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Research reveals how long it takes Aussies to save for a holiday

Saving up for a holiday can seem like an overwhelming task, but some destinations are easier to save for than others. According to new research by <a href="http://money.com.au/">money.com.au</a>, nearly a third of travellers - or 31 percent - need on average a year to save for a trip, while 29 percent of Aussies save for up to six months before jetting off. For 18 percent of travellers, it takes more than a year to save for a trip, while just 13 percent of Aussies manage to save for a holiday in less than three months. On the flip side, 7 percent of eager travellers decide to skip saving altogether and cover their holiday expenses fully on a credit card, while just 2 percent opt for a personal loan to fund their trips. Money.com.au's Finance Expert, Sean Callery said of the survey, "Our research also shows that travel is the one expense Australians aren't willing to forgo, no matter their financial goals or income level." "Going into debt for a holiday brings additional costs and risks. It's important to have a plan for clearing the debt as quickly as possible." With these saving trends in mind, the experts have crunched the numbers to estimate how long it would take the average Aussie to save for a trip to the most popular overseas holiday destinations. The saving time for each location was calculated based on a 10 per cent savings rate of the average weekly earnings of $1,923.40 (from ABS data). Two of the quickest destinations to save for are China and Thailand, while other destinations the experts say you can save for in around half a year include New Zealand, Vietnam and Singapore. Image credits: Shutterstock

Travel Tips

Menopause is having a moment. How a new generation of women are shaping cultural attitudes

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/bridgette-glover-2232638">Bridgette Glover</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-new-england-919">University of New England</a> From hot flashes to hysteria, <a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9780739170007/Periods-in-Pop-Culture-Menstruation-in-Film-and-Television">film and TV</a> have long represented menopause as scary, emotional and messy. Recently, celebrities have been sharing their personal menopause experiences on social media, helping to re-frame the conversation in popular culture. We are also seeing more stories about menopause on television, with real stories and depictions that show greater empathy for the person going through it. Menopause is having a moment. But will it help women? <h2>The change onscreen</h2> This is not what we’re used to seeing on our screens. Countless sitcoms, from All in the Family (1971–79) to Two and a Half Men (2003–15) have used the menopause madness trope for laughs. Retro sitcom That ‘70s Show (1998–2006) used mom Kitty’s menopause journey as comedic fodder for multiple episodes. When she mistakes a missed period for pregnancy, Kitty’s surprise menopause diagnosis results in an identity crisis alongside mood swings, hot flashes and irritability. But the audience is not meant to empathise. Instead, the focus is on how Kitty’s menopause impacts the men in her family. Having to navigate Kitty’s symptoms, her veteran husband likens the experience to war: “I haven’t been this frosty since Korea”. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mPLJBZiKV4U?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Even when male characters are not directly involved, women are determined to reject menopause because they see it as a marker of age that signals a loss of desirability and social worth. In Sex and the City (1998–2004), Samantha describes herself as “day-old bread” when she presumes her late period signifies menopause. This is a popular framing of menopause in <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14680777.2018.1409969">post-feminist TV</a> of the 1990s and early 2000s. While the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14680777.2012.712373#d1e783">menstruating body</a> is constructed as uncontrollable and in need of management, the menopausal body requires management and maintenance to reject signals of collapse. These storylines erase the genuine experiences of confusion, discomfort and transformation that come with menopause. <h2>A cultural moment arrives</h2> <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/12/31/460726461/why-2015-was-the-year-of-the-period-and-we-dont-mean-punctuation">Since 2015</a>, stories of menstruation have increased in popular culture. Series like comedy Broad City (2014–19) and comedy-drama Better Things (2016–22) directly call out the lack of menopause representations. When Abbi in Broad City admits she “totally forgot about menopause”, a woman responds “Menopause isn’t represented in mainstream media. Like, no one wants to talk about it”. Similarly, in Better Things, while watching her three daughters stare at the TV Sam laments: “No one wants to hear about it, which is why nobody ever prepared you for it”. And lack of preparation becomes a key theme for perimenopausal Charlotte in the Sex and the City reboot, And Just Like That … (2021–) when she has a “flash period”. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9AmwXuHo-2w?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Fleabag (2016–19) included a groundbreaking monologue about menopause delivered by Kristen Scott-Thomas, playing a successful businesswoman. She describes menopause as “horrendous, but then it’s magnificent”. <blockquote> […] your entire pelvic floor crumbles, and you get fucking hot, and no one cares. But then you’re free. No longer a slave. No longer a machine with parts. </blockquote> <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RZrnHnASRV8?wmode=transparent&start=13" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Scripted by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, this <a href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-menopause-20190524-story.html">celebrated</a> monologue critiques the post-feminist notion of striving to be the “<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14680777.2012.712373#d1e783">idealised feminine body</a>”. Through this new feminist lens, menopause is acknowledged as both painful – physically and emotionally – and necessary for liberation. <h2>Today’s menopause on screen</h2> Alongside more recent series like The Change (2023), multiple documentaries including <a href="https://www.tamsenfadal.com/the-m-factor">The (M) Factor</a> (2024), and <a href="https://theconversation.com/there-is-no-future-for-ageing-women-how-the-substance-uses-body-horror-in-a-feminist-critique-239729">arguably</a> even films like The Substance (2024), social media has become a prolific space for raising awareness about menopause. Celebrities use social media to share tales of perimenopause and menopause, often in real time. Last year, actor Drew Barrymore experienced her “first perimenopausal hot flash” during her talk show. And ABC News Breakfast guest host, Imogen Crump, had to pause her news segment, saying <blockquote> I could keep stumbling through, but I’m having such a perimenopausal hot flush right now, live on air. </blockquote> Both Barrymore and Crump shared clips of their live segments to their social media pages, to challenge stigma and create conversations. Crump even posted to <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/imogen-crump-6b74b726_perimenopause-activity-7127788484861300736-mhHh/">LinkedIn</a> to raise awareness in a professional setting. In a podcast interview clip shared to Instagram, writer and skincare founder, Zoë Foster Blake describes perimenopause as a “real mental health thing”, because of the lack of awareness. Recalling conversations with other perimenopausal women, Foster Blake says “We all think we’re crazy. We don’t know what the fuck is going on”. Feeling “crazy” is a constant theme in these conversations. As actor and <a href="https://stripesbeauty.com/pages/founder-story">menopause awareness advocate</a> Naomi Watts points out, this is largely thanks to Hollywood. Despite the stigmatising media stereotype of “crazy lady that shouts”, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQ3BN9rS_7g">Watts argues</a> that with “support and community”, women experiencing perimenopause and menopause “can thrive”. In fact, Watts believes menopause should be celebrated: “we know ourselves better, we’re wiser for our cumulative experiences”. Medical professionals like American doctors <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DBUCPW5OUTf/">Marie Clare Haver</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C7IfaHDgXMY/">Corinne Menn</a> have been well-positioned to share their expertise and experiences via social media. They are catching and helping fuel a wave of advocacy and awareness for midlife women’s health. <h2>Building community</h2> After watching the menopause madness trope on our screens for decades, we are now seeing perimenopause and menopause depicted with more empathy. These depictions allow viewers – those who menstruate, who have menstruated, and who know menstruators – to feel seen and be informed. By sharing their experiences on social media and adding to these new screen stories, celebrities are building a community that makes the menopausal journey less lonely and helps those on it remember their worth.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/241784/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/bridgette-glover-2232638">Bridgette Glover</a>, PhD Candidate in Media and Communications, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-new-england-919">University of New England</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/menopause-is-having-a-moment-how-a-new-generation-of-women-are-shaping-cultural-attitudes-241784">original article</a>.

Body

How to complain about aged care and get the result you want

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jacqueline-wesson-1331752">Jacqueline Wesson</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/lee-fay-low-98311">Lee-Fay Low</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> It can be hard to know what to say, or who to talk to, if you notice something isn’t right for you or a loved one in residential aged care. You might have concerns about personal or medical care, being adequately consulted about changes to care, or be concerned about charges on the latest bill. You could also be concerned about theft, neglect or abuse. Here’s how you can raise issues with the relevant person or authority to improve care and support for you or your loved one. <h2>Keep records</h2> You can complain about any aspect of care or service. For instance, if medical care, day-to-day support or financial matters do not meet your needs or expectations, you can complain. It is best to act as soon as you notice something isn’t right. This may prevent things from escalating. Good communication helps get better results. Make written notes about what happened, including times and dates, and take photos. Try to focus on facts and events. You can also keep a record of who was involved and their role. Keep track of how the provider responded or steps taken to resolve the issue. Write notes of conversations and keep copies of emails. <h2>Who do I complain to?</h2> Potential criminal matters If you have concerns about immediate, serious harm of a criminal nature then you should contact the police, and your provider immediately. These types of serious incidents include unreasonable use of force or other serious abuse or neglect, unlawful sexual contact, stealing or unexpected death. The provider may have already contacted you about this. They are required to report such <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/consumers/serious-incident-response-scheme">serious incidents</a> to both the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission within 24 hours, and to the police. Other matters For other matters, talk to the care staff involved. Try to find out more detail about what happened and why things went wrong. Think about what you expect in the situation. Then talk to the most senior person in charge, to see if they can make changes so things don’t go wrong in the future. This person may be called the nursing unit manager, care manager or care director. Providers must acknowledge and investigate your complaint, tell you their findings and actions taken, and follow up to see if you are satisfied. If you would like support to talk to the provider, the <a href="https://opan.org.au">Older Persons Advocacy Network</a> can help. This free service provides independent and confidential support to help find solutions with the aged-care provider. The network can also help you lodge a formal complaint. <h2>How to I lodge a formal complaint?</h2> If you are not satisfied with the way your provider responded, you can lodge a complaint with the <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au">Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission</a>. Be prepared to submit the facts and events, plus emails and correspondence, you have already collected. Think about what you want to happen to resolve the complaint. Each complaint is handled individually and prioritised depending on the risks to you or your loved one. The commission will start its processes within one business day when complaints are urgent. The resolution process took <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/sites/default/files/media/acqsc-annual-report-2020-21.pdf">an average 40 days</a> in 2020-21. You can complain confidentially, or anonymously if you feel safer. But the commission may not be able to investigate fully if it’s anonymous. Also, there are limits to what the commission can do. It cannot ask providers to terminate someone’s employment, or provide direct clinical advice about treatment. Sometimes the commission has issued a “non-compliance” notice to the provider (for a failure to meet quality standards), and action may again <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-02/aged-care-complaint-about-southern-cross-care-young/101009716">be limited</a>. So it is a good idea to check the <a href="https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/non-compliance-checker">non-compliance register</a> beforehand to see if your provider is listed. <h2>What do others complain about?</h2> From October to December 2021, <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/sites/default/files/media/acqs-sector-performance-data-oct-dec-2021.pdf">about a third</a> of Australian nursing homes had a complaint made to the commission against them. Some had more than one complaint. More than half of these complaints were lodged by family, friends or other consumers. The top reasons for complaints were about: <ul> <li> adequacy of staffing </li> <li> medication administration or management </li> <li> infectious diseases or infection control </li> <li> personal and oral hygiene </li> <li> how falls are prevented and managed </li> <li> consultation or communication with representatives and/or family members. </li> </ul> <h2>What if I’m still not happy?</h2> If you’re not happy when you receive the commission’s outcome, you can request a review with 42 days. You can also request the <a href="https://www.ombudsman.gov.au">Commonwealth Ombudsman</a> to review the complaint if you’re not satisfied with the commission’s decision or the way the commission handled your complaint. <h2>Remember, you have a right to complain</h2> The <a href="https://agedcare.royalcommission.gov.au">Aged Care Royal Commission</a> spotlighted the neglect and substandard care that can occur in nursing homes. Despite attempts to <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/concepts-for-a-new-framework-for-regulating-aged-care">lift the standard of aged care</a>, we know residents and carers still have concerns. Residents, and their representatives or families, have a legal <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/consumers/standards/resources">right to speak up and complain</a>, free from reprisal or negative consequences. This right is also reflected in the <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/consumers/consumer-rights">Charter of Aged Care Rights</a>, which providers are legally required to discuss with you and help you understand. <h2>Moving to another facility</h2> If you have exhausted all avenues of complaint or feel conditions have not improved, you may decide to move to another provider or facility, if available. This option may not be possible in rural areas. This is a difficult decision. It takes time, as well as financial and emotional resources. Starting again with a new provider can also be disruptive for everyone, but sometimes it may be the right choice. <hr /> Contact the <a href="https://opan.org.au">Older Persons Advocacy Network</a> on 1800 700 600, the <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au">Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission</a> on 1800 951 822 or the <a href="https://www.ombudsman.gov.au">Commonwealth Ombudsman</a> on 1300 362 072.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/180036/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jacqueline-wesson-1331752">Jacqueline Wesson</a>, Senior Lecturer (Teaching and Research), Discipline of Occupational Therapy, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/lee-fay-low-98311">Lee-Fay Low</a>, Professor in Ageing and Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-complain-about-aged-care-and-get-the-result-you-want-180036">original article</a>.

