Humans have innate musicality, and singing is good for our minds irrespective of age. Infants can remember their mother’s voice while still in the womb and music played to them before they were born. Studies have shown that singing can lower the risk of dementia in the elderly. Singing therapy is also widely applied to treat non-fluent aphasia. Because singing involves a slower pace and lengthened syllables versus speaking, frequent repetition of singing simple words and phrases helps the healthy singing center of the brain to gradually remold and grow to make adaptive changes and pick up language skills. In addition to its amazing memory enhancing and brain rewiring capabilities, singing has many other physical benefits. Physically, singing improves our respiratory function. It is considered an aerobic exercise as it involves deep breathing, which improves lung health and cardiovascular conditioning by increasing the oxygen flow to all parts of our body. As mentioned previously, singing also requires control of vocal cords and muscles in the respiratory system, which can be beneficial to those with chronic respiratory diseases (CRD). Singing also boosts our immune system in a number of ways. Furthermore, singing lowers tension by stimulating the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is a long nerve stretching from the brainstem all the way down the neck, chest and abdomen, and branching out to connect the vital organs. As the vagus nerve is connected to the voice box, singing naturally activates this nerve and calms you down. Socially, singing in a group connects and bonds us together. For example, the Sofa Singers online choir brings together 500 singers each week to help people feel connected at this challenging time. In 2020, James was bestowed the Point of Lights Award from the UK government for his brilliant initiative that helps individuals overcome isolation and lifts people’s spirits. By joining an online group singing session, you will be able to overcome any on-stage shyness and express yourself individually and collectively; and more importantly, you can see the many happy faces of other singers and feel the positive power of the song!

The innate immune system is what we were born with. It is the first line of defense and provides general protection to ward off non-specific harmful substances within minutes. The adaptive immune system makes antibodies to tackle specific pathogens. The main defenders of the immune system are white blood cells, also known as leukocytes, which originate from bone marrow and migrate into the bloodstream and lymphatic system to perform the security work of immunity. Phagocytes, belonging to innate immune cells, are deployed in the first place when foreign pathogens enter the body. They then engulf unwelcome substances. Another cellular group, the lymphocytes, and phagocytes work together to assemble a more sophisticated guarding system. Our gut also plays a crucial role in immunity. The more health-promoting microbes there are in the gut, the better the immune system functions. Therefore, the food we eat is an important factor in strengthening our immunity. Eating a plant-based diet is the most fundamental way to achieve optimal health. For example, foods like garlic, ginger, cabbage, coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, echinacea, and oil of oregano, as well as grapefruit seed, myrrh and olive leaf extract are natural remedies that have antibiotic properties. A review study published in the journal “Nutrients” found out that, “Vitamin C deficiency results in impaired immunity and higher susceptibility to infections.” A study published online in the journal “Brain, Behavior and Immunity” found that “just 20 minutes of moderate exercise stimulated the immune system, which, in turn, produced an anti-inflammatory cellular response.” When we are exposed to sunlight, the body will convert it to vitamin D, which is essential for proper immune function. According to a review published in the journal “Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry,” chronic drinkers have lower levels of B-cells and T-cells, which are both important for coping with infections. As a result, habitual use of alcohol may hinder the normal functions of the immune system and slow down the time of recovery. While you make a switch to adopting a healthier lifestyle, please also keep in mind to protect our animal-people friends by ditching meat.

