut microbiotaimmunologymicrobiologymicrobiomemicrobiotamouse studyneural activationneuronneurotransmittersNewspathwaysignaling pathwaysstudy storyjoeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-21938463193046747842022-08-17T07:55:00.004-07:002022-08-17T07:55:59.949-07:00Nurtured by nature Psychological research is advancing our understanding of how time in nature can improve our mental health and sharpen our cognitionreposted from https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
FEATURE
Nurtured by nature
Psychological research is advancing our understanding of how time in nature can improve our mental health and sharpen our cognition
By Kirsten Weir
Date created: April 1, 2020
12 min read
Vol. 51, No. 3
Print version: page 50
Cognition and the Brain
Environment and Population
91
Girl and mother walking through a park
Be honest: How much time do you spend staring at a screen each day? For most Americans, that number clocks in at more than 10 hours, according to a 2016 Nielsen Total Audience Report. Our increasing reliance on technology, combined with a global trend toward urban living, means many of us are spending ever less time outdoors—even as scientists compile evidence of the value of getting out into the natural world.
From a stroll through a city park to a day spent hiking in the wilderness, exposure to nature has been linked to a host of benefits, including improved attention, lower stress, better mood, reduced risk of psychiatric disorders and even upticks in empathy and cooperation. Most research so far has focused on green spaces such as parks and forests, and researchers are now also beginning to study the benefits of blue spaces, places with river and ocean views. But nature comes in all shapes and sizes, and psychological research is still fine-tuning our understanding of its potential benefits. In the process, scientists are charting a course for policymakers and the public to better tap into the healing powers of Mother Nature.
“There is mounting evidence, from dozens and dozens of researchers, that nature has benefits for both physical and psychological human wellbeing,” says Lisa Nisbet, PhD, a psychologist at Trent University in Ontario, Canada, who studies connectedness to nature. “You can boost your mood just by walking in nature, even in urban nature. And the sense of connection you have with the natural world seems to contribute to happiness even when you’re not physically immersed in nature.”
Cognitive benefits
Spending time in nature can act as a balm for our busy brains. Both correlational and experimental research have shown that interacting with nature has cognitive benefits—a topic University of Chicago psychologist Marc Berman, PhD, and his student Kathryn Schertz explored in a 2019 review. They reported, for instance, that green spaces near schools promote cognitive development in children and green views near children’s homes promote self-control behaviors. Adults assigned to public housing units in neighborhoods with more green space showed better attentional functioning than those assigned to units with less access to natural environments. And experiments have found that being exposed to natural environments improves working memory, cognitive flexibility and attentional control, while exposure to urban environments is linked to attention deficits (Current Directions in Psychological Science, Vol. 28, No. 5, 2019).
Researchers have proposed a number of ideas to explain such findings, as Nisbet and colleagues described in a review of the benefits of connection with nature (Capaldi, C.A., et al., International Journal of Wellbeing, Vol. 5, No. 4, 2015). The biophilia hypothesis argues that since our ancestors evolved in wild settings and relied on the environment for survival, we have an innate drive to connect with nature. The stress reduction hypothesis posits that spending time in nature triggers a physiological response that lowers stress levels. A third idea, attention restoration theory, holds that nature replenishes one’s cognitive resources, restoring the ability to concentrate and pay attention.
The truth may be a combination of factors. “Stress reduction and attention restoration are related,” Nisbet points out. “And because of the societal problems we’re dealing with in terms of stress, both of these theories have gotten a lot of attention from researchers.”
Experimental findings show how impressive nature’s healing powers can be—just a few moments of green can perk up a tired brain. In one example, Australian researchers asked students to engage in a dull, attention-draining task in which they pressed a computer key when certain numbers flashed on a screen. Students who looked out at a flowering green roof for 40 seconds midway through the task made significantly fewer mistakes than students who paused for 40 seconds to gaze at a concrete rooftop (Lee, K.E., et al., Journal of Environmental Psychology, Vol. 42, No. 1, 2015).
Even the sounds of nature may be recuperative. Berman and colleagues found that study participants who listened to nature sounds like crickets chirping and waves crashing performed better on demanding cognitive tests than those who listened to urban sounds like traffic and the clatter of a busy café (Van Hedger, S.C., et. al., Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, Vol. 26, No. 2, 2019).
grinning boy standing on his head
Nature and happiness
While such laboratory experiments are intriguing, they don’t fully capture the diverse benefits that go hand in hand with time spent in the outdoor world, says Cynthia Frantz, PhD, a professor of psychology and environmental studies at Oberlin College in Ohio. “Spending time in nature has cognitive benefits, but it also has emotional and existential benefits that go beyond just being able to solve arithmetic problems more quickly,” she notes.
In a review of the research, Gregory Bratman, PhD, an assistant professor at the University of Washington, and colleagues shared evidence that contact with nature is associated with increases in happiness, subjective well-being, positive affect, positive social interactions and a sense of meaning and purpose in life, as well as decreases in mental distress (Science Advances, Vol. 5, No. 7, 2019).
Other work suggests that when children get outside, it leaves a lasting impression. In a study of residents of Denmark, researchers used satellite data to assess people’s exposure to green space from birth to age 10, which they compared with longitudinal data on individual mental health outcomes. The researchers examined data from more than 900,000 residents born between 1985 and 2003. They found that children who lived in neighborhoods with more green space had a reduced risk of many psychiatric disorders later in life, including depression, mood disorders, schizophrenia, eating disorders and substance use disorder. For those with the lowest levels of green space exposure during childhood, the risk of developing mental illness was 55% higher than for those who grew up with abundant green space (Engemann, K., et al., PNAS, Vol. 116, No. 11, 2019).
There is even evidence that images of nature can be beneficial. Frantz and colleagues compared outcomes of people who walked outside in either natural or urban settings with those of people who watched videos of those settings. They found that any exposure to nature—in person or via video—led to improvements in attention, positive emotions and the ability to reflect on a life problem. But the effects were stronger among those who actually spent time outside (Mayer, F.S., et al., Environment and Behavior, Vol. 41, No. 5, 2009).
More recently, scientists have begun exploring whether virtual reality nature experiences are beneficial. In a review of this work, Mathew White, PhD, an environmental psychologist at the University of Exeter in England, and colleagues concluded that while the real deal is best, virtual reality can be a worthwhile substitute for people who are unable to get outdoors, such as those with mobility problems or illness (Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, Vol. 14, 2018).
Nature might also make us nicer—to other people as well as to the planet. John Zelenski, PhD, a professor of psychology at Carleton University in Ontario, Canada, and colleagues showed undergraduates either nature documentaries or videos about architectural landmarks. Then the participants played a fishing game in which they made decisions about how many fish to harvest across multiple seasons. Those who had watched the nature video were more likely to cooperate with other players, and also more likely to make choices that would sustain the fish population (Journal of Environmental Psychology, Vol. 42, No. 1, 2015). In another experiment, Zelenski and his colleagues found that elementary school children acted more prosocially to classmates and strangers after a field trip to a nature school than they did after a visit to an aviation museum (Dopko, R.L., et al., Journal of Environmental Psychology, Vol. 63, No. 1, 2019).
Those generous behaviors weren’t attributed to students’ moods, Zelenski and his colleagues found, so it wasn’t simply that spending time in nature made them happier and therefore more giving. Another plausible (though unproven) explanation is the emotion of awe. “There are some hints that awe is associated with generosity, and nature can be a way to induce awe,” he says. “One of the things that may come from awe is the feeling that the individual is part of a much bigger whole.”
Experience vs. connection
With so many benefits linked to nature, people naturally wonder: How much time outside is enough? White and colleagues took a stab at answering that question by studying a representative sample of nearly 20,000 adults across the United Kingdom. They found people who had spent at least two recreational hours in nature during the previous week reported significantly greater health and well-being. That pattern held true across subgroups including older adults and people with chronic health problems, and the effects were the same whether they got their dose of nature in a single 120-minute session or spread out over the course of the week (Scientific Reports, Vol. 9, No. 1, 2019). “We’re not saying we’ve cracked this nut yet, but this is a first step toward making specific recommendations about how much time in nature is enough,” White says.
The amount of time one spends in nature isn’t the only element to consider—it’s also beneficial to feel connected to the natural world even when you’re stuck at a desk. Researchers call this feeling by a variety of names, including nature relatedness, connectedness to nature and inclusion of nature in self, and they’ve developed a number of scales to measure the trait.
Whatever you call it, connectedness to nature seems to benefit mood and mental health. In a meta-analysis, Alison Pritchard, PhD, ABPP, at the University of Derby in England, and colleagues found that people who feel more connected to nature have greater eudaimonic well-being—a type of contentment that goes beyond just feeling good and includes having meaningful purpose in life (Journal of Happiness Studies, online first publication, 2019).
Zelenski and Nisbet studied whether connection itself is the magic ingredient. They assessed the overlap between connectedness with nature and a general sense of connectedness, such as feeling in tune with one’s friends or community. They found that feeling connected to nature was a significant predictor of happiness even after controlling for the effects of general connectedness (Environment and Behavior, Vol. 46, No. 1, 2014). “People who feel that their self-concept is intertwined with nature report being a bit happier,” says Zelenski. “Nature connectedness isn’t the biggest predictor of happiness, but [the association between the two] is quite consistent.”
In fact, nature might help to buffer the effects of loneliness or social isolation. White and his colleagues surveyed 359 U.K. residents about their social connectedness and proximity to nature over the previous week. Social isolation is typically associated with worse subjective well-being. But the researchers found that when people with low social connectedness had high levels of nearby nature, they reported high levels of wellbeing (Cartwright, B.D.S., et al., International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Vol. 15, No. 6, 2018). “There are people who don’t necessarily want to spend their time with others, but they feel connected to the natural environment, and that can enhance their well-being,” White says.
Green and blue spaces
It’s clear that getting outside is good for us. Now, scientists are working to determine what types of environments are best. Much attention has gone to green spaces, but White has studied a variety of marine and freshwater environments and found these blue spaces are also good for well-being (Gascon, M., et al., International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health, Vol. 220, No. 8, 2017.) In fact, he says, they may even be slightly more restorative than green spaces.
There may also be value in trekking to remote locations. In a survey of 4,515 U.K. residents, White found that people reported more connection to nature and felt more restored after visiting rural and coastal locations than they did after spending time in urban green spaces. Areas deemed to be “high environmental quality”—such as nature reserves and protected habitats—were also more beneficial than areas with low biodiversity (Wyles, K.J., et al., Environment and Behavior, Vol. 51, No. 2, 2019). In other work, White and his colleagues found that people who watched nature videos with a diverse mix of flora and fauna reported lower anxiety, more vitality and better mood than those who watched videos featuring less biodiverse landscapes (Wolf, L.J., et al., PLOS ONE, Vol. 12, No. 1, 2017).
woman admiring body of water and beautiful hills
But there’s an important caveat, White adds: “If you have a break from work and you’ve only got half an hour, then a wild remote place is no use to you at all.” Urban parks and trees also produce positive outcomes. Just like a little exercise is better than none, we should take advantage of green and blue spaces wherever and whenever we can. That’s easier said than done, though, especially for people at a socioeconomic disadvantage. Poorer neighborhoods, White notes, are seldom the ones with leafy groves and ocean views.
Yet policymakers, city planners, environmental organizations and government agencies are coming around to the importance of natural spaces, and psychologists are offering them their expertise, says White, who has presented his research to groups such as the U.K.’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Organizations and cities are expressing interest in this research, Zelenski says, though many policymakers are waiting to see the results of intervention studies before investing in green infrastructure. One of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals includes the target of providing universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible green and public spaces by 2030.
There is urgency in fostering these connections, says Nisbet. Because while people benefit from their connection with the natural world, the environment also benefits when people feel connected and committed to caring for the Earth—and between climate change and habitat loss, the planet is in serious need of some care. “When people are disconnected from nature, they aren’t motivated to work on wicked problems like climate change. We’re losing the environments that contribute to our flourishing,” she says. “The key question is, How do we help people feel connected to nature so we’re motivated to protect the places that will help us thrive?”
Key points
Spending time in nature is linked to both cognitive benefits and improvements in mood, mental health and emotional well-being.Feeling connected to nature can produce similar benefits to well-being, regardless of how much time one spends outdoors.Both green spaces and blue spaces (aquatic environments) produce well-being benefits. More remote and biodiverse spaces may be particularly helpful, though even urban parks and trees can lead to positive outcomes.
Related article
Bringing nature into treatment
Further reading
Environmental Neuroscience
Berman, M.G., et al., American Psychologist, 2019
Nature and Mental Health: An Ecosystem Service Perspective
Bratman, G.N., et al., Science Advances, 2019
Ecotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice
Jordan, M., & Hinds, J. (Eds.), Red Globe Press, 2016joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-29586355682011867472022-08-15T09:25:00.002-07:002022-08-15T09:25:14.634-07:00I want to be famous on the Twitter': Fredericton dad goes viral after daughter's tweetreposted from https://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/i-want-to-be-famous-on-the-twitter-fredericton-dad-goes-viral-after-daughter-s-tweet-1.5937034
'I want to be famous on the Twitter': Fredericton dad goes viral after daughter's tweet
Alyson Samson
Alyson Samson
CTV News Atlantic Video Journalist
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Updated June 8, 2022 11:27 a.m. EDT
Published June 7, 2022 6:10 p.m. EDT
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A Fredericton father has gone viral overnight, amassing hundreds of thousands of "likes" on Twitter, after his daughter tweeted about a conversation they had.
"So we have Sunday dinner almost every week and we were just sitting around the dinner table and talking about social media and the difference between Instagram and Twitter," Elizabeth Kearns said.
"And dad thought that Twitter was just words and when I explained no, you can put your picture up, he said, ‘Well I want to be on the Twitter,'" she said.
So Kearns tweeted a photo of her father, Mike Ross, and the likes started rolling in.
But the newfound fame hasn't convinced Ross to make his own account just yet.
"No and I don't intend to," Ross said.
"I mean, Elizabeth asked me what would I be happy with, and I said, 'Oh, if five people like me or like the tweet then that's success,'" he said.
Now, with about 300,000 likes, and more than 4,000 comments Tuesday afternoon, people all over the world have jumped on board the wholesome post from the dad and daughter duo.
"It's like a snowball," Kearns said.
"It's absolutely amazing and as I said to Elizabeth, where are these people? Ireland, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the United States -- the reach and the speed of the reach is mind-blowing," Ross chimed in.
Watching the numbers grow and comments roll in has become a bonding activity for the pair. With many Twitter users asking to adopt Ross as their dad, it has also prompted Kearns to pause and reflect.
"I realize how lucky I am to have my dad in my life and it's just, this is just one of those silly special fun memories that we're going to laugh about for a long time," Kearns said.
They’re also hoping to bring some positivity to the internet, which can sometimes have a negative side.
And Ross has this to say to all his newfound fans.
"Just be kind to one another and do random acts of kindness, be kind in what you say and what you do. Just be kind."
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Why you can trust CTV NewsjoeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-7267138736819361462022-07-28T09:40:00.005-07:002022-07-28T09:40:51.431-07:00Low serotonin might not cause depression, but why do SSRIs still work?reposted from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/low-serotonin-might-not-cause-depression-but-why-do-ssris-still-work
Low serotonin might not cause depression, but why do SSRIs still work?
Written by Jessica Norris on July 26, 2022 — Fact checked by Hannah Flynn
Depression and serotonin levels may not be as closely interlinked as we had thought. Image credit: Aurelien Morissard/Xinhua via Getty Images.
Depression is a highly prevalent mental illness. Treatment options for depression are individualized and may include the use of medications and therapy.
Researchers have theorized that low serotonin levels cause depression.
Data from a recent systematic umbrella review found little evidence linking serotonin levels with depression.
Clinical depression is one of the most common mental illnesses, impacting millions of people worldwide.
While several factors contribute to depression, one common idea is that it is related to chemical imbalances in the brain, particularly low levels of the chemical serotonin.
However, there may be less data supporting this theory than researchers had initially thought.
A recent systematic umbrella review published in Molecular PsychiatryTrusted Source found that there is little evidence to support the notion that depression is associated with low serotonin levels.
SSRIs as treatment for depression
Clinical depression is a serious mental illness that impacts quality of life and well-being. The World Health Organization (WHO) notes that about 280 millionTrusted Source people worldwide live with depression.
People with depression experience various symptomsTrusted Source that affect their mood, emotions, and ability to go about their daily lives.
The treatment for depressionTrusted Source often involves multiple approaches. For example, people with depression might utilize cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to help them work through perceptions and thought patterns, or other forms of talking therapy, including counseling and psychotherapy. Other lifestyle changes can also be considered.
Treatment may also include using antidepressants such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). SSRIs increase levels of serotonin in the body.
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that may impact people’s moods and behaviors, and SSRIs can be effective in treating symptoms of depression.
However, the theory that serotonin levels are inextricably linked to this condition hails back to the 1960s. The review recently published in Molecular Psychiatry now disputes this long-held notion.
Depression’s association with low serotonin
The review examined data from systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and large database studies. Researchers did not include animal studies or studies that focused on depression sub-types such as postpartum depression or depression in people with specific physical conditions, such as Parkinson’s.
Their research included 17 studies in their analysis. In one-meta analysis, there was weak evidence that low levels of tryptophan might affect people with family histories of depression.
Tryptophan lowers the amount of serotonin available. However, most of the data suggested that depression is not associated with low serotonin levels or that low serotonin levels cause depression.
Researchers also found some evidence supporting the idea that long-term antidepressant use might actually lower serotonin levels in the body. They note that further research is needed to look into the long-term effects of antidepressants on the body.
They also note that the quality of the reviews included in their own analysis was variable.
Review author Prof. Joanna Moncrieff, from University College London, summarized the results this way:
“The main message of the paper is that scientific evidence accumulated over several decades does not support the theory that depression is caused by a deficiency of serotonin. Since serotonin is the main brain chemical thought to be involved in depression and the one that has been most thoroughly researched in modern times, this means the idea that depression is due to a chemical imbalance is not scientifically established.”
Limitations and implications
The researchers were thorough in their data collection and analysis methods. However, they note that their review still has several limitations. For example, they point out that some of the non-genetic studies included did not take into account the impact of previous antidepressant use and had small sample sizes.
Their ability to analyze components like confounding was limited based on what was done in the studies, and some data were older, indicating the need for further research.
The data available suggest that low serotonin levels do not cause depression. However, this does not mean that doctors will stop utilizing antidepressants as a treatment option. Instead, it calls for more research about why antidepressants work the way they do.
Prof. Andrea Cipriani, professor of psychiatry at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, who was not involved in the study, noted the following to MNT:
“This study tried to answer the question: ‘Do depressed people have different levels of serotonin?’ And the authors suggest the answer is ‘no.’ However, a completely different question is whether antidepressants work. This question was not addressed in the paper, and the problem — and the real danger — is that this study is actually used to answer that second question… The possible role of serotonin in depression is a separate question from the antidepressant effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and no current theory of antidepressant action makes the assertion that antidepressants work only by correction of a prior corresponding chemical imbalance.”
Prof. Moncrieff’s view was that:
“Antidepressants were initially suggested to work by rectifying the serotonin abnormality that was thought to underpin depression. As our paper shows, there is no evidence of a serotonin abnormality in depression. This means that we do not actually understand what antidepressants are doing. We need to reevaluate the pros and cons of antidepressant treatment in light of this.”
Furthermore, the research may impact how people view the use of antidepressants. People may come to view antidepressants more as part of a comprehensive approach to treatment rather than a “fix.”
Prof. Moncrieff explained that “[m]any people have been told that their mood problems are due to a chemical imbalance and that they need antidepressants to put them right.”
“This,” she suggested, “has probably contributed to the escalating use of antidepressants over the last three decades. People should be informed that this has not been established, so they can make more informed decisions about whether to use antidepressants.”
joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-79199906505463398402022-07-12T11:09:00.003-07:002022-07-12T11:09:16.136-07:00DREAM-LIKE SCENES FROM INSIDE A SQUASH COURT, UNLIKE ANY YOU’VE EVER SEEN BEFOREreposted from
DREAM-LIKE SCENES FROM INSIDE A SQUASH COURT, UNLIKE ANY YOU’VE EVER SEEN BEFORE
Jul 7, 2022 by Alex Baker 2 Comments
What immediately springs to mind when you think of racquet sports? The excitement of the match? The incredible athletic skill required? Or perhaps the weird grunting that often seems to accompany it? Well not for Award-winning Australian Photographer, Brad Walls. The New York-based photographer has released a new series titled ‘Vacant’. Like his previous series “Pools from Above“, it draws inspiration from his fascination with surrealism and geometric art.
DIYP caught up with Brad to find out more about his new work, what inspires him to create, and what exciting projects he has up his sleeve for the future.
‘Cross Hair’
“I had always wanted to do a retrofuturistic photoshoot,” Brad says. “I am drawn to the tension between the future and the past. For me, the most prolific element of the 80s was the squash court, so I started there.”
He knew he could use the lines of the court to his advantage in strategically breaking up the scenes into halves and thirds. This provides a great foundation compositionally, he explains that he also used the carpet to the same effect. The choreography is deliberate and involves all mid-movement poses, which feel quite detached from the scene. “I enjoy that feeling of dissonance in my imagery, it seduces the viewer to wanting more,” says Brad.
‘Death by Perspective’
Every scene and image is meticulously planned and Brad sketches out every scene he wishes to take. He says that he usually walks into the shoot with about 20-30 frames ranging in priority and difficulty. “I leave 10-15% of the shoot to experiment, however, the squash court didn’t provide much experimentation due to how restrained I was with the variables,” says Brad.
‘Future Passé’
As an artist you are trying to push your work to the next level, finding the new scenes, testing the limits. A 20 square metre box using a drone was the next challenge. I was bound to crash.
– Brad Walls
‘Mannequin Road’
“The major challenge was space. I was surprised how much height I did have for the shoot but the challenge was my diagonal frames.” 20 square meters is not a lot of space with a 24mm lens. Brad explains that the DJI Mavic 3 drone had prop guards on and was touching the corners of the court to have enough frame. “I even flew outside the court and over the glass entry doors for many of the shots,” Brad says.
Lighting also proved to be a slight issue with the immense amount of white in the scene, but nothing apparently that was too difficult to fix in post. The only post processing work involved the usual adjustments in Lightroom and then moving into Photoshop for stitching the images together and compositing work.
‘Poise’
In creating ‘Vacant’, Walls set out to create a pure, clinical, retrofuturistic theme, using white and pops of red as he states “To combat the claustrophobic nature of a squash court, I filled the space with as much white as possible, including the models wardrobe to avoid the scenes becoming too ‘boxed in’. The futuro wardrobe is used to contrast against the 80’s retro nature of the squash court as Walls states “I’ve always enjoyed Retrofuturism, the tension between the future and the past is intriguing. Movies like Gattaca, Blade Runner and Beyond the Black Rainbow have been pivotal in my understanding of the genre”.
‘Red Luxe’
So what can we expect to see from Brad in the near future? “I’m completing a Ballet project featuring the biggest companies in the world: NYCB & English National Ballet so far, which will be very exciting!” says Brad.
Indeed, it does all sound pretty fabulous, if his last two projects are anything to go by we can expect to see some more spectacular images in the not too distant future.
‘Unbalanced’
‘Pools from Above’ will be published in book format from October of this year and available to pre-order now for $35. You can see more of Brad’s work on his website and Instagram.joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-42653192324007056162022-06-24T11:54:00.001-07:002022-06-24T12:02:57.306-07:00Study Links Depression with High Levels of an Amino Acid
<p> <a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/study-links-depression-with-high-levels-of-an-amino-acid-70128?utm_campaign=TS_DAILY_NEWSLETTER_2021&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=216850379&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9rJTX4_KCnp7AixgmsDsf0J8w4CPq0j8QETHWXfzlb_-2sG_MqPzRKCTNs08KzCYdcMqrxCTxefROaj02y55aD9aVV0g&utm_content=216850379&utm_source=hs_email">reposted from</a></p><p><br /></p><header style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #222222; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><h1 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 2rem; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.1; margin: 1rem 0px;">Study Links Depression with High Levels of an Amino Acid</h1><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.3rem; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.35; margin: 0px;">Experiments in animals and observations in humans suggest that the amount of proline circulating in one’s plasma has a strong association with depression severity.</h2><div class="extras" style="-webkit-box-align: center; 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margin-top: 0px; max-width: 100%; order: 1; padding: 1rem 0px 1rem 1rem; width: 227.625px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-bottom: 0.3rem;">ABOVE:</span><span class="fr-caption" style="-webkit-box-ordinal-group: 2; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.875rem; line-height: 1.25; order: 1;">Bacteria in the gut</span><span class="fr-reference" style="-webkit-box-ordinal-group: 3; box-sizing: border-box; color: #717d7e; display: block; font-size: 0.8rem; line-height: 1.25; margin-top: 5px; order: 2; text-transform: uppercase;">© ISTOCK.COM, <a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/gut-bacteria-probiotics-gm1325237120-410325043" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">ARTUR PLAWGO</a></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;"><span class="dropcap" style="box-sizing: border-box; float: left; font-size: 3.5em; font-weight: 700; line-height: 0.8; margin: 6px 8px 0px 0px;">A</span><a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.815422/full" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"> growing body of literature</a> ties the gut microbiome to symptoms of depression in a seemingly <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2021.672390/full" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">circular relationship</a> where each affects the other. However, many of the studies on this relationship merely link certain bacterial populations or diets to major depressive disorder—leaving open critical questions about the underlying mechanisms of how the gut microbes might influence depression.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Research published last month (May 3) in <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/fulltext/S1550-4131(22)00128-0?" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Cell Metabolism</em></a> takes an important step toward filling such gaps, demonstrating in multiple animal species that there is likely a causative relationship between depression severity and serum levels of the nonessential amino acid proline, which the study finds depend on both diet and the activity of proline-metabolizing bacteria in the gut.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">“To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time that a team actually demonstrates a causal relationship between proline intake and depressive behavior,” King’s College London metabolism researcher Sandrine Claus, who didn’t work on the study and is also chief scientific officer of the microbiome therapeutics company YSOPIA Bioscience, tells <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">The Scientist</em> over email. “I am unaware of a proline-mediated gut-brain axis. This is therefore a completely novel mechanism of action.”</p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.3rem; margin: 1rem 0px;">Depression diet: the effects of proline</h2><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;"><a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/sciadv.aba8555" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Previous research</a> had found that proline, among other dietary compounds, seems to play a role in major depressive disorder, but “we found increased levels not only [in] major depression but also in subjects with moderate depression,” study coauthor José Manuel Fernández-Real, a researcher at the Girona Biomedical Research Institute and Dr. Josep Trueta Hospital, both located in Spain, explains. Indeed, the severity of the symptoms correlated with the subjects’ circulating proline.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Fernández-Real and his colleagues uncovered this when they compared people’s responses on an 80-item food intake questionnaire with scores on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), a common clinical survey for diagnosing and measuring the severity of a person’s depression. Out of all the dietary nutrients in the questionnaire, Fernández-Real says, the one “most associated with depressive traits was precisely proline.” Blood tests in the same participants solidified the correlation between proline and depressive traits.</p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">See “<a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/gut-microbes-may-play-a-role-in-mental-health-disorders-66039" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Gut Microbes May Play a Role in Mental Health Disorders</a>”</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">However, some discrepancies emerged within the data that demanded a closer look. “Not all subjects with increased proline in the diet had increased proline in the plasma,” hinting that some yet-undiscovered factor was involved, Fernández-Real explains. In search of that explanation, he and the other researchers determined the microbiome compositions of the human participants.</p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">The paper notes that most previous studies attempting to do the same failed to achieve bacterial species-level resolution and have reached inconclusive and conflicting findings. But Fernández-Real and colleagues employed a multi-omics approach that allowed them to link microbial function to the specific biological pathways associated with depression, granting their study a level of resolution that Fernández-Real says was lacking from what he describes as underpowered previous studies.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">In the study participants, plasma proline levels were associated with the presence and activity of specific gut bacteria—people with high proline consumption and higher plasma proline levels had different microbiome compositions than those who consumed the same amount of proline but had less circulating in their blood. Furthermore, the team found that the microbial communities of the former were associated with more severe depression.</p><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.3rem; margin: 1rem 0px;">How the gut microbiome influences depression</h2><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">To determine whether there’s a direct link between proline and depression, the researchers revisited and modified mouse and <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Drosophila</em> <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">melanogaster</em> models that they’d previously used to study how the <a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/bacteria-infecting-viruses-in-gut-microbiome-linked-to-cognition-69709" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">microbiome influenced cognitive abilities</a>.</p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">See “<a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/bacterial-metabolite-may-regulate-cognition-in-mice-70096" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Bacterial Metabolite May Regulate Cognition in Mice</a>”</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">The researchers fed 10 mice a standard diet and another 10 a proline-supplemented diet, then subjected them to stressors typically used to trigger depression-like behaviors. After six weeks, the experimental group had significantly higher proline levels circulating in their plasma and exhibited more signs of depressive behaviors, such as a disinterest in sugar water and decreased mobility during a tail suspension test.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">To see how the microbiome factored in, the researchers took fecal samples from 20 human volunteers (nine of whom had high proline levels and all of whom demonstrated a direct correlation between their PHQ-9 score and circulating plasma proline) and put them into antibiotic-treated mice, effectively transferring the human microbiomes into the animals. When the mice were subjected to another test meant to induce depressive behaviors, the researchers found that the mice’s behavior correlated with the PHQ-9 scores—and therefore circulating proline levels—of their donors as well as the mix of microbes now residing in their guts.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">The data demonstrated that “a particular microbiota metabolizes proline and is critical to develop more or less depressive symptoms,” says Fernández-Real.</p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">See “<a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/daily-news/human-gut-microbe-transplant-alters-mouse-behavior-31911" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Human Gut Microbe Transplant Alters Mouse Behavior</a>”</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">The researchers also conducted RNA sequencing of the animals’ prefrontal cortex, a region of the brain associated with cognition. That revealed that genes related to depressive behaviors had been upregulated following fecal transplantation—and that expression of the proline transporter gene <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Slc6a20</em> in the brain correlated with the mice’s behavior and their microbe donors’ PHQ-9 scores.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">“The microbiota from subjects with the highest depression scores induced emotional traits in the mice,” says Fernández-Real. “Interestingly, the prefrontal cortex of transplanted mice showed increased expression of genes . . . that we also found in the intestine of subjects with increased proline intake.” </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">From there, the researchers moved on to <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Drosophila</em> experiments, subjecting both wild type control flies and those with downregulated <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">CG43066</em>—the <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Drosophila </em>version of <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">sl6a20</em>—to stressors to see if the transporters affect whether the animals exhibit depressive behaviors. They then ran the same tests on <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Drosophila</em> colonized with the bacteria found to increase or decrease proline metabolism in the prior experiments. Downregulating the proline transporter gene or colonizing the <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Drosophila</em> with specific bacteria, especially certain <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Lactobacillus</em> species, seemed to protect the flies from depressive behavior, the study found.</p><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.3rem; margin: 1rem 0px;">Animal depression, human questions</h2><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">The researchers weren’t able to conduct similar experiments in people, which they concede limits the conclusions that can be drawn from their work. Going forward, Fernández-Real says it will be important to test, for example, “whether diets with different proline contents influence depressive traits and depressive symptomology.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Chrysi Sergaki, a microbiome researcher at the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in the UK who did not work on the study, tells <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">The Scientist </em>over email that “using these [animal] models is a start. They can help us understand the impact of the microbiome on brain function, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it will work the same way in humans.” Still, she says that because similar experiments can’t be performed on humans, the animal models used in the new study can grant researchers “a deeper understanding of how the microbiome can influence the functions of the organism they live in,” adding that “that knowledge can be valuable in the way we think about the microbiome when we move to humans.”</p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">See “<a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/distinct-microbiome-and-metabolites-linked-with-depression-68249" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Distinct Microbiome and Metabolites Linked with Depression</a>”</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Claus expresses similar sentiments. “Modeling depressive behaviors in animals is . . . very challenging,” she writes. “I actually thought that the drosophila model was interesting despite the fact that we cannot directly translate behavioral observations from drosophila to humans. These are useful to study mechanisms of action though.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Still, Claus adds that a lack of data on circulating proline levels in the mouse model, combined with repeated reanalysis of the same cohort of people, make it difficult to draw definitive conclusions about the mechanism of microbial proline metabolism and its link to depression.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">“The authors keep reanalyzing the same cohort, insisting that they always find a consistent microbial signature with PHQ-9 and proline,” Claus writes. “But this is not surprising since proline is correlated to PHQ-9 score in this cohort, and PHQ-9 score is correlated with a microbial signature.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Sergaki applauds the study authors for describing the limitations of their work, adding that microbiome studies are notoriously difficult to reproduce and therefore validate. “I think all microbiome scientists look at these studies with a critical eye,” she tells <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">The Scientist</em>. “The authors mention certain limitations of their study which are quite important. The biggest question is always this: correlation or causation? Due to the complexity of the system, this is very difficult to answer.”</p></div></main><footer style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #222222; display: inline-block; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><div class="CategoriesAndTags" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 1.5rem;"><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">Keywords:</h3><div class="TagList listed-items" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/tag/amino-acids" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><h5 class="inline-block text-primary" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #d43030; display: inline-block; font-size: 0.85rem; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px;">amino acids</h5></a><a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/tag/animal-models" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><h5 class="inline-block text-primary" style="box-sizing: border-box; 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margin: 0px;">News</h5></a></div></div></footer>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-81570711349762596322022-06-23T08:44:00.006-07:002022-06-23T08:44:49.726-07:00Algorithm could diagnose Alzheimer’s disease from a single brain scan<p> reposted from</p><p><br /></p><section class="colour--background-navy-100" style="background-attachment: !important; background-clip: !important; background-image: !important; background-origin: !important; background-position-x: !important; background-position-y: !important; background-repeat-x: !important; background-repeat-y: !important; background-size: !important; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--colour-white); font-family: Lato; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: clamp(1.5rem, 5vw, 4.5rem); vertical-align: baseline;"><header class="container gap-2rem flex flex__align-center" style="align-items: center; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; gap: clamp(1.5rem, 1.4rem + 0.5vw, 2rem); line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto; max-width: calc(var(--max-width) - (var(--margin)*2)); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="flex__85" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; flex: 1 0 83%; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><h1 class="heading-underline heading-underline--coral margin-bottom-none" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--colour-white); font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1.3rem, 1.1rem + 1vw, 2.3rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 1.2px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Algorithm could diagnose Alzheimer’s disease from a single brain scan</h1></div><div class="flex__15 mobile-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; flex: 1 0 12%; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" class="header-motif" src="https://www.nihr.ac.uk/layout/4.0/assets/motifs/bullseye-corporate.png" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 136px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /></div></header></section><section class="colour--background-white post-details" style="background-attachment: !important; background-clip: !important; background-image: !important; background-origin: !important; background-position-x: !important; background-position-y: !important; background-repeat-x: !important; background-repeat-y: !important; background-size: !important; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Lato; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: clamp(1.5rem, 5vw, 4.5rem); vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="container flex flex__row-wrap flex__align-start gap-4-5-rem" style="align-items: flex-start; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; gap: clamp(2rem, 2rem + 2.5vw, 4.5rem); justify-content: space-between; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto; max-width: calc(var(--max-width) - (var(--margin)*2)); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="content post-details__content flex__70 flex__row-wrap text-limit--width analytics--post-content" id="contents" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; flex-flow: row wrap; flex: 1 0 68%; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; justify-content: space-between; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" class="post-image margin-bottom--1rem" src="https://www.nihr.ac.uk/images/news/Alzheimer%20MRI%20news%20story.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: 21.378px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Published: </span>20 June 2022</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A single MRI scan of the brain could be enough to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, according to new research supported by NIHR.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Researchers developed an algorithm to analyse structural features shown on brain MRI scans, including in regions not previously associated with Alzheimer’s. This machine learning technology was able to accurately predict the existence of Alzheimer’s disease and identify the disease at an early stage, when it can be very difficult to diagnose.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting over half a million people in the UK. Although most people with Alzheimer’s disease develop it after the age of 65, people under this age can develop it too. The most frequent symptoms of dementia are memory loss and difficulties with thinking, problem solving and language.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Currently lots of tests are used to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, including memory and cognitive tests and brain scans. The scans are used to check for protein deposits in the brain and shrinkage of the hippocampus, the area of the brain linked to memory. All of these tests can take several weeks, both to arrange and to process.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Getting a diagnosis quickly at an early stage helps patients access help and support, get treatment to manage their symptoms, and plan for the future. Being able to accurately identify patients at an early stage of the disease will also help researchers to understand the brain changes that trigger Alzheimer’s disease, and support development and trials of new treatments.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The researchers, supported by <a href="https://imperialbrc.nihr.ac.uk/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: 21.378px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Imperial Biomedical Research Centre</a>, studied just one of the tests currently used to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease - an MRI scan. They adapted an algorithm developed for use in classifying cancer tumours and applied it to MRI scans of the brain.