Retirement Life

When a baby is stillborn, grandparents are hit with ‘two lots of grief’. Here’s how we can help

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jane-lockton-811825">Jane Lockton</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-adelaide-1119">University of Adelaide</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/clemence-due-100240">Clemence Due</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-adelaide-1119">University of Adelaide</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/melissa-oxlad-811406">Melissa Oxlad</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-adelaide-1119">University of Adelaide</a> <a href="https://www.stillbirthcre.org.au/resources/stillbirth-facts/">Six babies</a> are stillborn every day in Australia. This significant loss <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1744165X12001023">affects parents</a> for years to come, often the rest of their lives. However, stillbirth also affects many others, including grandparents. But until now, we have not heard the experiences of grandparents whose grandchildren are stillborn. Their grief was rarely acknowledged and there are few supports tailored to them. Our recently published <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31387781">research</a> is the first in the world to specifically look at grandmothers’ experience of stillbirth and the support they need. In Australia, a baby <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0037109">is defined as</a> stillborn when it dies in the womb from 20 weeks’ gestation, or weighs more than 400 grams. Other countries have slightly different definitions. <a href="https://www.stillbirthcre.org.au/resources/stillbirth-facts/">About 2,200</a> babies are stillborn each year here meaning stillbirth may be more common than many people think. And people <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(11)60107-4/fulltext">don’t tend to talk</a> about this openly despite it leading to significant grief. To explore grandparents’ experience of stillbirth, we interviewed 14 grandmothers for our initial study, and a further 23 grandmothers and grandfathers since then. Many grandparents were not aware stillbirth was a risk today. Most felt unprepared. Like parents, grandparents experienced grief like no other after their grandchild was stillborn. Rose said: "The grief is always there, it never leaves you […] I don’t know why but sometimes it is still very raw." Sally said: "I [would do] anything in my power to take it away, even if it meant, you know, something dreadful happening to me, I would have done it." Grandparents also spoke of anticipating the arrival of their grandchild, and disbelief at their loss. Donna said: "It was as bad as it could be and […] I thought it just couldn’t be real, it couldn’t be real." Where grandparents lived a long way from their child, the loss was even more profound. Distance prevented them from holding their grandchild after birth, attending memorials, or helping their own children. Iris said: "I still miss her now […] When she was born and they had her in the hospital they would text me and say you know she’s got hair like her daddy […] and they would describe her and how beautiful she was, and that’s all they have, you know […] that’s all I have really." Grandparents said they wanted to hide their grief to protect their child from pain. This often made them isolated. Their relationships with family members often changed. Mary said: "It’s like two lots of grief […] but I don’t want it to sound like it’s as bad as my daughter’s loss. It’s different, it’s a different grief, because you’re grieving the loss of a grandchild, and you’re also grieving for your daughter and her loss and it’s like yeah you’ve been kicked in the guts twice instead of once." <h2>What grandparents wanted</h2> Grandparents stressed the importance and ongoing value of being involved in “memory making” and spending time with their stillborn grandchild where possible. Creating mementos, such as taking photos and making footprints and hand prints, were all important ways of expressing their grief. These mementos kept the baby “alive” in the family. They were also a way to ensure their own child knew the baby was loved and remembered. Our research also identified better ways to support grandparents. Grandparents said that if they knew more about stillbirth, they would be more confident in knowing how to help support their children. And if people were more aware of grandparents’ grief, and acknowledged their loss, this would make it easier for them to get support themselves, and reduce feelings of isolation. Our research also found families can recognise that grandparents grieve too, for both their child and grandchild. Grandparents can be encouraged to seek support from other family and friends. Families could also encourage grandparents to seek support from professionals if needed. In hospitals, midwives can adopt some simple, time efficient strategies, with a big impact on grandparents. With parent consent, midwives could include grandparents in memory making activities. By acknowledging the connection grandparents have to the baby, midwives can validate the grief that they experience. In recognising the supportive role of grandparents, midwives can also provide early guidance about how best to support their child. Hospitals can help by including grandparents in the education provided after stillbirth. This might include guidance about support for their child, or simply providing grandparents with written resources and guiding them to appropriate supports. In time, development of peer support programs, where grandparents support others in similar situations, could help. And, as a community, we can support grandparents the same way they support their own children. We can be there, listen and learn. <hr /> All grandparents’ names in this article are pseudonyms. If this article raises issues for you or someone you know, contact <a href="http://www.sands.org.au">Sands</a> (stillbirth and newborn death support) on 1300 072 637. Sands also has <a href="https://www.sands.org.au/images/sands-creative/brochures/127517-For-Grandparents-Brochure.pdf">written information specifically for grandparents</a> of stillborn babies.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/122313/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jane-lockton-811825">Jane Lockton</a>, PhD Candidate (Psychology, Health), <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-adelaide-1119">University of Adelaide</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/clemence-due-100240">Clemence Due</a>, Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-adelaide-1119">University of Adelaide</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/melissa-oxlad-811406">Melissa Oxlad</a>, Lecturer in the School of Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-adelaide-1119">University of Adelaide</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/when-a-baby-is-stillborn-grandparents-are-hit-with-two-lots-of-grief-heres-how-we-can-help-122313">original article</a>.

Family & Pets

Filling the silences in family stories − how to think like a historian to uncover your family’s narrative

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/andrea-kaston-tange-1417052">Andrea Kaston Tange</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/macalester-college-2632">Macalester College</a> Great-grandmothers. We all have them. But most of us will never know them except through glimpses of fading bits of paper: sepia photographs, recipe cards, letters in handwriting traced by a fountain pen dispensing cocoa-colored ink. What does it take to build coherent stories out of such tantalizing fragments of lives? I face this question routinely in my career as a <a href="https://www.macalester.edu/english/facultystaff/andreakastontange/">professor of 19th-century literature and culture</a>. Recently, I’ve turned that experience to writing a book about my own family. When I inherited my great-grandmother’s diary, a repurposed teacher’s planner in which she chronicled the family’s 1926 move from Michigan to Miami, I found a wedding portrait tucked inside. The angled profile showcases her youthful skin and a dress too elaborate for a Midwestern schoolteacher’s daily wear. It is easy to imagine that she took pleasure in inscribing her new name on the picture’s reverse: Faith Avery. I stared at her beautiful image for years, as if details of her satin gown could explain why a woman widowed in 1918 would, for the rest of her life, refuse to admit to having had that first husband and yet carefully preserve this portrait. And then, because archives have been at the center of my scholarly work, I turned to research. I located marriage records and draft cards, pored over maps, found family members in censuses and obituaries. Within those documents lay answers both surprising and poignant. What did I look for? How might anyone with a half-told family story begin to uncover more truths? And what does it take to make sense of them? <h2>The digging</h2> Questions that begin with “why” can rarely be answered easily. Researchers thus often prefer to start with “who” and “when” and “how,” locating a person in one spot and then tracing them through time. This adventure down a rabbit hole follows a method. Make a list of unknowns. These may be facts or enticing tidbits of incomplete family lore. My mother, trying to be helpful, told me things like, “Faith always said there was a horse thief in the family, but she was too mortified to reveal his name” and “I think Aunt Harriette (Faith’s sister) was married once briefly.” Do precise, not general, searches. Typing “horse thief Avery” into Google yields nothing useful, but many other sources contain rich information about old-fashioned exploits. The New York Public Library’s <a href="https://www.nypl.org/blog/2019/03/25/genealogy-guide-books">guide for family research</a> introduces some options. The <a href="https://www.loc.gov/pictures/">Library of Congress print and photograph collection</a> can also help you envision your ancestors’ world. Physical libraries contain historic photographs, maps, local records and digitized newspapers not available online. Historical societies and state universities typically allow free, in-person use of their collections. Know that sometimes you will fail and need to change course. I spent several days looking for the horse thief to no avail, much to my mother’s disappointment. But when I turned to Aunt Harriette’s marriage, I found a character no less fascinating, one I now think of as “Four Wives Frank.” Read old documents knowing they were produced by a patchwork of individuals who took information on trust. The handwritten birth, death, marriage and <a href="https://www.archives.gov/research/census/about">census records</a> of past centuries relied on self-reported data that required no verification. They can be plagued by carelessness in the name of efficiency. One hurried census-taker recorded Faith’s mother Cara as “Cora,” another renamed her brother Horace “Harris.” Frank offered up a variety of birth years, countries of origin and maiden names for his mother as he worked his way west. He must have been charming. Who but a charming man could have convinced woman after woman to marry him, each thinking she was, at most, his second wife? Marriage register officers and census-takers, not to mention his trail of brides, were none the wiser. Which leads me to this: Cross-check information. I knew I had the right Frank because he had the same three sons in multiple records. Inconsistencies across those records, in conjunction with the trajectory of his life, made this conclusion inevitable: The man purposefully reinvented himself. <h2>The assembly</h2> My academic work has taught me that most <a href="https://doi.org/10.2979/victorianstudies.63.2.02">archival answers lead to more questions</a>. As a result, I expect multiple phases of collecting. I gathered everything I could find about Faith’s early life, in hopes something might explain her reticence about her first marriage. As her story emerged, I periodically hit holes in the narrative that sent me back for more digging. Understanding people is easier if you are familiar with their world. For background, I read histories of Miami in the 1920s and researched details in Faith’s diary that might reveal her personality or motivations. Exploring her reading lists showed me a woman who enjoyed popular entertainment, such as 1926’s blockbuster “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0016598/">Aloma of the South Seas</a>.” Primers of <a href="https://libraryguides.missouri.edu/pricesandwages/1920-1929">1920s wages and prices</a> explained the family’s economic worries. As I got to know Faith, I revisited documents with new questions. To figure out whether Harriette’s husband Frank had anything to do with Faith, I made timelines for both sisters. To ponder the emotional underpinnings of those events, I reread Faith’s diary, paying particular attention to entries about Harriette and about Faith’s second husband. Because every pile of documents contains multiple stories, the key to a coherent narrative is locating a through line that addresses the biggest conundrums while identifying the tangents. I let go of the horse thief. <h2>The results</h2> The detective-style plots of what I call “<a href="https://www.writersdigest.com/be-inspired/lilly-dancyger-memoir-as-detective-novel">investigative memoir</a>” may inspire you to do your own family research. Genealogy sites such as <a href="https://www.ancestry.com/">Ancestry.com</a> and <a href="https://www.familysearch.org/en/united-states/">FamilySearch.org</a> can help. But it’s worth remembering that secondary reading will add richness to any family story. And local librarians are extraordinary at helping patrons navigate the search process. Improbable as it might seem, Four Wives Frank helped me understand the extent of Faith’s secrets and that she harbored them in hopes that her children’s lives would be easier. Such self-sacrifices are common for mothers. And yet, their particulars are as individual as the faintly silvered portrait of the soft young woman who married Harold Avery in 1911, and whose story requires an entire book to tell properly.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/234341/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/andrea-kaston-tange-1417052">Andrea Kaston Tange</a>, Professor of English, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/macalester-college-2632">Macalester College</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/filling-the-silences-in-family-stories-how-to-think-like-a-historian-to-uncover-your-familys-narrative-234341">original article</a>.