Tea is beyond just a pleasant beverage. Studies have proven that drinking tea as part of our lifestyle is beneficial to our overall wellness. Tea originated in China and has been enjoyed by the Chinese people for thousands of years. All true teas are derived from a plant species called Camellia sinensis, which is an evergreen shrub and belongs to the flowering tea plant family called Theaceae. Tea is classified into five main categories, including White, Green, Oolong, Black and Pu-erh, depending on the processing methods. Tea’s health-promoting properties have been proven in many studies. The main substance that makes drinking tea healthy is polyphenols, which are a large group of naturally occurring compounds. They are abundant in plants and have excellent antioxidant effects. Research has found out that polyphenols in tea have the ability to regulate blood sugar by making cells more responsive to insulin’s effect, hence lowering the risk of diabetes. Instead of choosing sweetened beverages, drinking a cup of tea is a great way to optimize blood sugar control. Flavonoids found in black tea are another group of compounds that are beneficial to promoting cardiovascular health. A meta-analysis study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition found evidence that people who drank at least three cups of black tea per day had an 11% lower risk of developing heart disease. The polyphenols and antimicrobials in black and green tea can promote the growth of good bacteria and help repair the lining of the digestive tract. They help to enhance immunity. Tea can also protect the brain from aging in the long run. One study demonstrated that tea-drinkers who were aged 55-plus had better cognitive performance. When we talk about an infusion, it refers to steeping plants or fruits in hot water. These beverages of ancient wisdom have been proven beneficial to mental, emotional, and physical health. Most of them don’t contain caffeine and are suitable for people who prefer to avoid feeling jittery after drinking coffee. A cup of tea can do more than just boost immunity, the process of preparing and drinking it can also be relaxing. It’s a time reserved for a moment of tranquility, reunion, and joy.

In today’s show, we will talk about some of the most common health issues experienced during and after a flight. When the plane begins its ascent, the air pressure inside the cabin also begins to drop. This creates pain in the ears as well as the temporary experience of some level of hearing loss or muffled hearing because the eardrum can’t vibrate properly. Here are some tips to avoid airplane ear. You can try to yawn, chew gum or swallow during ascent and descent. This may open the eustachian tubes to help balance the pressure inside and outside the ears. Airsickness, which is a form of motion sickness, is one of the common conditions people experience during a flight. Typical symptoms include cold sweating, headache, dizziness, drowsiness, nausea and vomiting. It happens when there is a mixture of conflicting signals being sent to the brain from various parts of the body. When booking your flight, try to choose a window seat in the middle sections, over the wings, where shaking is felt the least on the plane. In addition to reducing motion-detecting signals being sent from the inner ears to the brain, also try to avoid reading books. You may close your eyes and listen to some music instead. If nausea happens to you often when traveling, you may want to eat light food one or two hours before departing. If we sit in a confined space for a long time, we should always remember to stretch ourselves whenever we can. The reason is that when we sit in a position for extended periods, the risk of developing Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) also increases. Wear loose and comfortable clothes so that they do not restrict blood flow. In addition, make sure to drink a lot of water to stay hydrated. Also, try to move around by walking back and forth in the aisles whenever it is possible, such as going for a bathroom break. After long flights, especially those that cross multiple time zones, jet lag is a common short-lived disorder. Before the trip, rest as much as you can. During the flight, drink plenty of water to keep hydrated, and you may want to consider eating light meals and limiting caffeine intake. After arrival, find time to go for a walk or do some light exercise outside under the sun. Lastly, remember we’re still in the midst of a pandemic, so please make sure that you wear your mask properly while you are in flight.

Today, we will continue to explore how music therapy can contribute to our wellness and find out how the brain reacts to music. “We talk about music kind of existing globally in the brain. Whatever is still functioning in someone with dementia can often be stimulated by music. So I worked with a lot of patients who weren’t able to speak anymore, weren’t able to walk, weren’t able to do really much of anything, but often those same people were still able to sing with me, and able to come out of their shells and interact through music.”“People with speech impairments are helped immensely by music therapy. There’s an intervention called melodic intonation therapy, and it’s done by both music therapists and speech therapists, and it’s this very regimented way to teach people to speak again when they’ve lost the ability to speak through something like brain damage.”A drum circle involves a group of people playing drums in a circle or semi-circle, with the participants expressing themselves by drumming a rhythm. It can serve as one form of music therapy. “I think the really cool thing about drum circles is that participants and the audience are often the same. People who participate are the people who are playing music, and the people who are playing are the ones that the benefit is for often. And I think that it can be a huge mood booster; it can be a way to interact with others; it can be a way to fight social isolation, and to improve group cohesion of the group that’s participating in the drum circle.” We ended our interview by asking Ms. Hamer about how her experiences as a music therapist have helped in her current career as an animal-people rights activist. “I really like to apply the principles of music therapy to my activism, to think about animal rights activists who are experiencing some really difficult things, and are experiencing quite a bit of emotional trauma, when we think about animals dying every day. And so I love to use music with activists to help their emotional resilience, and their group cohesion, and their feelings of empowerment, and closeness to each other.”

