Your Body Clock and Sleep

The human body is so wonderful! Have you ever realized that inside every one of our brains is a very accurate "Clock"? Yes, we have a very accurate time keeping apparatus that functions like the conductor of a symphony orchestra, keeping everything in rhythm. The Body Clock keeps all the various functions of your body coordinated, and moving to the same rhythm.

The Body Clock is located deep in the center of the brain, in a little group of cells known as the Pineal Gland. Within the Pineal Gland is a store-house of the neurochemical messenger Serotonin, which is the chemical "mainspring" of the Clock. Each day the Serotonin is chemically converted to a related compound, Melatonin; and then the Melatonin is converted right back to Serotonin. The whole cycle from Serotonin to Melatonin and back to Serotonin takes exactly 25 hours - and this forms your Body's Clock.

The Body Clock cycles every 25 hours under experimental conditions of an unchanging environment, such as in a cave kept at a constant level of illumination for weeks on end. If, however, a person is exposed to a natural outdoor cycle of daylight and darkness, the Pineal Gland will automatically set itself to a 24 hour day to match its cycle to the length of one Earth's day. That way, noon in the Pineal Gland is always noon on Earth. If exposed to daylight, the Pineal Gland will neither gain nor lose time, but will always cycle exactly in concert with the Earth as our planet twirls through space. The whole process of setting the Body Clock to Earth time takes about three weeks.

The 24 hour cycling of the Body Clock is important. It adjusts your body chemistry for sleeping and for waking. Every evening your Body Clock will set your physiology for sleeping; then you feel drowsy and sleep soundly. After a while, your Body Clock adjusts your physiology for waking. You then wake up and feel refreshed. Isn’t it a wonder?

A Hot Topic

Got your attention? This really is about the health benefits of capsaicin, the active ingredient in chili peppers. Capsaicin is the substance that makes chili peppers hot. It is a phytochemical which when taken in lower concentrations can offer a myriad of health benefits.

Here are 7 reasons why chili pepper is good for you:

1. Fight Cancer
Capsaicin inhibits growth of human cancer cells by causing cancer cells to commit suicide. In a research conducted at the University of California, Los Angeles, it was noted that capsaicin inhibits growth of human prostate cancer cells in petri dishes and mice.

2. Provide Pain Relief
Capsaicin is a natural pain killer. A topical form of capsaicin is a recognized treatment for osteoarthritis pain.

3. Prevent Sinusitis and Relieve Congestion
The potent antibacterial properties of capsaicin fight and prevent chronic sinus infections or sinusitis. Due to its hot nature, capsaicin also helps to stimulate secretions that in turn help clear mucus from the nose, thereby relieving nasal congestion and sinus-related allergy symptoms.

4. Fight Inflammation
Capsaicin is a potent anti-inflammatory agent. It works by inhibiting Substance P, a neuropeptide which is a key transmitter of pain to the brain and is associated with inflammatory process. Capsaicin is being looked at as a potential treatment for arthritis, psoriasis and diabetic neuropathy.

5. Soothe Intestinal Diseases
A Duke University study found that capsaicin may lead to a cure for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The substance can prevent stomach ulcers by killing harmful bacteria such as H. pylori.

6. Burn Fat and Lose Weight
Capsaicin is a thermogenic agent, which means it increases metabolic activity. This in effect helps burn calories and fat. Many popular "fat-burning" supplements on the market contain capsaicin, as the substance may significantly increase metabolic activity for over 20 minutes after it's eaten.

7. Protect Your Heart
Capsaicin helps protect the heart by reducing cholesterol, triglycerides and platelet aggregation. It may also help the body dissolve fibrin, a fibrous protein involved in the clotting of blood. In addition, cultures around the world that use hot peppers liberally in their meals were found to have significantly lower rates of heart attack and stroke than cultures that do not.

Dare to Move

Some months back, I got this text message from a friend:

Three Simple Rules

1. If you do not go after what you want, you’ll never have it.

2. If you do not ask, the answer will always be a no.

3. If you don’t step forward, you’ll always be in the same place.

So simple yet so true! Learn to take risks, and see where your brave heart can take you.

Laugh Your Way to a Healthy Heart

A laugh every day can keep the heart attack away.

The old saying that “laughter is the best medicine,” definitely appears to be true when it comes to protecting your heart. Laughter, along with an active sense of humor may help prevent heart disease. According to a recent study by cardiologists at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, people with heart disease were 40 percent less likely to laugh in a variety of situations compared to people of the same age without heart disease.

Researchers have shown for the first time that laughter is linked to healthy function of blood vessels while mental stress is associated with impairment of the endothelium, which can cause a series of inflammatory reactions that lead to fat and cholesterol build-up in the coronary arteries and ultimately to a heart attack. Laughter appears to cause, the endothelium, the tissue that forms the inner lining of blood vessels to dilate or expand in order to increase blood flow. At the very least, laughter offsets the impact of mental stress, which is harmful to the endothelium.

This is no laughing matter but have a good laugh anyway. After all, laughter is still the best medicine for your heart.

Take Time to Smell the Roses

An English idiom which simply means to relax; to take time out to enjoy or appreciate life.

Unless you are allergic to pollen and strong scents, literally smelling roses is beneficial to your health. Attar, the essential oil extracted from the petals of various types of rose, promotes physical relaxation and mental tranquility. So, slow down. Stop and smell the roses now and then.

Stress-Free The Sweet Way

When you're stressed, eat desserts because "stressed" when read backwards is "desserts"!

Yeah... sounds funny but this actually has scientific basis. Researchers believe chocolate cravings for example, have something to do with serotonin, a brain chemical that makes us feel relaxed.

According to Deborah Waterhouse, author of "Why Women Need Chocolate", "It's Mother Nature's solution via food cravings to try to elevate those chemicals, help us feel better and to function more efficiently." "We will crave chocolate or some other food that has sugar and fat to help bring those chemicals back into balance."

The trick is to give in only a bit. The equivalent of a half ounce, which is about a third of a candy bar, or a couple of Hershey Kisses will do it, and it's a surprising small amount.

Always Look on the Sunny Side of Life

A very refreshing picture I found on the net. Life is so beautiful if we always look on the brighter side of things. Isn't it?

For A Wonderful Beginning

Here's a hearty meal of fried egg sunny side up and toast to start the day right. Have a great day!