Family & Pets

Humans evolved to share beds – how your sleeping companions may affect you now

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/goffredina-spano-2240566">Goffredina Spanò</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/kingston-university-949">Kingston University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gina-mason-2240569">Gina Mason</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/brown-university-1276">Brown University</a> <a href="https://www.cell.com/trends/ecology-evolution/fulltext/S0169-5347(24)00176-9">Recent research</a> on animal sleep behaviour has revealed that sleep is influenced by the animals around them. Olive baboons, for instance, sleep less as group sizes increase, while mice can synchronise their rapid eye movement (REM) cycles. In western society, many people expect to sleep alone, if not with a romantic partner. But as with other group-living animals, human co-sleeping is common, despite some <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945710000377">cultural</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2352721820303053?via%3Dihub">age-related variation</a>. And in many cultures, bedsharing with a relative is considered typical. Apart from <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945710000377">western countries</a>, caregiver-infant co-sleeping is common, with rates as high as <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1087079216000265">60-100%</a> in parts of South America, Asia and Africa. Despite its prevalence, infant co-sleeping is controversial. Some western perspectives, that value self-reliance, argue that sleeping alone promotes self-soothing when the baby wakes in the night. But <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00221325.2021.1905599">evolutionary scientists argue</a> that co-sleeping has been important to help keep infants warm and safe throughout human existence. <a href="https://www.sleephealthjournal.org/article/S2352-7218(22)00077-8/abstract">Many cultures</a> do not expect babies to self-soothe when they wake in the night and see night wakings as a normal part of breastfeeding <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1389945713002220?via%3Dihub">and development</a>. Concerns about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (Sids) have often led paediatricians to discourage bed-sharing. However, when studies control for <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0107799">other Sids risk factors</a> including unsafe sleeping surfaces, Sids risk does not seem to differ statistically between co-sleeping and solitary sleeping infants. This may be one reason why agencies such as the <a href="https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/150/1/e2022057990/188304/Sleep-Related-Infant-Deaths-Updated-2022?autologincheck=redirected">American Academy of Pediatrics</a>, the <a href="https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/qs37/chapter/Quality-statement-5-Safer-practices-for-bed-sharing">National Institute for Health and Care Excellence</a> and the <a href="https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/caring-for-a-newborn/reduce-the-risk-of-sudden-infant-death-syndrome/">NHS</a> either <a href="https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/150/1/e2022057990/188304/Sleep-Related-Infant-Deaths-Updated-2022">recommend that</a> infants “sleep in the parents’ room, close to the parents’ bed, but on a separate surface,” or, if bedsharing, to make sure that the infant <a href="https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/qs37/chapter/Quality-statement-5-Safer-practices-for-bed-sharing">“sleeps on a firm, flat mattress”</a> without pillows and duvets, rather than discouraging co-sleeping altogether. Researchers don’t yet know whether co-sleeping causes differences in sleep or, whether co-sleeping happens because of these differences. However, experiments in the 1990s suggested that co-sleeping can <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajpa.20736">encourage more sustained and frequent bouts of breastfeeding</a>. Using sensors to measure brain activity, this research also suggested that infants’ and caregivers’ sleep may be lighter during co-sleeping. But researchers speculated that this lighter sleep may actually <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221325.2021.1905599">help protect against Sids</a> by providing infants more opportunities to rouse from sleep and develop better control over their respiratory system. Other advocates believe that co-sleeping <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0163638319301237">benefits infants’ emotional and mental health</a> by promoting parent-child bonding and aiding infants’ <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3109/10253890.2012.742057">stress hormone regulation</a>. However, current data is inconclusive, with most studies showing <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0163638319301249?via%3Dihub">mixed findings</a> or <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14616734.2024.2380427">no differences</a> between co-sleepers and solitary sleepers with respect to short and long-term mental health. <h2>Co-sleeping in childhood</h2> Childhood co-sleeping past infancy is also fairly common according to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945713011076?via%3Dihub">worldwide surveys</a>. A <a href="https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article-abstract/126/5/e1119/65347/Relationship-Between-Bed-Sharing-and-Breastfeeding">2010 survey</a> of over 7,000 UK families found 6% of children were constant bedsharers up to at least four years old. Some families adopt co-sleeping <a href="https://capmh.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13034-023-00607-w">in response to</a> their child having trouble sleeping. But child-parent bedsharing in many countries, including some western countries <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1471-6712.2005.00358.x">like Sweden</a> where children often co-sleep with parents until school age, is viewed culturally as part of a nurturing environment. It is also common for siblings to share a room or even a bed. A <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221325.2021.1916732">2021 US study</a> found that over 36% of young children aged three to five years bedshared in some form overnight, whether with caregivers, siblings, pets or some combination. Co-sleeping decreases but is still present among older children, with up to <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/fare.12955">13.8% of co-sleeping parents</a> in Australia, the UK and other countries reporting that their child was between five and 12 years old when they engaged in co-sleeping. Two recent US studies using wrist-worn actigraphs (motion sensors) to track sleep indicated that kids who bedshare may have <a href="https://jcsm.aasm.org/doi/10.5664/jcsm.11352">shorter sleep durations</a> than children who sleep alone. But this shorter sleep duration <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221325.2021.1916732">is not explained by</a> greater disruption during sleep. Instead, bedsharing children may lose sleep by <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221325.2021.1916732">going to bed later than</a> solitary sleepers. The benefits and downsides of co-sleeping may also differ in children with conditions such as <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945717303842">autism spectrum disorder</a>, <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10802-017-0387-1">mental health disorders</a> and <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/dmcn.13300">chronic illnesses</a>. These children may experience heightened anxiety, sensory sensitivities and physical discomfort that make falling and staying asleep difficult. For them, co-sleeping can provide <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11325-018-1710-y">reassurance</a>. <h2>Adults sharing beds</h2> According to <a href="https://www.sleepfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/NSF_Bedroom_Poll_Report_1.pdf">a 2018 survey</a> from the US National Sleep Foundation, 80-89% of adults who live with their significant other share a bed with them. Adult bedsharing has shifted over time from pre-industrial <a href="https://academic.oup.com/ahr/article-abstract/106/2/343/64370?redirectedFrom=fulltext">communal arrangements</a>, including whole families and other household guests, to <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jdh/article-abstract/23/3/275/359439?redirectedFrom=fulltext">solo sleeping</a> in response to hygiene concerns as germ theory became accepted. Many couples find that bedsharing boosts their <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1978364/">sense of closeness</a>. Research shows that bedsharing with your partner can lead to <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1155/2017/8140672">longer sleep times</a> and a <a href="https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article-abstract/17/4/308/2753131">feeling of better sleep</a> overall. Bedsharing couples also often <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00583/full">get into sync</a> with each other’s sleep stages, which can enhance that feeling of intimacy. However, it’s not all rosy. Some studies indicate that females in heterosexual relationships may struggle more with sleep quality when bedsharing, as they can be <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1111/j.1479-8425.2007.00320.x">more easily disturbed</a> by their male partner’s movements. Also, bedsharers can have less <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27624285/">deep sleep</a> than when sleeping alone, even though they feel like their sleep is better together. Many questions about co-sleeping remain unanswered. For instance, we don’t fully understand the developmental effects of co-sleeping on children, or the benefits of co-sleeping for adults beyond female-male romantic partners. But, some work suggests that co-sleeping can <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11325-018-1710-y">comfort us</a>, similar to other <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jsr.14174">forms of social contact</a>, and help to enhance <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajpa.20736">physical synchrony</a> between parents and children. Co-sleeping doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all answer. But remember that western norms aren’t necessarily the ones we have evolved with. So consider factors such as <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945716301265">sleep disorders</a>, health and age in your decision to co-sleep, rather than what everyone else is doing.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/241803/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/goffredina-spano-2240566">Goffredina Spanò</a>, Lecturer in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/kingston-university-949">Kingston University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gina-mason-2240569">Gina Mason</a>, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Psychiatry and Human Behaviour, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/brown-university-1276">Brown University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/humans-evolved-to-share-beds-how-your-sleeping-companions-may-affect-you-now-241803">original article</a>.

Body

How one elderly couple made their big move to Italy

US couple Tony Smarrelli, 74, and his wife, Francine, 75, were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary in Venice, Italy when they decided to move to Italy for good. The Smarrelli's, who are retired elementary teachers from New York and both of Italian descent relocated to the picturesque coastal town of Scalea in southern Italy. “We were in St Mark’s Square (in Venice) when a quartet started playing (classic Italian song) Malafemmina,” Tony recalled the day they decided to make the big move. “It brought tears to my eyes, because my father would put on his Italian records every Sunday for dinner and would sing that song to my mother.” Looking to reconnect with their Italian roots, they purchased a 139 metre property with three bedrooms, a dining room and a walk-in-closet for for €150,000 ($A247,754) in November 2023. “We flew to Italy for the second time in 2023 and put an offer in for that home. We then secured our visas in the US in three hours, sold our home (in the US), packed up our belongings and flew back to Italy in December 2023,” Tony said. While their home in the peaceful coastal time was already livable when they bought it, the couple chose to renovate it, spending an extra €80,000 (about $A132,086) to retile the property, add a new plumbing and electric system, as well as two new bathrooms, an entire kitchen, doors, windows and screens. The property was renovated within four-months, and they said that a similar home in the US would have been nearly impossible for them to afford. “It would be easily $US1 ($A1.5) million to $2 million to live on a coast of South California or (a place with) any coastal views on the Eastern Seaboard,” Tony said. Tony's father and grandfather initially immigrated to the US in 1983 to make a better life for themselves, now 86 years later, Tony has returned to his homeland. “Some of my best friends said it takes a lot of guts to pick up and move to another country at 74 years of age. “I tell them it took guts for my father and grandfather to come to another country on a boat for eight weeks with no home, no work, very little money, no resources to make a better life for themselves,” Tony said. “In our modern world, it’s just a lifestyle change and for us, it was a good choice.” The couple said since their big move, they've cut back nearly y $3000 ($A4574) per month on expenses, which amounts to $36,000 ($A54,894) a year. The couple now spends about $1200 ($A1825) a month between the two of them. Back in the US, the couple's mortgage alone was $US1500 per month ($A2281) “Monthly expenses in the US before leaving were between $US4800 to $US5000 a month. In all we are about $US3000 less monthly living here in Italy,” Tony said. Tony plans to apply for an Italian citizenship, and while his father was naturalised as an American citizen before he was born, he plans to rectify this by appealing to a local court. Images: CNN

International Travel

How are racehorses really treated in the ‘sport of kings’?