Ms. Hamer received her Bachelors of Music in Music Therapy from Western Michigan University in the United States, and became a certified music therapist after the completion of her internship at a hospice. With many years of experience in music-related treatment, Ms. Hamer sees great potential in music to enrich people’s lives and provide comfort. Currently, she extends her compassion to the people of the animal kingdom by being part of the animal-people rights movement as Legal Coordinator for Direct Action Everywhere, a Shining World Courage-Compassion recipient. “Music can be used for wellness as well as to treat illnesses and disorders and music therapists can work on enhancing wellness in addition to treating disorders.” “Music therapy’s origins happened around the 1940s.” During the course of treatment, many practices can be employed to suit the needs of individuals, including listening or dancing to music, singing, playing instruments, or discussing music. “I think basically anyone can benefit from music therapy or from music wellness programs. It's particularly beneficial to babies and mothers in the NICU, for people on hospice, for kids in special education programs, for people with physical disabilities, for people with brain damage, and for people with emotional disabilities or emotional disturbances. In coordination with qualified psychotherapists, music can really be used to kind of provide a safe container for exploring psychological issues. When we think about music that makes you cry, sometimes we can kind of have emotions that are really pent up.” “Often religious music is used in hospice, music that's particularly important to a person in their faith; it can kind of bring up a feeling of sacredness and safety to be able to really examine some of these things that we need to deal with while we're coming towards the end of our lives.” When we are absorbed into the melody of music, it seems as if we are enclosed in a sphere where we can temporarily forget all the stress. Sometimes, it even lessens our pain mentally and physically. “And when the music, and the breathing, the biological rhythm are synced up, the music therapist has the ability to actually slow down that music, and thus slow down the biological rhythm that we’ve synced up to and actually make the breathing slower and longer in a way that really relaxes patients and reduces pain and respiratory distress.”

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 91% of the world’s population live in places where air contamination exceeds safe limits. They can lead to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, allergies, asthma, type 2 diabetes, and even cancer. The animal-people livestock industry produces large amounts of waste like urine and manure, which emit around 400 different harmful gases into the atmosphere! According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, methane emissions from pig- and cattle- people have increased by up to 50% in the last 15 years. Meanwhile, deforestation for the meat production industry has been accelerating the effect of global warming. It also increases the chance of wildfires, which in turn further aggravates air pollution and global warming. In March 2021, China’s capital, Beijing, took a strong hit from a massive sandstorm sweeping across Mongolia and northwestern China. Beijing’s air quality index at that time reached a record of 999, the hazardous level, whereas the recommended average daily concentration by the World Health Organization is just 25! In 2020, the United Nations designated September 7 as the first International Day of Clean Air in order to raise awareness about the importance of unpolluted air for our health, productivity, the environment, and the economy. First and foremost, we should switch to a vegan diet. The researchers found that people who consume more than 100 grams of meat per day, generate up to 7.2 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent daily, whereas vegans generate only 2.9 kilograms. Second, we can lessen air pollution by driving clean-fuel cars. Also, when someone switches from a conventional car to a battery electric vehicle, PM emissions can be cut down by up to 42%. Third, we can protect our health from air contaminants by planting more trees, including in urban areas. Not only do trees help to reduce detrimental air pollutants, but they also act as air purifiers. Finally, until our planet’s atmosphere becomes safer for everyone, we should consider using protective equipment for ourselves and our family members, as a short-term defense. Let us also pray for Heaven’s help and wisdom so that humankind will U-turn to a more viable, vegan way of life.

