Theravive Home

A new study published in PubMed looked at how cocoa flavanols rescue stress-induced declines in endothelial function after a high-fat meal, but do not affect cerebral oxygenation during stress in young, healthy adults. “We know that when people are stressed, they tend to gravitate towards high-fat foods,” study author Dr. Catarina Rendeiro told us. “We have previously shown that fatty food can impair the body’s vascular recovery from stress. In this study, we wanted to see if adding a high-flavanol food to the fatty meal would alleviate the negative impact of stress in the body." [More]

A new study published in Journal of Addiction looked at whether certain medications can help with substance-related outcomes in patients with opioid and alcohol use disorders. “Our study examines the potential of GLP-1 receptor agonists (RAs), like Ozempic, to reduce severe outcomes, specifically overdose and intoxication, in individuals with opioid and alcohol use disorders,” study author Fares Qeadan told us. “We aimed to see if these medications could provide an adjunctive therapy to help reduce the significant health risks associated with substance use.” [More]

A recent study published in the British Journal of Nutrition looked at the revelations of smartphone survey data concerning the timecourse of changes in mood outcomes following vitamin C or kiwifruit intervention in adults with low vitamin C. “This study analyses secondary outcomes from our main trial (KiwiC for Vitality study) published in 2020,” study author Professor Tamlin Conner of the Department of Psychology at the University of Otago told us. “The secondary outcomes used smartphone surveys of people’s mood every second day throughout the 8-week intervention trial.” [More]

A new survey was recently released by the American Heart Association regarding health habits during the holidays. The survey found that nearly 80 per cent of people overlook their health needs during the holidays. “The survey is about the general trends and attitudes U.S. adults have about stress during the holiday season,” Dr. Glenn Levine told us. Dr. Levine is a volunteer medical expert from the American Heart Association. [More]

Evaluating the food choices made by their peers may improve the eating habits of young adolescents. A study in the United Arab Emirates found that asking adolescents to consciously evaluate the food choices made by their peers caused them to choose healthier foods. [More]

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have experienced feelings of social isolation. For some, interaction with others has been confined to a zoom call, for others there hasn’t been any interaction at all. Now, researchers at MIT have found that the longing for social interaction felt whilst isolated is neurologically similar to that for food cravings when hungry. [More]

Nine out of ten people with experience of eating disorders are dealing with profoundly negative impacts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A study from Northumbria University in the UK found that as well as affecting the general population around the world, the pandemic is causing additional and unique challenges for those experiencing eating disorders. [More]

Across cultural and religious norms, food has been symbolic for attempts to heal the hurt. Death leaves a hole. Some are far deeper and filled with more despair than others. The loss of a parent, a child, a spouse, a close friend, and/or the loss of a pet companion commonly leaves a feeling of emptiness. This emptiness may well engulf body and soul. Who to lean on? Who to pick up the role that has, literally, turned to dust? How to withstand the pain that cannot (and should not) be ignored? [More]

Can’t get going without your cup of joe in the morning? You’re not alone. Among all beverages, coffee is the world’s 4th most popular. Many turn to coffee for a lift when feeling low but turns out, just thinking of coffee can give you the same mental and physical effects without ever having had coffee. This is according to a new study published in the Journal of Consciousness and Cognition which found that after thinking about coffee, people started planning to do tasks sooner, and in general thought about more specific, detailed aspects of their lives. [More]

A new study published in the British Medical Journal found that it is possible to reduce the amount of weight gained during the Christmas season with the help of some behavioral interventions. [More]