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cathrynne-henshall-572585">Cathrynne Henshall</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/charles-sturt-university-849">Charles Sturt University</a> It’s the time of year when shiny horses and colourful clothing fill our screens – the <a href="https://www.racing.com/spring-racing">Spring Racing Carnival</a>, which includes high profile races like The Everest, Melbourne Cup and Cox Plate. It’s also the time of year when questions are asked about the welfare of racehorses that compete in the so-called “<a href="https://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/horse/how-we-shaped-horses-how-horses-shaped-us/sport/sport-of-kings#:%7E:text=Thoroughbred%20racing%20began%20around%20300,Asia%2C%20and%20the%20Middle%20East.">sport of kings</a>”. Previously, <a href="https://www.news.com.au/sport/superracing/punters-life/how-many-horses-have-died-in-the-melbourne-cup-the-real-numbers/news-story/5f7e29011a7fbf3da9e0611e902d1ee6">high profile deaths during races</a>, the <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0015622">use of whips</a> and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-17/making-a-killing/6127124">what happens to horses after racing</a> have been the focus of community concern. But recently, as we’ve come to know more about what makes a <a href="https://www.worldhorsewelfare.org/advice/welfare-wednesdays/how-to-provide-a-good-life-for-horses-friends-freedom-and-forage">good life for a horse</a>, questions are being raised about the daily lives of racehorses. Industry participants will point to the <a href="https://www.mamamia.com.au/dont-tell-me-the-horse-racing-industry-doesnt-care/">high level care</a> that racehorses receive – comfortable stables, specially formulated diets, the latest vet treatments and added extras such as massages and swimming sessions. But does this care translate into good welfare? <h2>The theory of ‘telos’</h2> Firstly, a quick primer on the difference between care and welfare. Care includes all the things that make sure racehorses get fit, stay fit and stay healthy. This care helps maximise the chance a horse will win races. Welfare is the animal’s subjective or individual experience of its life – <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33066335/">how it feels</a> – and there are a number of ways to assess this. One way is the concept of “telos”, originally developed by Ancient Greek philosopher <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle-causality/">Aristotle</a>. Telos is a <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10806-012-9422-y">species’ anatomical, physiological, behavioural and cognitive characteristics</a> that have been shaped by millions of years of evolution. Telos helps us to identify what matters to animals – their behavioural, psychological and physiological needs. So to consider if racehorse care actually translates to good welfare, we can assess how closely it provides the animal with the things that matter to them, based on their telos. Equine telos involves living in groups, forming long-lived social relationships, grazing fibrous plants and being on the move for up to 18 hours a day, as well as staying safe by sensing danger and then moving away. It also involves living in variable environments to solve challenges, learn, engage in curiosity and play. Let’s compare that to the daily life of a racehorse. <h2>Movement and feeding</h2> Firstly, the vast majority of racehorses live in stables – sometimes up to 23 hours a day. <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17970632/">Multiple studies</a> have found continuous stabling harms horse welfare. Stables significantly restrict opportunities for voluntary movement, and studies show stabled horses spend <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37813129/">the majority of the time inactive</a>. Even though stables house horses communally, most designs limit horses’ opportunities for social interaction. Thirdly, there’s little for a horse to do in a stable other than eat, stand, drink or lie, and they often develop <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34670688/">abnormal behaviours</a> that are associated with stress. These are never seen in free-ranging horses. When racehorses do get to move, they have little say over how far, how fast and for how long they move. The kinds of physical exercise racehorses do are both significantly shorter in duration and at much higher speeds than horses voluntarily choose. It’s those speeds that place them at <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17910268/">risk of suffering a serious injury</a>. What about diet? Although a lot of time and effort is spent ensuring racehorses enjoy high quality diets, they are mostly comprised of concentrated energy sources such as grains, rather the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10135103/">fibre horses evolved to eat</a>. Horses are <a href="https://madbarn.com/slow-feeders-for-horses/#:%7E:text=Horses%20are%20trickle%20feeders%20that,to%2025%20miles%20per%20day.">trickle feeders</a> (grazers), with small stomachs that continuously secrete digestive juices. In the wild, grazing keeps those stomachs full, which prevents the stomach lining from being damaged by digestive acids. In comparison, racehorses often consume their food very quickly – instead of spending up to 75% of their day eating, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780702026348500137">they spend only 33%</a>. This means their stomachs are empty for most of the day, which is why up to <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37048517/">65% will get painful gastric ulcers</a>. And having to wait to be fed rather than eating when hungry, as happens in free-ranging horses, <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/3/3/663">can lead to frustration</a>. <h2>Other difficulties</h2> Racehorses <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/does-whipping-hurt-race-horses-20211102-p595br.html">may be whipped</a>, and <a href="https://beva.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2042-3306.1982.tb02389.x">more than 50% </a>will experience some form of musculoskeletal injury during racing, of which between <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/2/270">7-49% are fatal</a>. Social relationships, in the limited form possible in a racing stable, are also frequently disrupted because horse populations are highly transient due to spelling, <a href="https://theconversation.com/black-caviars-death-has-prompted-uncomfortable-questions-about-how-champion-mares-spend-their-retirement-237039">retirement</a> or even just going to the races. So even if two horses are able to form a relationship of sorts, chances are one will be taken away. <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=henshall+stress+repeated&size=200">Separation distress is a significant stressor</a> for horses. Then there’s the gear that’s used to control them. Horses, like most animal species, escape and avoid painful stimuli. However, in racing (and many other equestrian activties) it is <a href="https://www.racingnsw.com.au/wp-content/uploads/NSWRules.pdf">mandatory to use</a> “bits” to control horses’ behaviour during riding and handling. Bits work by causing uncomfortable pressure and pain and may lead to mouth injuries. Studies have shown many people don’t understand how <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08927936.2023.2166713#abstract">to minimise the harm they can cause</a>. In addition, people also vary widely in their ability to read and <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/9/12/1124">interpret behavioural responses to stress</a>. So, racehorses may be repeatedly exposed to pain from bits and perform a range of behaviours to try to escape that pain, like bolting, mouth opening or head tossing. To remedy this, additional items of restrictive equipment, such as <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34056705/">tongue ties</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/dressing-up-for-melbourne-cup-day-from-a-racehorse-point-of-view-104771">nosebands, lugging bits or bit burs</a> may be used to control the horse. Racehorses frequently show signs of difficulty coping with the stressors of racing life, including “going off their feed”, aggression towards handlers, becoming hard to control when ridden and a range of stress behaviours and health issues, <a href="https://avmajournals.avma.org/downloadpdf/view/journals/javma/260/15/javma.22.08.0358.pdf">such as bleeding from the lungs</a>. <h2>What about welfare?</h2> Racehorse care is often directed towards managing issues that are the direct result of the demands of the racing environment. Fancy stables and aqua sessions are not important to horses, and may even cause harm. What matters to horses are opportunities to make meaningful choices, such as the freedom to move, form friendships and graze for the majority of the day. Current racing industry practices often deny horses the chance to make these choices. There’s no doubt people in racing care deeply about their horses. But to experience good welfare during racing, racehorses need more than just good care.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/240998/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cathrynne-henshall-572585">Cathrynne Henshall</a>, Post-doctoral Fellow, School of Agricultural, Environmental and Veterinary Sciences, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/charles-sturt-university-849">Charles Sturt University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-are-racehorses-really-treated-in-the-sport-of-kings-240998">original article</a>.

Family & Pets

How do children learn good manners?

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/sophia-waters-501831">Sophia Waters</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-new-england-919">University of New England</a> Ensuring kids have manners is a <a href="https://tidsskrift.dk/sss/article/view/135074">perennial preoccupation</a> for parents and caregivers. How, then, do you teach good manners to children? Modelling good manners around the home and in your own interaction with others is obviously crucial. But there’s a clear <a href="https://tidsskrift.dk/sss/article/view/135074">uniting theme</a> when it comes to manners in Australia: in Australian English, good manners centre on honouring personal autonomy, egalitarianism and not appearing to tell people what to do. <h2>Which manners matter most in Australia?</h2> Some of the most important manners in Australian English are behavioural edicts that focus on particular speech acts: greeting, requesting, thanking and apologising. These speech acts have a <a href="https://tidsskrift.dk/sss/article/view/135074/179857">set of words</a> associated with them: <ul> <li>hello</li> <li>hi</li> <li>may I please…?</li> <li>could I please…?</li> <li>thank you</li> <li>ta</li> <li>sorry</li> <li>excuse me.</li> </ul> Good manners make people feel comfortable in social situations by adding predictability and reassurance. They can act as signposts in interactions. Anglo cultures place a lot of weight on <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378216612001014">egalitarianism</a>, personal autonomy and ensuring we don’t <a href="https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/English/d-d5AAAAIAAJ?hl=en">tell people what to do</a>. If you want to get someone to do something for you – pass you a pen, for example – you frame the request as a question to signal that you’re not telling them what to do. You’ll also add one of the main characters in Anglo politeness: the magic word, “<a href="https://www.academia.edu/20312114/Lige_a_Danish_magic_word_An_ethnopragmatic_analysis">please</a>”. This framing recognises you don’t expect or demand compliance. You’re acknowledging the other person as an autonomous individual who can do what they want. If the person does the thing you’ve asked, the next step is to say “thank you” to recognise the other person’s autonomy. You’re acknowledging they didn’t have to help just because you asked. <h2>The heavy hitters</h2> The words “please” and “thank you” are such heavy hitters in Australian English good manners, they’re two of the words that language learners and migrants <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/10408340308518247?needAccess=true">learn first</a>. They can help soften the impact of your words. Think, for example, of the difference between “no” and “no, thank you”. Of course, there are times when “no” is a full sentence. But what if someone offered you a cup of tea and you replied “no” without its concomitant “thank you” to soften your rejection and acknowledge this offer didn’t have to be made? Don’t be surprised if they think you sound a bit rude. The other big players in Australian English good manners are “sorry” and “excuse me”. Much like in <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BZ1Eid0gnLV/">British English</a>, the Australian “sorry” means many things. These can preface an intrusion on someone’s personal space, like before squeezing past someone in the cinema, or on someone’s speaking turn. Interrupting or talking over someone else is often heavily frowned on in Australian English because it is often interpreted as disregarding what the other person has to say. But in some cultures, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0346251X14001365">such as French</a>, this conversational style is actively encouraged. And some languages and cultures <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S038800011830069X?via%3Dihub">have different conventions</a> around what good manners look like around strangers versus with family. Good manners involve saying certain words in predictable contexts. But knowing what these are and when to use them demonstrates a deeper cultural awareness of what behaviours are valued. <h2>How do children learn manners?</h2> As part of my <a href="https://tidsskrift.dk/sss/article/view/135074">research</a>, I’ve analysed parenting forum posts about “good manners”. Some believe good manners should be effortless; one parent said: <blockquote> Good manners shouldn’t be something that a child has to think about […] teach them correctly at home from day one, manners become an integral part of the way they view things. </blockquote> Another forum user posited good modelling was the key, saying: <blockquote> the parent has to lead by example, rather than forcing a child to say one or the other. </blockquote> One <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38777043/">study</a>, which involved analysis of more than 20 hours of videorecorded family dinner interactions collected in Italy, found mealtimes are also sites where parents control their children’s conduct “through the micro-politics of good manners.” <blockquote> By participating in mealtime interactions, children witness and have the chance to acquire the specific cultural principles governing bodily conduct at the table, such as ‘sitting properly’, ‘eating with cutlery’, and ‘chewing with mouth closed’. Yet, they are also socialised to a foundational principle of human sociality: one’s own behavior must be self-monitored according to the perspective of the generalised Other. </blockquote> In Australian English, that means regulating your behaviour to make sure you don’t do something that could be seen as “rude”. As I argued in a 2012 <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378216612000410">paper</a>: <blockquote> While child socialisation in Anglo culture involves heavy discouragement of rudeness, French does not have a direct equivalent feature […] French children are taught ça ne se fait pas, ‘that is not done’. Where the French proscribe the behaviours outright, the Anglos […] appeal to the image one has of oneself in interpersonal interactions. </blockquote> In Anglo English, the penalties for breaches could be other people’s disapproval and hurting their feelings. <h2>Why are good manners important?</h2> Good manners affect our interactions with others and help us build positive relationships. Fourteenth century English bishop and educator, William of Wykeham, declared that “<a href="https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100131244#:%7E:text=Manners%20maketh%20man%20proverbial%20saying,Winchester%20and%20chancellor%20of%20England">manners maketh the man</a>”. John Hopkins University Professor <a href="https://ii.library.jhu.edu/2018/12/11/in-memory-of-p-m-forni-the-case-for-civility-in-the-classroom-and-beyond/">Pier Forni</a> called them a “precious life-improvement tool.” The “Good Manners” <a href="https://education.qld.gov.au/about-us/history/history-topics/good-manners-chart">chart</a>, based on a set of rules devised by the Children’s National guild of Courtesy in UK primary schools in 1889, was issued to Queensland primary schools until the 1960s. It tells kids to remember the golden rule to “always do to others as you would wish them to do to you if you were in their place.” Good manners form part of the bedrock for human sociality. Childhood is when we give kids foundational training on interacting with others and help them learn how to be a culturally competent member of a society.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/237133/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/sophia-waters-501831">Sophia Waters</a>, Senior Lecturer in Writing, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-new-england-919">University of New England</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-do-children-learn-good-manners-237133">original article</a>.