Air pollution was among the top five leading risk factors for early death worldwide in 2019 and causes about seven million deaths every year. Today, 90% of people breathe unclean air that contains significant amounts of pollutants. Even though air quality in Europe has improved in the past decade, a special report called “State of Global Air 2020” revealed that the highest annual exposure to PM2.5 continues to be seen in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. PM2.5 refers to Particulate Matter, one of the most concerning substances in air pollution. As the size of the particulate matter is greatly associated with its detrimental effects, fine particles can pose a serious threat to our health. They can be inhaled deeply into the respiratory tract or even enter into the bloodstream due to its fine size. Pregnant women exposed to air pollution may have a higher chance of elevated blood pressure, which is a common cause of pre-term birth. In addition, particulate matter increases the risk of low birth weight and having a child with autism. Inhaling PM2.5 might also change the size of a child’s developing brain, and this can eventually make them become more vulnerable to emotional problems when they enter adolescence. Research has shown that the elderly in the United States who are exposed to the annual mean amount of PM2.5 nationally, have a greater chance of developing neurological disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and associated dementias.Besides particulate matter, ozone is another major part of the air pollution. Low amounts of ozone can lead to chest tightness, coughing, shortness of breath, and throat discomfort. Not only does ozone exposure worsen chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, but also it weakens the body’s response to fight off respiratory infections. Next, let’s take a look at how air pollution impacts COVID-19. According to a study from Harvard University in the United States, an increase of one microgram per cubic meter in PM2.5 increases the COVID-19 death rate by 8%. Meanwhile, Dr. Mary Prunicki from Stanford University in the United States found that air pollution can also exacerbate the COVID-19 situation in a surprising way - that particulates and nitrogen dioxide in air pollutants can act as vectors for the coronavirus to spread.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death globally in the 21st century. Vegan foods have lots of heart-protective nutrients and can reduce the risk of diabetes, hypertension and obesity, which are all major causes of heart disease. Plant-based foods are beneficial to your heart health in general, but the ingredients in them can make a difference in the health-promoting outcomes. Therefore, fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs are the most natural ingredients and the best options for keeping us healthy. Whole grains: Try swapping out white rice with brown rice, and use whole grain flour in baking instead of white flour. Soak raw oats with plant-based milk of choice in a jar, add your favorite vegan toppings and mix well, then cover and put it in the refrigerator overnight. The soluble oat fiber – beta-glucan is known to lower LDL cholesterol levels by 5 to 10%, and the overnight soaking process breaks down phytic acid, which can inhibit your body from absorbing minerals such as iron, zinc and calcium. Dark Green Leafy Vegetables: They are also an excellent source of heart-protective antioxidants and minerals, including the rich nitrates that can widen blood vessels, thus lowering blood pressure, and the abundant vitamin K can help prevent the hardening of heart arteries. Nuts: Pistachios can help people deal with stress better, thus lowering their blood pressure. Walnuts are the only nuts abundant in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which reduces plaque buildup in coronary arteries. Beans: Soy is rich in phytoestrogens or plant-based estrogens; hence it is naturally anti-atherosclerotic for postmenopausal women. Olive Oil: According to a large-scale study including more than 90,000 men and women from 1990 to 2014, replacing margarine, butter, mayonnaise, or dairy fat by 5 grams per day with the equivalent amount of olive oil reduced the risk of cardiovascular disease by 5-7%. Turmeric: Curcumin, the active compound in turmeric, may help reverse heart disease development. Although curcumin is not well absorbed in the body, combining black pepper with turmeric can improve curcumin absorption by up to 2,000%.

In addition to helping children to take responsibility for themselves, Dr. Yami encourages kids to take part in making foods in the kitchen early in life, given that it’s safe and under a parent’s watch. And, most importantly, it’s a wonderful time spent together! Dr. Yami touched on another aspect that affects children’s relationship with food and that is appearance. She believes it is crucial to help kids gain an acceptance of themselves in terms of how they look so they can be self-confident and avoid eating disorders. “The conversation isn't about what size should I make my child's body. The conversation is, what habits, behaviors, what lifestyle habits can we look to improve or change or tweak a little bit so that we can have a healthy life, a long, healthy life, where we have joy and happiness.” Dr. Yami talks about what types of foods need to be included and what supplements are a good idea for both kids and parents. “So, whenever you're feeding children a plant-based diet and whether you're pregnant, you do want to get a variety of plant foods, lots of different fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds. And then there are certain supplements that are important. The most important one is the B12 and then the next one is vitamin D.” “And you can easily get enough calcium from a plant-based diet. For children who may not eat a lot of food and may eat small quantities of food doing a fortified plant-based milk, whether it's a fortified soy milk or a fortified pea protein milk. They usually also put the vitamin D and B12 in it.” “And I really want to see more schools adopt a plant predominant menu, adding more whole foods, more fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, especially beans, into the menus. But even on a larger scale, I would love to see policy changing in the United States to acknowledge and include the importance of whole plant foods.” “Practice and give yourself grace. And just find different ways to include more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds. Don't be afraid to be creative; don't be afraid to have fun, and never be afraid to include your child. But most of all, I just want you to enjoy the journey.”

