Independent Living Archive

A study published online Jan. 15, 2022, by Appetite suggested that people's expectations of how full they will feel after eating can influence their actual food intake.

The fear of falling can lead to a heightened sense of caution and less physical activity—which can actually increase the risk of falling. To reduce the fear of falling, a person must address underlying conditions, such as poor eyesight or joint problems. It also helps to work with a physical therapist to improve balance, gait (walking pattern), muscle strength, flexibility, and range of motion. When physical therapy ends, one must continue doing strength, stretching, and balance exercises at home in order to keep fear at bay and reduce fall risk.

Gut bacteria may influence our emotions and cognitive capabilities. For example, some bacteria make oxytocin, a hormone the body produces that encourages increased social behavior. Other bacteria make substances that cause symptoms of depression and anxiety. Still others make substances that help people to be calmer under stress. Gut bacteria also have been shown to influence people's vulnerability to certain brain diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and autism. For example, a substance found in the brains of people with Parkinson's disease (synuclein) is made by gut bacteria and can travel via nerves from the gut to the brain.

People who work the night shift might benefit from eating their meals during daytime hours. A 2021 study found a rise in blood sugar in people following night shift hours who ate some meals at night, but not in those who ate all meals during the day.

Olive oil, when consumed as a regular part of the diet, may help protect against an early death and specifically against deaths related to cardiovascular disease, cancer, neurogenerative conditions, and respiratory conditions.

Frequent handwashing may lead to dry, cracked skin. Strategies such as lowering the water temperature and moisturizing with a heavy hand cream after washing can allow the skin to heal. Also try wearing cotton gloves over a thick moisturizer at night.

Urine is often pale yellow, but different colors can indicate dehydration, injury, or conditions like kidney stones or liver disease. In some cases, different colors are caused by certain foods or medications.

Researchers estimated that if people increased daily activity by 10 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, like brisk walking, it could result in 7% fewer deaths per year. Increasing daily activity by 20 or 30 minutes could lower the rate by 13% or 17%, respectively.

Prescription deliveries have the potential for several problems. They might be delayed, damaged, delivered to the wrong address, lost, or stolen. People can miss a delivery if it requires a signature and they aren't home or they can't get to the door before the delivery person leaves. And packages are sometimes left in an unusual spot and overlooked. If medications don't arrive when expected, a recipient should first see if the package was left somewhere on the property, and then contact the delivery service or pharmacy to locate the package.

Scary or misleading claims about things that may cause cancer are so plentiful that it's hard to know which ones to take seriously. A new website developed by experts aims to provide reliable information about whether a particular cancer claim is true.