Family & Pets

From eye exams to blood tests and surgery: how doctors use light to diagnose disease

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matthew-griffith-1539353">Matthew Griffith</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> You’re not feeling well. You’ve had a pounding headache all week, dizzy spells and have vomited up your past few meals. You visit your GP to get some answers and sit while they shine a light in your eyes, order a blood test and request some medical imaging. Everything your GP just did relies on light. These are just some of the optical technologies that have had an enormous impact in how we diagnose disease. <h2>1. On-the-spot tests</h2> Point-of-care diagnostics allow doctors to test patients on the spot and get answers in minutes, rather than sending samples to a lab for analysis. The “flashlight” your GP uses to view the inside of your eye (known as an <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003881.htm">ophthalmoscope</a>) is a great example. This allows doctors to detect abnormal blood flow in the eye, deformations of the cornea (the outermost clear layer of the eye), or swollen optical discs (a round section at the back of the eye where the nerve link to the brain begins). Swollen discs are a sign of elevated pressure inside your head (or in the worst case, a brain tumour) that could be <a href="https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/headache/increased-intracranial-pressure-icp-headache">causing your headaches</a>. The invention of <a href="https://openmedscience.com/lighting-the-way-in-healthcare-the-transformative-role-of-lasers-in-medicine/">lasers and LEDs</a> has enabled many other miniaturised technologies to be provided at the bedside or clinic rather than in the lab. <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-a-pulse-oximeter-should-i-buy-one-to-monitor-covid-at-home-174457">Pulse oximetry</a> is a famous example, where a clip attached to your finger reports how well your blood is oxygenated. It does this by <a href="https://www.howequipmentworks.com/pulse_oximeter/">measuring</a> the different responses of oxygenated and de-oxygenated blood to different colours of light. Pulse oximetry is used at hospitals (and <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-a-pulse-oximeter-should-i-buy-one-to-monitor-covid-at-home-174457">sometimes at home</a>) to monitor your respiratory and heart health. In hospitals, it is also a valuable tool for detecting <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(12)60107-X/fulltext">heart defects in babies</a>. <h2>2. Looking at molecules</h2> Now, back to that blood test. Analysing a small amount of your blood can diagnose <a href="https://theconversation.com/blood-tests-and-diagnosing-illness-what-can-blood-tell-us-about-whats-happening-in-our-body-80327">many different diseases</a>. A machine called an automated “full blood count analyser” tests for general markers of your health. This machine directs focused beams of light through blood samples held in small glass tubes. It counts the number of blood cells, determines their specific type, and reports the level of haemoglobin (the protein in red blood cells that distributes oxygen around your body). In minutes, this machine can provide a <a href="https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/article/inside-the-pathology-lab-what-happens-to-my-blood">snapshot</a> of your overall health. For more specific disease markers, blood serum is separated from the heavier cells by spinning in a rotating instrument called a centrifuge. The serum is then exposed to special chemical stains and enzyme assays that change colour depending on whether specific molecules, which may be the sign of a disease, are present. These colour changes can’t be detected with the naked eye. However, a light beam from an instrument called a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5476943/#R88">spectrometer</a> can detect tiny amounts of these substances in the blood and determine if the biomarkers for diseases are present, and at what levels. <h2>3. Medical imaging</h2> Let’s re-visit those medical images your GP ordered. The development of fibre-optic technology, made famous for transforming high-speed digital communications (such as the NBN), allows light to get inside the body. The result? High-resolution optical imaging. A common example is an <a href="https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/153737#risks-and-side-effects">endoscope</a>, where fibres with a tiny camera on the end are inserted into the body’s natural openings (such as your mouth or anus) to examine your gut or respiratory tracts. Surgeons can insert the same technology through tiny cuts to view the inside of the body on a video screen during <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9553337/">laparoscopic surgery</a> (also known as keyhole surgery) to diagnose and treat disease. <h2>How about the future?</h2> Progress in nanotechnology and a better understanding of the interactions of light with our tissues are leading to new light-based tools to help diagnose disease. These include: <ul> <li> <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/advs.201903441">nanomaterials</a> (materials on an extremely small scale, many thousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair). These are being used in next-generation sensors and new diagnostic tests </li> <li> <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-019-0045-y">wearable optical biosensors</a> the size of your fingernail can be included in devices such as watches, contact lenses or finger wraps. These devices allow non-invasive measurements of sweat, tears and saliva, in real time </li> <li> AI tools to analyse how blood serum scatters infrared light. This has allowed researchers to build a <a href="https://www.advancedsciencenews.com/powerful-diagnostic-approach-uses-light-to-detect-virtually-all-forms-of-cancer/">comprehensive database</a> of scatter patterns to detect <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/aisy.202300006">any cancer</a> </li> <li> a type of non-invasive imaging called <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK554044/">optical coherence tomography</a> for more detailed imaging of the eye, heart and skin </li> <li> fibre optic technology to deliver a tiny microscope into the body on the <a href="https://www.uwa.edu.au/projects/microscope-in-a-needle">tip of a needle</a>. </li> </ul> So the next time you’re at the GP and they perform (or order) some tests, chances are that at least one of those tests depend on light to help diagnose disease.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/231379/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matthew-griffith-1539353">Matthew Griffith</a>, Associate Professor and ARC Future Fellow and Director, UniSA Microscopy and Microanalysis Facilities, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/from-eye-exams-to-blood-tests-and-surgery-how-doctors-use-light-to-diagnose-disease-231379">original article</a>.