“It's up to you as the parent to choose the proper foods to have in the house. It's OK to have some of these ultra-processed foods and to offer them regularly in smaller amounts. And that way, you have the opportunity to tune into your body, determine how they make you feel before and after you eat these foods, and you're more likely to stay eating them in a moderate amount that's health-promoting rather than overindulging.” In addition to helping children form positive relationships with eating, intuitive eating can help to relieve parents’ stress from parenting and preparing meals. “And this division of responsibilities means that the parents and the children have different responsibilities when it comes to feeding. It is the parent’s job to decide what, when, and where. So I present the food, and then they're going to tune into their body. But I don't then cross over into their autonomy.” To provide moms and dads with useful tips on helping their kids form healthy lifestyle habits and diet choices for life, Dr. Yami introduces the 5 Pillars of Healthy Eating system in her book “A Parent’s Guide to Intuitive Eating.” “So the first pillar is to honor hunger and satiety, to trust your child, and not interfere with their natural intuition. The second one is to focus on whole plant foods ‒ fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds. So flood your environment; buy those things; prepare those things, have them in your house. The third pillar is to create a positive environment. So put things in your life that align with your vision of your life. So if you want to eat more whole plant foods, you have to buy them and put them in your cabinets and put them in your refrigerator and your freezer. The next one is to be focused on the 80/20 rule. Eighty percent of what you eat, make it as health-promoting as possible so that you can have a little wiggle room there 20% of the time. And then the last one is to relax and have fun. Like I said, a lot of parents are stressed out. So I want feeding your child to be fun. IAnd so that's really just my plea for parents to take a deep breath. Do the best you can and let the rest go.”

Today we are honored to feature Dr. Yami Cazorla-Lancaster, who goes by Dr. Yami. She is a board-certified pediatrician and a certified Lifestyle Medicine Physician, a national board-certified health and wellness coach and a professional speaker. Dr. Yami founded the website VeggieFitKids.com where she shares information on plant-based diets, recipes and lifestyle tips. Dr. Yami is also the author of “A Parent’s Guide to Intuitive Eating: How to Raise Kids Who Love to Eat Healthy,” that provides a unique approach to establishing positive eating habits for children that will last a lifetime. One common concern for parents considering changing their children’s diet to a plant-based one is whether it provides enough nutrition. “And so, I feel like my experience has taught me that not only is it possible, but you can raise children that are happy, responsible, loving, compassionate people in this world when they're eating a plant-based diet.” “The majority of children do not enjoy meat, and parents stress out about that and I tell them, don't worry. Intuitive eating means that you are tuning into your body, honoring your hunger and your satiety. And you are tuning into how your body feels after you eat. And so that way it gives you information to make your food choices. It was originally coined by 2 dieticians, Evelyn Tribole, and Elyse Resch and they started learning about intuitive eating in the 1980s. They wrote their book in 1995, and it consists of 10 principles, and this is evidence-based.” “And what I want parents to know and to realize is that children are born intuitive eaters. They know when they're hungry; they know when to stop. So, I encourage parents to trust that, to realize that under the age of 5, most children have the ability to tell when they're hungry and [when] they’re full, and so whenever we trust that, we are more likely to support continuing that intuition and then staying in our lane as far as what are the responsibilities we have as parents, which is to make the choices for the food that we want to provide, prepare the food and offer the food, and then it is up to the child to decide if and how much they want to eat.”