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The researchers divided the brain into 115 regions and allocated 660 different features, such as size, shape and texture. They then trained the algorithm to identify where changes to these features could accurately predict the existence of Alzheimer’s disease.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Using data from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, the team tested their approach on brain scans from over 400 patients with early and later stage Alzheimer’s, healthy controls and patients with other neurological conditions, including frontotemporal dementia and Parkinson’s disease. They also tested it with data from more than 80 patients undergoing diagnostic tests for Alzheimer’s at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The research, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43856-022-00133-4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: 21.378px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">published in the Nature Portfolio Journal Communications Medicine</a>, found that in 98% of cases, the MRI-based machine learning system alone could accurately predict whether the patient had Alzheimer’s disease or not. It was also able to distinguish between early and late-stage Alzheimer’s with fairly high accuracy, in 79% of patients.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The new system spotted changes in areas of the brain not previously associated with Alzheimer’s disease, including the cerebellum (the part of the brain that coordinates and regulates physical activity) and the ventral diencephalon (linked to the senses, sight and hearing). This opens up potential new avenues for research into these areas and their links to Alzheimer’s disease.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Professor Eric Aboagye, from Imperial’s Department of Surgery and Cancer, who led the research, said: “Currently no other simple and widely available methods can predict Alzheimer’s disease with this level of accuracy, so our research is an important step forward. Many patients who present with Alzheimer’s at memory clinics do also have other neurological conditions, but even within this group our system could pick out those patients who had Alzheimer’s from those who did not.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Waiting for a diagnosis can be a horrible experience for patients and their families. If we could cut down the amount of time they have to wait, make diagnosis a simpler process, and reduce some of the uncertainty, that would help a great deal. Our new approach could also identify early-stage patients for clinical trials of new drug treatments or lifestyle changes, which is currently very hard to do.”</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dr Paresh Malhotra, who is a consultant neurologist at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and a researcher in Imperial’s Department of Brain Sciences, said: “Although neuroradiologists already interpret MRI scans to help diagnose Alzheimer’s, there are likely to be features of the scans that aren’t visible, even to specialists. Using an algorithm able to select texture and subtle structural features in the brain that are affected by Alzheimer’s could really enhance the information we can gain from standard imaging techniques.”</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: clamp(1rem, 1.08rem + 0.3vw, 1.4rem); font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; max-width: var(--text-width); padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://imperialbrc.nihr.ac.uk/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: 21.378px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Read more about this research on the NIHR imperial BRC website</a></p></div></div></section>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-87669367621004576352022-06-15T06:31:00.004-07:002022-06-15T06:31:38.702-07:00Spilling the Tea: Insect DNA Shows Up in World’s Top Beverage<p> reposted from</p><p><br /></p><header style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #222222; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><h1 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 2rem; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.1; margin: 1rem 0px;">Spilling the Tea: Insect DNA Shows Up in World’s Top Beverage</h1><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.3rem; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.35; margin: 0px;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">The Scientist</em> speaks with Trier University’s Henrik Krehenwinkel, whose group recently detected traces of hundreds of arthropod species from a sample of dried plants—in this case, the contents of a tea bag.</h2><div class="extras" style="-webkit-box-align: center; -webkit-box-pack: justify; align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; justify-content: space-between; margin: 1rem 0px 0.5rem; row-gap: 10px;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; flex-shrink: 0;"><source srcset="https://cdn.the-scientist.com/assets/authorNo/45/iImg/36571/shawna-headshot-s.webp" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/webp"></source><source srcset="https://cdn.the-scientist.com/assets/authorNo/45/iImg/36571/shawna-headshot-s.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/jpeg"></source><img alt="Shawna headshot" class="avatar" src="https://cdn.the-scientist.com/assets/authorNo/45/iImg/36571/shawna-headshot-s.jpg" style="border-radius: 50%; 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margin-top: 0px; max-width: 100%; order: 1; padding: 1rem 0px 1rem 1rem; width: 227.625px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-bottom: 0.3rem;">ABOVE:</span><span class="fr-caption" style="-webkit-box-ordinal-group: 2; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.875rem; line-height: 1.25; order: 1;"></span><span class="fr-reference" style="-webkit-box-ordinal-group: 3; box-sizing: border-box; color: #717d7e; display: block; font-size: 0.8rem; line-height: 1.25; margin-top: 5px; order: 2; text-transform: uppercase;">© ISTOCK.COM, <a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/teabag-gm182914582-13697415" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">ANDREYTTL</a></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">How do you monitor which species live in an area? In addition to traditional ecological tools such as camera traps, researchers have reported new methods in recent years that allow them to detect minute traces of DNA known as environmental DNA, or eDNA, that animals leave behind in <a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/researchers-detect-land-animals-using-dna-in-nearby-water-bodies-67481" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">water</a> and even <a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/scientists-id-dozens-of-plants-animals-from-free-floating-dna-69582" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">air</a>. In a study published June 15 in <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2022.0091" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Biology Letters</em></a>, a group reports picking up eDNA from a new source: dried plant material. The team purchased tea from grocery stores, and were able to detect hundreds of species of arthropods in just one bag. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">We asked study coauthor Henrick Krehenwinkel, an ecological geneticist at Trier University in Germany who focuses on the ways in which arthropod communities have changed over time due to human influence, to spill the tea about why his group decided to use eDNA to investigate which critters have been munching on plants. </p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">TS</em>: Why did you decide in this case to focus on tea? </h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Henrik Krehenwinkel</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">: </span>We need [a] time series to understand how insects have changed. When insect decline studies were first published, a lot of people complained [that] there is no real long-term data. </p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">See “<a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/daily-news/germany-sees-drastic-decrease-in-insects-30731" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Germany Sees Drastic Decrease in Insects</a>” </h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">We have a specimen bank here in Trier. They’re collecting leaves from different trees in Germany. They’ve been doing this for 35 years; they go to all kinds of different ecosystems. . . . And what I asked myself is, ‘Couldn’t you also monitor the DNA of the insects which have lived on this leaf?’ . . . We basically did a test experiment where we took these samples, which are frozen in liquid nitrogen, so they’re perfectly stored for DNA preservation . . . and isolated DNA from them, and reconstructed arthropod communities. This is actually another study which is currently in review, where we have basically reconstructed insect community change in German forest ecosystems over the past 35 years. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">So we can extract eDNA from a perfectly frozen leaf. . . . What I asked myself is, “Can you also use other substrates to basically extract the DNA from arthropods?” And is the DNA still stable in other types of substrates? . . . Plant collections in museums, could they actually be useful to understand how insect communities have changed? . . . There are studies saying that . . . if an insect bites into a leaf, it will leave a DNA trace; a little bit of saliva is enough. It’s basically like [how] the criminal breaking into your house, touching your window, will leave their DNA; the insect will leave its DNA when it bites into the leaf. And there are studies saying that this DNA is not very stable, it will be quickly degraded by UV light or washed away by rain. But I was thinking in an herbarium record, the DNA is stored dry and dark, which [are] actually ideal conditions to maintain it. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Before we started working on herbaria records, we thought we should try something which is kind of comparable to herbarium records. . . . Structure-wise, [tea is] very similar to herbarium record. It’s basically a dried plant which is stored dark and dry. . . . And the DNA should be very stable. </p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">It’s all driven by our hope to understand insect community change and being able to find new substrates which allow us to travel back in time. . . . You can collect a plant in the field, basically a flower. And you can dry this flower just using silica gel. . . . It’s a substance which is completely harmless, but it’s extremely hydrophilic. . . . If you, for example, put a flower into a little envelope, and then you put it in a Ziploc freezer bag together with a little bit of silica gel, within one day approximately, the flower will be completely dry. . . . And we could in theory even store them at room temperature, we wouldn’t have to worry to put it all in liquid nitrogen or to wash the plant right away . . . you don’t have to carry water in the field, all you need is a little bit of silica gel, an envelope, and a Ziploc bag. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Another attractive side effect is that what’s very interesting for us ecologists is not only who is at a site, so how many insect species are at a site, . . . but we also want to know how do these insects interact and what do they eat. For example, we know that many insect species are very specific, only living on a certain plant, and when this plant disappears, the insect disappears. . . . Surprisingly, we know very little about these interactions, we know very little about what insect is limited to a certain plant species. We know this pretty well for pest species, but we do not know this pretty well for many other species of insects. . . . And this is a way of very quickly finding this out by basically sampling plant material and being able to associate the insects living on the plant. </p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">TS</em>: Was there anything about the results of this study that surprised you? </h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">HK:</span> What really surprised me was the high diversity we detected. . . . We took one tea bag, and . . . I think it was from 100 [or] 150 milligrams of dried plant material, we extracted DNA. And we found in green tea up to 400 species of insects in a single tea bag. . . . That really surprised me. And the reason probably is that this tea, it’s ground to a relatively fine powder. So the eDNA [from all parts of the tea field] gets distributed. </p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">TS</em>: As far as applying this to herbaria samples, would you need just a relatively small piece of that sample, or could it be an issue that these are rare and very old samples, and you don't want to be grinding up a big chunk of them. </h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">HK: </span>We’ve been thinking about this, and there’s two options. One is to just very carefully treat the herbarium sample. We’re now testing if you can also just carefully wash the sample, for example, and kind of wash off the traces which are stuck to the sample. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">Then of course, there’s herbaria where they’re actually happy if you do something with them. [H]ere at this university, we have a retired botany professor, and she has very large herbaria she has collected during her tenure. . . . They don’t have a huge scientific value for her, and she would be fine if I grind them up. . . . We’re just testing this, so I cannot give you any results on this yet, but it looks like we are actually able to extract insect DNA out of this as well. . . . And then move back to that same place—she has exact collection sites—I just drive back there, collect the same plant again, and then I can compare how was the insect community 50 years ago when she collected it or 30 years ago when she collected again, and then compare it to how is the insect community on that plant today. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;">But of course, generally these collections are very precious and we are developing methods to carefully extract DNA from this without damaging the specimen. This is something we’re just starting now. Seeing how well it worked with tea, I’m now confident that we could also move into other samples like these herbaria. </p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">TS</em>: Are you a tea drinker yourself? </h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">HK: </span>I drink coffee actually. . . . And I fear coffee probably is not well suited for it because coffee is roasted. And what DNA really doesn’t like is being heated up to a very high temperature for a long time . . . . We have not tried it yet, but I fear coffee is probably not the best choice for this kind of experiment. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.125rem; line-height: 1.65; max-width: 100%;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for brevity.</em></p></div></main><footer style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #222222; display: inline-block; font-family: Gotham, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><div class="CategoriesAndTags" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 1.5rem;"><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">Keywords:</h3><div class="TagList listed-items" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/tag/arthropod" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><h5 class="inline-block text-primary" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #d43030; display: inline-block; font-size: 0.85rem; font-weight: 400; 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background: none; box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; font-family: viafoura; font-size: 1.2rem; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; height: 35px; left: 1px; line-height: 1.5em; position: relative; top: 1px; transition: all 0.2s ease 0s; width: 35px;"></span><span class="vf-share-meta" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="vf-share-bar-service-name" style="border: 0px !important; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%) !important; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px) !important; color: #393939; font-size: 12px; height: 1px !important; margin: -1px !important; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px !important; position: absolute !important; width: 1px !important; word-break: break-word;">LinkedIn</div></span></a></li><li class="vf-share-option" style="background-image: none; box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; float: left; font-size: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: center; top: -2px; transition: color 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: middle;" tabindex="0"><a data-network="email" style="border-radius: 50%; border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--accent-color, #0074e8); cursor: pointer; display: block; margin: 0px 0.2rem; overflow-wrap: break-word; position: relative; top: -2px; transition: color 0.2s ease 0s; word-break: break-word;"><span class="vf-share-icon" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background: none; box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; font-family: viafoura; font-size: 1.2rem; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; height: 35px; line-height: 1.5em; position: relative; top: 3px; transition: all 0.2s ease 0s; width: 35px;"></span><span class="vf-share-meta" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="vf-share-bar-service-name" style="border: 0px !important; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%) !important; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px) !important; color: #393939; font-size: 12px; height: 1px !important; margin: -1px !important; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px !important; position: absolute !important; width: 1px !important; word-break: break-word;">Email</div></span></a></li></ul></div></div></div></div><h2 class="deck" lang="en" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 24px; margin-block: 16px; margin-top: 16px;">From exercise to word games with others, these activities reduce your chances of dementia</h2><div class="byline" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; align-items: center; background-color: white; color: #545454; display: flex; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-block: 16px; margin-inline: 0px; margin-top: 16px;"><figure class="imageMedia author-image full" style="display: inline; height: 40px; margin: 0px 0.5rem 0px 0px; min-width: 40px; padding: 0px; width: 40px;"><div class="placeholder" style="background: none; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><div class="placeholderImage" style="padding-bottom: 40px;"></div><img alt="" loading="lazy" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6481645.1654707374!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/square_140/amina-zafar.jpg" style="background: none; border-radius: 50%; border: 1px solid rgb(203, 203, 203); box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: 40px; left: 0px; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transform: translateZ(0px); transition: opacity 0.5s linear 0s; width: 40px;" /></div></figure><div class="bylineDetails"><span class="authorText"><a class="" href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/author/amina-zafar-1.4360074" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">Amina Zafar</a></span> <span class="bullet">· </span>CBC Radio <span class="bullet">· </span><time class="timeStamp" datetime="2022-06-12T11:36:43.009Z" style="display: inline-block;">Posted: Jun 12, 2022 7:36 AM ET | Last Updated: June 12</time></div></div><div class="storyWrapper" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><figure class="imageMedia leadmedia-story full" style="margin: 0px;"><div class="placeholder" style="background: radial-gradient(rgb(255, 255, 255), rgb(203, 203, 203)) 0% 0% / cover no-repeat; margin: 1rem 0px; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><div class="placeholderImage" style="padding-bottom: 405px;"></div><img alt="" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480733.1654636236!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/16x9_780/virus-outbreak-spain.jpg" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: 405px; left: 0px; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transform: translateZ(0px); transition: opacity 0.5s linear 0s; width: 720px;" /></div><figcaption class="image-caption" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #545454; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-block: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-inline: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 16px;">A couple dances during the festivities of San Cayetano, the patron saint of labour and bread, in Madrid, Spain, last August. Activities like dance, which combine exercise, socializing and cognition, benefit our brains, a psychologist says. (Andrea Comas/The Associated Press)</figcaption></figure><div class="commentCount"><button class="commentCount-link" style="appearance: button; background-color: white; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); border-left: none; border-radius: 0px; border-right: none; border-top: none; color: #0550c8; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: 16px; font-weight: unset; margin: 0px; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;"><div class="commentCount-text-container" style="display: flex;"><div class="viafoura" style="--background-color: var(--default-color, #fff); --base-font-size: 0.625rem; --dark-text-on-background-color: var(--dark-text-on-default-color, #000); --light-text-on-background-color: var(--light-text-on-default-color, rgba(0,0,0,0.6)); background-color: var(--background-color, #fff); box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;"><span class="vf-counter vf-widget" data-engage="0" data-path="https://www.cbc.ca/radio/whitecoat/the-dose-memory-1.6480493" data-vf-id="8" data-widget="counter" style="box-sizing: inherit;">436</span></div><div class="commentCount-text" style="line-height: 20.8px; white-space: pre;"> comments</div></div></button><span class="commentCount-icon" style="display: inline-block; fill: rgb(5, 80, 200); height: 32px; margin-left: 0.5rem; vertical-align: middle; width: 32px;"><svg focusable="false" viewbox="0 0 32 32"><path d="M20.95,17H11a1,1,0,0,0,0,2h10a1,1,0,0,0,0-2Zm2-6H9a1,1,0,0,0,0,2h14a1,1,0,0,0,0-2ZM16,0C7.14,0,0,6.26,0,14a12.55,12.55,0,0,0,6,10.9v7.07l7-4.25a18.71,18.71,0,0,0,3,.25c8.82,0,16-6.25,16-14S24.78,0,16,0Zm0,25.95a16.29,16.29,0,0,1-3.37-.37l-4.7,2.82.06-4.63A11.56,11.56,0,0,1,2,14C2,7.36,8.24,2,16,2s14,5.36,14,12-6.26,12-14,12Zm0,0"></path></svg></span></div><div class="story" style="color: #222222; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.5rem; margin-block: 16px; margin-inline: 0px; margin-top: 16px;"><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Worries about dementia often rank high in polls of Canadians' health concerns, but a neurologist says there are ways to keep our cherished memories strong.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Dr. Sandra Black, a cognitive neurologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto, says with normal aging, short-term memory dulls and the brain's processing speed slows with each decade after 50.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">To help counter those declines, Black looks for ways to boost memory that are supported by scientific evidence.</p><h2 style="font-size: 1.625rem; line-height: 1.3;">1. Get moving</h2><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Exercise, from walking to running, is one memory booster that's backed by more and more research. <a href="https://csepguidelines.ca/guidelines/adults-18-64/" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">Canada's guidelines</a> recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week for adults.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">"When you are aerobically exercising, when <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-podcasts/410-the-dose/episode/15911964-whats-the-latest-on-what-running-can-do-for-my-health?featuredPodcast=true" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">you're on that run</a>, your muscles are actually releasing a signal. It's called irisin," Black said. "You're actually stimulating the part of the brain that stores information and learns things."</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">The recent discovery of the irisin protein builds on other research <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2021.649929/full" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">linking muscle and brain function</a>, Black told Dr. Brian Goldman, host of <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-podcasts/410-the-dose/episode/15916363-what-can-i-do-to-boost-my-memory?featuredPodcast=true" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;"><span style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216);"> CBC's podcast </span><em><span style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216);">The Dose</span></em></a>. </p><div><figure class="imageMedia image full" style="line-height: 0; margin: 0px; position: relative;"><div class="placeholder" style="background: radial-gradient(rgb(255, 255, 255), rgb(203, 203, 203)) 0% 0% / cover no-repeat; margin-bottom: 1rem; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><div class="placeholderImage" style="padding-bottom: 479.586px;"></div><img alt="" loading="lazy" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 300px,(max-width: 460px) 460px,(max-width: 620px) 620px,(max-width: 780px) 780px,(max-width: 1180px) 1180px" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480180.1654616177!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/dr-sandra-black.jpg" srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480180.1654616177!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_300/dr-sandra-black.jpg 300w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480180.1654616177!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_460/dr-sandra-black.jpg 460w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480180.1654616177!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_620/dr-sandra-black.jpg 620w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480180.1654616177!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/dr-sandra-black.jpg 780w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480180.1654616177!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_1180/dr-sandra-black.jpg 1180w" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: 479.586px; left: 0px; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transform: translateZ(0px); transition: opacity 0.5s linear 0s; width: 720px;" /></div><figcaption class="image-caption" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #545454; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-block: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-inline: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 16px;">Dr. Sandra Black encourages walking and more heart-pumping physical activity as beneficial for mental abilities like memory and language. (Submitted by Sandra Black)</figcaption></figure></div><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">When she sees patients, Black said she talks about why lifestyle choices such as exercise are important. Since a healthy brain needs a lot of oxygen, whatever protects our blood vessels, heart and circulation, also fuels the brain.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Black and other experts encourage walking, or more heart-pumping physical activities, for their benefits to cognitive abilities like memory and language.</p><h2 style="font-size: 1.625rem; line-height: 1.3;">2. Eat the good stuff</h2><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Black suggests eating a Mediterranean diet rich in green, leafy vegetables like broccoli, kale and cabbage, as well as berries, whole grains, walnuts and fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel and tuna rich in omega-3 fatty acids.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">The advice is based on studies that followed people in different populations that seemed to have a lower prevalence <a href="https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/what-do-we-know-about-diet-and-prevention-alzheimers-disease" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">of Alzheimer's</a> and vascular disease, compared with populations following other eating patterns.</p><div><span class="mediaEmbed"><div class="player-placeholder-ui-container player-1ecded08-17f6-4220-9024-a506381c6fa1" style="display: grid;"><div class="player-placeholder-audio-ui " role="button" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 20px 1px; padding: 2px; width: calc(100% - 2px);" tabindex="0" title="What can I do to boost my memory?"><div class="player-placeholder-ui" style="height: auto; overflow: hidden; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; width: 714px;"><div class="play-button-container" style="float: left; height: 60px; margin-right: 20px; width: 60px;"><svg aria-label="Play" class="play-btn" focusable="false" role="img" viewbox="0 0 60 60" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><circle cx="30" cy="30" fill="#FFFFFF" r="28" stroke-width="2px" stroke="#CBCBCB"></circle><polygon fill="#000000" points="43 30 23 20 23 40"></polygon></svg></div><div class="media-thumbnail" style="background-color: #cbcbcb; border-radius: 1px; box-shadow: rgb(203, 203, 203) 0px 0px 5px 1px; float: left; height: 60px; margin-right: 16px; overflow: hidden; width: 107px;"><img alt="" loading="lazy" src="https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/58/375/thedose-640x360.jpg" style="border: 0px; height: 60px; object-fit: contain; object-position: center center; width: 107px;" /></div><div class="media-metadata"><span class="media-showName" style="color: black; display: inline-block; font-size: 13.6px; font-weight: 700; margin-right: 16px;">The Dose</span><span class="media-duration" style="color: #757575; display: inline-block; font-size: 13.6px; font-weight: 700;">20:41</span><span class="media-title" style="display: block; font-size: 13.6px; line-height: 18px; margin-left: 203px; margin-top: 4px; max-height: 36px; overflow: hidden;">What can I do to boost my memory?</span></div></div></div></div></span></div><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">What else works? In one published <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2021.747284/full" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">clinical trial</a>, researchers showed that medium-chain triglycerides found primarily in coconut oil may help delay worsening Alzheimer's disease compared with taking a sugar pill, the gold standard regulators use to approve medications.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Your best bet is to consume healthy nutrients through a varied diet of mostly whole foods, not supplements that promise those benefits in pill form.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Black said patients who can take supplements aren't told to stop if they can afford them, but her team doesn't endorse them, either. That's because the scientific evidence in favour of many supplements fails to take the <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/brain-magic-the-power-of-the-placebo#:~:text=NOW%20STREAMING%20ON%20CBC%20GEM&text=New%20research%20is%20proving%20that,self%2Dappraisal%20plays%20a%20role." style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">placebo effect </a>into account, or the trials weren't long enough to measure an effect, she said.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-weight: 700;"><em>WATCH</em> | <em>More praise for Mediterranean diet:</em></span></p><div><span class="mediaEmbed"><div class="player-placeholder-ui-container player-23bd2450-9d3f-45b7-a6f4-04a5cf47e688" style="display: grid;"><div class="player-placeholder-video-ui" role="button" style="display: grid; grid-area: 1 / 1 / auto / auto;" tabindex="0" title="More praise for Mediterranean diet"><div class="player-placeholder" style="grid-area: 1 / 1 / auto / auto; padding-bottom: 405px;"></div><div class="player-placeholder-ui " style="grid-area: 1 / 1 / auto / auto; height: auto; overflow: hidden; position: relative; width: 720px;"><div class="video-item video-card-overlay " style="box-sizing: border-box; min-width: 200px; position: relative; width: 720px;" title="More praise for Mediterranean diet"><div class="thumbnail-wrapper" style="background-color: black; height: auto; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 405px; position: relative; width: 720px;"><div class="thumbnail-container"><img alt="" class="thumbnail" loading="lazy" sizes="(max-width: 260px) 4vw, (max-width: 510px) 50vw, (max-width: 630px) 66vw, (max-width: 880px) 88vw" src="https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/113/975/ssthR.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=510px:*510w" srcset="
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https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/113/975/ssthR.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=260px:* 260w" style="border: 0px; display: block; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; width: 720px;" /></div></div><div class="video-card-overlay-container" style="bottom: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; padding: 0px 18px 18px; position: absolute; width: 720px;"><div class="play-button-container" style="float: left; max-width: 66px; min-width: 43px; width: 66px;"><svg aria-label="Play media" class="videoItemPlayBtn" height="34px" role="img" viewbox="0 0 34 34" width="34px"><circle cx="16.5" cy="16.5" fill="#FFFFFF" r="16.5"></circle><path d="M12.0627845,9.87071431 L24.510661,16.6074648 C24.6396791,16.677289 24.6876652,16.8384825 24.617841,16.9675006 C24.5925502,17.0142319 24.553825,17.0523041 24.5066704,17.0767967 L12.0587939,23.5423393 C11.9286072,23.6099595 11.768253,23.5592393 11.7006328,23.4290526 C11.6809874,23.3912301 11.6707317,23.3492356 11.6707317,23.3066154 L11.6707317,10.1043222 C11.6707317,9.95762156 11.7896561,9.8386972 11.9363567,9.8386972 C11.9805052,9.8386972 12.0239575,9.84970124 12.0627845,9.87071431 Z" fill="#000000"></path></svg></div><div class="video-info-container" style="float: left; margin-left: 15px; max-width: calc(100% - 81px);"><h3 class="video-item-title" style="color: white; font-size: 1rem; line-height: 1.4rem; margin: 0px 0px 12px; max-height: 4.2rem; overflow: hidden;">More praise for Mediterranean diet</h3><div class="video-time-container" style="margin: 0px;"><span class="formattedDate video-time-stamp" style="color: white; float: left; font-size: 0.8rem; font-weight: 700; margin-top: -2px;">4 years ago</span><div class="videoTimeLabel " style="font-size: 0.75rem; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.4;"><div class="durationLabel" style="background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); box-sizing: border-box; color: white; display: inline-block; padding: 1px 5px;"><span class="a11y" style="border: 0px !important; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px !important; position: absolute !important; width: 1px !important;">Duration</span>2:26</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></span></div><h2 style="font-size: 1.625rem; line-height: 1.3;">3. Enjoy word games with others</h2><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Penny Pexman, a psychology professor at the University of Calgary who studies cognitive neuroscience, suggests activities that combine exercise, socializing and cognition.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Pexman's lab focuses on how we process language, including a study titled <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010945215001069?via%3Dihub" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;">This is your brain on Scrabble</a>. </p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Scrabble players who enjoy the game and its social benefits are motivated to score higher, Pexman said. </p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Aside from the social benefits of getting together to play, Pexman's research suggests competitive Scrabble players also recognize words faster than those who didn't routinely put down tiles, particularly for words presented vertically.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">"My best recommendation, based on what I know, is to engage in things like dance or pickleball," Pexman said. "You've got things that involve some spatial skills, they're taxing your working memory and they're also giving you social …benefits, too." </p><div><figure class="imageMedia image full" style="line-height: 0; margin: 0px; position: relative;"><div class="placeholder" style="background: radial-gradient(rgb(255, 255, 255), rgb(203, 203, 203)) 0% 0% / cover no-repeat; margin-bottom: 1rem; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><div class="placeholderImage" style="padding-bottom: 479.586px;"></div><img alt="" loading="lazy" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 300px,(max-width: 460px) 460px,(max-width: 620px) 620px,(max-width: 780px) 780px,(max-width: 1180px) 1180px" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480757.1654636722!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/florida-senior-games.jpg" srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480757.1654636722!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_300/florida-senior-games.jpg 300w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480757.1654636722!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_460/florida-senior-games.jpg 460w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480757.1654636722!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_620/florida-senior-games.jpg 620w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480757.1654636722!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/florida-senior-games.jpg 780w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6480757.1654636722!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_1180/florida-senior-games.jpg 1180w" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: 479.586px; left: 0px; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transform: translateZ(0px); transition: opacity 0.5s linear 0s; width: 720px;" /></div><figcaption class="image-caption" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #545454; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-block: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-inline: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 16px;">Pickleball is a workout for both spatial skills and working memory that also offers social benefits. (Brian Blanco/The Associated Press Images for Humana)</figcaption></figure></div><h2 style="font-size: 1.625rem; line-height: 1.3;">Why it's not all downhill</h2><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Pexman also studies age-related changes, and notes that many, but not all, cognitive abilities start to decline by about age 30. </p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">"There are things, though, that you can continue to grow," Pexman said. "Your vocabulary grows throughout your life."</p><div><ul class="similarLinks"><li class="similarListItem"><a class="similarLink" data-contentid="" flag="" href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/dementia-prevention-exercise-1.5135119" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;" text="Exercise, not pills, better at preventing dementia"><span class="similarLinkText" style="display: inline;">Exercise, not pills, better at preventing dementia</span></a></li></ul><ul class="similarLinks"><li class="similarListItem"><a class="similarLink" data-contentid="" flag="" href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/bilingualism-boosts-the-brain-at-all-ages-1.2690362" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(216, 216, 216); color: #0550c8; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.25s linear 0s;" text="Bilingualism boosts the brain at all ages"><span class="similarLinkText" style="display: inline;">Bilingualism boosts the brain at all ages</span></a></li></ul></div><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">Black also points to the wisdom and knowledge we gain with age.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">"You have a little more trouble with the word finding, but you know a lot more about the world," Black said. </p><p style="margin-bottom: 28px; margin-top: 0px;">A 25-year-old may be faster, but a wise elder in many societies has a richer understanding of culture from their life experience, she added.</p></div></div><div class="authorprofile" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><h2 class="title-reUIw" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: transparent; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 1.2em; line-height: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR</h2><div class="authorprofile-container" style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-top: 1rem;"><div class="authorprofile-image-container" style="margin-right: 1rem; min-width: 100px;"><figure class="imageMedia author-image full" style="display: inline; height: 100%; margin: 0px; max-height: none; max-width: none; padding: 0px; width: 100%;"><div class="placeholder" style="background: none; border-radius: 50%; border: 1px solid rgb(203, 203, 203); overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><div class="placeholderImage" style="padding-bottom: 98px;"></div><img alt="" loading="lazy" sizes="(max-width: 258pxpx) 258pxpx" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6481645.1654707374!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/square_620/amina-zafar.jpg" srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6481645.1654707374!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/square_300/amina-zafar.jpg 300w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6481645.1654707374!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/square_460/amina-zafar.jpg 460w,https://i.cbc.ca/1.6481645.1654707374!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/square_620/amina-zafar.jpg 620w" style="background: none; border-radius: 50%; border: 1px solid rgb(203, 203, 203); box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: 98px; left: 0px; max-height: none; max-width: none; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transform: translateZ(0px); transition: opacity 0.5s linear 0s; width: 98px;" /></div></figure></div><div class="authorprofile-name-container" style="justify-content: center;"><a class="" href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/author/amina-zafar-1.4360074">Amina Zafar</a><p class="authorprofile-title" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0.4rem;">Journalist</p></div></div><p class="authorprofile-biography" style="line-height: 26px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 1rem;">Amina Zafar covers medical sciences and health topics, including COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, for CBC News. She holds an undergraduate degree in environmental science and a master's in journalism.</p></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-15482889574694708132022-05-25T07:04:00.002-07:002022-05-25T07:04:21.467-07:00Neuroscientists Have Discovered a Phenomenon That They Can’t Explain<p> reposted from <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/06/the-brain-isnt-supposed-to-change-this-much/619145/?utm_campaign=the-atlantic&utm_content=true-anthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR3f5GeT9ldIQc3QNWTwyv16-aMs-7PKsFrgCZXYYvbyR4P6H4vXxeOUHp0" target="_blank">ThE Atlantic</a></p><p><br /></p><header class="ArticleLayoutComponent_articleHeader__NlhDm" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 48px;"><div class="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="ArticleLayoutComponent_defaultArticleLockup__9_zii" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><div class="ArticleLayoutComponent_title__2tOYT" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 18px;"><h1 class="ArticleTitle_root__Nb9Xh" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: AGaramondPro, "Adobe Garamond Pro", garamond, Times, serif; font-size: 46px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 52px; margin: 0px 0px 18px;">Neuroscientists Have Discovered a Phenomenon That They Can’t Explain</h1></div><div class="ArticleLayoutComponent_dek__Yy5TX" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 18px;"><p class="ArticleDek_root__R8OvU" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: 100%; font-family: AGaramondPro, "Adobe Garamond Pro", garamond, Times, serif; font-size: 24px; line-height: 32px; margin: 0px auto;">“Scientists are meant to know what’s going on, but in this particular case, we are deeply confused.”</p></div><div class="ArticleLayoutComponent_byline__GDNh6" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 56px;"><div class="ArticleBylines_root__CFgKs" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: AGaramondPro, "Adobe Garamond Pro", garamond, Times, serif; font-size: 24px; line-height: 32px;"><address id="byline" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-style: normal;">By <a class="ArticleBylines_link__IlZu4" data-action="click author - byline" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/ed-yong/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/ed-yong/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">Ed Yong</a></address></div></div></div><div class="ArticleLeadArt_root__3PEn8" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #5e6a74; font-family: Goldwyn, monospace; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 56px;"><figure class="ArticleLeadFigure_root__P_6yW ArticleLeadFigure_standard__y9U3a" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 12px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 976px;"><div class="ArticleLeadFigure_media__LOlhI" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px auto;"><picture style="box-sizing: inherit; display: block;"><img alt="A red mouse on a yellow background with black puzzle pieces raining down" class="Image_root__d3aBr ArticleLeadArt_image__R4iW6" height="540" sizes="(min-width: 976px) 976px, 100vw" src="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/hgaiCa8cpJ6qk7qwkKmBqrkntDg=/0x0:4800x2700/960x540/media/img/mt/2021/06/mouse_brains_confusion/original.jpg" srcset="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/8_JAbIo78maRXU8IRCAQMgmCtLk=/0x0:4800x2700/750x422/media/img/mt/2021/06/mouse_brains_confusion/original.jpg 750w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/v14WoQ2TmHxWGzEEWsaTVJ6R3zE=/0x0:4800x2700/828x466/media/img/mt/2021/06/mouse_brains_confusion/original.jpg 828w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/hgaiCa8cpJ6qk7qwkKmBqrkntDg=/0x0:4800x2700/960x540/media/img/mt/2021/06/mouse_brains_confusion/original.jpg 960w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/GC-6vDbCMl-gv_xkyDm63eR9ouQ=/0x0:4800x2700/976x549/media/img/mt/2021/06/mouse_brains_confusion/original.jpg 976w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/qdMLqpyXnC_xq3dfzJpCk0HTIK0=/0x0:4800x2700/1952x1098/media/img/mt/2021/06/mouse_brains_confusion/original.jpg 1952w" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: inherit; display: block; height: auto; vertical-align: middle; width: 976px;" width="960" /></picture></div><figcaption class="ArticleLeadFigure_caption__qhLOF ArticleLeadFigure_standardCaption__bdgrK" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 13px; margin: 8px auto; max-width: 976px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Adam Maida / The Atlantic / Shutterstock</figcaption></figure></div></div><div class="ArticleLayoutComponent_articleUtilityBar__Vc8st" style="align-items: center; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; justify-content: space-between; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><time class="ArticleTimestamp_root__KjSeU" datetime="2021-06-09T17:00:11Z" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Goldwyn, monospace; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.06em; line-height: 14px; text-transform: uppercase;">JUNE 9, 2021</time><div class="ArticleShare_root__BqVqF" style="box-sizing: inherit; position: relative;"><button aria-controls="expanded-share-kit" aria-expanded="false" aria-haspopup="true" aria-label="Open Share Menu" class="ArticleShare_shareButton__7Ri8m" data-action="click share - expand" style="appearance: none; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: none; border-width: initial; box-sizing: inherit; color: black; cursor: pointer; font-family: Goldwyn, monospace; font-size: 13px; font-weight: 300; letter-spacing: 0.06em; line-height: 14px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase;">SHARE</button></div></div></header><div style="box-sizing: inherit;"><section class="ArticleBody_root__nZ4AR" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: AGaramondPro, "Adobe Garamond Pro", garamond, Times, serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 1.5em;"><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Carl Schoonover and Andrew Fink are confused. As neuroscientists, they know that the brain must be flexible but not <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">too </em>flexible. It must rewire itself in the face of new experiences, but must also consistently represent the features of the external world. How? The relatively simple explanation found in neuroscience textbooks is that specific groups of neurons reliably fire when their owner smells a rose, sees a sunset, or hears a bell. These representations—these patterns of neural firing—presumably stay the same from one moment to the next. But as Schoonover, Fink, and others have found, they sometimes don’t. They change—and to a confusing and unexpected extent.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Schoonover, Fink, and their colleagues from Columbia University allowed mice to sniff the same odors over several days and weeks, and recorded the activity of neurons in the rodents’ piriform cortex—a brain region involved in identifying smells. At a given moment, each odor caused a distinctive group of neurons in this region to fire. But as time went on, <a href="https://rdcu.be/cmeeg" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">the makeup of these groups slowly changed</a>. Some neurons stopped responding to the smells; others started. After a month, each group was almost <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">completely different. </em>Put it this way: The neurons that represented the smell of an apple in May and those that represented the same smell in June were as different from each other as those that represent the smells of apples and grass at any one time.