Body

How light can shift your mood and mental health

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jacob-crouse-981668">Jacob Crouse</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/emiliana-tonini-1638957">Emiliana Tonini</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ian-hickie-961">Ian Hickie</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> It’s spring and you’ve probably noticed a change in when the Sun rises and sets. But have you also noticed a change in your mood? We’ve known for a while that light plays a role in our wellbeing. Many of us tend to feel more positive when <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32925966/">spring returns</a>. But for others, big changes in light, such as at the start of spring, can be tough. And for many, bright light at night can be a problem. Here’s what’s going on. <h2>An ancient rhythm of light and mood</h2> In an <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-light-tells-you-when-to-sleep-focus-and-poo-236780">earlier article</a> in our series, we learned that light shining on the back of the eye sends “<a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25451984/">timing signals</a>” to the brain and the master clock of the circadian system. This clock coordinates our daily (circadian) rhythms. “Clock genes” also regulate circadian rhythms. These genes control the timing of when many other genes <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31557726/">turn on and off</a> during the 24-hour, light-dark cycle. But how is this all linked with our mood and mental health? Circadian rhythms can be disrupted. This can happen if there are problems with how the body clock develops or functions, or if someone is routinely exposed to bright light at night. When circadian disruption happens, it increases the risk of certain <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33689801/">mental disorders</a>. These include <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0149763422000744">bipolar disorder</a> and <a href="https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1741-7015-11-79">atypical depression</a> (a type of depression when someone is extra sleepy and has problems with their energy and metabolism). <h2>Light on the brain</h2> Light may also affect circuits <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35687680/">in the brain</a> that control mood, as <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23151476/">animal studies show</a>. There’s evidence this happens in humans. A brain-imaging study showed exposure to bright light in the daytime while inside the scanner <a href="https://www.cell.com/fulltext/S0960-9822(06)01758-1">changed the activity</a> of a brain region involved in mood and alertness. Another brain-imaging study <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22111663/">found</a> a link between daily exposure to sunlight and how the neurotransmitter (or chemical messenger) serotonin binds to receptors in the brain. We see alterations in serotonin binding in several <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33651238/">mental disorders</a>, including depression. <h2>What happens when the seasons change?</h2> Light can also affect mood and mental health as the seasons change. During autumn and winter, symptoms such as low mood and fatigue can develop. But often, once spring and summer come round, these symptoms go away. This is called “seasonality” or, when severe, “<a href="https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2020/1201/p668.html">seasonal affective disorder</a>”. What is less well known is that for other people, the change to spring and summer (when there is more light) can also come with a change in mood and mental health. Some people experience increases in energy and the drive to be active. This is positive for some but can be seriously destabilising for others. This too is an example of seasonality. Most people <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0239033">aren’t very seasonal</a>. But for those who are, seasonality has a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8540777/">genetic component</a>. Relatives of people with seasonal affective disorder are more likely to also experience seasonality. Seasonality is also more common in conditions such as <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25063960/">bipolar disorder</a>. For many people with such conditions, the shift into shorter day-lengths during winter can trigger a depressive episode. Counterintuitively, the longer day-lengths in spring and summer can also destabilise people with bipolar disorder into an “<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10947388/">activated</a>” state where energy and activity are in overdrive, and symptoms are harder to manage. So, seasonality can be serious. Alexis Hutcheon, who experiences seasonality and helped write this article, told us: <blockquote> […] the season change is like preparing for battle – I never know what’s coming, and I rarely come out unscathed. I’ve experienced both hypomanic and depressive episodes triggered by the season change, but regardless of whether I’m on the ‘up’ or the ‘down’, the one constant is that I can’t sleep. To manage, I try to stick to a strict routine, tweak medication, maximise my exposure to light, and always stay tuned in to those subtle shifts in mood. It’s a time of heightened awareness and trying to stay one step ahead. </blockquote> <h2>So what’s going on in the brain?</h2> One explanation for what’s going on in the brain when mental health fluctuates with the change in seasons relates to the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine. Serotonin helps regulate mood and is the target of <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0706743716659417">many</a> <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38185236/">antidepressants</a>. There is some evidence of seasonal changes in serotonin levels, potentially being lower <a href="https://academic.oup.com/brain/article/139/5/1605/2468755?login=false">in</a> <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(02)11737-5/abstract?cc=y%3D">winter</a>. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter involved in reward, motivation and movement, and is also a target of some <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0706743716659417">antidepressants</a>. Levels of dopamine may also change with the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-023-02365-x">seasons</a>. But the neuroscience of seasonality is a developing area and more research <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-023-02365-x">is needed</a> to know what’s going on in the brain. <h2>How about bright light at night?</h2> We know exposure to bright light at night (for instance, if someone is up all night) can disturb someone’s circadian rhythms. This type of circadian rhythm disturbance is associated with higher rates of symptoms <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-023-00135-8">including</a> self-harm, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and lower wellbeing. It is also associated with higher rates of <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32639562/">mental disorders</a>, such as major depression, bipolar disorder, psychotic disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder (or PTSD). Why is this? Bright light at night confuses and destabilises the body clock. It disrupts the rhythmic regulation of mood, cognition, appetite, metabolism and <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38214638/">many</a> <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34419186/">other</a> <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33689801/">mental</a> <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36661342/">processes</a>. But people differ hugely in their <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1901824116">sensitivity to light</a>. While still a hypothesis, people who are most sensitive to light may be the most vulnerable to body clock disturbances caused by bright light at night, which then leads to a higher risk of mental health problems. <h2>Where to from here?</h2> Learning about light will help people better manage their mental health conditions. By encouraging people to better align their lives to the light-dark cycle (to stabilise their body clock) we may also help prevent conditions such as <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34419186/">depression</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763422000744">bipolar disorder</a> emerging in the first place. Healthy light behaviours – avoiding light at night and seeking light during the day – are good for everyone. But they might be especially helpful for people <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763422000744">at risk</a> of mental health problems. These include people with a family history of mental health problems or people who are <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38185236/">night owls</a> (late sleepers and late risers), who are more at risk of body clock disturbances. <hr /> Alexis Hutcheon has lived experience of a mental health condition and helped write this article. If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/231282/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jacob-crouse-981668">Jacob Crouse</a>, Research Fellow in Youth Mental Health, Brain and Mind Centre, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/emiliana-tonini-1638957">Emiliana Tonini</a>, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Brain and Mind Centre, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ian-hickie-961">Ian Hickie</a>, Co-Director, Health and Policy, Brain and Mind Centre, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-light-can-shift-your-mood-and-mental-health-231282">original article</a>.

Mind

What are house dust mites and how do I know if I’m allergic to them?

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/deryn-lee-thompson-1449312">Deryn Lee Thompson</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> People often believe they are allergic to <a href="https://ahd.csiro.au/everything-in-our-homes-gathers-dust-but-what-exactly-is-it-where-does-it-come-from-and-why-does-it-keep-coming-back-is-it-from-outside-is-it-fibres-from-our-clothes-and-cells-from-our-skin/">house dust</a>. But of the <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/allergy-treatments/allergen-minimisation">20% of Australians</a> suffereing with allergies, a number are are actually allergic to microscopic <a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/dust-mites">house dust mites</a>. House dust mites belong to the same family as spiders and ticks. They measure just 0.2-0.3 mm, with 50 fitting on a single pinhead. They <a href="https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/71977">live</a> for 65–100 days, and females lay 60–100 eggs in their life. House dust mites love temperate climates and humidity. They feed off the skin cells we and animals shed, as well as mould, which they digest using special enzymes. These enzymes are excreted in their poo about <a href="https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/71977">20 times a day</a>. They also shed fragments of their exoskeletons. All these fragments trigger allergies in people with this type of allergic rhinitis (which is also known as hay fever) <h2>What are the symptoms?</h2> When people with house dust mite allergy inhale the allergens, they penetrate the mucous membranes of the airways and eyes. Their body recognises the allergens as a threat, releasing chemicals including one called histamine. This causes symptoms including a runny nose, an itchy nose, eyes and throat, sneezing, coughing and a feeling of mucus at the back of your throat (known as a post-nasal drip). People with this type of allergy usually mouth breath, snore, rub their nose constantly (creating a nasal crease called the “dust mite salute”) and have dark shadows under their eyes. House dust mite allergy <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7328274/">can also cause</a> poor sleep, constant tiredness, reduced concentration at work or school and lower quality of life. For people with eczema, their damaged skin barrier can allow house dust mite proteins in. This prompts immune cells in the skin to <a href="https://academic.oup.com/bjd/article/190/1/e5/7485663">release chemicals</a> which make already flared skin become redder, sorer and itchier, especially in children. Symptoms of house dust mite allergy occur year round, and are often worse after going to bed and when waking in the morning. But people with house dust mite allergy and pollen allergies find their year-round symptoms worsen in spring. <h2>How is it diagnosed?</h2> House dust mite allergy symptoms often build up over months, or even years before people seek help. But an accurate diagnosis means you can not only access the right treatment – it’s also vital for minimising exposure. Doctor and nurse practitioners can order a <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/allergy-treatments/allergen-minimisation">blood test</a> to check for house dust mite allergy. Alternatively, health care providers with <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/hp/a-career-in-clinical-immunology-and-allergy">specialised allergy training</a> can perform skin prick tests. This involves placing drops of the allergens on the arm, along with a positive and negative “control”. After 15 minutes, those who test positive will have developed a mosquito bite-like mark. <h2>How is it treated?</h2> Medication options include one or a combination of: <ul> <li>daily non-sedating antihistamines</li> <li>a steroid nasal spray</li> <li>allergy eye drops.</li> </ul> Your health care professional will work with you to develop a <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/images/stories/pospapers/ar/ASCIA_HP_Allergic_Rhinitis_2022.pdf">rhinitis (hay fever) medical management plan</a> to reduce your symptoms. If you’re using a nasal spray, your health provider will <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ytYj1TLojM">show you how to use it</a>, as people often use it incorrectly. If you also have <a href="https://www.nationalasthma.org.au/understanding-asthma/how-is-asthma-managed">asthma</a> or eczema which is worsened by dust mites, your health provider will adapt your <a href="https://www.nationalasthma.org.au/health-professionals/asthma-action-plans">asthma action plan</a> or <a href="https://medcast.com.au/qhub/eczema/resources">eczema care plan</a> accordingly. If you experience severe symptoms, a longer-term option is <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/images/pc/ASCIA_PC_Allergen_Immunotherapy_FAQ_2024.pdf">immunotherapy</a>. This aims to gradually turn off your immune system’s ability to recognise house dust mites as a harmful allergen. Immunotherapy involves taking either a daily sublingual tablet, under the tongue, or a series of injections. Injections require monthly attendances over three years, after the initial weekly build-up phase. These are <a href="https://theconversation.com/im-considering-allergen-immunotherapy-for-my-hay-fever-what-do-i-need-to-know-190408">effective</a>, but are costly (as well as time-consuming). So it’s important to weigh up the potential benefits and downsides with your health-care provider. <h2>How can you minimise house dust mites?</h2> There are also important allergy minimisation measures you can take to reduce allergens in your home. Each week, <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/component/finder/search?q=minimisation&Itemid=100001">wash</a> your bedding and pyjamas in hot water (over 60°C). This <a href="https://www.nationalasthma.org.au/living-with-asthma/resources/patients-carers/factsheets/dust-mites-trigger-my-asthma">removes</a> house dust mite eggs and debris. Opt for doonas, covers or quilts that can be washed in hot water above 60°C. Alternatively, low-cost waterproof or leak proof covers can keep house dust mites out. If you can, favour blinds and wood floors over curtains and carpet. Dust blinds and surfaces with a damp cloth each week and vacuum while wearing a mask, or have someone else do it, as house dust mites can become airborne during cleaning. But beware of costly products with big marketing budgets and little evidence to support their use. A new mattress, for example, will always be house dust mite-free. But once slept on, the house dust mite life cycle can start. Mattress protectors and toppers commonly claim to be “hypoallergenic”, “anti-allergy” or “allergy free”. But their pore sizes are not small enough to keep house dust mites and their poo out, or shed skin going through. Sprays claiming to kill mites require so much spray to penetrate the product that it’s likely to become wet, may smell like the spray and, unless dried properly, may grow mould. Finally, claims that expensive vacuum cleaners can extract all the house dust mites are unsubstantiated. For more information, visit <a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/dust-mites">healthdirect.gov.au</a> or the <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/allergy-treatments/allergen-minimisation">Australian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy</a>.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/240918/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/deryn-lee-thompson-1449312">Deryn Lee Thompson</a>, Eczema and Allergy Nurse; Lecturer, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-are-house-dust-mites-and-how-do-i-know-if-im-allergic-to-them-240918">original article</a>.