How does nature benefit our health? Exposure to the outdoors makes one feel better in both mind and spirit; the serenity of the natural environment creates within us a sense of calmness and aids our physical well-being. The scientific reason behind this is humans are genetically programmed to look for trees, plants, water and other natural elements. When our body is absorbed and focused on nature's greatness, our mind puts aside any pain or discomfort temporarily. So the big question is: Where’s nature? How do we get access to it? For those people who live in urban settings with a rather hurried and busy lifestyle, there are also ways to catch a sight of nature by simply looking at some paintings or images of the wild. It might be surprising to you that viewing still images can help. In addition to still images, simple plants in a room also bring much positive change to our health. Interestingly, even a brisk moment of viewing greenery can be an instant refreshment for our minds. According to another experiment conducted by Scottish scientists, even just a few minutes in the open air in a green space can lower one’s stress levels and make one feel much more relaxed and clear-headed. Research has shown that buildings with more vegetation around them had 52% less property and violent crimes than those without any vegetation. In fact, scientific research has shown that tree-hugging can be truly health-enhancing. It can calm the body and boost our mood by prompting the release of the hormones serotonin and dopamine, thus making one feel much happier. Another interesting and effective way to connect with nature is to walk barefoot on grass, sand or soil, which is known as grounding. The scientific reason behind the positive effects is that the Earth’s surface has a subtle negative charge and is constantly generating electrons that can neutralize free radicals, thus acting as antioxidants to help our body to prevent cell damage. For the elderly, being outside can improve memory. If we work or walk in sunlight, we become healthier by replenishing ourselves with vitamin D.

Wearable medical technologies have been transforming healthcare at an unprecedented pace in recent years. Smart glasses can be extremely valuable to healthcare professionals. Smart glasses can save physicians time for data access and recording. Based on the results from Dignity Health's Ventura Medical Clinic in California, USA, the implementation of Google Glass’ hands-free solution has improved human connection and the quality of care: direct patient care time has increased from 35% to 70% and daily EHR data input time has decreased from 33% to 9%. And smart glasses can play a key role in orthopedic surgeries. Pixee Medical, a France-based leading surgical navigation solution provider, has developed the cutting-edge Knee+ Augmented Reality navigation software for total knee replacement surgery - a very complex procedure. The first Knee+ assisted total knee replacement surgery was successfully performed in June 2020. For people with limited mobility, smart glasses can be supportive too. Munevo, a German startup helping people with disabilities by offering them independent mobility and self-determination, has developed the Munevo Drive system that allows users to control their wheelchair by delicate head movements and voice commands. A virtual reality (VR) headset is a smart device worn on the head that enables the user to experience a simulated 3D environment. Embodied Labs has assisted more than 100 institutional subscribers, including senior care providers, schools and government aging agencies, in making caregivers more effective, empathetic and motivated. The population of aging people is steadily increasing globally; thus the need for healthcare services to be continuous, holistic and proactive is on the rise. For example, Nuubo’s wireless wearable electrocardiogram (ECG) system uses adjustable silver textile-electrodes to perform 24/7 remote cardiological monitoring for patients treating their chronic heart condition at home. Powercast, a pioneer of wireless charging, and Liquid X, a manufacturer of metallic inks, have jointly developed a solution to simplify the production of smart textiles that withstand laundry washing.

Wearable healthcare technology refers to the devices on a wearer’s wrists, head, feet or clothing, which can collect their health metrics and save them in a personalized database to help set their well-being goals or send to healthcare professionals with permission for remote monitoring and analysis.Wearable technology benefits all healthcare community members: For individuals, it’s affordable, personal, and can provide continuous, 24/7 and stable fitness tracking. In addition to tracking our daily activities, fitness trackers can also record data during sleep, including hours of uninterrupted sleep and the duration of sleep. Moreover, wearable healthcare technology can provide instant feedback on one’s health improvements as a result of exercise and healthy lifestyle changes, which helps users a great deal to become engaged and stick to good new habits.Let’s have a look at some of the latest wearable healthcare technologies by category: Wrist-worn devices: For well-being monitoring, there are several advantages to developing a technical device for the wrist: It’s more convenient to view information and easier to carry than a mobile phone during activities such as biking, hiking and swimming. Wrist-worn devices like fitness trackers and smartwatches are already reckoned as mainstream for general biometrics monitoring and activity tracking. Advanced wearable devices can play a role in chronic health condition management as well.Smart Shoes: Although still in the early stages of development, there are already quite a few smart shoes integrated with high-tech features to enhance comfort and health. The Digitsole Smart Insoles are intelligent footwear inserts that analyze the wearer’s walking and running posture to enhance daily life and fitness. While there are numerous fall alert devices available, B-Shoe is a much-needed type of smart footwear aiming at preventing falls before they occur. Lechal (“take me there” in Hindi) haptic smart footwear developed by Ducere Technologies in India is a groundbreaking solution to guide the way for the unsighted.

