In the last few years researchers have begun untangling some of the little-known benefits of walking in wintry conditions. It turns out that the conditions most deterring us from taking a stroll are, in fact, excellent reasons to step outdoors…… Read More ›
Health
When you lose weight, where does the fat go?
The most common misconception among doctors, dieticians and personal trainers is that the missing mass has been converted into energy or heat. “There is surprising ignorance and confusion about the metabolic process of weight loss,” says Professor Andrew Brown, head… Read More ›
Why You Can’t Tickle Yourself
In the new study’s first phase, each subject had their moment in front of the GoPros and microphone. Previous studies have established that tickling is mood-dependent—anxiety and unfamiliarity suppress it like a wet blanket. Since participants would have to take… Read More ›
Mental health in the UK is about to get worse
The UK government’s recent mini-budget has come in for a lot of criticism. Its effect on stock markets, pensions and the value of the pound have barely been out of the news. As a clinical psychologist, one issue I find… Read More ›
Memory, mental health, and physical activity
Physical activity can benefit both physical and mental well-being. Different forms of exercise (e.g., aerobic versus anaerobic; running versus walking, swimming, or yoga; high-intensity interval training versus endurance workouts; etc.) impact physical fitness in different ways. For example, running may… Read More ›
Why the Days Seem Shorter as We Get Older
Why does it feel that the time passes faster as we get older? What is the physical basis for the impression that some days are slower than others? Why do we tend to focus on the unusual (the surprise), not… Read More ›
The HySpeed sneaker
When a fully-charged performance wear brand such as Athletic Propulsion Labs – or APL, as it’s more commonly known – and automobile heavyweights McLaren announce that they’re collaborating on luxury footwear, you know the results are going to be spectacular…. Read More ›
What happens to your brain when you don’t get enough sleep?
First, when we accumulate a sleep debt, we lose some of the subjective ability to judge how that lack of sleep affects us.Second, even though we don’t realize it, objective tests show that we continue to have “deficits … in… Read More ›
How old is your dog in human years?
If there’s one myth that has persisted through the years without much evidence, it’s this: multiply your dog’s age by seven to calculate how old they are in “human years.” In other words, the old adage says, a four-year-old dog… Read More ›
Turning away children
In one case, a crisis CAMHS team in Wales would not immediately assess the mental health of an actively suicidal child who had been stopped from jumping off a building earlier the same day unless the GP made a written… Read More ›
McGST 