</p><gpt-ad class="GptAd_root__2eqVh ArticleInjector_root__fjDeh s-native s-native--standard s-native--streamline ad-called ad-loaded ad-loaded--standard ad-loaded-dom" data-google-query-id="CM2W7b_o-vcCFeyKfwQdF5wObw" format="injector" id="gpt-unit-7" sizes-at-0="mobile-wide,native,house" sizes-at-976="[[728,90]]" style="background: rgb(247, 247, 247); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; display: block; margin-bottom: 30px; padding: 10px 0px 30px;" tabindex="-1" targeting-pos="csi-ad-0" targeting-refresh="1"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_4__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: inherit; margin: auto; text-align: center;"><iframe aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="6" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="90" id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_4" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_4" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; height: 250px; vertical-align: bottom; width: 970px;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="728"></iframe></div></gpt-ad><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">This is, of course, just one study, of one brain region, <a href="https://twitter.com/justsaysinmice" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">in mice</a>. But other scientists have shown that the same phenomenon, called <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7385530/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">representational drift</a>, occurs in a variety of brain regions besides the piriform cortex. Its existence is clear; everything else is a mystery. Schoonover and Fink told me that they don’t know why it happens, what it means, how the brain copes, or how much of the brain behaves in this way. How can animals possibly make any lasting sense of the world if their neural responses to that world are constantly in flux? If such flux is common, “there must be mechanisms in the brain that are undiscovered and even unimagined that allow it to keep up,” Schoonover said. “Scientists are meant to know what’s going on, but in this particular case, we are deeply confused. We expect it to take many years to iron out.”</p><div class="ArticleLegacyHtml_root__oTAAd ArticleLegacyHtml_standard__Qfi5x" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 40px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><p align="center" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></p></div><hr class="ArticleLegacyHtml_root__oTAAd c-section-divider ArticleLegacyHtml_standard__Qfi5x" style="border-bottom-style: initial; border-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.3); border-image: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-style: solid; border-width: 0.25px 0px 0px; box-sizing: content-box; height: 0px; margin: 48px auto; max-width: 665px; overflow: visible; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; width: 80px;" /><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">It had already taken years for Schoonover and Fink to even confirm that representational drift exists in the piriform cortex. They needed to develop surgical techniques for implanting electrodes into a mouse’s brain and, crucially, keeping them in place for many weeks. Only then could they be sure that the drift they witnessed was really due to changes in the neurons, and not small movements of the electrodes themselves. They started working on this in 2014. By 2018, they were confident that they could get stable recordings. They then allowed implant-carrying mice to periodically inhale different odors.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><a href="https://rdcu.be/cmeeg" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">The team showed</a> that if a neuron in the piriform cortex reacts to a specific smell, the odds that it will still do so after a month are just one in 15. At any one time, the same number of neurons fires in response to each odor, but the identity of those neurons changes. Daily sniffs can slow the speed of that drift, but they don’t eliminate it. Nor, bizarrely, does learning: If the mice associated a smell with a mild electric shock, the neurons representing that scent would still completely change even though the mice continued to avoid it. “The prevailing notion in the field has been that neuronal responses in sensory areas are stable over time,” says Yaniv Ziv, a neurobiologist at the Weizmann Institute of Science who was not involved in the new study. “This shows that’s not the case.”</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">“There have been hints of this for at least 15 years,” across many parts of the brain, Schoonover told me. The hippocampus, for example, helps animals navigate their surroundings. It contains place cells—neurons that selectively fire when their owner enters specific locations. Walk from your bed to your front door, and different place cells will fire. But these preferences aren’t fixed: <a href="https://elifesciences.org/articles/12247" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">Ziv and</a> <a href="https://www.cell.com/fulltext/S0896-6273(04)00192-8" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">others</a> <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33035454/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">have</a> now shown that the locations to which these cells are tuned can also drift over time.</p><gpt-ad class="GptAd_root__2eqVh ArticleInjector_root__fjDeh s-native s-native--standard s-native--streamline ad-called ad-loaded ad-loaded--standard ad-loaded-dom" data-google-query-id="CPfPnbDo-vcCFVgbYgod9IEIWA" format="injector" id="gpt-unit-3" sizes-at-0="mobile-wide,native,house" sizes-at-976="desktop-wide,native,house" style="background: rgb(247, 247, 247); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; display: block; margin-bottom: 30px; padding: 10px 0px 30px;" tabindex="-1" targeting-pos="csi-ad-1"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_1__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: inherit; margin: auto; text-align: center;"><iframe aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="5" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="90" id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_1" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_1" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; height: 90px; vertical-align: bottom; width: 728px;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="728"></iframe></div></gpt-ad><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><a href="https://lauradriscoll.github.io/pdfs/Driscoll_2017.pdf" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">In another experiment</a>, Laura Driscoll, a neuroscientist who is now at Stanford, placed mice in a virtual T-shaped maze, and trained them to go either left or right. This simple task depends on the posterior parietal cortex, a brain region involved in spatial reasoning. Driscoll and her colleagues found that activity in this area also drifted: The neurons that fired when the mice ran the maze gradually changed, even though the rodents’ choices remained the same.</p><div class="ArticleRelatedContentModule_root__BBa6g" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><div class="ArticleRelatedContentModule_notchedModule__aMW7_" style="box-sizing: inherit; float: right; margin: 0px -156px 24px 32px; min-height: 450px; width: 312px;"><section class="ArticleRelatedContentList_root__PWIiF" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><h2 class="ArticleRelatedContentList_heading__rspfY" style="border-bottom: 0.25px solid rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15); box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "Atlantic Serif", Atlantic, Bodoni, Times, serif; font-size: 32px; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.0625; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 8px; text-transform: uppercase;">RECOMMENDED READING</h2><ul class="ArticleRelatedContentList_list__jAu7a" style="box-sizing: inherit; 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box-sizing: inherit; display: block; height: auto; left: 0px; max-width: 100%; object-fit: cover; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0s; width: 90px;" width="90" /></picture></a></figure><div class="ArticleRelatedContentList_textWrapper__wNfJT" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex-grow: 1;"><h3 class="ArticleRelatedContentList_title__hndDt" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-feature-settings: "lnum"; font-size: 18px; font-variant-numeric: lining-nums; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><a class="ArticleRelatedContentList_link___tOJm" data-action="click link - recommended reading - title 1" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/03/what-pandemic-doing-our-brains/618221/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/03/what-pandemic-doing-our-brains/618221/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em; transition: all 0.15s ease 0s;">Late-Stage Pandemic Is Messing With Your Brain</a></h3><address class="ArticleRelatedContentList_byline__3tmCH" style="box-sizing: inherit; 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display: flex; justify-content: space-between; padding: 28px 0px; position: relative; width: auto;"><figure class="ArticleRelatedContentList_figure__gAk6T" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: 90px; flex-shrink: 0; margin: 0px 18px 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><a class="ArticleRelatedContentList_link___tOJm" data-action="click link - recommended reading - image 2" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/04/scientists-partly-restore-activity-dead-pig-brains/587329/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/04/scientists-partly-restore-activity-dead-pig-brains/587329/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em; transition: all 0.15s ease 0s;" title="Read More: Scientists Partly Restore Activity in Dead-Pig Brains"><picture class="ArticleRelatedContentList_picture__zoPfx" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: block; padding-bottom: 90px;"><source media="(prefers-reduced-motion)" srcset="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/vDbQ9QXgX-CdxzMeC5nJ57DX4cU=/845x0:3374x2529/90x90/media/img/mt/2019/04/RTR377ZQ-1/original.jpg 90w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/wqV06ZhuurhFE5lA8x4zEAEcM3I=/845x0:3374x2529/180x180/media/img/mt/2019/04/RTR377ZQ-1/original.jpg 180w" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></source><img alt="" class="Image_root__d3aBr Image_lazy__tutlP Image_loaded__9ZaHQ ArticleRelatedContentList_image__QZqNk" height="90" loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/vDbQ9QXgX-CdxzMeC5nJ57DX4cU=/845x0:3374x2529/90x90/media/img/mt/2019/04/RTR377ZQ-1/original.jpg" srcset="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/vDbQ9QXgX-CdxzMeC5nJ57DX4cU=/845x0:3374x2529/90x90/media/img/mt/2019/04/RTR377ZQ-1/original.jpg 90w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/wqV06ZhuurhFE5lA8x4zEAEcM3I=/845x0:3374x2529/180x180/media/img/mt/2019/04/RTR377ZQ-1/original.jpg 180w" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: inherit; display: block; height: auto; left: 0px; max-width: 100%; object-fit: cover; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0s; width: 90px;" width="90" /></picture></a></figure><div class="ArticleRelatedContentList_textWrapper__wNfJT" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex-grow: 1;"><h3 class="ArticleRelatedContentList_title__hndDt" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-feature-settings: "lnum"; font-size: 18px; font-variant-numeric: lining-nums; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><a class="ArticleRelatedContentList_link___tOJm" data-action="click link - recommended reading - title 2" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/04/scientists-partly-restore-activity-dead-pig-brains/587329/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/04/scientists-partly-restore-activity-dead-pig-brains/587329/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em; transition: all 0.15s ease 0s;">Scientists Partly Restore Activity in Dead-Pig Brains</a></h3><address class="ArticleRelatedContentList_byline__3tmCH" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Goldwyn, monospace; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; letter-spacing: 0.06em; line-height: 14px; text-transform: uppercase;"><a data-action="click link - recommended reading - author 2" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/ed-yong/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/ed-yong/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">ED YONG</span></a></address></div></div></li><li class="ArticleRelatedContentList_listItem__QXcFJ" style="border-bottom: none; border-top: 0.25px solid rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15); box-sizing: inherit; padding-left: 0.95em; position: relative;"><div class="ArticleRelatedContentList_content__qe_fY" data-gtm-vis-first-on-screen-31117857_217="62229" data-gtm-vis-has-fired-31117857_217="1" data-gtm-vis-total-visible-time-31117857_217="100" data-view-action="view link - recommended reading 1 - item 3" data-view-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/02/falling-in-love-wont-make-you-happy/617989/" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; justify-content: space-between; padding: 28px 0px; position: relative; width: auto;"><figure class="ArticleRelatedContentList_figure__gAk6T" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: 90px; flex-shrink: 0; margin: 0px 18px 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; position: relative;"><a class="ArticleRelatedContentList_link___tOJm" data-action="click link - recommended reading - image 3" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/02/falling-in-love-wont-make-you-happy/617989/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/02/falling-in-love-wont-make-you-happy/617989/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em; transition: all 0.15s ease 0s;" title="Read More: The Type of Love That Makes People Happiest"><picture class="ArticleRelatedContentList_picture__zoPfx" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: block; padding-bottom: 90px;"><source media="(prefers-reduced-motion)" srcset="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/2f0wRk1k_XyUG5qaPplcCITEcyk=/626x0:2314x1688/90x90/media/img/mt/2021/02/HowToBuildALife25/original.jpg 90w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/7dKw44-bc-33xMEjOX-bxFewYH4=/626x0:2314x1688/180x180/media/img/mt/2021/02/HowToBuildALife25/original.jpg 180w" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></source><img alt="Two people ride a tandem bicycle, the wheels of which are smiley faces." class="Image_root__d3aBr Image_lazy__tutlP Image_loaded__9ZaHQ ArticleRelatedContentList_image__QZqNk" height="90" loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/2f0wRk1k_XyUG5qaPplcCITEcyk=/626x0:2314x1688/90x90/media/img/mt/2021/02/HowToBuildALife25/original.jpg" srcset="https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/2f0wRk1k_XyUG5qaPplcCITEcyk=/626x0:2314x1688/90x90/media/img/mt/2021/02/HowToBuildALife25/original.jpg 90w, https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/7dKw44-bc-33xMEjOX-bxFewYH4=/626x0:2314x1688/180x180/media/img/mt/2021/02/HowToBuildALife25/original.jpg 180w" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: inherit; display: block; height: auto; left: 0px; max-width: 100%; object-fit: cover; opacity: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0s; width: 90px;" width="90" /></picture></a></figure><div class="ArticleRelatedContentList_textWrapper__wNfJT" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex-grow: 1;"><h3 class="ArticleRelatedContentList_title__hndDt" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-feature-settings: "lnum"; font-size: 18px; font-variant-numeric: lining-nums; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><a class="ArticleRelatedContentList_link___tOJm" data-action="click link - recommended reading - title 3" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/02/falling-in-love-wont-make-you-happy/617989/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/02/falling-in-love-wont-make-you-happy/617989/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em; transition: all 0.15s ease 0s;">The Type of Love That Makes People Happiest</a></h3><address class="ArticleRelatedContentList_byline__3tmCH" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Goldwyn, monospace; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; letter-spacing: 0.06em; line-height: 14px; text-transform: uppercase;"><a data-action="click link - recommended reading - author 3" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/arthur-c-brooks/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/arthur-c-brooks/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">ARTHUR C. BROOKS</span></a></address></div></div></li></ul></section></div></div><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">These results were surprising, but not overly so. The hippocampus is also involved in learning and short-term memory. You’d <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">expect</em> it to overwrite itself, and thus to continuously drift. “Up until now, observations of representational drift were confined to brain regions where we could tolerate it,” Schoonover said. The piriform cortex is different. It’s a sensory hub—a region that allows the brain to make sense of the stimuli around it. It ought to be stable: How else would smells ever be familiar? If representational drift can happen in the piriform cortex, it may be common throughout the brain.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">It might be less common in other sensory hubs, such as the visual cortex, which processes information from the eyes. The neurons that respond to the <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">smell</em> of grass might change from month to month, but the ones that respond to the <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">sight </em>of grass seem to mostly stay the same. That might be because the visual cortex is highly organized. Adjacent groups of neurons tend to represent adjacent parts of the visual space in front of us, and this orderly mapping could constrain neural responses from drifting too far. But that might be true only for simple visual stimuli, such as lines or bars. Even in the visual cortex, <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.10.05.327049v1" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">Ziv found</a> evidence of representational drift when mice watched the same movies over many days.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">“We have a hunch that this should be the rule rather than the exception,” Schoonover said. “The onus now becomes finding the places where it <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">doesn’t</em> happen.” And in places where it does happen, “it’s the three F’s,” Fink added. “How fast does it go? How far does it get? And … how bad is it?”</p><div class="ArticleLegacyHtml_root__oTAAd ArticleLegacyHtml_standard__Qfi5x" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 40px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><p align="center" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></p></div><hr class="ArticleLegacyHtml_root__oTAAd c-section-divider ArticleLegacyHtml_standard__Qfi5x" style="border-bottom-style: initial; border-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.3); border-image: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-style: solid; border-width: 0.25px 0px 0px; box-sizing: content-box; height: 0px; margin: 48px auto; max-width: 665px; overflow: visible; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; width: 80px;" /><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">How does the brain know what the nose is smelling or what the eyes are seeing, if the neural responses to smells and sights are continuously changing? One possibility is that it somehow corrects for drift. For example, parts of the brain that are connected to the piriform cortex might be able to gradually update their understanding of what the piriform’s neural activity means. The whole system changes, but it does so together.</p><gpt-ad class="GptAd_root__2eqVh ArticleInjector_root__fjDeh s-native s-native--standard s-native--streamline ad-called ad-loaded ad-loaded--responsive ad-loaded-dom" data-google-query-id="CLSCyMDo-vcCFWKKfwQdkP8L_Q" format="injector" id="gpt-unit-4" sizes-at-0="mobile-wide,native,house" sizes-at-976="desktop-wide,native,house" style="background: rgb(247, 247, 247); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; display: block; margin-bottom: 30px; padding: 10px 0px 30px;" tabindex="0" targeting-pos="csi-ad-3"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_2__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: inherit; margin: auto; text-align: center;"><iframe aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="7" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="3" id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_2" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_2" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; vertical-align: bottom;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="1"></iframe></div></gpt-ad><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Another possibility is that some high-level feature of the firing neurons stays the same, even as the specific active neurons change. As a simple analogy, “individuals in a population can change their mind while maintaining an overall consensus,” Timothy O’Leary, a neuroscientist at the University of Cambridge, told me. “The number of ways of representing the same signal in a large population is also large, so there’s room for the neural code to move.” Although some researchers have found signs of these stable, high-level patterns in other drifty parts of the brain, when Schoonover and Fink tried to do so in the piriform cortex, they couldn’t. Neither they nor their colleagues can conclusively say how the brain copes with representational drift. They’re also unsure <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">why </em>it happens at all.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Drift might simply be a nervous-system bug—a problem to be addressed. “The connections in many parts of the brain are being formed and broken down continually, and each neuron is itself continually recycling cellular material,” O’Leary said. Perhaps a system like this—a gray, goopy version of <a href="https://www.brainpickings.org/2016/03/08/plutarch-the-ship-of-theseus-ted-ed/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">the ship of Theseus</a>—is destined to drift over time. But that idea “is a little weak,” O’Leary told me. The nervous system <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">can</em> maintain precise and targeted connections, such as those between muscles and the nerves that control them. Drift doesn’t seem inevitable.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Alternatively, drift might be beneficial. By constantly changing how existing information is stored, the nervous system might be better able to incorporate new material. “Information that’s not continuously useful is forgotten, while information that continues to be useful is updated with the drift,” says Driscoll, who is now testing this idea using artificial networks. “The more I’ve thought about drift, the more it makes sense that it’s something we would see in the brain.” Schoonover likes this idea too: “Our favored interpretation is that drift is a manifestation of learning,” he told me. “It’s not learning itself; it’s the smoke that comes out of learning.”</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Schoonover and Fink compare the discovery of representational drift with the work of the <a href="https://www.amnh.org/learn-teach/curriculum-collections/cosmic-horizons-book/vera-rubin-dark-matter" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">astronomer Vera Rubin.</a> In the 1970s, Rubin and her colleague Kent Ford noticed that some galaxies were spinning in unexpected ways that seemed to violate Newton’s laws of motion. Her analysis of that data provided the first direct evidence for dark matter, which makes up most of the matter in the universe, but has never been observed. Similarly, drift indicates “that there’s something else going on under the hood, and we don’t know what that is yet,” Schoonover said.</p><gpt-ad class="GptAd_root__2eqVh ArticleInjector_root__fjDeh s-native s-native--standard s-native--streamline ad-called ad-loaded ad-loaded--standard ad-loaded-dom" data-google-query-id="CJii7cTo-vcCFQ2GpwodTBIHQA" format="injector" id="gpt-unit-5" sizes-at-0="mobile-wide,native,house" sizes-at-976="desktop-wide,native,house" style="background: rgb(247, 247, 247); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; display: block; margin-bottom: 30px; padding: 10px 0px 30px;" tabindex="-1" targeting-pos="csi-ad-4"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_3__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: inherit; margin: auto; text-align: center;"><iframe aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="8" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="90" id="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_3" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/4624/theatlantic.web/science/article_standard/injector_3" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; height: 250px; vertical-align: bottom; width: 970px;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="728"></iframe></div></gpt-ad><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">But the comparison between drift and Rubin’s spinning galaxies fails in one important way. Rubin knew that she was onto something odd because she could compare her data against Newtonian mechanics—a solid and thoroughly described theory of physics. No such theory exists in neuroscience. The field has a very clear idea of how individual neurons work, but it gets much fuzzier when it comes to neuronal networks, entire brains, or the behavior of whole animals.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Consider the very idea that specific patterns of firing neurons can represent different smells, sights, or sounds. That connection seems simple enough—from the perspective of the experimenter, who exposed an animal to a stimulus and then looked for active neurons in its brain. But the brain itself has to work with just half of that equation, a bunch of active neurons, to make sense of what might have triggered that activity. “Just because we can decode that information doesn’t mean the brain is doing that,” says John Krakauer, a neuroscientist at Johns Hopkins University.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">For that reason, Krakauer says that Schoonover and Fink’s study, though “a technical tour de force,” is also “very slightly straw-mannish.” The idea of drift, he says, is surprising and exciting only when contrasted with the unsophisticated textbook idea of representations, which was never theoretically sound and was <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/biorxiv/early/2018/07/13/168237.full.pdf" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: black; text-decoration-thickness: 0.05em;">already being questioned</a>. And that’s a broader problem for the entire field, he told me. “Mainstream neuroscience relies on taking very specific methods and results and packaging them in a vague cloud of concepts that are only barely agreed upon by the field,” he said. “In a lot of neuroscience, the premises remain unexamined, but everything else is impeccable.”</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">Fink agrees that the idea of stable representations was never a theory—more “a tacit assumption,” he said, and one that held “because it’s simple.” <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">How could it not be that way? </em>Well, it isn’t. So now what?</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;">“There’s a real hunger in the field for new ideas,” Fink told me, which is why, he thinks, he and Schoonover haven’t yet faced the kind of vicious pushback that scientists with dogma-busting data tend to encounter. “People are really desperate for theories. The field is so immature conceptually that we’re still at the point of collecting factlets, and we’re not really in a position to rule anything out.” Neuroscience’s own representations of the brain still have plenty of room to drift.</p><p class="ArticleParagraph_root__wy3UI" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 30px; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"></p><div class="ArticleBody_partialDivider__mhy5a" data-gtm-vis-first-on-screen-31117857_86="73282" data-gtm-vis-has-fired-31117857_86="1" data-gtm-vis-recent-on-screen-31117857_86="73282" data-gtm-vis-total-visible-time-31117857_86="2000" id="article-end" style="box-sizing: inherit; height: 1px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 20px;"></div></section></div><div class="ArticleWell_root__MEFqL" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 665px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px;"><div style="box-sizing: inherit;"><address class="ArticleBio_root__AjFH1" id="article-writer-0" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; font-family: Graphik, -apple-system, blinkmacsystemfont, roboto, "helvetica neue", "segoe ui", arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; padding-top: 0px; position: relative;"><div class="ArticleBio_content__WafXd" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: 100%; flex-grow: 1; padding-top: 4px;"><div class="ArticleBio_bio__5k27k" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: AGaramondPro, "Adobe Garamond Pro", garamond, Times, serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 32px;"><a class="author-link" data-action="click author - name" data-label="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/ed-yong/" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/author/ed-yong/" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;">Ed Yong</a> is a staff writer at <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">The Atlantic</em>. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting for his coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic.</div><div class="ArticleBio_social__C_8dT" style="align-items: center; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; font-family: Goldwyn, monospace; margin-bottom: 46px; margin-top: 16px;"><a class="ArticleBio_socialLink__FLFKk" href="https://twitter.com/edyong209" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" style="align-items: center; box-sizing: inherit; color: black; display: inline-flex; fill: rgb(0, 0, 0); line-height: 1; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><svg class="ArticleBio_socialLinkIcon__XgXYF" viewbox="0 0 16 14"><path d="M14.115 2.13A3.393 3.393 0 0015.558.25a6.437 6.437 0 01-2.085.825A3.226 3.226 0 0011.077 0C9.265 0 7.795 1.523 7.795 3.401c0 .267.029.527.085.776C5.152 4.035 2.733 2.68 1.114.623a3.48 3.48 0 00-.445 1.71c0 1.18.58 2.22 1.46 2.83a3.183 3.183 0 01-1.486-.425v.043c0 1.648 1.131 3.023 2.633 3.335a3.18 3.18 0 01-1.483.059c.418 1.351 1.63 2.334 3.067 2.362A6.442 6.442 0 010 11.946a9.057 9.057 0 005.032 1.528c6.038 0 9.34-5.183 9.34-9.678 0-.148-.004-.294-.01-.44A6.811 6.811 0 0016 1.595a6.385 6.385 0 01-1.885.536z" fill-rule="evenodd"></path></svg><span class="ArticleBio_socialLinkName__vJZgm" style="box-sizing: inherit; 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box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Fira Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 20px 0px 40px; position: relative;"><header class="asset-header" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(103, 153, 31); box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 20px;"><h1 class="headline" itemprop="headline" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-family: "Playfair Display", serif; font-size: 44px; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.1; margin: 0px 100px 0px 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">UW-Madison study finds chronic marital stress can lead to depression</span></h1><div class="meta" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-right: 100px; margin-top: 20px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><ul class="list-inline" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: -5px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px;"><li style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-bottom: 2px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px;"><span class="tnt-byline" itemprop="author" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold;">PAT SCHNEIDER | The Capital Times | pschneider@madison.com</span></li><li class="hidden-print" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-bottom: 2px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px;"><time class="tnt-date asset-date text-muted" datetime="2014-04-29T08:30:00-05:00" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #67991f;">Apr 29, 2014</time></li><li class="hidden-print" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-bottom: 2px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px;"></li></ul></span></div></header></div><div class="row" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Fira Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-left: -15px; margin-right: -15px;"><div class="main-content col-lg-8 col-md-7 has-sidebar" style="box-sizing: border-box; float: left; margin-right: 100px; min-height: 1px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; position: relative; width: calc(100% - 430px) !important;"><div class="main-content-wrap" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_top" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="asset-photo card" style="box-sizing: border-box; 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box-sizing: border-box; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Print</span></a></li></ul><form action="https://captimes.com/users/admin/list/" class="save-list-bd2b4c11-a3f4-5f5d-939f-590d2ef4a903-form save-asset-to-list" data-uuid="bd2b4c11-a3f4-5f5d-939f-590d2ef4a903" method="post" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></form></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_body_top" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" id="article-body" itemprop="articleBody" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">Married people are generally happier and healthier than single people, but chronic marital stress may make people more vulnerable to depression, say UW-Madison researchers.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">People who experience chronic marital stress are less able to savor positive experiences, a hallmark of depression. They are also more likely to say they have other depressive symptoms, <a href="http://www.news.wisc.edu/22785" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black;" target="_blank">UW-Madison News reports</a> of the findings of a long-term study published in the April, 2014, issue of the journal Psychophysiology.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">The study has been getting a lot of notice in some far-flung popular media, with a variety of spins on the story that may or may not reflect experiences of the writers.</p><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_top" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="tncms-block" id="tncms-block-1995470" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="tnt-ads-container text-center " style="box-sizing: border-box; min-height: 1px; text-align: center !important;"></div></div></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">“Anyone who has gone through divorce knows, a bad marriage can take a huge toll on your well being,” begins <a href="http://%20hyperlink/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black;" target="_blank">a report in the Huffington Post</a>.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">"Being married is depressing, “ says a headline on the <a href="http://www.handbag.com/evening-bag/news/a567273/being-married-is-depressing-says-new-research.html" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black;" target="_blank">Handbag.com blog</a>. "Tissues at the ready people, apparently marital bliss isn't really a thing,” the post begins.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">“Constant nagging triggers deep-rooted stress,” blares a headline in the <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2614380/Being-married-makes-MORE-depressed-Constant-nagging-triggers-deep-rooted-stress-study-reveals.html" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black;" target="_blank">Daily Mail,</a> a British Tabloid.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">The headline to a <a href="http://post.jagran.com/marital-stress-may-lead-to-depression-study-1398492541" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black;" target="_blank">report in the Jagran Post</a> in India is more to the point: “Marital stress may lead to depression: Study.”</p><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_middle" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">Researchers didn’t quite ask about nagging, it seems. But the married adult participants were asked questions like how often they felt let down by their partner or how frequently their spouse criticized them. They were also evaluated for depression. The questions and evaluations were repeated nine years later.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">In year 11, the participants were invited to the laboratory to undergo a test of how quickly they recovered from a negative experience.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">The test involved having participants view 90 negative, neutral and positive photographs while electrical activity in what is known as the “frowning muscle” was measured to assess the intensity and duration of their responses. The test is accepted as a measure of resilience, or how quickly a person can recover from a negative experience.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">The findings are important, says UW-Madison professor Richard Davidson, leader of the study, because they could help researchers understand what makes some people more vulnerable to mental and emotional health challenges.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">"This is not an obvious consequence, if you will, of marital stress, but it's one I think is extraordinarily important because of the cascade of changes that may be associated," says Davidson, founder of the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the UW's Waisman Center. "This is the signature of an emotional style that reveals vulnerability to depression."</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">The researchers thought chronic marital stress could provide a good model for how other common daily stressors may lead to depression and similar conditions.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px; line-height: 2; margin: 0px 0px 35px;">"How is it that a stressor gets under your skin and how does that make some more vulnerable to maladaptive responses?" says UW-Madison graduate student Regina Lapate, lead author of the paper reporting the study results.</p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-55080351964633873492022-03-08T11:59:00.004-08:002022-03-08T11:59:48.128-08:00COVID-19 Linked to Neural Changes A study that examined the brains of people before and after SARS-CoV-2 infection found a decrease in brain volume and damage to olfactory areas compared with controls.<p> reposted from <a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/covid-19-linked-to-neural-changes-69779?utm_campaign=TS_DAILY_NEWSLETTER_2022&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=206136514&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_RVt3f4GWjR9cVY-zpK8LNgapfed2hq0o4kPH8CJVpDFsRCL3wEKao1CXYo9-RTqlxzCRd3_tsbMDajEjHbJXcdGYLtA&utm_content=206136512&utm_source=hs_email" target="_blank">Scientist</a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><header style="background-color: white; 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font-size: 0.8rem; line-height: 1.25; margin-top: 5px; order: 2; text-transform: uppercase;">© ISTOCK.COM, <a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/human-brain-hologram-gm1290056796-385548953" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">DA-KUK</a></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;"><span class="dropcap" style="box-sizing: border-box; float: left; font-size: 3em; font-weight: 700; line-height: 0.8; margin: 8px 4px 0px 0px;">M</span>RI brain scans of hundreds of people in the UK taken before and after they contracted COVID-19 reveal changes that persisted months after recovery from the disease, a paper published today in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04569-5" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Nature</em></a> reports. These changes, while subtle, included tissue damage in certain brain areas, including those involved in olfaction, and a decline in overall brain size that was larger than the expected decline caused by natural aging. But experts caution that the clinical effects of these changes and whether they will persist in the long-term remain unclear. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;">“It is a very novel study with conclusive data,” Avindra Nath of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke who wasn’t involved in the research tells <em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-07/brain-shrinkage-cognitive-decline-found-months-after-mild-covid" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Bloomberg</a></em>. “The findings are very intriguing, with important implications for the population at large.” </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;">The study considered 785 subjects between the ages of 51 and 81 who were each scanned twice, about three years apart. They were all part of the UK Biobank, a project that collects biomedical data on the health and genetics of half a million UK participants. Of the nearly 800 people whose brains were scanned, 401 contracted COVID-19 between the first and second scan and 15 were hospitalized with the illness. All infections occurred between March 2020 and April 2021, and the second scan took place four and a half months after recovery from COVID-19, on average. Researchers compared the changes between the two scans in these participants to those of 384 matched controls who had also undergone two scans but had not contracted COVID-19. </p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;">The researchers found that, on average, the brains of people who had recovered from COVID-19 showed steeper declines than did controls in certain areas, including the orbitofrontal cortex (which is involved in decision-making) and parahippocampal gyrus (involved in memory), both of which also play a role in smell. Average declines in particular brain areas ranged from 0.2 to 2 percent greater than those seen in controls over the same time period, the researchers report in their paper. The overall brain volume of COVID-19 survivors also declined more than that of survivors, and declines were greater in the 15 patients who’d been hospitalized for COVID-19 than in those who’d had milder infections. </p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem; margin: 0.75rem 0px;">See “<a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/covid-19s-effects-on-the-brain-68369" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">COVID-19’s Effects on the Brain</a>” </h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;">“To me, this is pretty convincing evidence that something changes in brains of this overall group of people with Covid,” Yale School of Medicine’s Serena Spudich, who was not involved in the study, tells <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/07/health/covid-brain-changes.html" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">The New York Times</em></a>. But, she says, “To make a conclusion that this has some long-term clinical implications for the patients I think is a stretch. We don’t want to scare the public and have them think, ‘Oh, this is proof that everyone’s going to have brain damage and not be able to function.’” </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;">The authors of the <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Nature</em> paper gave the participants cognitive tests and found that the former COVID-19 patients performed worse than controls on one task that reflects focus and processing speed. But experts tell the <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Times</em> that the testing was too rudimentary to draw conclusions about any clinical effects of the brain changes the researchers found. The authors also lacked data on which symptoms individual participants experienced, so they can’t say whether, for example, loss of smell correlated with damage to olfaction-involved areas of the brain. And it’s not clear whether the brain will recover from the effects of COVID-19 over time. </p><div class="mobile-ad-marker" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;">In comments to the <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Times</em>, Benedict Michael of the University of Liverpool further cautions that the findings may not be relevant to cognitive symptoms such as “<a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/brain-fog-caused-by-long-covid-and-chemo-appear-similar-69659" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">brain fog</a>” that are associated with <a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/features/mechanisms-of-long-covid-remain-unknown-but-data-are-rolling-in-69066" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4d98ed; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">long COVID</a>. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.75; max-width: 100%;">“What is going to be pertinent now is to identify the mechanisms that are leading to this degeneration in the acute phase of disease so that we can attempt to intervene,” Leah Beauchamp, a neuropharmacologist at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health in Melbourne, tells <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Bloomberg</em>.</p></div></main><footer style="background-color: white; 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box-sizing: border-box; color: #1a1919; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Regular; font-size: 20px; position: relative; z-index: 2;"><header class="article-header" style="align-items: center; background: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-direction: row; height: 379.469px; padding: 20px; position: absolute; right: 0px; top: 0px; width: 398.391px;"><div class="inner-header" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="article-title" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><h1 class="heading-primary" style="background: rgb(244, 183, 67); box-shadow: rgb(244, 183, 67) 10px 0px 0px, rgb(244, 183, 67) -10px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: inline; font-family: HelveticaNeue-CondensedBold, "Roboto Condensed", sans-serif; font-size: 34pt; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 70px; margin: 0px; padding: 5px 0px; text-shadow: none; text-transform: uppercase;">IMAGINED JAZZ IMPROV CHANGES THE BRAIN LIKE REAL SINGING</h1></div><span class="article-date" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #8c8c8c; display: block; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; left: 53.75px; margin-top: 30px; position: relative; text-transform: uppercase;">OCTOBER 15TH, 2021</span><span class="article-author" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #8c8c8c; display: block; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; left: 53.75px; position: relative; text-transform: uppercase;">POSTED BY <a class="fn" href="https://www.futurity.org/author/noelle-toumey-reetz/" rel="author" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">NOELLE TOUMEY REETZ-GEORGIA STATE</a></span></div></header><div class="hero-img-caption col-sm-12" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #8c8c8c; float: left; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 30px; margin-top: 15px; min-height: 1px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; position: relative; width: 597.594px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; text-shadow: none;">"What's so fascinating is that we saw very similar brain patterns and activity whether they were actually scat singing or just imagining an improvised performance," Martin Norgaard says. (Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/oneworldgallery/13476007504/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_Blank">David Robert Bliwas/Flickr</a>)</p></div></div><div class="article-wrap container" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1a1919; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Regular; font-size: 20px; left: -99.5938px; margin-bottom: 100px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 970px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; position: relative; width: 900px;"><div class="row" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-left: -15px; margin-right: -15px;"><div class="col-sm-12" style="box-sizing: border-box; float: left; min-height: 1px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; position: relative; width: 900px;"><div class="sticky-wrap article-content" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; 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font-size: 11pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; text-transform: uppercase;">TAGS</div><ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.futurity.org/topic/brains/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">BRAINS</a></li><li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.futurity.org/topic/cognition/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">COGNITION</a></li><li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.futurity.org/topic/creativity/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">CREATIVITY</a></li><li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.futurity.org/topic/music/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">MUSIC</a></li></ul></div><div class="university share-section" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 35px 0px;"><div class="title" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; text-transform: uppercase;">UNIVERSITY</div><a href="https://www.futurity.org/university/georgia-state-university/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; display: inline; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY</a></div></div></div><p style="border-bottom: 10px solid rgb(105, 105, 105); box-sizing: border-box; color: dimgrey; font-size: 16pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 32px; margin: 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px 40px 30px; text-shadow: none;">Just imagining improvised performances can elicit the same flow-like states as when jazz musicians are singing, research finds.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">For the study, researchers recruited 21 advanced jazz musicians and prompted them to vocalize or imagine one of the four scores from the Bebop era of jazz based on a standard 12-bar blues chordal progression while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">The researchers then used the fMRI data to identify how a <a href="https://www.futurity.org/rhythm-brains-music-synchronization-2432502-2/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">musician’s brain</a> reconfigures connectivity depending on the degree of creativity required during jazz performances, focusing on two major brain networks: the default mode network and the executive control network.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">“We estimated static functional network connectivity as jazz musicians were vocalizing, imagining, improvising, or performing pre-learned, memorized scores,” says principal investigator Victor M. Vergara, research assistant professor at Georgia State University.</p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 500; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 14px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none; text-transform: uppercase;">LESS BRAIN INTERFERENCE</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">The work provides new insight into the minds of expert jazz musicians at work, says coauthor Martin Norgaard, associate professor in the Georgia State School of Music.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">“What’s so fascinating is that we saw very similar brain patterns and activity whether they were actually scat singing or just imagining an improvised performance,” Norgaard says.