Body

How was Halloween invented? Once a Celtic pagan tradition, the holiday has evolved to let kids and adults try on new identities

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/linus-owens-457047">Linus Owens</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/middlebury-1247">Middlebury</a> “It’s alive!” Dr. Frankenstein cried as his creation stirred to life. But the creature had a life of its own, eventually escaping its creator’s control. Much like Frankenstein’s monster, traditions are also alive, which means they can change over time or get reinvented. Built from a hodgepodge of diverse parts, Halloween is one such tradition that has been continually reinvented since its ancient origins as <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/T/bo46408548.html">a Celtic pagan ceremony</a>. Yet beneath the superhero costumes and bags of candy still beats the heart of the original. The Celts lived in what’s now Ireland as far back as 500 B.C. They celebrated New Year’s Day on Nov. 1, which they called <a href="https://www.loc.gov/folklife/halloween-santino.html">Samhain</a>. They believed that leading up to the transition to the new year, the door between the worlds of the living and the dead swung open. The souls of the recently dead, previously trapped on Earth, could now pass to the underworld. Since they thought spirits came out after dark, this supernatural activity reached its peak the night before, on Oct. 31. The Celts invented rituals to protect themselves during this turbulent time. They put on costumes and disguises to fool the spirits. They lit bonfires and stuck candles inside carved turnips – the first jack-o’-lanterns – to scare away any spirits looking for mischief. If all else failed, they carried a pocketful of treats to pay off wayward spirits and send them back <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/halloween-9780195168969?cc=us&lang=en&">on their way to the underworld</a>. Sound familiar? <a href="https://theconversation.com/halloweens-celebration-of-mingling-with-the-dead-has-roots-in-ancient-celtic-celebrations-of-samhain-191300">Although focused on the dead</a>, Samhain was ultimately <a href="https://utpress.org/title/halloween-other-festivals/">for the living</a>, who needed plenty of help of their own when transitioning to the new year. Winter was cold and dark. Food was scarce. Everyone came together for one last bash to break bread, share stories and stand tall against the dead, strengthening community ties at the time they were needed most. When Catholics arrived in Ireland around A.D. 300, they opened another door between worlds, unleashing considerable conflict. They sought to convert the Celts by changing their pagan rituals into Christian holidays. They rechristened Nov. 1 “All Saints Day,” which today remains a celebration of Catholic saints. But the locals held on to their old beliefs. They believed the dead still wandered the Earth. So the living still dressed in costumes. This activity still took place the night before. It just had a new name to fit the Catholic calendar: “All Hallows Eve,” which is <a href="https://www.loc.gov/folklife/halloween-santino.html">where we got the name Halloween</a>. Irish immigrants <a href="https://www.irishpost.com/heritage/how-irish-great-famine-brought-halloween-to-america-161376">brought Halloween to America in the 1800s</a> while escaping the Great Potato Famine. At first, Irish Halloween celebrations were an oddity, viewed suspiciously by other Americans. As such, Halloween wasn’t celebrated much in America at the time. As the Irish integrated into American society, Halloween was reinvented again, this time as an all-American celebration. It became a holiday primarily for kids. Its religious overtones faded, with supernatural saints and sinners being replaced by generic ghosts and goblins. Carved turnips gave way to the <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/the-history-of-jack-o-lantern">pumpkins</a> now emblematic of the holiday. Though trick-or-treating resembles ancient traditions like guising, where costumed children went door to door for gifts, <a href="https://www.bakersfield.com/opinion/jack-santino-five-myths-about-halloween/article_6fe79e19-d106-52cc-a895-4a3a72d09c93.html">it’s actually an American invention</a>, created to entice kids away from rowdy holiday pranks toward more wholesome activities. Halloween has become a tradition many new immigrants adopt along their journey toward American-ness and is increasingly <a href="https://www.cambridgescholars.com/product/978-1-4438-0153-9">being exported around the world</a>, with locals reinventing it in new ways to adapt it to their own culture. What’s so special about Halloween is that it turns the world upside down. The dead walk the Earth. Rules are meant to be broken. And kids exercise a lot of power. They decide what costume to wear. They make demands on others by asking for candy. “Trick or treat” is their battle cry. They do things they’d never get away with any other time, but on Halloween, they get to act like adults, trying it on to see how it fits. Because Halloween allows kids more independence, it’s possible to mark significant life stages through holiday firsts. First Halloween. First Halloween without a parent. First Halloween that’s no longer cool. First Halloween as a parent. Growing up used to mean growing out of Halloween. But today, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2012/10/24/halloween-adults-costumes-elvira-mistress-of-the-dark/1593177/">young adults</a> seem even more committed to Halloween than kids. What changed: adults or Halloween? Both. Caught between childhood and adulthood, today’s young adults find Halloween a perfect match to their struggles to find themselves and make their way in the world. Their participation has reinvented Halloween again, now bigger, more elaborate and <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/halloween-prices-cost-more-expensive-pumpkin-candy-costumes-1754635">more expensive</a>. Yet in <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-has-halloween-become-so-popular-among-adults-104896">becoming an adult celebration</a>, it comes full circle to return to its roots as a holiday celebrated mainly by adults. Halloween is a living tradition. You wear a costume every year, but you’d never wear the same one. You’ve changed since last year, and your costume reflects that. Halloween is no different. Each year, it’s the same celebration, but it’s also something totally new. In what ways are you already reinventing the Halloween of the future today? <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/linus-owens-457047">Linus Owens</a>, Associate Professor of Sociology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/middlebury-1247">Middlebury</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-was-halloween-invented-once-a-celtic-pagan-tradition-the-holiday-has-evolved-to-let-kids-and-adults-try-on-new-identities-192379">original article</a>.

Art

Who dies in a heat wave? How to help protect the vulnerable in our communities

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/myles-david-sergeant-1542267">Myles David Sergeant</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/mcmaster-university-930">McMaster University</a> Extreme heat is a silent killer. From time to time, we hear about shocking cases of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/24/football-player-heat-deaths-athlete">football players</a> and other athletes who die suddenly while exerting themselves on hot days. Those deaths are certainly tragic, but statistically they are very rare. Most deaths from extreme heat <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/climate-change-indicators-heat-related-deaths">are in older people</a>, who frequently die alone inside their homes. They often die slowly, as the heat creeps up to and sometimes past body temperature, especially when heat domes park themselves over cities and keep the temperature high all day and all night. When such deaths happen, they rarely make the news. Of all the climate change disasters our world is already experiencing, heat is the top killer, <a href="https://library.wmo.int/viewer/68500/download?file=1335_WMO-Climate-services-Health_en.pdf&type=pdf&navigator=1">as the World Meteorological Organization reported</a>. The planet was more than <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/jul/08/temperatures-1-point-5c-above-pre-industrial-era-average-for-12-months-data-shows">1.5 C above the pre-industrial baseline</a> for 12 consecutive months from July 2023 to June 2024. In July this year, we saw the hottest three days ever on record, prompting <a href="https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/press-encounter/2024-07-25/secretary-generals-press-conference-extreme-heat">a special statement from United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres</a>. <h2>Health risks and heat</h2> <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499843/">Our bodies are made to dump excess heat</a> when we are too warm, but that process goes into reverse when the air is warmer than our core temperature. Our other main defence, sweating, doesn’t help when humidity saturates the air, making it impossible for our own moisture to evaporate. For the frail and elderly, who are more likely to be labouring with heart troubles, COPD or other challenges, simply sitting still in a heat wave requires an effort equivalent to walking on a treadmill. The effort is not great, but it is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cjco.2021.10.002">steady and relentless</a>. It exhausts the body, sometimes to the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(22)00117-6">point of no return</a>. Tracking heat-related deaths is challenging, and it’s changing as authorities become more aware of heat as a contributing or underlying factor to deaths by other causes. <a href="https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2006.100081">A paper published by the American Journal of Public Health</a> points out that the 1995 heat wave in Chicago likely contributed to hundreds more deaths than had first been attributed to heat itself. <h2>Who is at risk?</h2> Many people lack air conditioning or a way to get to a place that has it, such as a library, recreation centre or shopping mall. As a result, too many people in cities are forced to <a href="https://wmo.int/publication-series/2023-state-of-climate-services-health">endure long waves of heat</a> — waves that are occurring more frequently, lasting longer, and reaching higher temperatures — in a trend that appears set to continue getting worse. Air conditioning, <a href="https://www.lpm.org/news/2015-07-24/the-history-of-movie-theaters-and-air-conditioning-that-keeps-film-lovers-cool">once a luxury that drew people to summertime movie theatres on hot nights</a>, has become a necessity. Increasingly, it is also a legal requirement, as cities pass bylaws requiring landlords not to allow the temperature in their tenants’ quarters to rise above a certain level. Toronto has <a href="https://www.toronto.ca/home/311-toronto-at-your-service/find-service-information/article/?kb=kA06g000001xvbiCAA">such a bylaw</a> for rental units that have air conditioning available, capping indoor temps at 26 C between June 2 and Sept. 14. Such laws recognize the vulnerability of tenants who lack control over the temperature in their rental units, making heat death an especially urban tragedy, as confirmed in <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/pub/82-003-x/2024006/article/00001-eng.pdf?st=e6jLNMuq">a recent Statistics Canada study</a> between 2000 and 2020. Deaths from extreme heat were more likely in cities with a higher percentage of renter households. During a single week-long heat wave in June 2021 — the year after the period captured in the Statistics Canada study — <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-heat-dome-sudden-deaths-570-1.6122316">B.C.’s chief coroner found that 570 people died from heat-related causes</a> — 79 per cent of them were seniors. <h2>Taking action at the community level</h2> From this Global North perspective, the community members who are most likely to die from extreme heat included: <ul> <li>Those over 65</li> <li>Those with more than one chronic condition (including hypertension, mental health, diabetes, heart disease, lung disease)</li> <li>Socially disadvantaged populations in our communities</li> <li>Those with mobility issues</li> <li>Those experiencing social isolation (living alone)</li> <li>Tenants with lack of air conditioning</li> <li>Those living in an urban heat island</li> </ul> This problem is not going away. Some of the <a href="https://www.intactcentreclimateadaptation.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/UoW_ICCA_2022_04-Irreversible-Extreme-Heat.pdf">actions we can take</a> to protect our most vulnerable community members include: <ul> <li>Increase awareness that excessive heat is not merely uncomfortable, but dangerous.</li> <li>Make sure people are warned about impending heat waves.</li> <li>Advocate for everyone to have access to air conditioning.</li> <li>Check on and support people who live alone, especially those with no air conditioning.</li> <li>Invite people over if you have air conditioning, or help them get to community cooling stations.</li> <li>Help vulnerable people who do not have air conditioning to improvise, by freezing wet cloths, for example, to take out and hang around their necks. Doing this, especially with a fan blowing, can be surprisingly effective.</li> <li>Learn and share the <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/publications/healthy-living/fact-sheet-staying-healthy-heat.html">warning signs of heat-related illness</a>.</li> <li>Make sure they drink plenty of water and other replenishing fluids.</li> </ul> While we must do our best to limit climate change to keep our planet from getting ever hotter, we must also make every effort to protect the vulnerable from the impacts of the heat that is already here.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/236829/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/myles-david-sergeant-1542267">Myles David Sergeant</a>, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/mcmaster-university-930">McMaster University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-dies-in-a-heat-wave-how-to-help-protect-the-vulnerable-in-our-communities-236829">original article</a>.