Due to animal livestock raising and the wildlife trade, cross-species transmission of viruses has become more frequent. Viruses have a built-in mechanism that makes them more likely to have mutations when they spread between individuals. The more it’s being transmitted, the greater the chances new variants will form. The animal livestock raising business needs to be ended if humans want to break the vicious cycle of diseases that repeatedly affect animals and humans. Among COVID-19 cases, participants who reported following a plant-based diet had a 73% lower chance of developing a moderate- to-severe COVID-19 illness compared with participants who did not follow this diet. Despite scientific evidence showing that people who adhere to plant-based diets get more protection from developing moderate-to-severe COVID-19 symptoms, we must not forget to take preventive measures to protect ourselves. “God helps those who help themselves. You have the physical body in the physical dimension. You have to take care in the physical world in a physical way.” The simplest solution to eliminate the source of transmission is the global adoption of the vegan lifestyle to prevent future epidemics. Fortunately, there is an increasing trend of consuming plant-based foods that has been seen during the pandemic. According to the market intelligence agency Mintel, the pandemic has encouraged more UK consumers to explore plant-based diets. Experts expect to see continuing growth in the vegan food market after the pandemic ends. “We must pray in silence, we must meditate for the world to go vegan. World Vegan will breed lasting World Peace, will breed benevolent energy for all beings, including humans, and then they won’t get such sickness again. Even if they have to go through this sickness now, [if] they turn vegan, in the future we don’t have any more pandemics or epidemics anymore. Our world has forever pandemics and epidemics because we continue to kill. If they are vegan right now, except the small or some inevitable consequences of the past karmic deeds that they have to endure this lifetime, we don’t have any more pandemic, we don’t have any more sicknesses – we would have forever peace between nations. Animals will have peace also. All beings will have peace.”

The occurrence of new infectious diseases has gone up dramatically over the last century. Researchers have also found that the more humans have interacted with wildlife, including practicing domestication, the higher the chances are of diseases being shared between humans and animals. In 2004, the World Health Organization (WHO) had already noted an “increased demand for animal protein” as one of the causes of zoonoses. The consumption of meat, milk and eggs are key factors that accelerate the emergence of fatal infectious diseases that have caused innumerable lives of humans and animals to perish. New emerging diseases will continue to threaten humankind if we don't change the way we live. COVID-19 is the latest example, which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus and jumped from animals to humans. Supreme Master Ching Hai has spoken about what makes the COVID-19 pandemic so different from pandemics we have seen in the past. “There are quite a few variants of the COVID. But Delta, it seems to be the worst right now.” “Take good care of yourself. We are in a big, big problem right now, I mean the whole world – one variant after another.” “Important thing is, you must be humble. You cannot have a careless and arrogant attitude. You think that, like, raw food will protect you. No, no, no. It’s not that. It may be that your karma is better. You still have some good karma left. Plus God’s Blessing! But if you mingle too much with many people, you’ll get it. Not because the virus doesn’t spread as fast if you get out fast, but because you mingle with too many people, different energy, maybe very low-level spiritually. Then you’ll get it. Because your karma might not be enough to cover. Maybe you’re not humble enough.” Delta COVID has spread to at least 132 countries around the world. Now, it has become the dominant type in over a dozen countries, including the UK, Israel, and the US. Instances of fully vaccinated people getting infected are constantly being reported. According to the CDC, the transmissibility of the Delta variant is nearly twice as high as other identified variants.