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">The study builds on previous research demonstrating that subjects’ brains show lower functional connectivity during <a href="https://www.futurity.org/musical-improvisation-jazz-brains-2216752/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">musical improvisation</a>. The new findings reveal that improvisation is associated with a state of weak connectivity to the brain’s executive control network and to a feeling of “flow,” which allows unhindered musical creation.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">“The executive control network is typically active in many tasks, including solving problems. The default mode network seems to be more active when a subject is in the resting state,” says Norgaard. “We saw that when expert musicians are improvising, the brain is interfering less with their creativity.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">The new study allowed researchers to observe widespread and richer effects of connectivity, says Vince Calhoun, professor in psychology and neuroscience and founding director of the Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), which has support from Georgia State, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Emory University.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">It is the first analysis of whole brain connectivity during vocalized and <a href="https://www.futurity.org/imagination-future-brain-2567342-2/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">imagined</a> real-time production of creative output.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">“The brain is highly dynamic, so mapping how brain function changes over time is a much more natural way to analyze the data and capture functional patterns linked to either behavioral conditions or to resting,” Calhoun says.</p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 500; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 14px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none; text-transform: uppercase;">MORE THAN JAZZ MUSICIANS</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">As part of the team at TReNDS center, Vergara and colleagues were able to extract signals from the brain using a non-invasive method to reduce any interference in the creative process. The team created a custom algorithm to identify the resting state networks.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">“Brain imaging produces vast amounts of time-varying measurements that are difficult to parse. Pattern recognition algorithms were necessary to pinpoint the relevant brain areas involved in the creative process,” says Vergara. “We then compared the different patterns to understand the differences between performing improvisation and pre-rehearsed music.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">The study’s paradigm allows for the inclusion of expert jazz performers with many different instrument specializations, which suggests the results may be broadly applicable to all <a href="https://www.futurity.org/improv-training-uncertainty-creativity-2340012/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">improvising</a> musicians.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">Future research could adapt the same paradigm to other activities where creation happens in real time—like in performing freestyle rap or spoken-word poetry and even playing sports—potentially identifying common threads in the creative process inside the human brain.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">“Now there are more specific questions we can consider, like what changes are happening in the brain while someone improvises or which different networks are involved,” says Norgaard. “That’s called dynamic connectivity, and that’s what we’re hoping to research next.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;">The study appears in the journal <em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-98332-x" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;">Scientific Reports</a></em>.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 40px; text-shadow: none;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Source: </em><a href="https://news.gsu.edu/2021/10/14/study-finds-singing-and-imagining-improvised-music-elicits-flow-like-brain-states/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-family: NeuzeitOffice-Bold; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Georgia State University</em></a></p></div><footer class="article-meta" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 20px;"><p style="border-bottom: 10px solid rgb(105, 105, 105); box-sizing: border-box; color: dimgrey; font-family: "Courier New", Courier, "Lucida Sans Typewriter", "Lucida Typewriter", monospace; font-size: 16pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 32px; margin: 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px 40px 30px; text-shadow: none;"><a class="source-link" href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-98332-x" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #f4b743; font-size: 12pt; margin-right: 20px; transition: all 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Original Study</a> DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-98332-x</p></footer></div></div></div></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-39379230245370236672022-02-07T06:11:00.002-08:002022-02-07T06:13:38.685-08:00This Is Your Brain On Jazz: Researchers Use MRI To Study Spontaneity, Creativity Date:<p> reposted from <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080226213431.htm#:~:text=2-,This%20Is%20Your%20Brain%20On%20Jazz%3A%20Researchers,MRI%20To%20Study%20Spontaneity%2C%20Creativity&text=Summary%3A,that%20let%20self%2Dexpression%20flow." target="_blank">ScienceDaily</a></p><p>from PLOSone</p><p><a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0001679#s4">https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0001679#s4</a></p><h1 class="headline" id="headline" style="background-color: white; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #004276; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.1; margin: 0px;">This Is Your Brain On Jazz: Researchers Use MRI To Study Spontaneity, Creativity</h1><dl class="dl-horizontal dl-custom" style="background-color: white; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 20px 0px 0px;"><dt style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: left; color: #595959; float: left; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.42857; overflow: hidden; padding-bottom: 5px; text-align: right; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; width: 70px;">Date:</dt><dd id="date_posted" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.42857; margin-left: 90px; padding-bottom: 5px;">February 28, 2008</dd><dt style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: left; color: #595959; float: left; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.42857; overflow: hidden; padding-bottom: 5px; text-align: right; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; width: 70px;">Source:</dt><dd id="source" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.42857; margin-left: 90px; padding-bottom: 5px;">Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions</dd><dt style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: left; color: #595959; float: left; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.42857; overflow: hidden; padding-bottom: 5px; text-align: right; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; width: 70px;">Summary:</dt><dd id="abstract" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.42857; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 90px; padding-bottom: 5px;">A pair of Johns Hopkins and government scientists have discovered that when jazz musicians improvise, their brains turn off areas linked to self-censoring and inhibition, and turn on those that let self-expression flow.</dd><dt class="no-print" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: left; color: #595959; float: left; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.42857; overflow: hidden; padding-bottom: 5px; text-align: right; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; width: 70px;">Share:</dt><dd class="no-print" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.42857; margin-left: 90px; padding-bottom: 5px;"><div id="share_top" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block;"><div class="ssk-sm ssk-group" data-url="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080226213431.htm" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 0px;"><a class="ssk ssk-icon ssk-facebook" data-ssk-ready="true" style="background-color: transparent; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #3b5998; display: inline-block; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1px; margin: -5px 10px 10px 0px; padding: 2px; text-align: center; transition: background-color 0.1s ease 0s;"></a> <a class="ssk ssk-icon ssk-twitter" data-ssk-ready="true" style="background-color: transparent; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1da1f2; display: inline-block; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1px; margin: -5px 10px 10px 0px; padding: 2px; text-align: center; transition: background-color 0.1s ease 0s;"></a> <a class="ssk ssk-icon ssk-pinterest" data-ssk-ready="true" style="background-color: transparent; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bd081c; display: inline-block; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1px; margin: -5px 10px 10px 0px; padding: 2px; text-align: center; transition: background-color 0.1s ease 0s;"></a> <a class="ssk ssk-icon ssk-linkedin" data-ssk-ready="true" style="background-color: transparent; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1c87bd; display: inline-block; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1px; margin: -5px 10px 10px 0px; padding: 2px; text-align: center; transition: background-color 0.1s ease 0s;"></a> <a class="ssk ssk-icon ssk-email" data-ssk-ready="true" style="background-color: transparent; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #757575; display: inline-block; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1px; margin: -5px 10px 10px 0px; padding: 2px; text-align: center; transition: background-color 0.1s ease 0s;"></a></div></div></dd></dl><div class="row" style="background-color: white; border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-left: -15px; margin-right: -15px;"><div class="col-md-8 col-md-push-4" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: left; left: 222.109px; min-height: 1px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; position: relative; width: 444.219px;"><div class="fullstory" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #595959; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; margin: 12px 0px;">FULL STORY</div><hr class="hr-fullstory" style="border-bottom: 0px rgb(204, 204, 204); border-image: initial; border-left: 0px rgb(204, 204, 204); border-radius: 0px; border-right: 0px rgb(204, 204, 204); border-top-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-top-style: solid; box-sizing: content-box; height: 0px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: -1px;" /><div class="clearfix" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="hyphenate less-top-margin" id="story_text" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; hyphens: auto; margin-top: 15px; overflow-wrap: break-word; word-break: break-word;"><p class="lead" id="first" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px 0px 20px;">A pair of Johns Hopkins and government scientists have discovered that when jazz musicians improvise, their brains turn off areas linked to self-censoring and inhibition, and turn on those that let self-expression flow.</p><div id="text" style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The joint research, using functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, and musician volunteers from the Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute, sheds light on the creative improvisation that artists and non-artists use in everyday life, the investigators say.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">It appears, they conclude, that jazz musicians create their unique improvised riffs by turning off inhibition and turning up creativity.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The scientists from the University’s School of Medicine and the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communications Disorders describe their curiosity about the possible neurological underpinnings of the almost trance-like state jazz artists enter during spontaneous improvisation.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">“When jazz musicians improvise, they often play with eyes closed in a distinctive, personal style that transcends traditional rules of melody and rhythm,” says Charles J. Limb, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and a trained jazz saxophonist himself. “It’s a remarkable frame of mind,” he adds, “during which, all of a sudden, the musician is generating music that has never been heard, thought, practiced or played before. What comes out is completely spontaneous.”</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Though many recent studies have focused on understanding what parts of a person’s brain are active when listening to music, Limb says few have delved into brain activity while music is being spontaneously composed.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Curious about his own “brain on jazz,” he and a colleague, Allen R. Braun, M.D., of NIDCD, devised a plan to view in real time the brain functions of musicians improvising.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">For the study, they recruited six trained jazz pianists, three from the Peabody Institute, a music conservatory where Limb holds a joint faculty appointment. Other volunteers learned about the study by word of mouth through the local jazz community.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The researchers designed a special keyboard to allow the pianists to play inside a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) machine, a brain-scanner that illuminates areas of the brain responding to various stimuli, identifying which areas are active while a person is involved in some mental task, for example.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Because fMRI uses powerful magnets, the researchers designed the unconventional keyboard with no iron-containing metal parts that the magnet could attract. They also used fMRI-compatible headphones that would allow musicians to hear the music they generate while they’re playing it.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Each musician first took part in four different exercises designed to separate out the brain activity involved in playing simple memorized piano pieces and activity while improvising their music. While lying in the fMRI machine with the special keyboard propped on their laps, the pianists all began by playing the C-major scale, a well-memorized order of notes that every beginner learns. With the sound of a metronome playing over the headphones, the musicians were instructed to play the scale, making sure that each volunteer played the same notes with the same timing. </p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">In the second exercise, the pianists were asked to improvise in time with the metronome. They were asked to use quarter notes on the C-major scale, but could play any of these notes that they wanted.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Next, the musicians were asked to play an original blues melody that they all memorized in advance, while a recorded jazz quartet that complemented the tune played in the background. In the last exercise, the musicians were told to improvise their own tunes with the same recorded jazz quartet.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Limb and Braun then analyzed the brain scans. Since the brain areas activated during memorized playing are parts that tend to be active during any kind of piano playing, the researchers subtracted those images from ones taken during improvisation. Left only with brain activity unique to improvisation, the scientists saw strikingly similar patterns, regardless of whether the musicians were doing simple improvisation on the C-major scale or playing more complex tunes with the jazz quartet.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The scientists found that a region of the brain known as the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, a broad portion of the front of the brain that extends to the sides, showed a slowdown in activity during improvisation. This area has been linked to planned actions and self-censoring, such as carefully deciding what words you might say at a job interview. Shutting down this area could lead to lowered inhibitions, Limb suggests.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The researchers also saw increased activity in the medial prefrontal cortex, which sits in the center of the brain’s frontal lobe. This area has been linked with self-expression and activities that convey individuality, such as telling a story about yourself.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">“Jazz is often described as being an extremely individualistic art form. You can figure out which jazz musician is playing because one person’s improvisation sounds only like him or her,” says Limb. “What we think is happening is when you’re telling your own musical story, you’re shutting down impulses that might impede the flow of novel ideas.”</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Limb notes that this type of brain activity may also be present during other types of improvisational behavior that are integral parts of life for artists and non-artists alike. For example, he notes, people are continually improvising words in conversations and improvising solutions to problems on the spot. “Without this type of creativity, humans wouldn’t have advanced as a species. It’s an integral part of who we are,” Limb says.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">He and Braun plan to use similar techniques to see whether the improvisational brain activity they identified matches that in other types of artists, such as poets or visual artists, as well as non-artists asked to improvise.</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The study is published in the Feb. 27 issue of the journal Public Library of Science (PLoS) One. http://www.plosone.org/article/fetchArticle.action?articleURI=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0001679</p><p style="border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">This research was funded by the Division of Intramural Research, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institutes of Health.</p></div></div></div></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-24838923221216014432022-01-24T07:07:00.003-08:002022-01-24T07:07:29.835-08:00Scents and sensibility: what’s behind the rise of extreme smells?<p> reposted from the guardian</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2022/jan/22/scents-and-sensibility-whats-behind-the-rise-of-extreme-smells?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other">https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2022/jan/22/scents-and-sensibility-whats-behind-the-rise-of-extreme-smells?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other</a></p><div class="dcr-1nupfq9" data-gu-name="headline" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #121212; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; font-variant-numeric: inherit; grid-area: headline / headline / headline / headline; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-krkkhw" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 620px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-1dabe76" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 24px; vertical-align: baseline;"><h1 class="dcr-15jufpr" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #7d0068; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 2.125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.15; margin: 0px; padding: 4px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Scents and sensibility: what’s behind the rise of extreme smells?</h1></div></div></div><div class="dcr-pn0kqp" data-gu-name="media" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #121212; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; font-variant-numeric: 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srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7d1dd2faa84b0c9294b53eebd304a012d5fa74e8/0_378_5669_3402/master/5669.jpg?width=465&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d6fe7d8b40af5231be911230581b7105 465w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 320px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 320px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7d1dd2faa84b0c9294b53eebd304a012d5fa74e8/0_378_5669_3402/master/5669.jpg?width=465&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3a648ddabe14471e8f82b61ca1baee72 930w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 320px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7d1dd2faa84b0c9294b53eebd304a012d5fa74e8/0_378_5669_3402/master/5669.jpg?width=465&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d6fe7d8b40af5231be911230581b7105 465w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 0px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 0px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7d1dd2faa84b0c9294b53eebd304a012d5fa74e8/0_378_5669_3402/master/5669.jpg?width=465&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3a648ddabe14471e8f82b61ca1baee72 930w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 0px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7d1dd2faa84b0c9294b53eebd304a012d5fa74e8/0_378_5669_3402/master/5669.jpg?width=465&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d6fe7d8b40af5231be911230581b7105 465w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><img alt="Fresh tomato, on white background with smoke coming out of stem" class="dcr-1989ovb" height="84" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7d1dd2faa84b0c9294b53eebd304a012d5fa74e8/0_378_5669_3402/master/5669.jpg?width=465&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3a648ddabe14471e8f82b61ca1baee72" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; flex: 0 0 auto; font: inherit; height: 610.797px; margin: 0px; object-fit: cover; padding: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 1018px;" width="140" /></picture></div><span class="dcr-l6t30p" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><figcaption class="dcr-w6u133" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18.9px; margin: 0px 0px 6px; padding: 6px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="dcr-1o7qj7t" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; fill: rgb(112, 112, 112); font: inherit; margin: 0px 4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><svg height="13" viewbox="0 0 18 13" width="18"><path d="M18 3.5v8l-1.5 1.5h-15l-1.5-1.5v-8l1.5-1.5h3.5l2-2h4l2 2h3.5l1.5 1.5zm-9 7.5c1.9 0 3.5-1.6 3.5-3.5s-1.6-3.5-3.5-3.5-3.5 1.6-3.5 3.5 1.6 3.5 3.5 3.5z"></path></svg></span> Photograph: mbbirdy/Getty Images</figcaption></span></figure></div></div></div><div class="dcr-zjgnrw" data-gu-name="standfirst" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #121212; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; font-variant-numeric: inherit; grid-area: standfirst / standfirst / standfirst / standfirst; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class=" dcr-191phsx" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.15; margin: 0px 0px 12px; max-width: 540px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 8px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">From tomato-scented candles to perfumes reeking of intimate body parts, the world of smell is getting weirder. But are we ready to take our olfactory desires to the next level?</p></div></div><div class="dcr-1o781fl" data-gu-name="lines" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #121212; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; font-variant-numeric: inherit; grid-area: lines / lines / lines / lines; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-krkkhw" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 620px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-ss9mnu" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-8noexd" style="background-image: url("data:image/svg+xml,%3csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' xmlns:xlink='http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink' width='12' height='13' viewBox='0 0 12 13' %3e %3cg stroke-width='1' stroke='%23DCDCDC' fill='none'%3e %3cpath id='squiggle' d='M 0 0.5 q 1.5 0 3 1.5 t 3 1.5 t 3 -1.5 t 3 -1.5 t 12 0' /%3e %3cuse y='3' xlink:href='%23squiggle' /%3e%2c%3cuse y='6' xlink:href='%23squiggle' /%3e%2c%3cuse y='9' xlink:href='%23squiggle' /%3e %3c/g%3e %3c/svg%3e"); 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font-stretch: inherit; font-style: normal; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Imogen West-Knights</a></div><div class="dcr-mjksz5" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; display: inline-block; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 10px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><svg height="14" viewbox="-298 390 14 14" width="14"><path d="M-284 392.6c-.5.2-1.1.4-1.6.5.6-.4 1-.9 1.3-1.6-.6.3-1.2.6-1.8.7-.5-.6-1.3-.9-2.1-.9-1.6 0-2.9 1.3-2.9 2.9 0 .2 0 .4.1.7-2.4-.1-4.5-1.3-5.9-3-.2.4-.4.9-.4 1.4 0 1 .5 1.9 1.3 2.4-.5 0-.9-.1-1.3-.4 0 1.4 1 2.6 2.3 2.8-.2.1-.5.1-.8.1-.2 0-.4 0-.5-.1.4 1.1 1.4 2 2.7 2-1 .8-2.2 1.2-3.6 1.2h-.7c1.3.8 2.8 1.3 4.4 1.3 5.3 0 8.2-4.4 8.2-8.2v-.4c.3-.2.8-.8 1.3-1.4"></path></svg><a aria-label="@ImogenWK on Twitter" href="https://www.twitter.com/ImogenWK" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">@ImogenWK</a></div></address><div class="dcr-km9fgb" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 6px; padding: 2px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-1i26ibw" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 6px; padding: 2px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><label class="dcr-hn0k3p" for="dateToggle" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Sat 22 Jan 2022 08.00 GMT</label><p class="dcr-vdb1rb" style="border: 0px; 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line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;"><span class="dcr-1mj00kl" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #7d0068; float: left; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 2.625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.15; margin: 0px 4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="dcr-1jnp7wy" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 118px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: 99px; margin: 0px 4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; vertical-align: text-top;">O</span></span><span class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">ne night last week, I sat in my kitchen with my eyes closed, inhaling the rich, earthy scent of tomatoes. I felt transported: I was in an Italian garden, sun-dappled leaves swaying as I picked the plump, ripe fruit for a late pasta dinner with my large and beautiful family. I was, in essence, one of the puppets from the Dolmio adverts. But the smell wasn’t coming from a tomato. It was coming from a candle.</span></p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">How did they make it smell so real? I called my boyfriend over to share in this miracle. He put his face right over the flame, said that it smelled like burnt nose hair and quickly lost interest. But I remained tickled by this magic trick. A candle, that smells like tomatoes!</p><div aria-hidden="true" class="js-ad-slot ad-slot ad-slot--inline ad-slot--inline1 ad-slot--rendered" data-desktop="1,1|2,2|300,250|300,274|620,1|620,350|550,310|fluid" data-google-query-id="CM-d2N_UyvUCFQ1RAQodtSIOVw" data-link-name="ad slot inline1" data-mobile="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|fluid" data-name="inline1" data-phablet="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|620,350|550,310|fluid" id="dfp-ad--inline1" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: right; font: inherit; margin: 4px 0px 0px 20px; min-height: 274px; min-width: 160px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><div class="ad-slot__label" style="background-color: #f6f6f6; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; height: 24px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 8px; position: relative; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Advertisement</div><div class="ad-slot__content" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_0__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="2" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_0" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom; width: 300px;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div><p id="sign-in-gate" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">There is something in the air at the moment, and it’s not just vine tomato candles: ever more eclectic smells – from the uplifting to the downright bizarre – have been making their way into perfume and candles. Is it a consequence of having been so smell-starved, so downright bored during the pandemic? An increased desire for the things we buy to give us experiences beyond mere enjoyment? And why do people want to smell weird stuff?</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Our interest in these smells has now spread outside our homes and into our cultural, public spaces. The past year alone has seen: <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2021/oct/11/anicka-yi-tate-modern-turbine-hall-london-review" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">an exhibition of floating machines</a> perfumed with smells of coal, marine life and vegetation at Tate Modern; a <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2021/feb/28/mauritshuis-hague-smell-in-dutch-golden-age-art-fleeting-scents-in-colour-scent-kit-virtual-tour" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">gallery in the Hague infused with the fishy odour of a 17th-century Dutch canal</a>; and a dedicated <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://artandolfaction.com/the-art-of-scent/" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">olfactory art space launched in New York</a>.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Olfactory art is far from new. Coffee beans were roasted behind a screen to create “the smell of Brazil” at the International Surrealist Exhibition of 1938. And let’s not forget the experiential dining experience at places like El Bulli and the Fat Duck at the start of this century. But the fact that we still view it as something of a novelty suggests we still view smell as a lesser sense.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Novelty scents have been around for a while. In the US, <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://demeterfragrance.com/" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">Demeter Fragrance Library</a> was established in 1996 selling perfumes based on everyday scents. It started with Dirt, Grass and Tomato, and has since expanded into more unusual smells like Play-Doh, New Car and Funeral Home. Yankee Candles’ off-the-wall options have included Bacon, Schnitzel with Noodles, and something rather unnervingly called Man Town.</p><figure class=" dcr-10khgmf" id="2269b60e-20ac-4667-b103-70dd0119ce44" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 12px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-q580fu" data-cy="embed-block" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe class="iframed--overflow-hidden email-sub__iframe" data-component="email-embed--inside-saturday" frameborder="0" height="52px" id="inside-saturday" name="inside-saturday" scrolling="no" seamless="" src="https://www.theguardian.com/email/form/plaintone/inside-saturday" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 620px;" title="Sign up to our Inside Saturday newsletter for an exclusive behind the scenes look at the making of the magazine's biggest features, as well as a curated list of our weekly highlights."></iframe></div><div class="dcr-ip3ii5" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-all;">Sign up to our Inside Saturday newsletter for an exclusive behind the scenes look at the making of the magazine’s biggest features, as well as a curated list of our weekly highlights.</div></div></figure><div aria-hidden="true" class="js-ad-slot ad-slot ad-slot--inline ad-slot--offset-right ad-slot--inline2 ad-slot--rendered" data-desktop="1,1|2,2|300,250|300,274|620,1|620,350|550,310|fluid|300,600|160,600" data-google-query-id="COX2juHUyvUCFVFRAQodyrUPug" data-link-name="ad slot inline2" data-mobile="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|fluid" data-name="inline2" data-phablet="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|620,350|550,310|fluid" id="dfp-ad--inline2" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: right; font: inherit; margin: 4px -398px 0px 20px; min-height: 274px; min-width: 160px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><div class="ad-slot__label" style="background-color: #f6f6f6; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; height: 24px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 8px; position: relative; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Advertisement</div><div class="ad-slot__content" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_6__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="3" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_6" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_6" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom; width: 300px;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Anya Hindmarch sells candles that smell like pencil shavings and chewing gum. D. S. and Durga make several weird scents, including one called Burning Barbershop, which is supposed to smell like a specific barbershop in New York state that caught fire. I’ve never been, but the pleasing woody smell made me want to.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Recent years have seen a rise in avant garde scents and more prosaic smells, says fragrance writer, <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.odettetoilette.com/" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">Lizzie Ostrom</a>. Perfumed goods used to be about beauty and vanity, she says. “But now we’re thinking, ooh, what is it that a fragrance can do? And what sorts of fragrances might I like that aren’t just the usual scents that I thought I wanted to wear?”</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Surprisingly, it seems the pandemic only increased our olfactory desire. We didn’t have any nights out to smell nice for, yet somehow the fragrance industry didn’t suffer at all – perfume sales were up 45% in the first quarter of this year. “I think people discovered that fragrance was not just for someone else to smell and admire, but is primarily a personal experience, with the power to make you feel good about yourself,” said public relations specialist Daniel Williams.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /></p><figure class=" dcr-10khgmf" id="8f1e502d-4519-4ae2-b438-bb4f31b70df1" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 12px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-1b267dg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><picture itemprop="contentUrl" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><source media="(min-width: 980px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 980px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1ae77e45137ac00a78e89e08cbb6e18b 1240w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 980px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9095dec0c0e5140b915ae8400520017e 620w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 740px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 740px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1ae77e45137ac00a78e89e08cbb6e18b 1240w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 740px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9095dec0c0e5140b915ae8400520017e 620w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 660px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 660px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1ae77e45137ac00a78e89e08cbb6e18b 1240w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 660px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9095dec0c0e5140b915ae8400520017e 620w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 480px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 480px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7defb623fd743ee434c3c95401986f6 1210w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 480px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=b436f1e7040a5be484509adf8440288c 605w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 375px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 375px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3464185bc530ff7370991fcbe41e6e3b 890w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 375px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4470f4d30e363e0468cc5fce96596d7d 445w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 320px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 320px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3464185bc530ff7370991fcbe41e6e3b 890w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 320px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4470f4d30e363e0468cc5fce96596d7d 445w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 0px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 0px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3464185bc530ff7370991fcbe41e6e3b 890w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 0px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4470f4d30e363e0468cc5fce96596d7d 445w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><img alt="Pencil shavings" class="dcr-1989ovb" height="2419" loading="lazy" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b9600ddb4f9e455f8ec864b3b48f1ad97716f8d8/0_199_4032_2419/master/4032.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3464185bc530ff7370991fcbe41e6e3b" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; height: 371.984px; margin: 0px; object-fit: cover; padding: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 620px;" width="4032" /></picture></div><figcaption class="dcr-w6u133" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18.9px; margin: 0px 0px 6px; padding: 6px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="dcr-1o7qj7t" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; fill: rgb(112, 112, 112); font: inherit; margin: 0px 4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><svg height="13" viewbox="0 0 18 13" width="18"><path d="M18 3.5v8l-1.5 1.5h-15l-1.5-1.5v-8l1.5-1.5h3.5l2-2h4l2 2h3.5l1.5 1.5zm-9 7.5c1.9 0 3.5-1.6 3.5-3.5s-1.6-3.5-3.5-3.5-3.5 1.6-3.5 3.5 1.6 3.5 3.5 3.5z"></path></svg></span><span class="dcr-d73nb7" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Anya Hindmarch sells candles that smell like pencil shavings.</span> Photograph: Rizky Panuntun/Getty Images</figcaption></figure><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Scented candles saw a huge boost in sales, too. Deprived of many kinds of stimulation – including smells other than that of our own homes or our breath inside a face mask, it’s no wonder we turned to scented candles. If we were going to be stuck in our homes 23 hours a day, we might as well make home a nice place to be. One of the many unhinged habits I developed during the winter lockdown was sitting in my bed holding a scented candle in both hands, breathing deeply from the flame and thinking, “what am I doing?” Looking back, I think my nose was hungry.</p><div aria-hidden="true" class="js-ad-slot ad-slot ad-slot--inline ad-slot--offset-right ad-slot--inline3 ad-slot--rendered" data-desktop="1,1|2,2|300,250|300,274|620,1|620,350|550,310|fluid|300,600|160,600" data-google-query-id="CJrR6_bUyvUCFWU8AQodFMYIXw" data-link-name="ad slot inline3" data-mobile="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|fluid" data-name="inline3" data-phablet="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|620,350|550,310|fluid" id="dfp-ad--inline3" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: right; font: inherit; margin: 4px -398px 0px 20px; min-height: 274px; min-width: 160px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><div class="ad-slot__label" style="background-color: #f6f6f6; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; height: 24px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 8px; position: relative; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Advertisement</div><div class="ad-slot__content" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_7__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="4" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_7" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_7" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom; width: 300px;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Loss of smell as a side-effect of Covid has been a common experience in the past 18 months, and people who regain their sense of smell often report that it comes back in patchy, faulty ways – smelling things that aren’t there, or favourite foods now smelling like sewage. Doctors have recommended <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/26/well/live/covid-anosmia-smell-training.html" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">“smell training”</a> : buying essential oils and sniffing them repeatedly as a sort of nose physio to try to retrain the body to sense aromas. Remedies for smell loss trending on social media include eating <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@toosmxll/video/6904461007586987265?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.buzzfeednews.com%2Farticle%2Fikrd%2Fviral-tiktok-covid-orange-taste-smell&amp;referer_video_id=6904461007586987265&amp;refer=embed" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">burnt oranges</a>. “Getting their sense of smell back has for millions of people a real source of relief and joy – and perhaps now they’re wanting to really explore,” Ostrom said.</p><aside class="dcr-10othe1" style="background-color: #f6f6f6; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: left; color: #7d0068; float: left; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 10px 1.75rem -120px; padding: 6px 10px 12px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 220px;"><span class="dcr-14gqw6s" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px 4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><svg class="dcr-jnws7c" data-testid="quote-icon" height="49" viewbox="0 0 35 25" width="70"><path d="M69.587.9c-1.842 15.556-3.89 31.316-4.708 48.1H37.043c3.07-16.784 8.391-32.544 17.602-48.1h14.942zM32.949.9c-2.047 15.556-4.094 31.316-4.912 48.1H.2C3.066 32.216 8.592 16.456 17.598.9h15.35z"></path></svg></span><blockquote class="dcr-1u4hpl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; quotes: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> One scent claims to smell of blood, sweat, sperm and saliva – it has been described as ‘unwearable’</blockquote><footer style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><cite class="dcr-18jnim0" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></cite></footer></aside><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Vegetables are having a moment – as well as the Urban Apothecary vine tomato candle that so impressed me, I could have a Loewe room spray that smelled like coriander or beetroot – but there are also candles that <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://stinkycandlecompany.com/product/chlorine-candle/" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">smell of chlorine</a>, and perfumes with a base note of <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.charentonmacerations.com/shop/asphalt-rainbow/" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">asphalt</a>. And all the talk of everyday smells magically replicated at the light of a wick or the pump of an atomizer has a touch of 1999 about it, of scratch-and-sniff cards, and dorky experiments with <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/sep/17/news" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">Smell-o-vision</a>.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Last year, a lingerie brand released a range of “pillow mists”, supposedly designed to help you sleep, that smelled like celebrities such as Harry Styles and Maya Jama. Hotels, cars, sports stadiums have “signature scents”. McDonald’s did a line of Quarter Pounder-scented candles in February 2020.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Products are also increasingly taking inspiration, although one hopes not ingredients, from the human body. There’s the infamous Goop vagina candle, of course, but that’s nothing compared with a scent called Vulva Original. The Amazon listing promises “intense scent of a vagina”, and it has some of the more disturbing reviews I’ve read in my time, including: “I have met several girls and I know what that smells like …”</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">But for something truly out there, Etat Libre d’Orange’s Sécrétions Magnifiques is just the thing. The scent claims to smell of blood, sweat, sperm and saliva, and reviewers describe it as “upsetting”, “completely unwearable”, and like “sweaty debauchery in the locker room of an indoor pool with rusty metal ladders”.</p><figure class=" dcr-10khgmf" id="3269bd54-34cc-4374-b8a3-afc349b3b07b" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 12px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-1b267dg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><picture itemprop="contentUrl" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><source media="(min-width: 980px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 980px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3804b6f8e6a3130431436ba94d9cc502 1240w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 980px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9f2602efb69fd12eaffa253f7e61d430 620w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 740px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 740px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3804b6f8e6a3130431436ba94d9cc502 1240w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 740px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9f2602efb69fd12eaffa253f7e61d430 620w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 660px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 660px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3804b6f8e6a3130431436ba94d9cc502 1240w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 660px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9f2602efb69fd12eaffa253f7e61d430 620w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 480px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 480px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=cfb900a2ca306ec0ec8c24176f26446b 1210w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 480px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1531fd44ce3c0792dd4b08f2a199111c 605w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 375px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 375px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=ab8f5e8afff94ecc9f13e3f8423d3b6c 890w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 375px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=85360b17b17c8668da8223e0dab20e89 445w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 320px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 320px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=ab8f5e8afff94ecc9f13e3f8423d3b6c 890w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 320px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=85360b17b17c8668da8223e0dab20e89 445w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 0px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1.25), (min-width: 0px) and (min-resolution: 120dpi)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=ab8f5e8afff94ecc9f13e3f8423d3b6c 890w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><source media="(min-width: 0px)" srcset="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=85360b17b17c8668da8223e0dab20e89 445w" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></source><img alt="Woman eyes closed" class="dcr-1989ovb" height="982" loading="lazy" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f129ee33015dc63c6c9b58da0511c7259cf4084c/364_257_1636_982/master/1636.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=ab8f5e8afff94ecc9f13e3f8423d3b6c" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; height: 371.984px; margin: 0px; object-fit: cover; padding: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 620px;" width="1636" /></picture></div><figcaption class="dcr-w6u133" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18.9px; margin: 0px 0px 6px; padding: 6px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="dcr-1o7qj7t" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; fill: rgb(112, 112, 112); font: inherit; margin: 0px 4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><svg height="13" viewbox="0 0 18 13" width="18"><path d="M18 3.5v8l-1.5 1.5h-15l-1.5-1.5v-8l1.5-1.5h3.5l2-2h4l2 2h3.5l1.5 1.5zm-9 7.5c1.9 0 3.5-1.6 3.5-3.5s-1.6-3.5-3.5-3.5-3.5 1.6-3.5 3.5 1.6 3.5 3.5 3.5z"></path></svg></span><span class="dcr-d73nb7" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Why should smell remain such a neglected sense?</span> Photograph: Getty Images</figcaption></figure><div aria-hidden="true" class="js-ad-slot ad-slot ad-slot--inline ad-slot--offset-right ad-slot--inline4 ad-slot--rendered" data-desktop="1,1|2,2|300,250|300,274|620,1|620,350|550,310|fluid|300,600|160,600" data-google-query-id="CLT3nvfUyvUCFQZsAQodUGEHLw" data-link-name="ad slot inline4" data-mobile="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|fluid" data-name="inline4" data-phablet="1,1|2,2|300,197|300,250|300,274|620,350|550,310|fluid" id="dfp-ad--inline4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: right; font: inherit; margin: 4px -398px 0px 20px; min-height: 274px; min-width: 160px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><div class="ad-slot__label" style="background-color: #f6f6f6; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #707070; font-family: GuardianTextSans, "Guardian Text Sans Web", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; height: 24px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 8px; position: relative; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Advertisement</div><div class="ad-slot__content" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_8__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="6" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_8" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/59666047/theguardian.com/fashion/article/ng_8" role="region" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom; width: 300px;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">How much is this all just gimmick, simply another way to sell us stuff? Prof. David Howes, director of the Centre for Sensory Studies in Montreal and co-author of <a data-link-name="in body link" href="https://www.routledge.com/Aroma-The-Cultural-History-of-Smell/Classen-Howes-Synnott/p/book/9780415114738" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="">Aroma: The Cultural History of Smell</a>, is rightly sceptical of this sort of marketing strategy, which relies on dodgy science about smell appealing to a primitive part of our brains: “The idea is that marketers can get under the conscious defences of the cerebral cortex by using smell to market things, which I think is rubbish. That kind of physiological reductionism is really just another marketing ploy.”</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Still, we ought to be wary of crying gimmick at any unusual smell experiences – and scents in art galleries – because we’re not trained to take smell seriously.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Because of the Proustian madeleine moment, we in the west tend to connect smells with memories and emotions. We don’t think of, say, communication, or knowledge. Philosophers Aristotle, Kant and Hegel believed that the sense of smell it should be considered below sight and hearing, and Freud had almost a horror of smell, referring to it as something that we needed to move beyond now that we were no longer going around on all fours like dogs.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Howes goes as far to say that we live in an odour-phobic society. “Witness all of our deodorising and then re-odourising rituals: the morning shower followed by adding all these artificial scents.”</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Why should smell remain such a neglected sense? Why should people wear one perfume but have a wardrobe full of clothes, several Spotify playlists, and eat different meals every night but balk at filling their living rooms with different scents? Just as we can learn to like fine whisky and coffee, we can learn to appreciate stranger smells – and perhaps should. “Our noses are woefully uneducated now,” Howes told me, “and I’m very much in favour of liberating the nose. It has been kept down for too long.”</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Last week, I came across a scent called Stercus. Made by perfumer Allessandro Gualtieri, Stercus is Latin for dung. “He [Gualtieri] is eccentric to say the least,” said Daniel Williams of the PR agency. “You’re sitting there at a press launch and when you ask him what the smell is based around, he tells you it’s his anus.”</p><figure class=" dcr-1mfia18" id="3f2f9d15-1918-4c89-94e6-3f4ad6d0d274" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: left; float: left; font: inherit; margin: 0px 20px 4px -240px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 220px;"><gu-island data-gu-hydrated="true" deferuntil="idle" name="RichLinkComponent" props="{"richLinkIndex":25,"element":{"url":"https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2022/jan/08/10-beauty-myths-busted-shaving-legs-hair-thicker-false-lashes-sali-hughes","text":"Shaving your legs won’t make your hair thicker: 10 beauty myths busted","prefix":"Related: ","role":"richLink","_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement","elementId":"3f2f9d15-1918-4c89-94e6-3f4ad6d0d274"},"ajaxUrl":"https://api.nextgen.guardianapps.co.uk"}" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="css-1uxfvwz" data-component="rich-link" data-link-name="rich-link-25 | 25" data-name="" data-print-layout="hide" style="background-color: #bb3b80; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-s7oxzu" style="background-color: #f6f6f6; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="css-g65o95" href="https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2022/jan/08/10-beauty-myths-busted-shaving-legs-hair-thicker-false-lashes-sali-hughes" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #bb3b80; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-fexcqd" style="border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(187, 59, 128); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="DO NOT USE. FOR JAN 8 2022: Beauty myths debunked by Sali Hughes. NO OTHER USAGE UNTIL AFTER THAT DATE." class="css-q4dzvk" height="4642" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/bb6931b3f39972e0f4b0c247991c4b196c3714f9/0_5025_7736_4642/master/7736.jpg?width=460&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=62dc06a9baa948977d16ece8cf37347e" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 220px;" width="7736" /></div><div class="css-1d91meq" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 2px 5px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-m4qltb" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-1gqsble" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.15; margin: 0px; padding: 1px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">Shaving your legs won’t make your hair thicker: 10 beauty myths busted</div></div><div class="css-w4aynf" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; fill: rgb(187, 59, 128); font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 2px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><svg height="24" viewbox="0 0 24 24" width="24"><g fill-rule="evenodd"><path class="rich-link__arrow-icon" d="m12 0c-6.627 0-12 5.373-12 12 0 6.627 5.373 12 12 12 6.627 0 12-5.373 12-12 0-6.627-5.373-12-12-12m.21 19l-.637-.668 4.888-6.326h-11.465v-1.01h11.465l-4.888-6.333.637-.668 6.79 7.158v.685l-6.79 7.157"></path></g></svg><div class="css-dobi02" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; height: 30px; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 4px; vertical-align: top;">Read more</div></div></div></a></div></div></gu-island></figure><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">When this bottle – which I’m sorry to have to tell you is brown – arrived at my flat, I interrupted my housemate watching a documentary about space and asked him to smell it with me. I gave it a couple of spritzes, and waited.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">“It’s like if you used a leather bag to steal a load of vanilla candles” he said, confusion on his face. I told him what the special note was, and we both sat there sniffing the air and thinking about arseholes. “I kind of like it,” he said. If you didn’t know what the scent’s origin was, you wouldn’t necessarily suspect, although there is an unmistakable note of the farmyard about it.</p><p class="dcr-1qcirl4" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;">Maybe all this is only the beginning. Maybe in 50 years’ time, when we’re stinking to high heaven of all manner of as-yet unimaginable futuristic smells, we’ll look back and think: “Chewing gum candles? Anus perfume? That’s nothing.”</p></div></div><div id="slot-body-end" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-rmxmld" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; font: inherit; margin: 18px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><section class="css-jjd5tl" style="background-color: #f6f6f6; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(255, 229, 0); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 4px 8px 12px; vertical-align: baseline;"><h2 class="css-1xg62vk" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.15; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></h2><p class="css-i81n1e" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 8px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">… as you’re joining us today from Canada, we have a small favour to ask. Tens of millions have placed their trust in the Guardian’s fearless journalism since we started publishing 200 years ago, turning to us in moments of crisis, uncertainty, solidarity and hope. More than 1.5 million supporters, from 180 countries, now power us financially – keeping us open to all, and fiercely independent.</span></p><p class="css-i81n1e" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 8px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></p><p class="css-i81n1e" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: GuardianTextEgyptian, "Guardian Text Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px auto 8px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Unlike many others, the Guardian has no shareholders and no billionaire owner. Just the determination and passion to deliver high-impact global reporting, always free from commercial or political influence. 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Every contribution, however big or small, powers our journalism and sustains our future. </span><span class="css-dknhip" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Support the Guardian from as little as CA$1 – it only takes a minute. If you can, please consider supporting us with a regular amount each month. Thank you.</span></p></section></div></div></div></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-53702722718736044752022-01-19T11:26:00.007-08:002022-01-19T11:26:50.682-08:00Books, not electronic devices, better for children's bedtime stories, study concludes<p> reposted from</p><p><a href="https://thestarphoenix.com/health/diet-fitness/books-not-electronic-devices-better-for-childrens-bedtime-stories-study-concludes/wcm/01d7b446-481a-4375-abbe-e04de6523d4d">https://thestarphoenix.com/health/diet-fitness/books-not-electronic-devices-better-for-childrens-bedtime-stories-study-concludes/wcm/01d7b446-481a-4375-abbe-e04de6523d4d</a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><header aria-label="Beginning of Article" class="article-header" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 1.5rem; max-width: 100vw;"><h1 class="article-title" id="articleTitle" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "Roboto Condensed", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 2rem; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem;">Books, not electronic devices, better for children's bedtime stories, study concludes</h1><div class="article-meta" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #555555; font-family: Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.2188;"><div class="published-by" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="visually-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Author of the article:</div><span class="published-by__author" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">Postmedia News</span></div><div class="published-date" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="visually-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Publishing date:</div><span class="published-date__since" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Jan 04, 2022</span> • <span class="updated-date__since" style="box-sizing: inherit;">January 9, 2022</span> • <span class="published-date__word-count" style="box-sizing: inherit;">2 minute read</span> • <span style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a class="article-meta-comment-count" data-smooth-hash-scroll-component="ts-ready" href="https://thestarphoenix.com/health/diet-fitness/books-not-electronic-devices-better-for-childrens-bedtime-stories-study-concludes/wcm/01d7b446-481a-4375-abbe-e04de6523d4d#comments-area" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #005a8c; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.2188; text-decoration-line: none; white-space: nowrap;"><span class="comment-bubble" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; fill: currentcolor; margin-right: 0.1875rem; vertical-align: middle;"><svg height="16" viewbox="0 0 24 24" width="16" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M4,0 C2.93914,0 1.921718,0.421428 1.171572,1.171572 C0.421428,1.921718 0,2.93914 0,4 L0,24 L3.846,20.158 L4,20.16 L20,20.16 C21.0608,20.16 22.0782,19.73858 22.8284,18.98842 C23.5786,18.23828 24,17.22086 24,16.16 L24,4 C24,2.93914 23.5786,1.921718 22.8284,1.171572 C22.0782,0.421428 21.0608,0 20,0 L4,0 Z M2,4 C2,3.46956 2.21072,2.96086 2.58578,2.58578 C2.96086,2.21072 3.46956,2 4,2 L20,2 C20.5304,2 21.0392,2.21072 21.4142,2.58578 C21.7892,2.96086 22,3.46956 22,4 L22,16.16 C22,16.69044 21.7892,17.19914 21.4142,17.57422 C21.0392,17.94928 20.5304,18.16 20,18.16 L4,18.16 L3.048,18.126 L2,19.174 L2,4 Z"></path></svg></span> Join the conversation</a></span></div></div><figure class="featured-image" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 1rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px;"><picture class="featured-image__ratio" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><source media="(min-width: 1200px)" srcset="https://smartcdn.gprod.postmedia.digital/thestarphoenix/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/GettyImages-1325049078.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=564&h=423&type=webp,
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https://smartcdn.gprod.postmedia.digital/thestarphoenix/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/GettyImages-1325049078.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=576&h=432&type=webp 2x" style="box-sizing: inherit;" type="image/webp"></source><img alt="young woman reading a story to her son lying in bed" class="featured-image__image" height="750" src="https://smartcdn.gprod.postmedia.digital/thestarphoenix/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/GettyImages-1325049078.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=288&h=216" srcset="https://smartcdn.gprod.postmedia.digital/thestarphoenix/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/GettyImages-1325049078.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=288&h=216,
https://smartcdn.gprod.postmedia.digital/thestarphoenix/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/GettyImages-1325049078.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=576&h=432 2x" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: block; height: auto; max-width: 100%;" width="1000" /></picture><figcaption class="featured-image__caption image-caption" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #555555; font-family: Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.2188; margin-top: 0.5rem;"><span class="credit" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-transform: uppercase;">PHOTO BY ISTOCK</span> /<span class="distributor" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Getty Images</span></figcaption></figure></header><section class="article-content__content-group" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1.5rem; margin-right: 1.5rem; max-width: 100vw;"><h2 class="visually-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font-family: "Roboto Condensed", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 2rem; height: 1px; line-height: 2.375rem; margin: 1rem -1px 0.5rem; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Article content</h2><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Going old school when reading your kids bedtime stories is better than using modern technology, according to a University of Michigan study.</p></section><div class="ad__section-border article-content__ad-group" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 2rem; margin-top: 2rem;"><section class="ad" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><h2 class="visually-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font-family: "Roboto Condensed", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Advertisement</h2><div class="ad__container" style="align-items: center; background-color: #f7f7f7; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font-family: Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; justify-content: center; position: relative; z-index: 1;"><div class="ad__label" style="align-items: center; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; text-align: center; width: 893px;"><div class="ad__label__left" style="background-color: #f1f1f1; box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: calc((100% - 12.5rem) / 2); height: 1px; margin-bottom: 0px;"></div><div class="ad__label__center" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: 12.5rem; font-size: 0.625rem; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 0px; text-transform: uppercase;">STORY CONTINUES BELOW</div><div class="ad__label__right" style="background-color: #f1f1f1; box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: calc((100% - 12.5rem) / 2); height: 1px; margin-bottom: 0px;"></div></div><div class="ad__inner" id="ad__inner-2" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; position: relative; width: 893px;"><div class="ad__inner__container" data-ad-interscroller="6x6" data-ad-loc="2" data-ad-mobile="[[6,6],[320,50],[300,50],[300,250],[300,600]]" data-ad-width="1786" data-ad="[[6,6],[1200,250],[1200,90],[970,90],[970,250],[728,90],[300,250]]" data-google-query-id="CJX4k6nDvvUCFQZoAQodFHUOyg" id="ad-2" style="--desktopheight: 250px; --mobileheight: 600px; align-items: center; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: column; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 0px; min-height: var(--desktopHeight); position: relative; text-align: center; width: 893px; z-index: 1;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/3081/starphoenix.com/health/diet-fitness/story_1__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: inherit; height: 250px; margin: auto; width: 300px;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="2" data-gtm-yt-inspected-9194588_333="true" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/3081/starphoenix.com/health/diet-fitness/story_1" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" role="region" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://4f25a17ddfa56e54bfc38e94af2a68c1.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px auto; vertical-align: bottom;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div></div></div></section></div><section class="article-content__content-group" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1.5rem; margin-right: 1.5rem; max-width: 100vw;"><h2 class="visually-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font-family: "Roboto Condensed", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 2rem; height: 1px; line-height: 2.375rem; margin: 1rem -1px 0.5rem; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Article content</h2><p data-async="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">The study, which involved 72 parents with children aged 24-36 months and was <a data-evt-typ="click" data-evt-val="{"control_fields": {"mparticle": {"keys": {"click_source_type": "click_source_type", "anchor_text": "anchor_text", "target_url": "target_url"}, "mp_event_type": "Navigation", "extra_keys": ["click_vertical_position_percentage", "click_vertical_position_pixels"]}}, "click_source_type": "in-page link", "anchor_text": "published in the American Academy of Pediatrics", "target_url": "https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/148/6/e2021049964/183434/Parent-Verbalizations-and-Toddler-Responses-With#8578837"}" data-evt="click" href="https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/148/6/e2021049964/183434/Parent-Verbalizations-and-Toddler-Responses-With#8578837" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919;">published in the American Academy of Pediatrics</a> journal, suggests that kids will engage more when they are read from real books instead of off a tablet, the <a data-evt-typ="click" data-evt-val="{"control_fields": {"mparticle": {"keys": {"click_source_type": "click_source_type", "anchor_text": "anchor_text", "target_url": "target_url"}, "mp_event_type": "Navigation", "extra_keys": ["click_vertical_position_percentage", "click_vertical_position_pixels"]}}, "click_source_type": "in-page link", "anchor_text": "U.K.\u2019s daily Mail reported", "target_url": "https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10258361/Children-engage-stories-theyre-read-real-book-study-claims.html"}" data-evt="click" href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10258361/Children-engage-stories-theyre-read-real-book-study-claims.html" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919;">U.K.’s daily Mail reported</a> . It found that parents talked more to their children while reading a book and kids responded more than if a tablet was used.</p><div class="featured-video youtube js-widget-youtube" data-sticky-video-component="ts-ready" id="featured-video" style="box-sizing: inherit; height: 0px; margin: 1rem 0px; padding-bottom: 475.312px; position: relative; width: 845px; z-index: 8;"><div class="video-placeholder" placeholder="" style="background-color: black; box-sizing: inherit; color: white; inset: 0px; position: absolute; z-index: 0;"><div class="placeholder-inner" style="align-items: center; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font-size: 0.875rem; height: 475.312px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1.285; padding: 1.5rem 1rem; text-align: center; z-index: 1;"><div class="ytp-spinner" style="box-sizing: inherit; left: 422.5px; margin-left: -32px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; top: 237.656px; width: 64px; z-index: 10;"><div class="ytp-spinner-container" style="animation: 1.568s linear 0s infinite normal none running ytp-spinner-linspin; 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height: 475.312px; inset: 0px; margin: 0px auto; position: absolute; width: 845px;" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe></section></div><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">“Tablets and mobile devices are prominent fixtures in modern family life, and app design features can impede children’s responses despite parent’s efforts to engage their children in developmentally enriching conversation,” the study’s authors said. “We found that toddler responses to parent verbalizations (a central aspect of parent-child conversational reciprocity) was lower during use of tablet nursery rhyme apps compared with a print book use.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">“Not only were parent verbalizations toward toddlers less frequent in the tablet conditions but also a majority of these verbalizations were ignored by toddlers and to a more substantial degree when using tablets compared with a print book.”</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">The study used three Fisher Price nursery rhyme apps available on the Google Play store — those apps were picked because “they naturally elicit turn-taking and gesturing compared with other toddler-directed apps — and books with the same text. The stories included <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Itsy, Bitsy Spider; One, Two, Buckle My Shoe; Row, Row, Row Your Boat</em> ; and <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Hickory Dickory Dock.</em></p></section><div class="ad__section-border article-content__ad-group" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 2rem; margin-top: 2rem;"><section class="ad" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><h2 class="visually-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font-family: "Roboto Condensed", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Advertisement</h2><div class="ad__container" style="align-items: center; background-color: #f7f7f7; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font-family: Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; justify-content: center; position: relative; z-index: 1;"><div class="ad__label" style="align-items: center; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; text-align: center; width: 893px;"><div class="ad__label__left" style="background-color: #f1f1f1; box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: calc((100% - 12.5rem) / 2); height: 1px; margin-bottom: 0px;"></div><div class="ad__label__center" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: 12.5rem; font-size: 0.625rem; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 0px; text-transform: uppercase;">STORY CONTINUES BELOW</div><div class="ad__label__right" style="background-color: #f1f1f1; box-sizing: inherit; flex-basis: calc((100% - 12.5rem) / 2); height: 1px; margin-bottom: 0px;"></div></div><div class="ad__inner" id="ad__inner-3" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; position: relative; width: 893px;"><div class="ad__inner__container" data-ad-interscroller="7x7" data-ad-loc="3" data-ad-mobile="[[7,7],[300,250],[320,50],[300,50]]" data-ad-width="1786" data-ad="[[7,7],[1200,250],[1200,90],[970,90],[970,250],[728,90],[300,250]]" data-google-query-id="CJb4k6nDvvUCFQZoAQodFHUOyg" id="ad-3" style="--desktopheight: 250px; --mobileheight: 250px; align-items: center; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: column; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 0px; min-height: var(--desktopHeight); position: relative; text-align: center; width: 893px; z-index: 1;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/3081/starphoenix.com/health/diet-fitness/story_2__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: inherit; height: 250px; margin: auto; width: 300px;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" aria-label="Advertisement" data-google-container-id="3" data-gtm-yt-inspected-9194588_333="true" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/3081/starphoenix.com/health/diet-fitness/story_2" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" role="region" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://4f25a17ddfa56e54bfc38e94af2a68c1.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px auto; vertical-align: bottom;" tabindex="0" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div></div></div></section></div><section class="article-content__content-group" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1.5rem; margin-right: 1.5rem; max-width: 100vw;"><h2 class="visually-hidden" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font-family: "Roboto Condensed", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 2rem; height: 1px; line-height: 2.375rem; margin: 1rem -1px 0.5rem; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; width: 1px;">Article content</h2><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Distractions on the tablet, like animation, ads and other pop-ups, were cited as reasons for the lack of engagement by the children.</p><div class="embedded-video" style="box-sizing: inherit; 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height: 64px; left: -32.6406px; position: absolute; right: 0px; width: 65.2812px;"></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div fallback="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></div><iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" class="ytplayer" data-evt-val="{"control_fields": {"mparticle": {"keys": {"video_autoplay": "video_autoplay", "video_location": "video_location", "video_platform": "video_platform", "video_id": "video_id"}, "extra_keys": []}}, "video_autoplay": "false", "video_location": "story paragraph 10", "video_platform": "YouTube", "video_id": "vVsOPgpyp2o"}" data-gtm-yt-inspected-9194588_333="true" data-provider="youtube" data-single-video-component="ts-ready" data-type="inline" frameborder="0" height="360" id="ytplayer10" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vVsOPgpyp2o?embed_config={%27relatedChannels%27:%20[],%27autonav%27:true}&autoplay=0&playsinline=1&enablejsapi=1" style="box-sizing: inherit; height: 475.312px; left: 0px; margin: 0px auto; position: absolute; top: 0px; width: 845px;" width="480"></iframe></div><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">“Parent-child interactions are central correlates of future child developmental outcomes (language, peer relationships, academic achievement), which are shaped by several aspects of the environment, including digital media,” the study authors said, adding that parents should watch digital media with their children while asking questions and talking to them about it.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">“Pediatricians may wish to promote co-viewing and instructive media practices but may also consider that child emotion regulation may determine response to interactive tablet design,” the study concluded.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">The majority of parents who took part in the study — 93% — were mothers.</p></section>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-90929319623812630742021-11-03T07:28:00.002-07:002021-11-03T07:28:05.888-07:00Smoking Cessation Drug May Treat Parkinson’s In Women<p> reposted from <a href="https://today.tamu.edu/2021/03/04/smoking-cessation-drug-may-treat-parkinsons-in-women/">https://today.tamu.edu/2021/03/04/smoking-cessation-drug-may-treat-parkinsons-in-women/</a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="story-header " style="background-color: white; color: #2c2a29; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; padding: 0.5rem 0px; position: relative;"><div class="story-header__container" style="-webkit-box-align: start; -webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-box-pack: start; align-items: flex-start; flex-direction: column; justify-content: flex-start; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 56.25rem;"><h1 class="heading story-header__header" style="color: white; font-family: "Tungsten A", "Tungsten B", sans-serif; font-size: 1.1667rem; line-height: 1.5rem; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 1rem; padding-bottom: 0px;"><span class="heading__text" style="color: #500000; font-size: 2.75rem; letter-spacing: 2px; line-height: 3.25rem; text-decoration-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-line: underline; transition: text-decoration-color 0.25s ease 0s, -webkit-text-decoration-color 0.25s ease 0s;">Smoking Cessation Drug May Treat Parkinson’s In Women</span></h1><div class="story-header__subheader" style="font-size: 1.25rem; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.75rem; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; margin-top: 0.5rem;">Texas A&M researchers have found that cytisine can reduce dopamine neuron loss, providing a protective effect against the neurodegenerative disorder.</div><div class="story-header__meta" style="color: #464646; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap;">By Gracie Blackwell, Texas A&M University College of Medicine<span style="font-size: 0.875rem; line-height: 1.25rem; text-transform: uppercase;">MARCH 4, 2021</span></div><hr class="story-header__divider" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(193, 44, 43); border-bottom-style: dashed; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 1rem; padding-bottom: calc(0.5rem - 1px); width: 900px;" /><div class="social-media-sharing story-header__social" style="-webkit-box-align: center; -webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; align-items: center; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; margin-bottom: 0px;"><div class="social-media-sharing__label" style="color: #500000; 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color: #2c2a29; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px 0px 2.5rem;"><div class="slab__wrapper" style="margin: 0px auto; max-width: 68.75rem;"><div class="editorial " style="margin: 0px auto 1rem; max-width: 56.25rem;"><div class="editorial__content"><figure class="captioned-image alignnone" style="margin: 0px;"><div class="captioned-image__image" style="position: relative;"><img alt="neuroscience concept art showing neuron cell system" class="wp-image-299836" height="1350" loading="lazy" sizes="(max-width: 2400px) 100vw, 2400px" src="https://7omcu3a78zp40klds2w28klr-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-937894966-350x197.jpg" srcset="https://7omcu3a78zp40klds2w28klr-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-937894966-350x197.jpg 350w, https://7omcu3a78zp40klds2w28klr-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-937894966-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://7omcu3a78zp40klds2w28klr-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-937894966-768x432.jpg 768w, https://7omcu3a78zp40klds2w28klr-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-937894966-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://7omcu3a78zp40klds2w28klr-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-937894966-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https://7omcu3a78zp40klds2w28klr-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-937894966-500x281.jpg 500w" style="display: block; height: auto; width: 900px;" width="2400" /></div><div class="captioned-image__caption" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-left: 1rem solid rgb(252, 227, 0);"><figcaption class="caption" style="margin-top: 0px; padding: 1.5rem;"><div class="caption__caption" style="color: #434343; font-size: 0.875rem;">There is currently no cure for Parkinson’s disease and no treatment that can stop or prevent the loss of the dopamine neurons needed for the body to move.</div><hr class="caption__divider" style="border-color: black; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-bottom: calc(0.5rem - 1px); width: 6.25rem;" /><div class="caption__attribution" style="color: #434343; font-size: 0.875rem; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.25rem;">Getty Images</div></figcaption></div></figure><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;"> </p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://medicine.tamu.edu/" style="color: #156fab;">Texas A&M University College of Medicine</a> researchers have recently discovered that cytisine — a smoking cessation drug commonly used in Europe — reduces the loss of dopamine neurons in females. These findings provide potential evidence for the use of the drug to treat Parkinson’s disease or stop its progression in women.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">Sara Zarate and Gauri Pandey, graduate students from the lab of <a href="https://medicine.tamu.edu/faculty/srinivasan.html#education-and-focus" style="color: #156fab;">Rahul Srinivasan</a>, assistant professor in the <a href="https://medicine.tamu.edu/departments/next/index.html" style="color: #156fab;">Department of Neuroscience & Experimental Therapeutics</a>, are co-first authors of the research. Their findings are published in the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jnc.15282" style="color: #156fab;"><em>Journal of Neurochemistry</em></a>.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">There are approximately <a href="https://www.parkinson.org/Understanding-Parkinsons/Statistics" style="color: #156fab;">10 million people worldwide</a> living with Parkinson’s disease, a neurodegenerative disorder that leads to a variety of symptoms that can include difficulty walking, tremors, shaking and others unrelated to movement. These symptoms start to develop when at least 50 percent of dopamine neurons in an individual’s brain are dead or impaired. Currently, there is no cure for Parkinson’s and no treatment that can stop or prevent the loss of these dopamine neurons that are needed for the body to move.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">About a decade ago, Srinivasan became interested in trying to understand why smokers and people who consume tobacco chronically are at a lower risk for developing Parkinson’s disease.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">“Based on epidemiological studies, this phenomenon has been known for about 60 years,” Srinivasan said. “But people really don’t understand why that is, because tobacco and smoke contain so many different chemicals. One of the chemicals obviously is nicotine, and that explains the addictive properties of tobacco and cigarette smoke. So, I started to study the potential role of nicotine in this protective effect against Parkinson’s disease.”</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">Given the fact that it is very difficult to conduct human and animal trials using nicotine due to severe side-effects, Srinivasan decided to test cytisine as an alternative to nicotine. Cytisine is a smoking cessation drug with properties similar to nicotine, but with very few side effects in people.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">“What cytisine does is it binds to target receptors but doesn’t activate them as efficiently as nicotine,” Srinivasan said. “It keeps the receptors ‘occupied’ and ‘chaperones’ them to the surface of the neuron. Since cytisine is a natural compound, is available quite freely and is pretty cheap, I decided to test this concept of chaperoning in an animal model of the disease to see if it works.”</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">During experiments, the team artificially induced Parkinson’s disease in animal models. During that time, they either gave them saline (salt water) or cytisine. Then, the researchers performed a series of behavioral experiments in order to see if there was any sort of protective effect on the animal models that were given cytisine.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">Their findings showed that there was a protective effect both in terms of reducing the Parkinsonian behaviors and also in terms of reducing the number of dopamine neurons lost. However, the protective effect of cytisine occurred only in female animal models, and not in the males. They discovered that the combination of cytisine and estrogen produces a stronger protective effect than cytisine and no estrogen. This explains why the effect only occurred in female animal models, since males do not have appreciable amounts of estrogen.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">Although their findings currently only apply to females, Srinivasan hopes to find solutions for males and postmenopausal females, too.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">“What is really interesting is that there are non-feminizing compounds that have been developed and are being researched right now that can activate the receptors that estrogen activates,” Srinivasan said. “The goal right now is to understand how estrogen triggers the protection in female animal models. Once we fully understand this component, then we can bring in these non-feminizing estrogen analogs, and we will potentially have a combination therapy of cytisine and a non-feminizing estrogen analog for men.”</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">The next step for Srinivasan and his team is to solidify and confirm the role of estrogen specifically as a protective effect against Parkinson’s disease.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px;">“At the face of it, this drug is ready to be used today in women with Parkinson’s, but as is true for all drugs, you cannot get approval for a drug until you understand what the mechanism of the actual drug is exactly, which is our next step,” Srinivasan said. “This first paper is the description of a protective effect and a potential mechanism for cytisine against Parkinson’s disease. The next steps are to nail down the mechanisms by which this is happening, the role of estrogen specifically. Once we do that, we will use cytisine for women before menopause or cytisine combined with non-feminizing estrogen analogs for both men and women, including women after menopause.”</p></div></div></div></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-7006865719463832202021-10-20T09:01:00.005-07:002021-10-20T09:01:54.539-07:00Facebook Knows Instagram Is Toxic for Teen Girls, Company Documents Show<p> reposted from </p><p><b><a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https:/www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-show-11631620739">http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https:/www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-show-11631620739</a></b></p><p><br /></p><div class="zonedModule" data-module-id="18" data-module-name="article.app/lib/module/wsj/bigTop" data-module-zone="bigTop" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Retina, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="bigTop splitTop tech" data-caption="A multiple exposure portrait of Anastasia Vlasova at home last month." data-credit="Hannah Yoon for The Wall Street Journal" data-flashline="true" data-headlinelayout="bottom" data-large="https://images.wsj.net/im-397208?width=1333&height=2000" data-small="https://images.wsj.net/im-397208/square" data-splittop="true" data-theme="dark" data-type="image" id="bigTopBox" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="bigTop__rel" style="background: rgb(34, 34, 34); border: 0px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="bigTop__text
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" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background: transparent; border: 0px; bottom: auto; box-sizing: border-box; color: white; left: 265.75px; margin: 0px; max-width: 960px; min-height: initial; padding: 0px 30px; position: absolute; text-align: center; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; top: 398.719px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); transition: opacity 0.3ms ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline; width: 531.5px;"><h1 class="bigTop__hed" itemprop="headline" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Escrow Condensed"; font-size: 52px; line-height: 1; margin: 5px 0px 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook Knows Instagram Is Toxic for Teen Girls, Company Documents Show</h1><h2 class="bigTop__dek" itemprop="description" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: Retina; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.3; margin: 8px 0px 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Its own in-depth research shows a significant teen mental-health issue that Facebook plays down in public<br />By <div class="author-container" style="background: transparent; 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background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; color: #555555; margin: 0px; padding: 9px 0px 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;">TEXT</span></div><div class="WSJTheme--tool-27IcYn3BKdxgRF8D3vd0rA WSJTheme--comments-tool-2f-_YTO4O7C0f_YlgsAaCE WSJTheme--label-left-align-3IWkzWzuo1em-yLfnhX3x5 " style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px center; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; font-family: "Retina Narrow", Retina, "Arial Narrow", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; height: 24px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 16px auto; padding: 0px 0px 10px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><a aria-labelledby="comment-tool-label" class="WSJTheme--comments-link-container-yEIzKTLzQXKWVRF0MVTZL " href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https:/www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-show-11631620739#comments_sector" id="article-comments-tool" style="background-attachment: initial; 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background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; color: #555555; margin: 0px; padding: 9px 5px 0px 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;">104 RESPONSES</span></a></div></div></menu></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="shareMenuInlineWrap " id="inlineToolTargetSB10202816892091023759304587611364243702168" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><div class="article-content article-center " style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; 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She had developed an eating disorder, and had a clear idea of what led to it: her time on Instagram.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">She joined the platform at 13, and eventually was spending three hours a day entranced by the seemingly perfect lives and bodies of the fitness influencers who posted on the app.</p><div class="paywall" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“When I went on Instagram, all I saw were images of chiseled bodies, perfect abs and women doing 100 burpees in 10 minutes,” said Ms. Vlasova, now 18, who lives in Reston, Va.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Around that time, researchers inside Instagram, <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-files-xcheck-zuckerberg-elite-rules-11631541353?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">which is owned by Facebook Inc.,</a> were studying this kind of experience and asking whether it was part of a broader phenomenon. Their findings confirmed some serious problems.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Thirty-two percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse,” the researchers said in a March 2020 slide presentation posted to Facebook’s internal message board, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. “Comparisons on Instagram can change how young women view and describe themselves.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">For the past three years, Facebook has been conducting studies into <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/instagram-adds-more-protections-for-teenagers-11627390800?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">how its photo-sharing app affects its millions of young users</a>. Repeatedly, the company’s researchers found that Instagram is harmful for a sizable percentage of them, most notably teenage girls.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“We make body image issues worse for one in three teen girls,” said one slide from 2019, summarizing research about teen girls who experience the issues.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Teens blame Instagram for increases in the rate of anxiety and depression,” said another slide. “This reaction was unprompted and consistent across all groups.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Among teens who reported suicidal thoughts, 13% of British users and 6% of American users traced the desire to kill themselves to Instagram, one presentation showed.</p><div class="media-object type-InsetMediaIllustration inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetMediaIllustration article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
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" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="image-container responsive-media article__inset__image__image" data-subtype="photo" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 7px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 1050px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 1000;"><img alt="" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 100vw, (max-width: 979px) 620px, (max-width: 1299px) 700px, 700px" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397206?width=700&height=1050" srcset="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397206?width=620&size=0.6666666666666666 620w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397206?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666 639w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397206?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666 700w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397206?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=1.5 1050w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397206?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=2 1400w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397206?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=3 2100w" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;" title="" /></div><figcaption class="wsj-article-caption article__inset__image__caption" itemprop="caption" style="color: #666666; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><h4 class="wsj-article-caption-content" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 16px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ms. Vlasova traced her eating disorder to Instagram.</h4><span class="wsj-article-credit article__inset__image__caption__credit" itemprop="creator" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="wsj-article-credit-tag" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PHOTO: </span>HANNAH YOON FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL</span></figcaption></figure></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Expanding its base of young users is vital to the company’s more than $100 billion in annual revenue, and it doesn’t want to jeopardize their engagement with the platform.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">More than 40% of Instagram’s users are 22 years old and younger, and about 22 million teens log onto Instagram in the U.S. each day, compared with five million teens logging onto Facebook, where young users have been shrinking for a decade, the materials show.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On average, teens in the U.S. spend 50% more time on Instagram than they do on Facebook.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Instagram is well positioned to resonate and win with young people,” said a researcher’s slide posted internally. Another post said: “There is a path to growth if Instagram can continue their trajectory.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In public, Facebook has consistently played down the app’s negative effects on teens, and hasn’t made its research public or available to academics or lawmakers who have asked for it.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“The research that we’ve seen is that using social apps to connect with other people can have positive mental-health benefits,” CEO <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/topics/person/mark-zuckerberg" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mark Zuckerberg</a> said at a congressional hearing in March 2021 when asked about children and mental health.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In May, Instagram head Adam Mosseri told reporters that research he had seen suggests the app’s effects on teen well-being is likely “quite small.”</p><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-container" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-placement" id="imm_ad_1_placement" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 100%; padding: 0px; position: absolute; right: -350px; top: -600px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"><div class="wsj-responsive-ad-wrap" id="AD_imm_ad_1" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 25px; min-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/2/interactive.wsj.com/tech_0__container__" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0pt none; height: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"></div></div></div></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In a recent interview, Mr. Mosseri said: “In no way do I mean to diminish these issues.…Some of the issues mentioned in this story aren’t necessarily widespread, but their impact on people may be huge.”</p><div class="media-object type-InsetRichText wrap scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetRichText article__inset--wrap" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="wrap
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; float: left; margin: 3px 30px 23px 0px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px; z-index: 0;"><div class="media-object-rich-text" style="background: transparent; border-bottom-color: rgb(218, 218, 218); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; color: #666666; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 20px; vertical-align: baseline;"><h4 style="-webkit-text-fill-color: transparent; border-bottom-color: rgb(218, 218, 218); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(218, 218, 218); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; color: #333333; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: -0.2px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 10px 0px 10px 1px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;">THE FACEBOOK FILES</h4><p style="-webkit-text-fill-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", Retina, sans-serif !important; font-size: 18px !important; letter-spacing: -0.1px; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: fit-content;">Want an email alert for the next article in the Journal’s Facebook Files investigation?<a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/newsletters?sub=2" style="-webkit-text-fill-color: var(--color-blue); background: 0% 0% / 30px 30px no-repeat transparent; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: nowrap;" target="_blank">Sign up here</a> and also get email alerts for major tech sector news in the future.</p></div></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">He said he believes Facebook was late to realizing there were drawbacks to connecting people in such large numbers. “I’ve been pushing very hard for us to embrace our responsibilities more broadly,” he said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">He said the research into the mental-health effects on teens was valuable, and that Facebook employees ask tough questions about the platform. “For me, this isn’t dirty laundry. I’m actually very proud of this research,” he said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Some features of Instagram could be harmful to some young users, and they aren’t easily addressed, he said. He added: “There’s a lot of good that comes with what we do.”</p><div class="media-object type-InsetPageRule largerule scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetPageRule article__inset--largerule" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="largerule