Modern technology has a great influence on sleep quality. One study discovered that exposure to room lighting before bedtime results in suppression of melatonin synthesis. This shortens the duration of melatonin by about 90 minutes and delays its onset compared to dim light exposure. Hence, chronic exposure to artificial lighting in the late evening could potentially impact the quality of sleep. Studies have shown that the melatonin suppression by such light in children was nearly twice as much as in adults. Getting sufficient sleep can facilitate the brain’s processing of emotional information. A research paper published in the Journal of Neuroscience found people who have more rapid eye movement (REM) sleep had lower fear-related brain activity the next day. Dr. Matt Walker, a British sleep scientist, says REM sleep actually offers a form of emotional first aid and helps us cope with difficult emotional experiences that occurred during the day. Sleep deprivation and poor sleep throughout the night can manifest into symptoms that put us in danger. Microsleep is so short that people can doze off without even realizing it. If it happens while driving or operating machinery, it can turn into a life-threatening situation. We’ll now share some proven tips with you on getting better sleep. 1. Increase exposure to natural sunlight during the day. According to studies, daytime exposure to sunlight helps people with insomnia to fall asleep faster by 83%. 2. Keep a consistent sleep schedule. 3. Exercise regularly. If you are going to exercise at night, choose a light to moderate-intensity activity and finish at least 90 minutes before bedtime. 4. Reduce exposure to blue light before bedtime. 5. Create a good sleep environment. 6. Create a relaxing bedtime routine. 7. Relax and clear your mind before sleeping. Meditation is one of the effective ways to enhance the relaxation response and promote physiological responses that resemble early stages of sleep. 8. Adopt a plant-based diet. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine found that eating more fiber and less saturated fat is associated with deeper and more restorative sleep.

Even though we seem to be the least active when we’re asleep, our body is still working a lot. Every night, we experience four stages of sleep. The first three stages are known as non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, and the last stage is known as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Most dreaming occurs in this stage. Sleep also supports learning and memory. A study published in the Science Advances journal showed that for children under two-and-a-half years of age, REM sleep is important for learning and neural reorganization, which is the reconnection between brain cells in response to learning and adapting to a changing environment. Memory consolidation happens during our sleep, and it allows the brain to process and preserve key information. The hippocampus acts like a USB stick, gathering information during the day. Sleep will help connect these memories together, so that’s why sometimes we wake up with wonderful ideas and solutions to problems. Sleep is crucial for healing and repairing cells to maintain our physical health. A study published in the journal “BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health” concluded that, “sleep and burnout may be risk factors for COVID-19 in high-risk healthcare workers.” Each additional one hour of sleep the workers got reduced the risk of contracting COVID-19 by 12%. Our body performs a detoxification process through the lymphatic system. It’s intriguing to know that our brain also has a cleansing mechanism called the glymphatic system, which can decrease the risk of Alzheimer’s disease if it runs well during sleep. It can clear waste such as the harmful beta-amyloid protein that accumulates in the brain. During quality sleep, the heart rate slows and blood pressure drops by 10-20%. A published study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that people who regularly got fewer than 6 hours of sleep had a 20% higher risk of a heart attack compared with those who slept 6 to 9 hours. In addition, sleep is a key regulator of neuroendocrine function and glucose metabolism. Want to keep an ideal body weight? Getting a good night’s sleep may be an easy and effective way to achieve this.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), noise pollution affects human beings in different ways, such as inducing hearing loss, increasing cardiovascular disease risk, creating stress and causing sleep disturbance. Among these detrimental effects, sleep disturbance is considered the most harmful non-auditory effect because it can affect one’s quality of life and daytime performance.Controlling the environment and preventing noise from entering our space is our first line of defense against noise pollution. Here are some ways we can protect ourselves from the negative effects of such pollution: 1. Install double-pane windows. 2. Reduce workplace noise.However, sometimes we have little control of our surroundings. There are also a few things you can do to create a healthier environment for yourself. 1. Replace stressful noises with sounds that are more pleasing to you. 2. Reduce the influence of noise with a white noise machine. This is a device that creates a stream of background sounds, such as a breeze through a forest, rain, running waterfalls or other nature-like sounds. 3. Wear hearing protection. If you are going to be in an excessively loud environment, you might want to consider wearing earplugs or earmuffs.Noise pollution can trigger our body’s stress response, which then can cause chronic conditions, such as elevated blood pressure, as mentioned before. If we can lessen our body’s response to noise stimuli, we might be able to counterbalance some of the negative health effects. Here are some of the techniques we can use: 1. Breathing exercises. You can do deep breathing exercises such as this one. Inhale through your nose and let your belly fill with air. Count to three when you inhale. Hold your breath for one second, and then breathe out through your nose again as you count to three. By doing this a few times, it can quickly calm your body. 2. Meditation. You can consider spending time meditating in a quiet place for at least a few minutes each day. 3. Yoga. Yoga incorporates physical postures, breathing control, and meditation. Many studies show that yoga is beneficial for reducing stress and anxiety.