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8.538-7.45-8.538h3.657c.528 0 .957-.46.957-1.028z' fill='%23333'/%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/svg%3E") center center no-repeat rgb(219, 219, 219); border: 0px; height: 1px; margin: 0px 172.797px; padding: 0px; position: relative; top: 27px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><h6 style="-webkit-text-fill-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", sans-serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: -0.2px; line-height: 26px; margin: 27px 0px 17px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: geometricprecision; vertical-align: baseline; width: fit-content;">What Facebook knows</h6><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Instagram documents form part of a trove of internal communications reviewed by the Journal, on areas including teen mental health, political discourse and human trafficking. They offer an unparalleled picture of how Facebook is acutely aware that the products and systems central to its business success routinely fail.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The documents also show that Facebook has made minimal efforts to address these issues and plays them down in public.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The company’s research on Instagram, the deepest look yet at what the tech giant knows about its impact on teens and their mental well-being, represents one of the clearest gaps revealed in the documents between Facebook’s understanding of itself and its public position.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Its effort includes focus groups, online surveys and diary studies in 2019 and 2020. It also includes large-scale surveys of tens of thousands of people in 2021 that paired user responses with Facebook’s own data about how much time users spent on Instagram and what they saw there.</p><div class="media-object type-InsetDynamic inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetDynamic article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin: 22px 0px 22px -80px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 0;"><div class="dynamic-inset-container article__inset__dynamic inset-loaded" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="ai2html_export" data-date="09/12/2021" data-min-width="300" data-uuid="cfb094e9-2990-4c4e-96fd-8146dce93434" data-version="2.0.0" id="g-INSTATEENS_1-box" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 700px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;"><div class="g-artboard g-show-medium g-show-large g-show-xlarge g-show-xxlarge" data-aspect-ratio="1.892" data-min-width="700" id="g-INSTATEENS_1-_700px" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; height: 370px; margin: 0px auto; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;"><img alt="" class="g-aiImg g-aiAbs" data-src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/B3-HZ867_INSTAT_700PX_20210912121216.jpg" id="g-INSTATEENS_1-_700px-img" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/B3-HZ867_INSTAT_700PX_20210912121216.jpg" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; margin: -1.2px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;" /><div class="g-frame g-aiAbs g-aiPointText" id="g-ai3-1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; left: 543.094px; margin: -7.1px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 22.0781px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 86px;"><p class="g-pstyle0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; height: 13px; letter-spacing: 0em; line-height: 13px; margin: 0px; mix-blend-mode: normal; opacity: 1; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: static; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: nowrap;">from the files</p></div></div><div class="djai2html-foot" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 10px auto 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div></div><div class="media-object type-InsetDynamic inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetDynamic article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin: 22px 0px 22px -80px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 0;"><div class="dynamic-inset-container article__inset__dynamic inset-loaded" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="ai2html_export" data-date="09/12/2021" data-min-width="300" data-uuid="4d49dd59-2262-487e-9af0-bcd95409a2fa" data-version="2.0.0" id="g-INSTATEENS_2-box" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 700px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;"><div class="g-artboard g-show-medium g-show-large g-show-xlarge g-show-xxlarge" data-aspect-ratio="1.925" data-min-width="700" id="g-INSTATEENS_2-_700px" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; height: 363.606px; margin: 0px auto; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;"><img alt="" class="g-aiImg g-aiAbs" data-src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/B3-HZ869_INSTAT_700PX_20210912121312.jpg" id="g-INSTATEENS_2-_700px-img" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/B3-HZ869_INSTAT_700PX_20210912121312.jpg" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; margin: -1.2px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;" /><div class="g-frame g-aiAbs g-aiPointText" id="g-ai3-1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; left: 545.094px; margin: -7.1px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 22.0781px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 86px;"><p class="g-pstyle0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; height: 13px; letter-spacing: 0em; line-height: 13px; margin: 0px; mix-blend-mode: normal; opacity: 1; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: static; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: nowrap;">from the files</p></div></div><div class="djai2html-foot" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 10px auto 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div></div><div class="media-object type-InsetDynamic inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetDynamic article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin: 22px 0px 22px -80px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 0;"><div class="dynamic-inset-container article__inset__dynamic inset-loaded" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="ai2html_export" data-date="09/12/2021" data-min-width="300" data-uuid="46cb4a8f-1fb7-41e5-b832-ee98ef1b6a86" data-version="2.0.0" id="g-INSTATEENS_3-box" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 700px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;"><div class="g-artboard g-show-medium g-show-large g-show-xlarge g-show-xxlarge" data-aspect-ratio="1.892" data-min-width="700" id="g-INSTATEENS_3-_700px" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; height: 370px; margin: 0px auto; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;"><img alt="" class="g-aiImg g-aiAbs" data-src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/B3-HZ871_INSTAT_700PX_20210912121334.jpg" id="g-INSTATEENS_3-_700px-img" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/B3-HZ871_INSTAT_700PX_20210912121334.jpg" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; margin: -1.2px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;" /><div class="g-frame g-aiAbs g-aiPointText" id="g-ai3-1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; left: 544.094px; margin: -7.1px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 22.0781px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 86px;"><p class="g-pstyle0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; height: 13px; letter-spacing: 0em; line-height: 13px; margin: 0px; mix-blend-mode: normal; opacity: 1; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: static; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: nowrap;">from the files</p></div></div><div class="djai2html-foot" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 10px auto 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><p class="djai2html-source" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; color: #666666; float: left; font-family: Retina, "Whitney SSm", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif !important; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><tspan style="overflow: hidden; position: relative;">Source: 2019 Instagram slide presentation called ‘Teen Mental Health Deep Dive’</tspan><br /></p></div></div></div></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The researchers are Facebook employees in areas including data science, marketing and product development who work on a range of issues related to how users interact with the platform. Many have backgrounds in computer science, psychology and quantitative and qualitative analysis.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In five presentations over 18 months to this spring, the researchers conducted what they called a “teen mental health deep dive” and follow-up studies.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">They came to the conclusion that some of the problems were specific to Instagram, and not <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/sadfishing-predators-and-bullies-the-hazards-of-being-real-on-social-media-11573554603?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">social media more broadly</a>. That is especially true concerning so-called social comparison, which is when people assess their own value in relation to the attractiveness, wealth and success of others.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Social comparison is worse on Instagram,” states Facebook’s deep dive into teen girl body-image issues in 2020, noting that <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/tiktok-algorithm-sex-drugs-minors-11631052944?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">TikTok, a short-video app</a>, is grounded in performance, while users on Snapchat, a rival photo and video-sharing app, are sheltered by jokey filters that “keep the focus on the face.” In contrast, Instagram focuses heavily on the body and lifestyle.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The features that Instagram identifies as most harmful to teens appear to be at the platform’s core.</p><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-container" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-placement" id="imm_ad_2_placement" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 100%; padding: 0px; position: absolute; right: -350px; top: -600px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"><div class="wsj-responsive-ad-wrap" id="AD_imm_ad_2" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 25px; min-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/2/interactive.wsj.com/tech_1__container__" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0pt none; height: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"></div></div></div></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The tendency to share only the best moments, a pressure to look perfect and an addictive product can send teens spiraling toward eating disorders, an unhealthy sense of their own bodies and depression, March 2020 internal research states. It warns that the Explore page, which serves users photos and videos curated by an algorithm, can send users deep into content that can be harmful.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Aspects of Instagram exacerbate each other to create a perfect storm,” the research states.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The research has been reviewed by top Facebook executives, and was cited in a 2020 presentation given to Mr. Zuckerberg, according to the documents.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">At a congressional hearing this March, Mr. Zuckerberg defended the company against criticism from lawmakers about <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/instagram-for-kids-facebook-wants-to-fix-its-preteen-problem-11617787802?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">plans to create a new Instagram product for children under 13</a>. When asked if the company had studied the app’s effects on children, he said “I believe the answer is yes.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In August, Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Marsha Blackburn in a letter to Mr. Zuckerberg called on him to release Facebook’s internal research on the impact of its platforms on youth mental health.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In response, Facebook sent the senators a six-page letter that didn’t include the company’s own studies. Instead, Facebook said there are many challenges with conducting research in this space, saying, “We are not aware of a consensus among studies or experts about how much screen time is ‘too much,’ ” according to a copy of the letter reviewed by the Journal.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook also told the senators that its internal research is proprietary and “kept confidential to promote frank and open dialogue and brainstorming internally.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A Facebook spokeswoman said the company welcomed productive collaboration with Congress and would look for opportunities to work with external researchers on credible studies.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Facebook’s answers were so evasive—failing to even respond to all our questions—that they really raise questions about what Facebook might be hiding,” Sen. Blumenthal said in an email. “Facebook seems to be taking a page from the textbook of Big Tobacco—targeting teens with potentially dangerous products while masking the science in public.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mr. Mosseri said in the recent interview, “We don’t send research out to regulators on a regular basis for a number of reasons.” He added Facebook should figure out a way to share high-level overviews of what the company is learning, and that he also wanted to give external researchers access to Facebook’s data.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">He said the company’s plan for the <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/state-prosecutors-add-to-warnings-about-instagrams-child-safety-plans-11620662601?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Instagram kids product, which state attorneys general have objected to</a>, is still in the works.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">When told of Facebook’s internal research, Jean Twenge, a professor of psychology at San Diego State University who has published research finding that social media is harmful for some kids, said it was a potential turning point in the discussion about how social media affects teens.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“If you believe that R.J. Reynolds should have been more truthful about the link between smoking and lung cancer, then you should probably believe that Facebook should be more upfront about links to depression among teen girls,” she said.</p><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-container" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-placement" id="imm_ad_3_placement" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 100%; padding: 0px; position: absolute; right: -350px; top: -600px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"><div class="wsj-responsive-ad-wrap" id="AD_imm_ad_3" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 25px; min-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/2/interactive.wsj.com/tech_2__container__" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0pt none; height: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"></div></div></div></div><div class="media-object type-InsetPageRule largerule scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetPageRule article__inset--largerule" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="largerule
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px !important; margin-right: 0px !important; margin-top: 47px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 540px; z-index: 0;"><div class="wsj-article-page-rule" style="background: url("data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf8,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 424 88'%3E%3Cdefs%3E%3ClinearGradient x1='100%25' y1='50%25' x2='0%25' y2='50%25' id='a'%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%23C94274' offset='0%25'/%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%233B5998' offset='100%25'/%3E%3C/linearGradient%3E%3ClinearGradient x1='100%25' y1='50%25' x2='0%25' y2='50%25' id='b'%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%23C94274' offset='0%25'/%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%233B5998' offset='100%25'/%3E%3C/linearGradient%3E%3ClinearGradient x1='100%25' y1='50%25' x2='0%25' y2='50%25' id='c'%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%23C94274' offset='0%25'/%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%233B5998' 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0-1.07-.866-1.941-1.932-1.941zm0 2.588a.646.646 0 01-.644-.647c0-.357.29-.647.644-.647.356 0 .644.29.644.647a.646.646 0 01-.644.647zM19.962 3.883c-1.065 0-1.932.87-1.932 1.941 0 1.07.867 1.942 1.932 1.942s1.932-.871 1.932-1.942c0-1.07-.867-1.941-1.932-1.941zm0 2.588a.646.646 0 01-.644-.647c0-.357.289-.647.644-.647a.646.646 0 010 1.294z' fill='url(/web/20210914172405im_/https://asset.wsj.net/wsjnewsgraphics/files-project/%23b)' transform='translate(295.849 16.702)'/%3E%3Cpath d='M327.773 62.002h21.151c.561 0 1.016-.29 1.016-.647 0-.357-.455-.647-1.016-.647h-21.15c-.561 0-1.016.29-1.016.647 0 .358.455.647 1.015.647zM337.653 55.208c.18.206.432.323.696.323a.928.928 0 00.696-.323l8.058-9.176c.262-.299.334-.736.183-1.112a.957.957 0 00-.879-.62h-3.909v-5.862c0-.567-.428-1.027-.957-1.027h-6.385c-.528 0-.957.46-.957 1.027V44.3h-3.908a.957.957 0 00-.879.621c-.151.376-.08.813.182 1.112l8.059 9.176zm-2.14-10.861v-5.861h5.659v5.86c0 .568.496 1.029 1.024 1.029h3.754l-7.601 8.538-7.45-8.538h3.657c.528 0 .957-.46.957-1.028z' fill='%23333'/%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/svg%3E") center center no-repeat rgb(219, 219, 219); border: 0px; height: 1px; margin: 0px 172.797px; padding: 0px; position: relative; top: 27px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><h6 style="-webkit-text-fill-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", sans-serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: -0.2px; line-height: 26px; margin: 27px 0px 17px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: geometricprecision; vertical-align: baseline; width: fit-content;">Race for teen users</h6><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">When Facebook paid $1 billion for Instagram in 2012, it was a tiny startup with 13 employees and already a hit. That year, Facebook for the first time had observed a decline in the number of teens using its namesake Facebook product, according to the documents. The company would come to see Instagram as Facebook’s best bet for growth among teens.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook had been tracking the rise of buzzy features on competitor apps, including Snapchat, and in 2016 directed employees to focus on winning what they viewed as a race for teen users, according to former Instagram executives.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Instagram made photos the app’s focus, with filters that made it easy for users to edit images. It later added videos, feeds of algorithmically chosen content and tools that touched up peoples’ faces.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Before long, Instagram became the online equivalent of the high-school cafeteria: a place for teens to post their best photos, find friends, size each other up, brag and bully.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook’s research indicates Instagram’s effects aren’t harmful for all users. For most teenagers, the effects of “negative social comparison” are manageable and can be outweighed by the app’s utility as a fun way for users to express themselves and connect with friends, the research says.</p><div class="media-object type-InsetMediaIllustration wrap scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetMediaIllustration article__inset--wrap" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="wrap
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; float: left; margin: 3px 30px 23px 0px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px; z-index: 0;"><figure class="
media-object-image
enlarge-image
img-wrap
article__inset__image
" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="image-container responsive-media article__inset__image__image" data-subtype="photo" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 7px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 450.234px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px; z-index: 1000;"><img alt="" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 100vw, (max-width: 979px) 300px, (max-width: 1299px) 300px, 300px" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397204?width=639&height=959" srcset="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397204?width=300&size=0.6666666666666666 300w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397204?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666 639w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397204?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=1.5 958w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397204?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=2 1278w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397204?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=3 1917w" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;" title="" /></div><figcaption class="wsj-article-caption article__inset__image__caption" itemprop="caption" style="color: #666666; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><h4 class="wsj-article-caption-content" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 16px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Destinee Ramos, left, and Isabel Yoblonski said the obsessive use of Instagram had potential health drawbacks.</h4><span class="wsj-article-credit article__inset__image__caption__credit" itemprop="creator" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="wsj-article-credit-tag" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PHOTO: </span>LIANNE MILTON FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL</span></figcaption></figure></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">But a mounting body of Facebook’s own evidence shows Instagram can be damaging for many.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In one study of teens in the U.S. and U.K., Facebook found that more than 40% of Instagram users who reported feeling “unattractive” said the feeling began on the app. About a quarter of the teens who reported feeling “not good enough” said the feeling started on Instagram. Many also said the app undermined their confidence in the strength of their friendships.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Instagram’s researchers noted that those struggling with the platform’s psychological effects weren’t necessarily logging off. Teens regularly reported <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/when-social-media-is-too-much-some-teens-tune-out-11579602602?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">wanting to spend less time on Instagram</a>, the presentations note, but lacked the self control to do so.</p><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-container" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="wsj-immersive-ad-placement" id="imm_ad_4_placement" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 100%; padding: 0px; position: absolute; right: -350px; top: -600px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"><div class="wsj-responsive-ad-wrap" id="AD_imm_ad_4" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; min-height: 25px; min-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/2/interactive.wsj.com/tech_3__container__" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0pt none; height: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"></div></div></div></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Teens told us that they don’t like the amount of time they spend on the app but feel like they have to be present,” an Instagram research manager explained to colleagues, according to the documents. “They often feel ‘addicted’ and know that what they’re seeing is bad for their mental health but feel unable to stop themselves.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">During the isolation of the pandemic, “if you wanted to show your friends what you were doing, you had to go on Instagram,” said Destinee Ramos, 17, of Neenah, Wis. “We’re leaning towards calling it an obsession.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ms. Ramos and her friend Isabel Yoblonski, 18, believed this posed a potential health problem to their community, so they decided to survey their peers as a part of a national science competition. They found that of the 98 students who responded, nearly 90% said social media negatively affected their mental health.</p><div class="media-object type-InsetDynamic bleed scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetDynamic article__inset--bleed" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="bleed
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin: 22px 0px 22px -80px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 940px; z-index: 30;"><div class="dynamic-inset-container article__inset__dynamic" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="origami-wrapper" id="baf2d6f4-8b23-47a7-8a2f-bb4d0be0d895" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="origami-photo" data-reactid=".0" data-uuid="baf2d6f4-8b23-47a7-8a2f-bb4d0be0d895" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Retina, "Whitney SSm", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="row wrapper" data-reactid=".0.0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 8px -10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div data-reactid=".0.1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div data-reactid=".0.1.0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="row" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 0px -10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="col span_4" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=19108196159122085" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: padding-box !important; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: transparent; border-image: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 0px 0px 0px 10px; box-sizing: border-box; float: left; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 316.656px;"><img class="image" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=19108196159122085.0" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://images.wsj.net/im-397079?width=1333&height=2000" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(59, 89, 152), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 0px 0px 3px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 306.656px;" /><div class="caption-wrapper" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=19108196159122085.1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 10px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><div class="col span_4" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=17445687585733882" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: padding-box !important; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: transparent; border-image: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 0px 0px 0px 10px; box-sizing: border-box; float: left; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 316.656px;"><img class="image" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=17445687585733882.0" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://images.wsj.net/im-397078?width=1333&height=2000" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 0px 0px 3px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 306.656px;" /><div class="caption-wrapper" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=17445687585733882.1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 10px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><div class="col span_4" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=14453446502057613" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: padding-box !important; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: transparent; border-image: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 0px 0px 0px 10px; box-sizing: border-box; float: left; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 316.656px;"><img class="image" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=14453446502057613.0" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://images.wsj.net/im-397077?width=1333&height=2000" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(201, 66, 116)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 0px 0px 3px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 306.656px;" /><div class="caption-wrapper" data-reactid=".0.1.0.0.$0=14453446502057613.1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 10px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div data-reactid=".0.1.0.1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="caption" data-reactid=".0.1.0.1.0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ms. Yablonski and Ms. Ramos took a selfie. </span><span class="wsj-interactive-photo-credit" data-reactid=".0.1.0.1.1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; display: inline; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span data-reactid=".0.1.0.1.1.0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PHOTOS: </span><span data-reactid=".0.1.0.1.1.1" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">LIANNE MILTON FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL</span></span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In focus groups, Instagram employees heard directly from teens who were struggling. “I felt like I had to fight to be considered pretty or even visible,” one teen said of her experience on Instagram.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">After looking through photos on Instagram, “I feel like I am too big and not pretty enough,” another teen told Facebook’s researchers. “It makes me feel insecure about my body even though I know I am skinny.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“For some people it might be tempting to dismiss this as teen girls being sad,” said Dr. Twenge. But “we’re looking at clinical-level depression that requires treatment. We’re talking about self harm that lands people in the ER.”</p><div class="media-object type-InsetPageRule largerule scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetPageRule article__inset--largerule" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="largerule
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8.538-7.45-8.538h3.657c.528 0 .957-.46.957-1.028z' fill='%23333'/%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/svg%3E") center center no-repeat rgb(219, 219, 219); border: 0px; height: 1px; margin: 0px 172.797px; padding: 0px; position: relative; top: 27px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><h6 style="-webkit-text-fill-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", sans-serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: -0.2px; line-height: 26px; margin: 27px 0px 17px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: geometricprecision; vertical-align: baseline; width: fit-content;">‘Kick in the gut’</h6><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Eva Behrens, a 17-year-old student at Redwood High School in Marin County, Calif., said she estimates half the girls in her grade struggle with body-image concerns tied to Instagram. “Every time I feel good about myself, I go over to Instagram, and then it all goes away,” she said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">When her classmate Molly Pitts, 17, arrived at high school, she found her peers using Instagram as a tool to measure their relative popularity. Students referred to the number of followers their peers had as if the number was stamped on their foreheads, she said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Now, she said, when she looks at her number of followers on Instagram, it is most often a “kick in the gut.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">For years, there has been little debate among medical doctors that for some patients, Instagram and other social media exacerbate their conditions. Angela Guarda, director for the eating-disorders program at Johns Hopkins Hospital and an associate professor of psychiatry in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, said it is common for her patients to say they learned from social media tips for how to restrict food intake or purge. She estimates that Instagram and other social-media apps play a role in the disorders of about half her patients.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It’s the ones who are most vulnerable or are already developing a problem—the use of Instagram and other social media can escalate it,” she said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lindsay Dubin, 19, recently wanted to exercise more. She searched Instagram for workouts and found some she liked. Since then the app’s algorithm has filled her Explore page with photos of how to lose weight, the “ideal” body type and what she should and shouldn’t be eating. “I’m pounded with it every time I go on Instagram,” she said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Jonathan Haidt, a social psychologist at New York University’s Stern School of Business and co-author of the bestseller “The Coddling of the American Mind,” has been concerned about the effects of social media on teens since he started studying it in 2015. He has twice spoken with Mr. Zuckerberg about Facebook’s effects on teen mental health, the first time after the CEO reached out in 2019.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mr. Zuckerberg indicated that on the issues of political polarization and teen mental health, he believed that the research literature was contradictory and didn’t point clearly to any harmful causal effects, according to Mr. Haidt. He said he felt Mr. Zuckerberg at the time was “a partisan, but curious.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I asked Mark to help us out as parents,” he said. “Mark said he was working on it.”</p><div class="media-object type-InsetMediaIllustration inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetMediaIllustration article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin: 22px 0px 22px -80px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 0;"><figure class="
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" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="image-container responsive-media article__inset__image__image" data-subtype="photo" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 7px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 424px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 1000;"><img alt="" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 100vw, (max-width: 979px) 620px, (max-width: 1299px) 700px, 700px" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-398242?width=700&height=424" srcset="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-398242?width=620&size=1.652454780361757 620w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-398242?width=639&size=1.652454780361757 639w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-398242?width=700&size=1.652454780361757 700w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-398242?width=700&size=1.652454780361757&pixel_ratio=1.5 1050w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-398242?width=700&size=1.652454780361757&pixel_ratio=2 1400w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-398242?width=700&size=1.652454780361757&pixel_ratio=3 2100w" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;" title="" /></div><figcaption class="wsj-article-caption article__inset__image__caption" itemprop="caption" style="color: #666666; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><h4 class="wsj-article-caption-content" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 16px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lindsay Dubin found that in two minutes of watching Instagram stories, she saw 33 stories of accounts she follows as well as these 14 ads, many of which were focused on physical appearances.</h4></figcaption></figure></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In January 2020, Facebook invited Mr. Haidt to its Menlo Park, Calif., headquarters, where Mr. Mosseri and Instagram staff briefed him on the platform’s efforts to combat bullying and reduce social pressure on the platform. Mr. Haidt said he found those efforts sincere and laudable but warned that they likely weren’t enough to battle what he believes is a mounting public-health epidemic.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It was not suggested to me that they had internal research showing a problem,” he said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Facebook spokeswoman declined to comment on the interaction.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Some Instagram researchers said it was challenging to get other colleagues to hear the gravity of their findings. Plus, “We’re standing directly between people and their bonuses,” one former researcher said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Instead of referencing their own data showing the negative effects of Instagram, Facebook executives in public have often pointed to studies from the Oxford Internet Institute that have shown little correlation between social-media use and depression.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Other studies also found discrepancies between the amount of time people say they use social media and the amount of time they actually use such services. Mr. Mosseri has pointed to these studies as evidence for why research using self-reported data might not be accurate.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook has in the past been a donor to a researcher at the Oxford institute, which is part of the research and teaching department of Britain’s Oxford University.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Oxford’s lead researcher on the studies, Andrew Przybylski, who said he didn’t receive funding from Facebook, said companies like Facebook need to be more open about their research. “The data exists within the tech industry,” he said. “Scientists just need to be able to access it for neutral and independent investigation.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In an interview, Mr. Przybylski said, “People talk about Instagram like it’s a drug. But we can’t study the active ingredient.”</p><div class="media-object type-InsetMediaVideo inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetMediaVideo article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin: 22px 0px 22px -80px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 0;"><figure class="media-object-video article__inset__video media-object-video--atmo" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="video-container article__inset__video__player" data-atm="309C348C-FAFD-4EC3-8103-093C71F3B024" data-esplash="" data-format="atmo" data-msplash="" data-src="/web/20210914142511oe_/https://www.wsj.com/articles/309C348C-FAFD-4EC3-8103-093C71F3B024" data-suppressheadline="" data-verticalstill="" id="atm309C348C-FAFD-4EC3-8103-093C71F3B024" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; cursor: pointer; height: 0px !important; margin: 0px 0px 7px; padding: 0px 0px 393.75px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="atmlPlayerInner" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><figcaption class="wsj-article-caption article__inset__video__caption" style="color: #666666; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">A recent experience on Ms. Dubin’s Explore page, which is filled with photos and videos curated by Instagram’s algorithm.</figcaption></figure></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook executives have struggled to find ways to reduce Instagram’s harm while keeping people on the platform, according to internal presentations on the topic.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">For years, Facebook experimented with hiding the tallies of “likes” that users see on their photos. Teens told Facebook in focus groups that “like” counts caused them anxiety and contributed to their negative feelings.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">When Facebook tested a tweak to hide the “likes” in a pilot program they called Project Daisy, it found it didn’t improve life for teens. “We didn’t observe movements in overall well-being measures,” Facebook employees wrote in a slide they presented to Mr. Zuckerberg about the experiment in 2020.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Nonetheless, <a class="icon none" href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-instagram-to-allow-users-to-hide-likes-11622034000?mod=article_inline" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Facebook rolled out the change as an option</a> for Facebook and Instagram users in May 2021 after senior executives argued to Mr. Zuckerberg that it could make them look good by appearing to address the issue, according to the documents.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“A Daisy launch would be received by press and parents as a strong positive indication that Instagram cares about its users, especially when taken alongside other press-positive launches,” Facebook executives wrote in a discussion about how to present their findings to Mr. Zuckerberg.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">When Facebook rolled out Project Daisy, Mr. Mosseri acknowledged publicly that the feature didn’t actually change much about how users felt.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In the interview, he said he doesn’t think there are clear-cut solutions to fixing Instagram. He said he is cautiously optimistic about tools Instagram is developing to identify people who are in trouble and to try to “nudge” them toward more positive content.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook made two researchers available to discuss their work. They said they are also testing a way to ask users if they want to take a break from Instagram. Part of the challenge, the researchers said, is they struggle to determine which users face the greatest risk. The researchers also said that the causality of some of their findings was unclear, and noted some of the studies had small sample sizes.</p><div class="media-object type-InsetMediaIllustration inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetMediaIllustration article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin: 22px 0px 22px -80px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 0;"><figure class="
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" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="image-container responsive-media article__inset__image__image" data-subtype="photo" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 7px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 1050px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px; z-index: 1000;"><img alt="" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 100vw, (max-width: 979px) 620px, (max-width: 1299px) 700px, 700px" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397083?width=700&height=1050" srcset="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397083?width=620&size=0.6666666666666666 620w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397083?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666 639w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397083?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666 700w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397083?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=1.5 1050w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397083?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=2 1400w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397083?width=700&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=3 2100w" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;" title="" /></div><figcaption class="wsj-article-caption article__inset__image__caption" itemprop="caption" style="color: #666666; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><h4 class="wsj-article-caption-content" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 16px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Sylvia Colt-Lacayo at her childhood home in Oakland, Calif., last month.</h4><span class="wsj-article-credit article__inset__image__caption__credit" itemprop="creator" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="wsj-article-credit-tag" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PHOTO: </span>TALIA HERMAN FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL</span></figcaption></figure></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I think anything and everything should be on the table,” Mr. Mosseri said. “But we have to be honest and embrace that there’s trade-offs here. It’s not as simple as turning something off and thinking it gets better, because often you can make things worse unintentionally.”</p><div class="media-object type-InsetPageRule largerule scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetPageRule article__inset--largerule" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="largerule
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px !important; margin-right: 0px !important; margin-top: 47px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 540px; z-index: 0;"><div class="wsj-article-page-rule" style="background: url("data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf8,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 424 88'%3E%3Cdefs%3E%3ClinearGradient x1='100%25' y1='50%25' x2='0%25' y2='50%25' id='a'%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%23C94274' offset='0%25'/%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%233B5998' offset='100%25'/%3E%3C/linearGradient%3E%3ClinearGradient x1='100%25' y1='50%25' x2='0%25' y2='50%25' id='b'%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%23C94274' offset='0%25'/%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%233B5998' offset='100%25'/%3E%3C/linearGradient%3E%3ClinearGradient x1='100%25' y1='50%25' x2='0%25' y2='50%25' id='c'%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%23C94274' offset='0%25'/%3E%3Cstop stop-color='%233B5998' 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8.538-7.45-8.538h3.657c.528 0 .957-.46.957-1.028z' fill='%23333'/%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/svg%3E") center center no-repeat rgb(219, 219, 219); border: 0px; height: 1px; margin: 0px 172.797px; padding: 0px; position: relative; top: 27px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div><h6 style="-webkit-text-fill-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: "Retina Narrow", sans-serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: -0.2px; line-height: 26px; margin: 27px 0px 17px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: geometricprecision; vertical-align: baseline; width: fit-content;">Zeroed in on selfies</h6><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In the internal documents, Facebook’s researchers also suggested Instagram could surface “fun” filters rather than ones around beautification. They zeroed in on selfies, particularly filtered ones that allow users to touch-up their faces. “Sharing or viewing filtered selfies in stories made people feel worse,” the researchers wrote in January.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Sylvia Colt-Lacayo, a 20-year-old at Stanford University, said she recently tried out a face filter that thinned her cheeks and made them pink. But then Ms. Colt-Lacayo realized the filter had minimized her cheeks that she inherited from her Nicaraguan father, and made them look more European. That gave her “a bitter taste in my mouth,” she said.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ms. Colt-Lacayo uses a wheelchair, and in the past Instagram made her feel like she didn’t look the way she was supposed to, or do the things that other teen girls on the app were doing, she said.</p><div class="media-object type-InsetMediaIllustration wrap scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetMediaIllustration article__inset--wrap" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="wrap
" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; clear: both; float: left; margin: 3px 30px 23px 0px; padding: 5px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px; z-index: 0;"><figure class="
media-object-image
enlarge-image
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article__inset__image
" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="image-container responsive-media article__inset__image__image" data-subtype="photo" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image-outset: 2px; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: 1; border-image-source: linear-gradient(to left, rgb(201, 66, 116), rgb(59, 89, 152)); border-image-width: initial; border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 7px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 450.234px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px; z-index: 1000;"><img alt="" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 100vw, (max-width: 979px) 300px, (max-width: 1299px) 300px, 300px" src="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397534?width=639&height=959" srcset="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397534?width=300&size=0.6666666666666666 300w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397534?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666 639w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397534?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=1.5 958w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397534?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=2 1278w, http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511im_/https://images.wsj.net/im-397534?width=639&size=0.6666666666666666&pixel_ratio=3 1917w" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; display: block; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;" title="" /></div><figcaption class="wsj-article-caption article__inset__image__caption" itemprop="caption" style="color: #666666; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><h4 class="wsj-article-caption-content" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 16px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ms. Colt-Lacayo’s selfie, which she put through an Instagram filter.</h4><span class="wsj-article-credit article__inset__image__caption__credit" itemprop="creator" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="wsj-article-credit-tag" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PHOTO: </span>SYLVIA COLT-LACAYO</span></figcaption></figure></div><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">She said she began following people who use wheelchairs, or who are chronically ill or refer to other disabilities, and the platform became a place she could see images of older disabled people just being happy.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In March, the researchers said Instagram should reduce exposure to celebrity content about fashion, beauty and relationships, while increasing exposure to content from close friends, according to a slide deck they uploaded to Facebook’s internal message board.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A current employee, in comments on the message board, questioned that idea, saying celebrities with perfect lives were key to the app. “Isn’t that what IG is mostly about?” he wrote. Getting a peek at “the (very photogenic) life of the top 0.1%? Isn’t that the reason why teens are on the platform?”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A now-former executive questioned the idea of overhauling Instagram to avoid social comparison. “People use Instagram because it’s a competition,” the former executive said. “That’s the fun part.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">To promote more positive use of Instagram, the company has partnered with nonprofits to promote what it calls “emotional resilience,” according to the documents. Videos produced as part of that effort include recommending that teens consider daily affirmations to remind themselves that “I am in control of my experience on Instagram.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Facebook’s researchers identified the over-sexualization of girls as something that weighs on the mental health of the app’s users. Shevon Jones, a licensed clinical social worker based in Atlanta, Ga., said this can affect Black girls especially because people often assume Black girls are older than they are and critique the bodies of Black girls more frequently.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“What girls often see on social media are girls with slimmer waists, bigger butts and hips, and it can lead them to have body image issues,” Ms. Jones said. “It’s a very critical time and they are trying to figure out themselves and everything around them.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Teen boys aren’t immune. In the deep dive Facebook’s researchers conducted into mental health in 2019, they found that 14% of boys in the U.S. said Instagram made them feel worse about themselves. In their report on body image in 2020, Facebook’s researchers found that 40% of teen boys experience negative social comparison.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I just feel on the edge a lot of the time,” a teen boy in the U.S. told Facebook’s researchers. “It’s like you can be called out for anything you do. One wrong move. One wrong step.”</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Many of the teens interviewed for this article said they didn’t want Instagram to disappear. Ms. Vlasova, who no longer uses Instagram, said she is skeptical Facebook’s executives have tried hard enough to make their platform less toxic.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I had to live with my eating disorder for five years, and people on Instagram are still suffering,” she said.</p><div class="media-object type-InsetMediaIllustration inline scope-web|mobileapps article__inset article__inset--type-InsetMediaIllustration article__inset--inline" data-layout-mobile="" data-layout="inline
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border: 0px; display: block; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 700px;" title="" /></div><figcaption class="wsj-article-caption article__inset__image__caption" itemprop="caption" style="color: #666666; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><h4 class="wsj-article-caption-content" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 16px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ms. Vlasova said she no longer uses Instagram.</h4><span class="wsj-article-credit article__inset__image__caption__credit" itemprop="creator" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="wsj-article-credit-tag" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PHOTO: </span>HANNAH YOON FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL</span></figcaption></figure></div><p class="articleTagLine" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; font-style: italic; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">—Design by Andrew Levinson.</p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; font-family: var(--font-serif); font-size: 17px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 17px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Write to </span>Georgia Wells at <a class="icon " href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/mailto:georgia.wells+1@wsj.com" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">georgia.wells+1@wsj.com</a>, Jeff Horwitz at <a class="icon " href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/mailto:Jeff.Horwitz@wsj.com" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Jeff.Horwitz@wsj.com</a> and Deepa Seetharaman at <a class="icon " href="http://web.archive.org/web/20210914142511/mailto:Deepa.Seetharaman@wsj.com" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: 30px 30px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Deepa.Seetharaman@wsj.com</a></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></main></article></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-60652807890061083472021-10-11T14:48:00.000-07:002021-10-11T14:48:04.932-07:00The Island Where People Forget to Die<p> reposted from </p><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html">https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html</a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><header class="css-birc7d e12qa4dv0" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 3.75rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><h1 class="css-19g5i88 e1h9rw200" data-testid="headline" id="link-24c46dcc" style="border: 0px; color: #121212; font-family: nyt-magslab; font-size: 3.375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 3.25rem; margin: 0px auto 20px; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">The Island Where People Forget to Die</h1></div><div class="css-66eot5" data-testid="share-toolbar" style="border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(235, 235, 235); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; 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font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 420px;" width="600" /></div><figcaption class="css-13o4bnb e18f7pbr0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 10px 20px 0px 0px; max-width: 900px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span aria-hidden="true" class="css-i48y28 e13ogyst0" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px 7px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Stamatis Moraitis tending his vineyard and olive grove on Ikaria.</span><span class="css-ach9cc e1z0qqy90" style="border: 0px; display: inline; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.01em; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Credit...</span><span style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Andrea Frazzetta/LUZphoto for The New York Times</span></span></span></figcaption></figure></div></div><div class="css-xt80pu eakwutd0" data-testid="byline-timestamp" style="border: 0px; color: #121212; font: inherit; margin: 0px auto 20px; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div class="css-1tyn5zp" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 30px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-f11ndi epjyd6m1" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div class="css-233int epjyd6m0" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p class="css-x36ror e1jsehar1" style="border: 0px; color: black; display: inline-block; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.25rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="byline-prefix" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">By </span><span class="css-1baulvz last-byline" itemprop="name" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Dan Buettner</span></p></div></div><ul class="css-1u1psjv epjyd6m3" style="-webkit-box-align: center; -webkit-box-pack: justify; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; flex-wrap: nowrap; font: inherit; justify-content: space-between; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="css-ccw2r3 epjyd6m2" style="border: 0px; flex-shrink: 1; font: inherit; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 1rem 0px 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><time class="css-1leptn7 e16638kd0" datetime="2012-10-24T07:01:10-04:00" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; display: inline-block; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Oct. 24, 2012</time></li></ul></div></div></header><section class="meteredContent css-1r7ky0e" name="articleBody" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 1155px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">In 1943, a Greek war veteran named Stamatis Moraitis came to the United States for treatment of a combat-mangled arm. He’d survived a gunshot wound, escaped to Turkey and eventually talked his way onto the Queen Elizabeth, then serving as a troopship, to cross the Atlantic. Moraitis settled in Port Jefferson, N.Y., an enclave of countrymen from his native island, Ikaria. He quickly landed a job doing manual labor. Later, he moved to Boynton Beach, Fla. Along the way, Moraitis married a Greek-American woman, had three children and bought a three-bedroom house and a 1951 Chevrolet.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">One day in 1976, Moraitis felt short of breath. Climbing stairs was a chore; he had to quit working midday. After X-rays, his doctor concluded that Moraitis had lung cancer. As he recalls, nine other doctors confirmed the diagnosis. They gave him nine months to live. He was in his mid-60s.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Moraitis considered staying in America and seeking aggressive cancer treatment at a local hospital. That way, he could also be close to his adult children. But he decided instead to return to Ikaria, where he could be buried with his ancestors in a cemetery shaded by oak trees that overlooked the Aegean Sea. He figured a funeral in the United States would cost thousands, a traditional Ikarian one only $200, leaving more of his retirement savings for his wife, Elpiniki. Moraitis and Elpiniki moved in with his elderly parents, into a tiny, whitewashed house on two acres of stepped vineyards near Evdilos, on the north side of Ikaria. At first, he spent his days in bed, as his mother and wife tended to him. He reconnected with his faith. On Sunday mornings, he hobbled up the hill to a tiny Greek Orthodox chapel where his grandfather once served as a priest. When his childhood friends discovered that he had moved back, they started showing up every afternoon. They’d talk for hours, an activity that invariably involved a bottle or two of locally produced wine. I might as well die happy, he thought.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">In the ensuing months, something strange happened. He says he started to feel stronger. One day, feeling ambitious, he planted some vegetables in the garden. He didn’t expect to live to harvest them, but he enjoyed being in the sunshine, breathing the ocean air. Elpiniki could enjoy the fresh vegetables after he was gone.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-zz666k" id="story-ad-1-wrapper" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-bottom-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; min-height: 280px; padding: 12px 0px 30px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1717px;"><div class="css-l9onyx" id="story-ad-1-slug" style="border: 0px; color: #cccccc; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.5625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.05rem; line-height: 0.5625rem; margin: 0px 0px 9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVERTISEMENT</p></div><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html#after-story-ad-1" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad story-ad-1-wrapper" data-google-query-id="CNrgpcupw_MCFcOVAAAd9lkLLA" id="story-ad-1" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 600px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_3__container__" style="border: 0pt none; display: inline-block; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1717px;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" data-google-container-id="3" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="600" id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_3" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://7c6f93c1b3cfe52b6f25bec5054b1ce2.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; min-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="0"></iframe></div></div><div id="after-story-ad-1" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 1005px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Six months came and went. Moraitis didn’t die. Instead, he reaped his garden and, feeling emboldened, cleaned up the family vineyard as well. Easing himself into the island routine, he woke up when he felt like it, worked in the vineyards until midafternoon, made himself lunch and then took a long nap. In the evenings, he often walked to the local tavern, where he played dominoes past midnight. The years passed. His health continued to improve. He added a couple of rooms to his parents’ home so his children could visit. He built up the vineyard until it produced 400 gallons of wine a year. Today, three and a half decades later, he’s 97 years old — according to an official document he disputes; he says he’s 102 — and cancer-free. He never went through chemotherapy, took drugs or sought therapy of any sort. All he did was move home to Ikaria.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span class="css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">I met Moraitis</span> on Ikaria this past July during one of my visits to explore the extraordinary longevity of the island’s residents. For a decade, with support from the National Geographic Society, I’ve been organizing a study of the places where people live longest. The project grew out of studies by my partners, Dr. Gianni Pes of the University of Sassari in Italy and Dr. Michel Poulain, a Belgian demographer. In 2000, they identified a region of Sardinia’s Nuoro province as the place with the highest concentration of male centenarians in the world. As they zeroed in on a cluster of villages high in Nuoro’s mountains, they drew a boundary in blue ink on a map and began referring to the area inside as the “blue zone.” Starting in 2002, we identified three other populations around the world where people live measurably longer lives than everyone else. The world’s longest-lived women are found on the island of Okinawa. On Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula, we discovered a population of 100,000 mestizos with a lower-than-normal rate of middle-age mortality. And in Loma Linda, Calif., we identified a population of Seventh-day Adventists in which most of the adherents’ life expectancy exceeded the American average by about a decade.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"><div class="css-j64t31" id="c-col-editors-picks" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 210px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"><h2 class="css-ohexsw" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(226, 226, 226); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; color: black; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; 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margin: auto 0px auto 10px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: calc(100% - 85px);">Agony and Ecstasy on the Scottish Archipelago of St. Kilda</h3></a></article><div id="pp_edpick-wrapper" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px -9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="gtm-tagged" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html?action=click&module=editorContent&pgtype=Article&region=CompanionColumn&contentCollection=Trending#after-pp_edpick" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad pp_edpick-wrapper" data-google-query-id="COG0wc6pw_MCFWWDAAAdZzQIFQ" id="pp_edpick" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; 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vertical-align: baseline; width: 420px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="Residents of the island Ikaria in Greece live profoundly long and healthful lives." class="css-1m50asq" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria1/28Ikaria1-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria1/28Ikaria1-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 600w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria1/28Ikaria1-jumbo-v2.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 846w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria1/28Ikaria1-superJumbo-v2.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1111w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 420px;" /></div></div></div><figcaption class="css-1l44abu ewdxa0s0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 10px 20px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span aria-hidden="true" class="css-i48y28 e13ogyst0" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px 7px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Residents of the island Ikaria in Greece live profoundly long and healthful lives.</span><span class="css-ach9cc e1z0qqy90" style="border: 0px; display: inline; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.01em; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Credit...</span><span style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Andrea Frazzetta/LUZphoto for The New York Times</span></span></figcaption></figure></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 765px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">In 2003, I started a consulting firm to see if it was possible to take what we were learning in the field and apply it to American communities. We also continued to do research and look for other pockets of longevity, and in 2008, following a lead from a Greek researcher, we began investigating Ikaria. Poulain’s plan there was to track down survivors born between 1900 and 1920 and determine when and where individuals died. The approach was complicated by the fact that people often moved around. That meant that not only were birth and death records required, but also information on immigration and emigration.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">The data collection had to be rigorous. Earlier claims about long-lived people in places like Ecuador’s Vilcabamba Valley, Pakistan’s Hunza Valley or the Caucasus Mountains of Georgia had all been debunked after researchers discovered that many residents didn’t actually know their ages. For villagers born without birth certificates, it was easy to lose track. One year they were 80; a few months later they were 82. Pretty soon they claimed to be 100. And when a town discovers that a reputation for centenarians draws tourists, who’s going to question it? Even in Ikaria, the truth has been sometimes difficult to nail down. Stories like the one about Moraitis’s miraculous recovery become instant folklore, told and retold and changed and misattributed. (Stories about Moraitis have appeared on Greek TV.) In fact, when I was doing research there in 2009, I met a different man who told me virtually the exact same story about himself.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-1r07izm" id="story-ad-2-wrapper" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-bottom-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; padding: 12px 0px 30px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-l9onyx" id="story-ad-2-slug" style="border: 0px; color: #cccccc; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.5625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.05rem; line-height: 0.5625rem; margin: 0px 0px 9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVERTISEMENT</p></div><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html#after-story-ad-2" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad story-ad-2-wrapper" data-google-query-id="COWLzdSpw_MCFSzb9QIdHLcGKA" id="story-ad-2" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 90px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_4__container__" style="border: 0pt none; display: inline-block; font: inherit; height: 90px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 728px;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" data-google-container-id="5" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="90" id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_4" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://7c6f93c1b3cfe52b6f25bec5054b1ce2.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="728"></iframe></div></div><div id="after-story-ad-2" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 1425px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">The study would try to cut through the stories and establish the facts about Ikaria’s longevity. Before including subjects, Poulain cross-referenced birth records against baptism or military documentation. After gathering all the data, he and his colleagues at the University of Athens concluded that people on Ikaria were, in fact, reaching the age of 90 at two and a half times the rate Americans do. (Ikarian men in particular are nearly four times as likely as their American counterparts to reach 90, often in better health.) But more than that, they were also living about 8 to 10 years longer before succumbing to cancers and cardiovascular disease, and they suffered less depression and about a quarter the rate of dementia. Almost half of Americans 85 and older show signs of Alzheimer’s. (The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that dementia cost Americans some $200 billion in 2012.) On Ikaria, however, people have been managing to stay sharp to the end.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span class="css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Ikaria, an island</span> of 99 square miles and home to almost 10,000 Greek nationals, lies about 30 miles off the western coast of Turkey. Its jagged ridge of scrub-covered mountains rises steeply out of the Aegean Sea. Before the Christian era, the island was home to thick oak forests and productive vineyards. Its reputation as a health destination dates back 25 centuries, when Greeks traveled to the island to soak in the hot springs near Therma. In the 17th century, Joseph Georgirenes, the bishop of Ikaria, described its residents as proud people who slept on the ground. “The most commendable thing on this island,” he wrote, “is their air and water, both so healthful that people are very long-lived, it being an ordinary thing to see persons in it of 100 years of age.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Seeking to learn more about the island’s reputation for long-lived residents, I called on Dr. Ilias Leriadis, one of Ikaria’s few physicians, in 2009. On an outdoor patio at his weekend house, he set a table with Kalamata olives, hummus, heavy Ikarian bread and wine. “People stay up late here,” Leriadis said. “We wake up late and always take naps. I don’t even open my office until 11 a.m. because no one comes before then.” He took a sip of his wine. “Have you noticed that no one wears a watch here? No clock is working correctly. When you invite someone to lunch, they might come at 10 a.m. or 6 p.m. We simply don’t care about the clock here.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Pointing across the Aegean toward the neighboring island of Samos, he said: “Just 15 kilometers over there is a completely different world. There they are much more developed. There are high-rises and resorts and homes worth a million euros. In Samos, they care about money. Here, we don’t. For the many religious and cultural holidays, people pool their money and buy food and wine. If there is money left over, they give it to the poor. It’s not a ‘me’ place. It’s an ‘us’ place.”</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-79elbk" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-z3e15g" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper-hidden" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; inset: 0px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: fixed; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div class="css-fr4j0n ehw59r12" data-testid="photoviewer-children" height="400.171875px" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 400.172px; left: 559px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;" width="600px"><div class="css-tux0zj ehw59r13" data-testid="photoviewer-overlay" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); border: 0px; font: inherit; inset: 0px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: top 0.2s ease 0s, right 0.2s ease 0s, bottom 0.2s ease 0s, left 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline; z-index: 1;"><div class="css-l6wzhd ehw59r11" data-testid="photoviewer-captionblock" height="683px" style="-webkit-box-pack: center; border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font: inherit; height: 683px; justify-content: center; left: 1370.5px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 15px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; top: 205.5px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 200px; z-index: 1;" width="200px"></div><div class="css-1ssq74t ehw59r14" height="400.171875px" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 400.172px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: width 0.2s ease 0s, height 0.2s ease 0s, margin 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px; z-index: 1;" width="600px"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: visibility 0s ease 0.5s; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: hidden;"><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria2/mag-28Ikaria-t_CA2-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria2/mag-28Ikaria-t_CA2-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1024w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria2/mag-28Ikaria-t_CA2-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1123w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 400.172px; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;" /></div></div></div><button aria-label="Expand image captioned The Ikarian diet: Vegetables from the garden, legumes and greens, and plenty of olive oil." class="css-1vkv6l7 ehw59r10" data-testid="photoviewer-expand-button" style="appearance: button; border-color: initial; border-style: none; border-width: initial; bottom: 10px; cursor: pointer; font-size: 16px; height: 60px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; right: 10px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0s; vertical-align: middle; width: 60px;"><svg fill="none" height="60" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="60"><circle cx="30" cy="30" fill-opacity="0.5" fill="#000" r="30"></circle><path clip-rule="evenodd" d="M23.9665 37.3668L26.5997 40H20V33.4003L22.6332 36.0335L26.6667 32L28 33.3333L23.9665 37.3668Z" fill-rule="evenodd" fill="#fff"></path><path clip-rule="evenodd" d="M36.0335 22.6332L33.4003 20H40V26.5997L37.3668 23.9665L33.3333 28L32 26.6667L36.0335 22.6332Z" fill-rule="evenodd" fill="#fff"></path></svg></button></div></div></div><div class="css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15" data-testid="photoviewer-children" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0.2s; vertical-align: baseline;"><figure aria-label="media" class="img-sz-medium css-1l3p632 e1g7ppur0" role="group" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 2.6875rem auto; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><div class="css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Image</span><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="The Ikarian diet: Vegetables from the garden, legumes and greens, and plenty of olive oil." class="css-1m50asq" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria2/mag-28Ikaria-t_CA2-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria2/mag-28Ikaria-t_CA2-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1024w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria2/mag-28Ikaria-t_CA2-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1123w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 600px;" /></div></div></div><figcaption class="css-1l44abu ewdxa0s0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 10px 20px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span aria-hidden="true" class="css-i48y28 e13ogyst0" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px 7px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">The Ikarian diet: Vegetables from the garden, legumes and greens, and plenty of olive oil.</span><span class="css-ach9cc e1z0qqy90" style="border: 0px; display: inline; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.01em; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Credit...</span><span style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Andrea Frazzetta/LUZphoto for The New York Times</span></span></figcaption></figure></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 735px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Ikaria’s unusual past may explain its communal inclinations. The strong winds that buffet the island — mentioned in the “Iliad” — and the lack of natural harbors kept it outside the main shipping lanes for most of its history. This forced Ikaria to be self-sufficient. Then in the late 1940s, after the Greek Civil War, the government exiled thousands of Communists and radicals to the island. Nearly 40 percent of adults, many of them disillusioned with the high unemployment rate and the dwindling trickle of resources from Athens, still vote for the local Communist Party. About 75 percent of the population on Ikaria is under 65. The youngest adults, many of whom come home after college, often live in their parents’ home. They typically have to cobble together a living through small jobs and family support.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Leriadis also talked about local “mountain tea,” made from dried herbs endemic to the island, which is enjoyed as an end-of-the-day cocktail. He mentioned wild marjoram, sage (flaskomilia), a type of mint tea (fliskouni), rosemary and a drink made from boiling dandelion leaves and adding a little lemon. “People here think they’re drinking a comforting beverage, but they all double as medicine,” Leriadis said. Honey, too, is treated as a panacea. “They have types of honey here you won’t see anyplace else in the world,” he said. “They use it for everything from treating wounds to curing hangovers, or for treating influenza. Old people here will start their day with a spoonful of honey. They take it like medicine.”</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-qlhgae" id="story-ad-3-wrapper" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-bottom-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; min-height: 280px; padding: 12px 0px 30px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-l9onyx" id="story-ad-3-slug" style="border: 0px; color: #cccccc; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.5625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.05rem; line-height: 0.5625rem; margin: 0px 0px 9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVERTISEMENT</p></div><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html#after-story-ad-3" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad story-ad-3-wrapper" data-google-query-id="COyLkumpw_MCFSilAAAdV98CJQ" id="story-ad-3" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; min-height: 250px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_5__container__" style="border: 0pt none; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" data-google-container-id="6" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_5" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_5" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: bottom; width: 970px;" title="3rd party ad content" width="970"></iframe></div></div><div id="after-story-ad-3" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 2922.31px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Over the span of the next three days, I met some of Leriadis’s patients. In the area known as Raches, I met 20 people over 90 and one who claimed to be 104. I spoke to a 95-year-old man who still played the violin and a 98-year-old woman who ran a small hotel and played poker for money on the weekend.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">On a trip the year before, I visited a slate-roofed house built into the slope at the top of a hill. I had come here after hearing of a couple who had been married for more than 75 years. Thanasis and Eirini Karimalis both came to the door, clapped their hands at the thrill of having a visitor and waved me in. They each stood maybe five feet tall. He wore a shapeless cotton shirt and a battered baseball cap, and she wore a housedress with her hair in a bun. Inside, there was a table, a medieval-looking fireplace heating a blackened pot, a nook of a closet that held one woolen suit coat, and fading black-and-white photographs of forebears on a soot-stained wall. The place was warm and cozy. “Sit down,” Eirini commanded. She hadn’t even asked my name or business but was already setting out teacups and a plate of cookies. Meanwhile, Thanasis scooted back and forth across the house with nervous energy, tidying up.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">The couple were born in a nearby village, they told me. They married in their early 20s and raised five children on Thanasis’s pay as a lumberjack. Like that of almost all of Ikaria’s traditional folk, their daily routine unfolded much the way Leriadis had described it: Wake naturally, work in the garden, have a late lunch, take a nap. At sunset, they either visited neighbors or neighbors visited them. Their diet was also typical: a breakfast of goat’s milk, wine, sage tea or coffee, honey and bread. Lunch was almost always beans (lentils, garbanzos), potatoes, greens (fennel, dandelion or a spinachlike green called horta) and whatever seasonal vegetables their garden produced; dinner was bread and goat’s milk. At Christmas and Easter, they would slaughter the family pig and enjoy small portions of larded pork for the next several months.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">During a tour of their property, Thanasis and Eirini introduced their pigs to me by name. Just after sunset, after we returned to their home to have some tea, another old couple walked in, carrying a glass amphora of homemade wine. The four nonagenarians cheek-kissed one another heartily and settled in around the table. They gossiped, drank wine and occasionally erupted into laughter.</p><div class="css-79elbk" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-z3e15g" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper-hidden" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; inset: 0px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: fixed; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div class="css-1f1n8u1 ehw59r12" data-testid="photoviewer-children" height="654.3125px" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 654.312px; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 240px;" width="240px"><div class="css-tux0zj ehw59r13" data-testid="photoviewer-overlay" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); border: 0px; font: inherit; 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margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: visibility 0s ease 0.5s; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: hidden;"><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 240px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="50vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-pop-stats/ikaria-pop-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-pop-stats/ikaria-pop-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-pop-stats/ikaria-pop-stats-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 654.312px; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 240px;" /></div></div></div><button aria-label="Expand image captioned Figures from the Ikaria Study, which surveyed the island's over-80 population" class="css-1vkv6l7 ehw59r10" data-testid="photoviewer-expand-button" style="appearance: button; border-color: initial; border-style: none; border-width: initial; bottom: 10px; cursor: pointer; font-size: 16px; height: 60px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; right: 10px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0s; vertical-align: middle; width: 60px;"><svg fill="none" height="60" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="60"><circle cx="30" cy="30" fill-opacity="0.5" fill="#000" r="30"></circle><path clip-rule="evenodd" d="M23.9665 37.3668L26.5997 40H20V33.4003L22.6332 36.0335L26.6667 32L28 33.3333L23.9665 37.3668Z" fill-rule="evenodd" fill="#fff"></path><path clip-rule="evenodd" d="M36.0335 22.6332L33.4003 20H40V26.5997L37.3668 23.9665L33.3333 28L32 26.6667L36.0335 22.6332Z" fill-rule="evenodd" fill="#fff"></path></svg></button></div></div></div><div class="css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15" data-testid="photoviewer-children" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0.2s; vertical-align: baseline;"><figure aria-label="media" class="img-sz-small css-1m53jiu e1g7ppur0" role="group" style="border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 2.6875rem auto; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div class="css-zgakxe erfvjey0" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 240px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 300px;"><span class="css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Image</span><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 240px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="Figures from the Ikaria Study, which surveyed the island's over-80 population" class="css-1m50asq" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="50vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-pop-stats/ikaria-pop-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-pop-stats/ikaria-pop-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-pop-stats/ikaria-pop-stats-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 240px;" /></div></div></div><figcaption class="css-1e7005o ewdxa0s0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: auto 0px 15px 15px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 330px;"><span aria-hidden="true" class="css-i48y28 e13ogyst0" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: auto 7px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Figures from the Ikaria Study, which surveyed the island's over-80 population</span></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span class="css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Dr. Ioanna Chinou, </span>a professor at the University of Athens School of Pharmacy, is one of Europe’s top experts on the bioactive properties of herbs and natural products. When I consulted her about Ikarians’ longevity, she told me that many of the teas they consume are traditional Greek remedies. Wild mint fights gingivitis and gastrointestinal disorders; rosemary is used as a remedy for gout; artemisia is thought to improve blood circulation. She invited me to give her samples and later tested seven of the most commonly used herbs on Ikaria. As rich sources of polyphenols, they showed strong antioxidant properties, she reported. Most of these herbs also contained mild diuretics. Doctors often use diuretics to treat hypertension — perhaps by drinking tea nightly, Ikarians have gently lowered their blood pressure throughout their lives.</p><div class="css-9tf9ac" data-testid="region" id="NYT_MAIN_CONTENT_2_REGION" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1em; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-bdfzry" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1em; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div class="css-1375xv5" style="border: 0px; 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line-height: 1.5625rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Sign up for The New York Times Magazine Newsletter </span><span class="css-1rhhdjb" style="border: 0px; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.5625rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">The best of The New York Times Magazine delivered to your inbox every week, including exclusive feature stories, photography, columns and more. <button class="css-2l0yoh" style="appearance: button; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: none; border-width: initial; cursor: pointer; display: contents; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: middle;" type="button"><span class="css-u32m0k" style="border: 0px; color: #4279a3; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.5625rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: underline; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Get it sent to your inbox.</span></button></span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Meanwhile, my colleagues Gianni Pes and Michel Poulain set out to track down the island’s 164 residents who were over 90 as of 1999, starting in the municipality of Raches. They found that 75 nonagenarians were still alive. Then, along with additional researchers, they fanned out across the island and asked 35 elderly subjects a battery of lifestyle questions to assess physical and cognitive functioning: How much do you sleep? Did you ever smoke? They asked them to get up and down from a chair five times and recorded how long it took them to walk 13 feet. To test mental agility, the researchers had subjects recall a series of items and reproduce geometric shapes.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-qlhgae" id="story-ad-4-wrapper" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-bottom-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; min-height: 280px; padding: 12px 0px 30px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-l9onyx" id="story-ad-4-slug" style="border: 0px; color: #cccccc; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.5625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.05rem; line-height: 0.5625rem; margin: 0px 0px 9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVERTISEMENT</p></div><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html#after-story-ad-4" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad story-ad-4-wrapper" data-google-query-id="CP2Msvupw_MCFTiqAAAd8LwJ-Q" id="story-ad-4" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; min-height: 250px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_6__container__" style="border: 0pt none; display: inline-block; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 970px;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" data-google-container-id="7" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_6" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://7c6f93c1b3cfe52b6f25bec5054b1ce2.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="970"></iframe></div></div><div id="after-story-ad-4" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 1635px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Pes and Poulain were joined in the field by Dr. Antonia Trichopoulou of the University of Athens, an expert on the Mediterranean diet. She helped administer surveys, often sitting in village kitchens to ask subjects to reconstruct their childhood eating habits. She noted that the Ikarians’ diet, like that of others around the Mediterranean, was rich in olive oil and vegetables, low in dairy (except goat’s milk) and meat products, and also included moderate amounts of alcohol. It emphasized homegrown potatoes, beans (garbanzo, black-eyed peas and lentils), wild greens and locally produced goat milk and honey.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">As I knew from my studies in other places with high numbers of very old people, every one of the Ikarians’ dietary tendencies had been linked to increased life spans: low intake of saturated fats from meat and dairy was associated with lower risk of heart disease; olive oil — especially unheated — reduced bad cholesterol and raised good cholesterol. Goat’s milk contained serotonin-boosting tryptophan and was easily digestible for older people. Some wild greens had 10 times as many antioxidants as red wine. Wine — in moderation — had been shown to be good for you if consumed as part of a Mediterranean diet, because it prompts the body to absorb more flavonoids, a type of antioxidant. And coffee, once said to stunt growth, was now associated with lower rates of diabetes, heart disease and, for some, Parkinson’s. Local sourdough bread might actually reduce a meal’s glycemic load. You could even argue that potatoes contributed heart-healthy potassium, vitamin B6 and fiber to the Ikarian diet. Another health factor at work might be the unprocessed nature of the food they consume: as Trichopoulou observed, because islanders eat greens from their gardens and fields, they consume fewer pesticides and more nutrients. She estimated that the Ikarian diet, compared with the standard American diet, might yield up to four additional years of life expectancy.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Of course, it may not be only what they’re eating; it may also be what they’re not eating. “Are they doing something positive, or is it the absence of something negative?” Gary Taubes asked when I described to him the Ikarians’ longevity and their diet. Taubes is a founder of the nonprofit Nutrition Science Initiative and the author of “Why We Get Fat” (and has written several articles for this magazine). “One explanation why they live so long is they eat a plant-based diet. Or it could be the absence of sugar and white flour. From what I know of the Greek diet, they eat very little refined sugar, and their breads have been traditionally made with stone-ground wheat.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Following the report by Pes and Poulain, Dr. Christina Chrysohoou, a cardiologist at the University of Athens School of Medicine, teamed up with half a dozen scientists to organize the Ikaria Study, which includes a survey of the diet of 673 Ikarians. She found that her subjects consumed about six times as many beans a day as Americans, ate fish twice a week and meat five times a month, drank on average two to three cups of coffee a day and took in about a quarter as much refined sugar — the elderly did not like soda. She also discovered they were consuming high levels of olive oil along with two to four glasses of wine a day.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-79elbk" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-z3e15g" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper-hidden" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; inset: 0px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: fixed; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div class="css-8776uw ehw59r12" data-testid="photoviewer-children" height="450px" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 450px; left: 559px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;" width="600px"><div class="css-tux0zj ehw59r13" data-testid="photoviewer-overlay" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); border: 0px; font: inherit; inset: 0px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: top 0.2s ease 0s, right 0.2s ease 0s, bottom 0.2s ease 0s, left 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline; z-index: 1;"><div class="css-oaukws ehw59r11" data-testid="photoviewer-captionblock" height="768px" style="-webkit-box-pack: center; border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font: inherit; height: 768px; justify-content: center; left: 1370.5px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 15px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; top: 163px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 200px; z-index: 1;" width="200px"></div><div class="css-b8xjz0 ehw59r14" height="450px" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 450px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: width 0.2s ease 0s, height 0.2s ease 0s, margin 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px; z-index: 1;" width="600px"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: visibility 0s ease 0.5s; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: hidden;"><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria4/28Ikaria4-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria4/28Ikaria4-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1024w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria4/28Ikaria4-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1500w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 450px; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;" /></div></div></div><button aria-label="Expand image captioned The key to Ikarian longevity is not simply a healthful diet; daily socializing may be just as crucial. From left: Christos Ploutis, 75; Konstantinos Sakoutis, 82; and Thanasis Kamperis, 62." class="css-1vkv6l7 ehw59r10" data-testid="photoviewer-expand-button" style="appearance: button; border-color: initial; border-style: none; border-width: initial; bottom: 10px; cursor: pointer; font-size: 16px; height: 60px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; right: 10px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0s; vertical-align: middle; width: 60px;"><svg fill="none" height="60" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="60"><circle cx="30" cy="30" fill-opacity="0.5" fill="#000" r="30"></circle><path clip-rule="evenodd" d="M23.9665 37.3668L26.5997 40H20V33.4003L22.6332 36.0335L26.6667 32L28 33.3333L23.9665 37.3668Z" fill-rule="evenodd" fill="#fff"></path><path clip-rule="evenodd" d="M36.0335 22.6332L33.4003 20H40V26.5997L37.3668 23.9665L33.3333 28L32 26.6667L36.0335 22.6332Z" fill-rule="evenodd" fill="#fff"></path></svg></button></div></div></div><div class="css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15" data-testid="photoviewer-children" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.3s ease 0.2s; vertical-align: baseline;"><figure aria-label="media" class="img-sz-medium css-1l3p632 e1g7ppur0" role="group" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 2.6875rem auto; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><div class="css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Image</span><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="The key to Ikarian longevity is not simply a healthful diet; daily socializing may be just as crucial. From left: Christos Ploutis, 75; Konstantinos Sakoutis, 82; and Thanasis Kamperis, 62." class="css-1m50asq" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria4/28Ikaria4-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria4/28Ikaria4-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1024w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/28Ikaria4/28Ikaria4-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 1500w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 600px;" /></div></div></div><figcaption class="css-1l44abu ewdxa0s0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 10px 20px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span aria-hidden="true" class="css-i48y28 e13ogyst0" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px 7px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">The key to Ikarian longevity is not simply a healthful diet; daily socializing may be just as crucial. From left: Christos Ploutis, 75; Konstantinos Sakoutis, 82; and Thanasis Kamperis, 62.</span><span class="css-ach9cc e1z0qqy90" style="border: 0px; display: inline; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.01em; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Credit...</span><span style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Andrea Frazzetta/LUZphoto for The New York Times</span></span></figcaption></figure></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 615px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Chrysohoou also suspected that Ikarians’ sleep and sex habits might have something to do with their long life. She cited a 2008 paper by the University of Athens Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health that studied more than 23,000 Greek adults. The researchers followed subjects for an average of six years, measuring their diets, physical activity and how much they napped. They found that occasional napping was associated with a 12 percent reduction in the risk of coronary heart disease, but that regular napping — at least three days weekly — was associated with a 37 percent reduction. She also pointed out a preliminary study of Ikarian men between 65 and 100 that included the fact that 80 percent of them claimed to have sex regularly, and a quarter of that self-reported group said they were doing so with “good duration” and “achievement.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span class="css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">During our time</span> on Ikaria, my colleagues and I stayed at Thea Parikos’s guesthouse, the social hub of western Ikaria. Local women gathered in the dining room at midmorning to gossip over tea. Late at night, after the dinner rush, tables were pushed aside and the dining room became a dance floor, with people locking arms and kick-dancing to Greek music.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-qlhgae" id="story-ad-5-wrapper" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-bottom-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; min-height: 280px; padding: 12px 0px 30px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-l9onyx" id="story-ad-5-slug" style="border: 0px; color: #cccccc; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.5625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.05rem; line-height: 0.5625rem; margin: 0px 0px 9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVERTISEMENT</p></div><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html#after-story-ad-5" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad story-ad-5-wrapper" data-google-query-id="CLDm1oCqw_MCFWWiAAAdKrwJdg" id="story-ad-5" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; min-height: 250px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_7__container__" style="border: 0pt none; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" data-google-container-id="8" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_7" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_7" scrolling="no" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font: inherit; height: 250px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: bottom; width: 970px;" title="3rd party ad content" width="970"></iframe></div></div><div id="after-story-ad-5" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 2963.47px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Parikos cooked the way her ancestors had for centuries, giving us a chance to consume the diet we were studying. For breakfast, she served local yogurt and honey from the 90-year-old beekeeper next door. For dinner, she walked out into the fields and returned with handfuls of weedlike greens, combined them with pumpkin and baked them into savory pies. My favorite was a dish made with black-eyed peas, tomatoes, fennel tops and garlic and finished with olive oil that we dubbed Ikarian stew.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Despite her consummately Ikarian air, Parikos was actually born in Detroit to an American father and an Ikarian mother. She had attended high school, worked as a real estate agent and married in the United States. After she and her husband had their first child, she felt a “genetic craving” for Ikaria. “I was not unhappy in America,” she said. “We had good friends, we went out to dinner on the weekends, I drove a Chevrolet. But I was always in a hurry.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">When she and her family moved to Ikaria and opened the guesthouse, everything changed. She stopped shopping for most groceries, instead planting a huge garden that provided most of their fruits and vegetables. She lost weight without trying to. I asked her if she thought her simple diet was going to make her family live longer. “Yes,” she said. “But we don’t think about it that way. It’s bigger than that.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Although unemployment is high — perhaps as high as 40 percent — most everyone has access to a family garden and livestock, Parikos told me. People who work might have several jobs. Someone involved in tourism, for example, might also be a painter or an electrician or have a store. “People are fine here because we are very self-sufficient,” she said. “We may not have money for luxuries, but we will have food on the table and still have fun with family and friends. We may not be in a hurry to get work done during the day, so we work into the night. At the end of the day, we don’t go home to sit on the couch.”</p><div class="css-79elbk" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-z3e15g" data-testid="photoviewer-wrapper-hidden" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; inset: 0px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: fixed; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.2s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div class="css-s4vxit ehw59r12" data-testid="photoviewer-children" height="1197.46875px" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 1197.47px; left: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; text-size-adjust: 100%; top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 240px;" width="240px"><div class="css-tux0zj ehw59r13" data-testid="photoviewer-overlay" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); border: 0px; font: inherit; 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margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: visibility 0s ease 0.5s; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: hidden;"><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 240px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="50vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-lifestyle-stats/ikaria-lifestyle-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-lifestyle-stats/ikaria-lifestyle-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-lifestyle-stats/ikaria-lifestyle-stats-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w" style="border: 0px; 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margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 240px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="Figures from the Ikaria Study, which surveyed the island's over-80 population" class="css-1m50asq" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="50vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-lifestyle-stats/ikaria-lifestyle-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-lifestyle-stats/ikaria-lifestyle-stats-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/24/magazine/ikaria-lifestyle-stats/ikaria-lifestyle-stats-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 190w" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 240px;" /></div></div></div><figcaption class="css-1e7005o ewdxa0s0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: auto 0px 15px 15px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 330px;"><span aria-hidden="true" class="css-i48y28 e13ogyst0" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: auto 7px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Figures from the Ikaria Study, which surveyed the island's over-80 population</span></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Parikos was nursing a mug of coffee. Sunlight sifted in through the window shades; the waves of the nearby Aegean could be barely heard over the din of breakfast. “Do you know there’s no word in Greek for privacy?” she declared. “When everyone knows everyone else’s business, you get a feeling of connection and security. The lack of privacy is actually good, because it puts a check on people who don’t want to be caught or who do something to embarrass their family. If your kids misbehave, your neighbor has no problem disciplining them. There is less crime, not because of good policing, but because of the risk of shaming the family. You asked me about food, and yes, we do eat better here than in America. But it’s more about how we eat. Even if it’s your lunch break from work, you relax and enjoy your meal. You enjoy the company of whoever you are with. Food here is always enjoyed in combination with conversation.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">In the United States, when it comes to improving health, people tend to focus on exercise and what we put into our mouths — organic foods, omega-3’s, micronutrients. We spend nearly $30 billion a year on vitamins and supplements alone. Yet in Ikaria and the other places like it, diet only partly explained higher life expectancy. Exercise — at least the way we think of it, as willful, dutiful, physical activity — played a small role at best.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-1r07izm" id="story-ad-6-wrapper" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-bottom-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; padding: 12px 0px 30px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-l9onyx" id="story-ad-6-slug" style="border: 0px; color: #cccccc; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.5625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.05rem; line-height: 0.5625rem; margin: 0px 0px 9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVERTISEMENT</p></div><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html#after-story-ad-6" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad story-ad-6-wrapper" data-google-query-id="CPOLoIyqw_MCFcadAAAdOPgDIQ" id="story-ad-6" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 90px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_8__container__" style="border: 0pt none; display: inline-block; font: inherit; height: 90px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 728px;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" data-google-container-id="9" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="90" id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_8" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://7c6f93c1b3cfe52b6f25bec5054b1ce2.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="728"></iframe></div></div><div id="after-story-ad-6" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 2115px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Social structure might turn out to be more important. In Sardinia, a cultural attitude that celebrated the elderly kept them engaged in the community and in extended-family homes until they were in their 100s. Studies have linked early retirement among some workers in industrialized economies to reduced life expectancy. In Okinawa, there’s none of this artificial punctuation of life. Instead, the notion of <em class="css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ikigai</em> — “the reason for which you wake up in the morning” — suffuses people’s entire adult lives. It gets centenarians out of bed and out of the easy chair to teach karate, or to guide the village spiritually, or to pass down traditions to children. The Nicoyans in Costa Rica use the term <em class="css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">plan de vida</em> to describe a lifelong sense of purpose. As Dr. Robert Butler, the first director of the National Institute on Aging, once told me, being able to define your life meaning adds to your life expectancy.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">The healthful plant-based diet that Seventh-day Adventists eat has been associated with an extra decade of life expectancy. It has also been linked to reduced rates of diabetes and heart disease. Adventists’ diet is inspired by the Bible — Genesis 1:29. (“And God said: ‘Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed . . . and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food.’ ”) But again, the key insight might be more about social structure than about the diet itself. While for most people, diets eventually fail, the Adventists eat the way they do for decades. How? Adventists hang out with other Adventists. When you go to an Adventist picnic, there’s no steak grilling on the barbecue; it’s a vegetarian potluck. No one is drinking alcohol or smoking. As Nicholas Christakis, a physician and social scientist at Harvard, found when examining data from a long-term study of the residents of Framingham, Mass., health habits can be as contagious as a cold virus. By his calculation, a Framingham individual’s chances of becoming obese shot up by 57 percent if a friend became obese. Among the Adventists we looked at, it was mostly positive social contagions that were in circulation.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span class="css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Ask the very old </span>on Ikaria how they managed to live past 90, and they’ll usually talk about the clean air and the wine. Or, as one 101-year-old woman put it to me with a shrug, “We just forget to die.” The reality is they have no idea how they got to be so old. And neither do we. To answer that question would require carefully tracking the lifestyles of a study group and a control group for an entire human lifetime (and then some). We do know from reliable data that people on Ikaria are outliving those on surrounding islands (a control group, of sorts). Samos, for instance, is just eight miles away. People there with the same genetic background eat yogurt, drink wine, breathe the same air, fish from the same sea as their neighbors on Ikaria. But people on Samos tend to live no longer than average Greeks. This is what makes the Ikarian formula so tantalizing.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">If you pay careful attention to the way Ikarians have lived their lives, it appears that a dozen subtly powerful, mutually enhancing and pervasive factors are at work. It’s easy to get enough rest if no one else wakes up early and the village goes dead during afternoon naptime. It helps that the cheapest, most accessible foods are also the most healthful — and that your ancestors have spent centuries developing ways to make them taste good. It’s hard to get through the day in Ikaria without walking up 20 hills. You’re not likely to ever feel the existential pain of not belonging or even the simple stress of arriving late. Your community makes sure you’ll always have something to eat, but peer pressure will get you to contribute something too. You’re going to grow a garden, because that’s what your parents did, and that’s what your neighbors are doing. You’re less likely to be a victim of crime because everyone at once is a busybody and feels as if he’s being watched. At day’s end, you’ll share a cup of the seasonal herbal tea with your neighbor because that’s what he’s serving. Several glasses of wine may follow the tea, but you’ll drink them in the company of good friends. On Sunday, you’ll attend church, and you’ll fast before Orthodox feast days. Even if you’re antisocial, you’ll never be entirely alone. Your neighbors will cajole you out of your house for the village festival to eat your portion of goat meat.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="sizeMedium layoutVertical css-1f2w18c ejvbdkh1" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 420px;"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/10/28/magazine/ikaria-centenarians.html" style="border: 0px; color: black; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-5nx6oe" style="border: 0px; bottom: 51px; font: inherit; left: 0px; margin: auto; padding: 0px; position: absolute; right: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 378px; z-index: 2;"><h2 class="css-9kcu5u" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; color: white; font-family: nyt-cheltenham, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.5rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.75rem; margin: 0px 0px 19px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">The Enchanted Island of Centenarians</h2><div class="css-1xhl2m" style="border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.33); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 24px 0px 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p class="css-1e85yo" style="background-image: url("/vi-assets/static-assets/icon-slideshow-3b83378d3d0125cb77d5cc6c291072e2.svg"); background-repeat: no-repeat; border: 0px; color: white; display: inline-block; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; height: 25px; letter-spacing: 0.03em; line-height: 0.9375rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0.75rem 0px 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: middle; width: 30px;"></p><p class="css-1e85yo" style="border: 0px; color: white; display: inline-block; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.03em; line-height: 0.8125rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0.75rem 0px 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: middle;">10 Photos</p><p class="css-1e85yo" style="border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.33); border-left-style: solid; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 0px 1px; color: white; display: inline-block; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.03em; line-height: 0.8125rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0.75rem; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: middle;">View Slide Show<span class="css-t4350i" style="border: 0px; bottom: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: 1rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; right: 4px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: right 0.18s ease-out 0s; vertical-align: middle;">›</span></p></div></div><div class="css-79elbk" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-hyytny" style="background: linear-gradient(transparent, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.7)); border: 0px; bottom: 0px; font: inherit; height: 150px; left: 0px; margin: 0px; max-height: 150px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; right: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 420px; z-index: 1;"></div><figure aria-label="media" class="sizeMedium layoutVertical ejvbdkh0 css-1pv2nfg" role="group" style="backface-visibility: hidden; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 15px auto 0px; max-width: 600px; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; transition: opacity 0.15s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline; width: 420px; z-index: 0;"><div class="css-bsn42l" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-8h527k" data-testid="lazy-image" style="animation: 300ms ease-in 0s 1 normal forwards running animation-1m9j9gf; background-color: #f7f7f5; border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 420px;"><div data-testid="lazyimage-container" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" class="css-11cwn6f" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/ikaria-centenarians-slide-CKQO/ikaria-centenarians-slide-CKQO-jumbo.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale" srcset="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/ikaria-centenarians-slide-CKQO/ikaria-centenarians-slide-CKQO-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 695w,https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/10/28/magazine/ikaria-centenarians-slide-CKQO/ikaria-centenarians-slide-CKQO-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp 695w" style="border: none; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 420px;" /></div></div></div><figcaption class="css-13o4bnb e18f7pbr0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 10px 20px 0px 0px; max-width: 900px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></figcaption></figure></div></a><div class="css-13o4bnb e15qwgfe0" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 10px 20px 0px 0px; max-width: 900px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-i48y28 e13ogyst0" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: nyt-magsans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.125rem; margin: 0px 7px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Andrea Frazzetta/LUZphoto for The New York Times</span></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 645px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Every one of these factors can be tied to longevity. That’s what the $70 billion diet industry and $20 billion health-club industry do in their efforts to persuade us that if we eat the right food or do the right workout, we’ll be healthier, lose weight and live longer. But these strategies rarely work. Not because they’re wrong-minded: it’s a good idea for people to do any of these healthful activities. The problem is, it’s difficult to change individual behaviors when community behaviors stay the same. In the United States, you can’t go to a movie, walk through the airport or buy cough medicine without being routed through a gantlet of candy bars, salty snacks and sugar-sweetened beverages. The processed-food industry spends more than $4 billion a year tempting us to eat. How do you combat that? Discipline is a good thing, but discipline is a muscle that fatigues. Sooner or later, most people cave in to relentless temptation.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">As our access to calories has increased, we’ve decreased the amount of physical activity in our lives. In 1970, about 40 percent of all children in the U.S. walked to school; now fewer than 12 percent do. Our grandparents, without exercising, burned up about five times as many calories a day in physical activity as we do. At the same time, access to food has exploded.</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div><div class="" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-1r07izm" id="story-ad-7-wrapper" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border-bottom-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(243, 243, 243); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px; font: inherit; margin: 43px auto; padding: 12px 0px 30px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-l9onyx" id="story-ad-7-slug" style="border: 0px; color: #cccccc; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.5625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.05rem; line-height: 0.5625rem; margin: 0px 0px 9px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVERTISEMENT</p></div><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html#after-story-ad-7" style="border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); color: black; font: inherit; height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Continue reading the main story</a><div class="ad story-ad-7-wrapper" data-google-query-id="CNGErZGqw_MCFaSQAAAdIXAIDA" id="story-ad-7" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: 90px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_9__container__" style="border: 0pt none; display: inline-block; font: inherit; height: 90px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 728px;"><iframe allow="attribution-reporting" data-google-container-id="a" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="90" id="google_ads_iframe_/29390238/nyt/magazine_9" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://7c6f93c1b3cfe52b6f25bec5054b1ce2.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="728"></iframe></div></div><div id="after-story-ad-7" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></div></div></div><div class="css-s99gbd StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="border: 0px; display: flex; flex-direction: row; font: inherit; height: 1155px; margin: 0px auto 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1200px;"><div class="css-53u6y8" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px calc((100% - 600px) / 2); max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Despite the island’s relative isolation, its tortuous roads and the fierce independence of its inhabitants, the American food culture, among other forces, is beginning to take root in Ikaria. Village markets are now selling potato chips and soda, which in my experience is replacing tea as the drink of choice among younger Ikarians. As the island’s ancient traditions give way before globalization, the gap between Ikarian life spans and those of the rest of the world seems to be gradually disappearing, as the next generations of old people become less likely to live quite so long.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">The big aha for me, having studied populations of the long-lived for nearly a decade, is how the factors that encourage longevity reinforce one another over the long term. For people to adopt a healthful lifestyle, I have become convinced, they need to live in an ecosystem, so to speak, that makes it possible. As soon as you take culture, belonging, purpose or religion out of the picture, the foundation for long healthy lives collapses. The power of such an environment lies in the mutually reinforcing relationships among lots of small nudges and default choices. There’s no silver bullet to keep death and the diseases of old age at bay. If there’s anything close to a secret, it’s silver buckshot.</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span class="css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">I called Moraitis </span>a few weeks ago from my home in Minneapolis. Elpiniki died in the spring at age 85, and now he lives alone. He picked up the phone in the same whitewashed house that he’d moved into 35 years ago. It was late afternoon in Ikaria. He had worked in his vineyard that morning and just awakened from a nap. We chatted for a few minutes, but then he warned me that some of his neighbors were coming over for a drink in a few minutes and he’d have to go. I had one last question for him. How does he think he recovered from lung cancer?</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">“It just went away,” he said. “I actually went back to America about 25 years after moving here to see if the doctors could explain it to me.”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">I had heard this part of the story before. It had become a piece of the folklore of Ikaria, proof of its exceptional way of life. Still, I asked him, “What happened?”</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">“My doctors were all dead.”</p></div><aside aria-label="companion column" class="css-ew4tgv" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px auto; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 210px;"></aside></div></section><div class="bottom-of-article" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="css-1ubp8k9" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 1.1875rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.75rem; margin: 1rem auto 1.25rem; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div class="css-acwcvw" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="css-1vg6q84" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Correction:</span> <time class="css-7z97b0 e16638kd0" datetime="2012-10-28T00:00:00-04:00" style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-size: 1.1875rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.75rem; margin: 1rem auto 1.25rem; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">Oct. 28, 2012</time><p class="css-bwdy7f evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">An article on Page 36 this weekend about the reasons people on the Greek Island of Ikaria live long lives misstates the period when fasting is practiced by the island’s inhabitants. They fast before Orthodox feast days, not during Orthodox feast days.</p></div></div><div class="css-1yif149" style="border: 0px; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.9375rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.375rem; margin: 2rem auto 1rem; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">This article is adapted from new material being published in the second edition of “Blue Zones,” by <a href="mailto:dan@bluezones.com" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; color: black; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Dan Buettner</a>, out next month from National Geographic.</p><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Editor: <a href="mailto:drobin@nytimes.com" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; color: black; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Dean Robinson</a></p></div><div class="css-13ldwoe" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1rem; margin: 0px auto 1em; max-width: 600px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;">A version of this article appears in print on <span class="css-1dmwf73" data-testid="todays-date" datetime="2012-10-28T04:00:00.000Z" style="border: 0px; display: inline; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Oct. 28, 2012</span>, Page 36 of the Sunday Magazine with the headline: The Enchanted Island Of Centenarians<span style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">. <a href="http://www.nytreprints.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Order Reprints</a> | <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/section/todayspaper" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Today’s Paper</a> | <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/subscriptions/Multiproduct/lp8HYKU.html?campaignId=48JQY" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Subscribe</a></span></div></div>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-38035197822244780362021-07-12T13:09:00.000-07:002021-07-12T13:09:12.020-07:00Doctors find cure for Parkinson’s Disease in Irish dancing<p> reposted from <a href="https://www.irishpost.com/news/doctors-find-cure-parkinsons-disease-irish-dancing-167346#:~:text=AN%20ITALIAN%20doctor%20has%20remarkably,those%20suffering%20from%20the%20conditionhh">https://www.irishpost.com/news/doctors-find-cure-parkinsons-disease-irish-dancing-167346#:~:text=AN%20ITALIAN%20doctor%20has%20remarkably,those%20suffering%20from%20the%20conditionhh</a></p><p><br /></p><section class="visual-block" style="background-color: white; 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border: 1px solid rgb(235, 235, 237); box-sizing: border-box; color: #337ab7; display: inline-block; height: 40px; position: relative; text-decoration-line: none; transition: opacity 0.3s linear 0s; vertical-align: top; width: 40px;" target="_blank"><span class="icon icon-facebook" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2d0097; font-family: icomoon !important; font-size: 18px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; left: 19px; line-height: 18px; margin: -7px 0px 0px -6px; position: absolute; speak: none; top: 19px;"></span></a></li> </ul></div></div></div><div class="col-md-8" style="box-sizing: border-box; float: left; min-height: 1px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; position: relative; width: 780px;"><div class="text-frame" id="article-body" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #171107; font-size: 18px; line-height: 24px; overflow: hidden;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">AN ITALIAN doctor has remarkably discovered that traditional Irish dancing can, in effect, cure Parkinson’s disease.</span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">Doctor Daniele Volpe noticed that performing an Irish jig can override the neurological impediments that affect the gait in those suffering from the condition.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">The incredible findings have shown that even sufferers who struggle to walk are suddenly able to move freely and uncompromised when performing the dance.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">It’s unclear exactly why this happens.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">Some believe it to be the rhythm of the music itself, that the upbeat pattern of the Irish jig provides the brain with enough periodic acoustic cues to override the degenerative disorder’s effect on the nervous system.</p><div class="incontent-mpu " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 15px 0px;"><div class="river-standard-ad-container" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-align: center;"><div class="banner text-center hidden-xs mpu-ad" style="box-sizing: border-box; min-height: 268px;"><div class="" data-google-query-id="CISPrtSq3vECFUYhhwodzMEAsw" data-slot="incontent-mpu" data-unit="incontent_MPU1_desktop" id="adngin-incontent_MPU1_desktop-0" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="sn_ad_label" id="sn_ad_label_adngin-incontent_MPU1_desktop-0" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-size: 12px; margin: 0px;">ADVERTISEMENT</div><div id="google_ads_iframe_/22152718/irishpost_incontent_MPU_desktop_0__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; height: 250px; width: 300px;"><iframe allow="conversion-measurement" data-google-container-id="3" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/22152718/irishpost_incontent_MPU_desktop_0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://0c84bb2cf30178d216ca3146196c8f09.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: table; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div></div></div></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">It may also be that due to the constant need to change feet during the dance, performers are required to be constantly shifting their balance and transferring weight from one leg to another in such a consistent pattern that they can bypass their neurological impediments.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">If that all sounds a bit confusing, let’s just agree that dancing just makes your life better, doesn’t it?</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">Dr Volpe, a keen musician who - despite his Italian heritage - frequently visits Ireland to play in a traditional Irish band, first noticed something when he was due to perform in Peppers Pub in the village of Feakle, Co. Clare, back in 2010.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"></p><div class="incontent-mpu " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 15px 0px;"><div class="river-standard-ad-container" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-align: center;"><div class="banner text-center hidden-xs mpu-ad" style="box-sizing: border-box; min-height: 268px;"><div class="" data-google-query-id="CIWPrtSq3vECFUYhhwodzMEAsw" data-slot="incontent-mpu" data-unit="incontent_MPU2_desktop" id="adngin-incontent_MPU2_desktop-0" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="sn_ad_label" id="sn_ad_label_adngin-incontent_MPU2_desktop-0" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-size: 12px; margin: 0px;">ADVERTISEMENT</div><div id="google_ads_iframe_/22152718/irishpost_incontent_MPU2_desktop_0__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; height: 250px; width: 300px;"><iframe allow="conversion-measurement" data-google-container-id="4" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/22152718/irishpost_incontent_MPU2_desktop_0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://0c84bb2cf30178d216ca3146196c8f09.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: table; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div></div></div></div><div class="caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 15px;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-167348" height="576" src="https://media.irishpost.co.uk/uploads/2019/05/25120818/irish-dance.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; width: 750px;" width="1024" />Incredibly, Irish dancing could help to counteract the effects of Parkinson's disease</div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">He saw a man enter the pub who appeared to be suffering from Parkinson’s. He was left aghast, however, when 20 minutes later, the man who had previously struggled to walk, was up on the stage, effortlessly performing Irish trad.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">He decided to perform an experiment back in Italy to see if this was just a bizarre occurrence or an opportunity for a scientific breakthrough.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">He recruited 24 subjects who were suffering from the disease and split them into two groups.</p><div class="incontent-mpu " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 15px 0px;"><div class="river-standard-ad-container" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-align: center;"><div class="banner text-center hidden-xs mpu-ad" style="box-sizing: border-box; min-height: 268px;"><div class="" data-google-query-id="CIaPrtSq3vECFUYhhwodzMEAsw" data-slot="incontent-mpu" data-unit="incontent_MPU3_desktop" id="adngin-incontent_MPU3_desktop-0" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="sn_ad_label" id="sn_ad_label_adngin-incontent_MPU3_desktop-0" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-size: 12px; margin: 0px;">ADVERTISEMENT</div><div id="google_ads_iframe_/22152718/irishpost_incontent_MPU3_desktop_0__container__" style="border: 0pt none; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; height: 250px; width: 300px;"><iframe allow="conversion-measurement" data-google-container-id="5" data-is-safeframe="true" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="250" id="google_ads_iframe_/22152718/irishpost_incontent_MPU3_desktop_0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" scrolling="no" src="https://0c84bb2cf30178d216ca3146196c8f09.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: table; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div></div></div></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">Over a six-month period, he treated half of them with conventional physiotherapy, and the other half he treated with regular Irish set dance courses.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">While both forms of therapy were successful, the Irish dance group improved more in every measurable category.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;">Below is an incredible video of Dr Volpe’s patients performing their disease-battling jigs:</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="113" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eYee9c29BtA?feature=oembed" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: table; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%;" width="200"></iframe></p><div class="incontent-mpu " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 15px 0px;"><div class="river-standard-ad-container" style="box-sizing: border-box; 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border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: table; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="300"></iframe></div></div></div></div></div><div class="article-footer" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 49px;"><div class="tag-block" style="border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-left-color: rgb(224, 224, 224); border-left-style: solid; border-right-color: rgb(224, 224, 224); border-right-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(224, 224, 224); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; overflow: hidden; padding: 21px 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><span class="title-tag" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1e1e; display: inline-block; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px 12px 0px 0px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: middle;">SEE MORE:</span> <span class="tag" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; 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display: inline-block; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><a href="https://www.irishpost.com/parkinsons-disease" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1e1e; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none; transition: opacity 0.3s linear 0s;">Parkinson's Disease,</a></span> <span class="tag" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><a href="https://www.irishpost.com/traditional" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1e1e; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none; transition: opacity 0.3s linear 0s;">Traditional,</a></span> <span class="tag" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><a href="https://www.irishpost.com/traditional-irish" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1e1e; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none; transition: opacity 0.3s linear 0s;">Traditional Irish,</a></span> <span class="tag" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><a href="https://www.irishpost.com/traditional-irish-music" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1e1e; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none; transition: opacity 0.3s linear 0s;">Traditional Irish Music</a></span></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></section>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-493317146835906697.post-84986673316318254272021-07-12T13:04:00.002-07:002021-07-12T13:04:08.602-07:00Italian Doctor’s Love for Irish Music Inspires Parkinson’s Disease Clinical Trial<p> reposted from <a href="https://www.michaeljfox.org/news/italian-doctors-love-irish-music-inspires-parkinsons-disease-clinical-trial">https://www.michaeljfox.org/news/italian-doctors-love-irish-music-inspires-parkinsons-disease-clinical-trial</a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><section class="main-hero" id="main-content" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263c49; font-family: freight-sans-pro, sans-serif; font-size: 12.75px; margin: 0px -9.6rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: calc(100% + 19.2rem);"><div id="block-fox-page-title" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="hero" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 6.4rem 0px 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1092.8px; z-index: 1;"><div class="hero-content" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(28, 43, 52, 0.15) 0px 0.5rem 0.8rem 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px auto; padding: 4.8rem 0px 3.2rem; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; width: calc(100% - 19.6rem);"><div class="hero-content-inner" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px auto; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 785.013px;"><div class="box box_top1 box_bottom1 box_bottom2Md box_bottom3Lg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0.8rem 0px 2.4rem; vertical-align: baseline;"><h1 class="txt txt_27 txt_43Md txt_54Lg txt_68Xl txt_bold txt_colorSlate7 txt_line12 txt_line11Md txt_line10Lg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 5.4rem; font-style: inherit; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; position: relative; transition: all 0.2s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">Italian Doctor’s Love for Irish Music Inspires Parkinson’s Disease Clinical Trial</span></h1></div><div class="box box_bottom1" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0.8rem; vertical-align: baseline;"><h1 class="txt txt_14 txt_17Md txt_19Xl txt_colorSlate7 txt_medium" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.7rem; font-style: inherit; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.2; margin: 0px; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; position: relative; transition: all 0.2s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><time datetime="2012-06-25T12:00:00Z" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">June 25, 2012</time></h1></div></div></div></div></div></section><section class="main-primary" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263c49; font-family: freight-sans-pro, sans-serif; font-size: 12.75px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 6.4rem 0px 80.6375px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 597.737px;"><div class="tier tier_reduced" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 7.2rem 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="container container_narrow1Md container_narrow3Lg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: auto; max-width: 132rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 469.1px;"><div class="featuredArticle" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px auto; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><img alt="Italian Doctor’s Love for Irish Music Inspires Parkinson’s Disease Clinical Trial" class="img" sizes="100vw" src="https://www.michaeljfox.org/sites/default/files/styles/featured_xl/public/images/featured/irishdancing.gif?itok=3zYAymFp" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/featured_sm/public/images/featured/irishdancing.gif?itok=R-RIv_6R 699w, /sites/default/files/styles/featured_xl/public/images/featured/irishdancing.gif?itok=3zYAymFp 814w, /sites/default/files/styles/featured_xxl/public/images/featured/irishdancing.gif?itok=oPO-2YgN 1628w" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /></div></div></div><div class="tier" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 7.2rem 0px 9.6rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="container container_narrow1Md container_narrow3Lg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: auto; max-width: 132rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 469.1px;"><div class="quarantine quarantine_full" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-feature-settings: "lnum"; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: lining-nums; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px auto; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Fox Meeting Notes: We report on the latest news in Parkinson’s disease research, live from the Movement Disorder Society International Congress in Dublin, Ireland.</em></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">About a year ago, on one of his frequent trips to his beloved County Clare, Dr. Daniele Volpe, of Venice, Italy watched a man walk into a bar. Dr. Volpe was playing guitar in an Irish folk band, but he paused as he noticed the man’s slow, halting gait. These symptoms were familiar to Dr. Volpe – He works in a clinic that specializes in physiotherapy designed to help people with Parkinson’s disease (PD).</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">As Dr. Volpe resumed playing, he noticed the man rise from his seat in the bar, and he began to dance – traditional Irish set dance, he would later learn. Dr. Volpe smiled before the proverbial light went on in his noggin – could Irish set dance work as therapy for people struggling with the motor symptoms of PD? It was worth a shot. So, at last year’s Movement Disorders Society congress, he brought up the idea with the leading Irish neurologist Dr. Timothy Lynch, who was quickly also hooked.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">Fast forward one year to this week in Dublin. That initial nugget culled from a bar in County Clare has turned into positive results from an observational study. It also became an MDS Congress performance by a team of Venetian Irish set dancers who all have PD.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">We sat down with Dr. Volpe between meetings here to learn a little bit more about his love for Irish music, and what set dancing (and other forms of exercise) could mean for people living with PD.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Please note: The Michael J. Fox Foundation does not endorse any one particular therapy or treatment regimen, and we encourage all patients to discuss therapeutic options, including those involving exercise, with their treating physicians.</em></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">MJFF: Tell us about how you found your way to that bar in County Clare.</span></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">DV: I love Ireland, it is such a beautiful country, and I adore their music. I come to County Clare twice a year to play guitar in an Irish folk band, and on that day, I was playing alongside the famous banjo player Charlie Piggott. I noticed that this man used a cane to walk into the bar. But then he started dancing without any difficulty. I was impressed. I also noticed that he was using a real dance step, and immediately I thought that his steps could be particularly interesting when thinking about improving gait.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">MJFF: What do you mean by the fact that the steps were “particularly interesting for improving gait?”</span></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">DV: First of all, there is much research that says that exercise in general is good for people with PD. But specifically, many with Parkinson’s have difficulty changing direction. Irish set dance allows people with PD to overcome freezing of gait when turning by maintaining a consistent step length (these steps are called “reel steps” in Irish dancing). Reel steps also help them to better transfer their weight more naturally. I believe this dancing may help people with Parkinson’s to re-learn how to make these movements.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">MJFF: You also talk about “acoustic cues” being useful for people struggling with PD motor symptoms. What does this mean?</span></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">DV: In Parkinson’s disease, we’ve found that people move better sometimes under certain conditions. For example, they may see something take place in front of them that inspires them to walk forward, or, they may hear something that helps them to move better. Irish folk music has a very strong rhythm, so it may be that this helps the brain to recognize it’s time to move. Another factor which shouldn’t be discounted is the sense of community that dancing and music instills in patients. It can be a real motivating factor for people with PD who may not want to dance. By getting them to exercise, we are already making an important first step.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">MJFF: Tell us more about the study’s findings on the whole, and what they could mean for people with PD.</span></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">DV: We recruited 24 subjects for the study, which took place over the course of six months. Twelve underwent traditional physiotherapy, while 12 more took Irish set dance courses (for two hours weekly) which I designed with the help of an Irish set dance studio in Venice (yes, it’s true!). I wanted to make sure that the steps were accurate from the perspective of physiotherapy. Then, we ran both groups through some clinical tests and gait analysis. Both experienced significant improvements in the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and in quality of life measurements like number of falls and walking speed. But in each case, the Irish set dance group improved more. Also, only the dance group experienced significant improvement in self-reported freezing of gait and in the Time Up and Go test (TUG). T he dance group also showed a significant improvement in the Caregiver Burden Inventory (CBI), which suggests the high social value of Irish set dance. The results were very intriguing.</p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">MJFF: What’s next? More Irish step dance at next year’s Congress?</span></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: freight-text-pro, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-size: 2.2rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.55; margin: 0px 0px 3.2rem; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 0.1s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.46, 0.45, 0.94) 0s; vertical-align: baseline;">DV: I hope so! This, of course, was a small study, so we’ll need to a real recruit more people for a large scale study to confirm the results. We’re also putting together an instruction manual which shows how you can implement Irish set dance into a real physiotherapeutic program incorporating evidence based medicine. There’s an Irish festival in Venice in 2013, and I’d love for us to be able to put on a larger scale performance then.</p></div></div></div></section>joeLABhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06022311194691796225noreply@blogger.com0