Caring

Arguing with the people you love? How to have a healthy family dispute

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jessica-robles-617248">Jessica Robles</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/loughborough-university-1336">Loughborough University</a> Unlike Britain’s royal family, most of us don’t have the option to move to another country when we don’t see eye to eye. But most of us have likely experienced disagreements with loved ones. <a href="https://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/soc/faculty/heritage/Site/Publications_files/CA_as_SOCIAL_THEORY.pdf">Conversations are designed to</a> do things – to start some action, and complete it – whether it’s a service transaction, an invitation to coffee or reassurance on a bad day. Our <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ZnhyDwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false">uniquely complex communicative system</a> has evolved to help us get things done in the social world. Arguments are part of this complex system. They can be unavoidable, necessary or even productive. But they can also be difficult. It can be hard to know what to do when tensions are high and harsh words are flying, particularly when it involves someone you’re close to. But research on how disputes unfold – and conversation more generally – offers some ideas about the best way to handle one. <h2>What is a dispute?</h2> There are many words for disagreeing, and there are plenty of academic theories describing what disputes are and why they happen. But arguments are not abstract models. They’re lived in, breathed in, sweated in and talked (or sometimes shouted) into being. Research focusing on <a href="https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/288351315.pdf">how disputes actually happen</a> shows they’re characterised by three types of features. First are the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378216606000488">vocal features</a>, which include talking in a higher pitch, louder and faster. Then, there are <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1750481310395452?casa_token=MCNQWEQD6HwAAAAA:8nbyXh-cgjWzfL3syRrwybRFQl_ddHIMy9tRIAwPRAFADrgHtR2LSl9ZoUFsVlnzWPjWaKQZZ9XEVA">embodied features</a> such as aggressive gestures and avoidant stances, such as turning away from someone. Finally, there are <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/01638539009544746?casa_token=BB9edpIE1oUAAAAA:FTK-JRJ2oCmG7BufkUAQX1k1_9C1Cvc12r5ynYPM6duFB-HDWhgef8Va-Rh5Z2XksR64oTcPmi4FAQ">interactional features</a> such as talking over each other, not listening or metatalk – <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08351813.2020.1826765?casa_token=isJl2NJbSIkAAAAA:Mh-dXMfkBSGvEeoOWAoxLDjzbZ_eF-zbND-D8q4RAP5WHadqg1KUZDF_UnySFAcyb3LD-DF3BbGq1A">comments about the conversation</a> as it’s happening. <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1354067X9953001?casa_token=Gje17vkyg_AAAAAA:ik_4Ze-4PIFLa6yjthOpztvJrtdVOokhRT73M8jDN4t1w0Bl7WzW2--d1vjZwanphorOH_r6jaVZdA">Displays of emotion</a> such as displeasure or anger, are also common. Participants might accuse each other of emotions or label their own emotions. Disputes happen for several reasons. What each person is doing can vary, from <a href="https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.530.8869&rep=rep1&type=pdf">complaints and accusations</a> to <a href="https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1348/014466610X500791?casa_token=r58ikQ5XFxEAAAAA:QR9wr0Fcz7q5BeSvL8soAIhKMNA1O9TcpcBaLleBKDvZ8Q5sPyX1OSg0OzSL5-xb8By5QbgNm9kHNhg">demands, threats or resistance</a>. They can be about many things – familial obligations, what to have for dinner, politics or how to plan a holiday. Luckily, disputes share elements <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=2NxaC7nSetAC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=onepage&q&f=false">with each other</a> and with conversation generally – so you don’t have to invent new strategies every time you’re caught in one. <h2>Affiliation and alignment</h2> When bickering with a friend or family member, there are ways to make them feel like you’re still on their side even if you disagree. If you can keep these in mind, and use them at the right time, you might stop your dispute from escalating into something harder to mend. The first thing is <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781405198431.wbeal0196.pub2">affiliation</a>, which means support for the other person or their view of things. Affiliation involves phrasing what you say so it’s best <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08351810903471258?casa_token=yxnWxfDAEB8AAAAA:uoHEX2dlOS06wxwlHH7TOWmmfB51qMMbzg5tadx5SeRcf_5-vABUKQZtIt0Hchu4vUlFNfCX4qRi5A">understood and easier to respond to</a>. For example, saying “you’ve been to France before, right?” invites someone to share their experience – partly by including the tag “right” at the end, which at least requires a confirmation. It can also involve categorisation, the way we talk about or treat others as <a href="https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/BF00142771.pdf">certain types or group members</a>. For example, if you reduce the other person to a stereotype through labelling – by saying something like “girls always say stuff like that” or “OK, boomer” – you risk provoking a response to the insult, not to the action in which that insult was embedded. The second thing we expect from any conversation is alignment – cooperating with the direction of the conversation, such as accepting or denying a request. The opposite, disalignment, might occur when a request is ignored. Alignment has more to do with the sequence of the conversation, how the dispute unfolds over time. Asking for clarification – a practice known as <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0136100">repair</a> – or <a href="https://www.jbe-platform.com/content/journals/10.1075/prag.27.1.03rob?crawler=true">claiming a misunderstanding</a> can treat problems as fixable errors rather than moral failings or attacks. <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0261927X17744244">Humour can diffuse</a> conflict escalation. <h2>How to have a healthy dispute</h2> In the course of a dispute, you need to think about when to bring these tactics out. They’re more likely to yield better outcomes earlier in the dispute. By the time it’s escalated, your responses may be viewed through the prism of the dispute and <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=eFSXDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT200&ots=6tM3fJnXr1&sig=Zchtur1abh25W7ERN5Q49ASRaJc#v=onepage&q&f=false">any offensiveness</a> you’ve already displayed toward each other. In cases like this, teasing can come across as contempt, for example, and claims to misunderstand as bad-faith mockery. It can feel like disputes take on a life of their own – as if the conversation uses us rather than we use it – and this is partly because conversation can seemingly take us along for the ride (consider the difficulty of turning down invitations). We invest our identities into conversations so disputes can seem to threaten us and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378216618304302?casa_token=1SbOpn_2k8MAAAAA:YQ2Yb9nt-ONsmBKmVzTCx8cfl76bS5nK6_Yd8zONBVJFdJ57vwgdBDJxsXfk0aUOhilRQAF-ABA">what we stand for</a> morally. This may be starker with family, whose opinions of us often matter more than friends or colleagues, for example. It’s always worth stopping to reflect on what a dispute is really for, whether what you’re saying lines up with your goals and whether taking a stand is worth it.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/159565/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jessica-robles-617248">Jessica Robles</a>, Lecturer in Social Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/loughborough-university-1336">Loughborough University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/arguing-with-the-people-you-love-how-to-have-a-healthy-family-dispute-159565">original article</a>.

Family & Pets

How to buy a good pair of sunglasses

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jacobo-garcia-queiruga-1496353">Jacobo García Queiruga</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/universidade-de-santiago-de-compostela-2533">Universidade de Santiago de Compostela</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/veronica-noya-padin-1529488">Verónica Noya Padín</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/universidade-de-santiago-de-compostela-2533">Universidade de Santiago de Compostela</a> Nowadays you can buy a cheap pair of sunglasses just about anywhere – from supermarkets and petrol stations to corner shops and online fashion retailers, but such ubiquity may prompt doubts as to the protection they can offer. While their lenses usually meet certain minimum UV protection requirements, their quality in other respects, such as visual clarity, is dismal. Opticians, however, are governed by national health regulations, meaning that they have to meet higher standards such as the <a href="https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/ce-marking_en">CE</a> and <a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-the-ukca-marking">UKCA</a> marks. Professional opticians are therefore much better equipped to help customers find sunglasses that not only meet their practical demands, but which are also comfortable and well suited to their facial features. <h2>Rules for protection</h2> <a href="https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/en/#iso:std:iso:12312:-1:ed-2:v1:en">European law</a> classifies sunglass lenses as “personal protective equipment”, outlining five levels of protection. Category 0 lenses allow 80-100% of light through, while those in category 4 only let 3-8% through, meaning they are not suitable for driving. Category 3 is the most commonly used, as they are appropriate for most situations, including driving. So, do darker lenses protect you better? The short answer is: not necessarily. The degree of light absorption depends on how and where they will be used: category 4 lenses are designed for extremely bright areas like high mountains or deserts, but may actually reduce your visibility in other situations. However, all sunglasses that meet the established standards will protect your eyes from UV radiation. <h2>Quality of vision</h2> Wearing sunglasses can give the feeling that your vision is impeded. This is because a tinted lens selectively filters light: it lets in one type of radiation and limits another. Three concepts can help us understand how this works, and why it matters. First up is visual acuity. This is the term used to measure how “sharply” we see, and it is tested by asking patients to read increasingly small letters that appear on a screen or wall chart, with an ideal result around 100%. However, this test is performed with black letters on a well lit white background, so it does not take into account how visual quality may vary in other lighting conditions. Contrast sensitivity is defined as the ability to differentiate objects from the surrounding background. It is, for instance, more difficult to distinguish black letters on grey backgrounds than on white backgrounds. Lastly, we have refractive errors, which affect both visual acuity and contrast sensitivity. These are what cause astigmatisms and make us long or short sighted. Wearing non-prescription sunglasses when suffering from any of these conditions can make vision even worse than it would be without them. <h2>Colour matters</h2> With all this in mind, we should also address the common question of lens colour. While colour does not affect protection, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11320153_Effect_of_variable_tinted_spectacle_lenses_on_visual_performance_in_control_subjects">it can affect contrast and the feeling of brightness</a>, because each colour filters out a different wavelength of light. <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11320153_Effect_of_variable_tinted_spectacle_lenses_on_visual_performance_in_control_subjects">Grey lenses filter out all wavelengths of light</a>, while tints such as brown or green have a different effect on light absorption. This means that <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10699545/">visual perception</a> tends to be brighter through a brown lens, very dark through grey ones, and more natural through green ones. <h2>Plastic or glass lenses?</h2> Colour isn’t the only thing that affects quality of vision: we also have to pay attention to what the lenses are made of. While they are most commonly made of specialised plastics – known as organic lenses – you can also find glass ones, known as mineral lenses. These two materials are not the same. Organic lenses are lighter and stronger, while mineral lenses are more scratch resistant and are less prone to colour distortion. This means that mineral lenses offer greater quality of vision. <h2>What about polarised lenses?</h2> Polarised lenses block light that reaches the eye at a certain angle after reflecting off a surface such as a road or water, thus reducing glare. They are particularly suited to driving or spending time around water. However, they can be unsuitable in certain situations. For example, they block light from screens, making them appear darker or even completely black, meaning devices often have to be rotated to improve visibility. They are also not ideal for certain winter sports: by eliminating glare they make it very easy to miss icy patches on the ground. <h2>Other features</h2> Lastly, there are certain design features that we cannot overlook when choosing a pair of sunglasses. Gradient lenses are darker at the top, and graduate down to a lighter tint at the bottom – they usually absorb around 85% of light in their darkest area, and 10% in the lightest. These lenses are stylish, but that does not affect their protection against UV rays. That said, they might be better suited to cloudy conditions, and on a bright summer day they may not be the best option. Reflective lenses have a layer on their outer surface that reflects light and enhances protection. Unfortunately, this treatment is easily damaged or scratched. Lenses with anti reflective coating on the inside of the lens provide greater clarity of vision by eliminating light reflected from behind the wearer. This treatment is usually applied to large sunglasses, or glasses with optically very high quality lenses. In the event of any doubt, the best possible advice is to speak to your optician or optometrist to find the sunglasses that best meet your needs.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/229953/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jacobo-garcia-queiruga-1496353">Jacobo García Queiruga</a>, Profesor Interino en el Área de Optometría (OD, MSc, PhD), <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/universidade-de-santiago-de-compostela-2533">Universidade de Santiago de Compostela</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/veronica-noya-padin-1529488">Verónica Noya Padín</a>, Investigadora predoctoral - Área de Optometría, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/universidade-de-santiago-de-compostela-2533">Universidade de Santiago de Compostela</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-buy-a-good-pair-of-sunglasses-229953">original article</a>.

Beauty & Style

How light tells you when to sleep, focus and poo

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/frederic-gachon-1379094">Frederic Gachon</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/benjamin-weger-1646210">Benjamin Weger</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a> Exposure to light is crucial for our physical and mental health, as this and future articles in the series will show. But the timing of that light exposure is also crucial. This tells our body to wake up in the morning, when to poo and the time of day to best focus or be alert. When we’re exposed to light also controls our body temperature, blood pressure and even chemical reactions in our body. But how does our body know when it’s time to do all this? And what’s light got to do with it? <h2>What is the body clock, actually?</h2> One of the key roles of light is to re-set our body clock, also known as the circadian clock. This works like an internal oscillator, similar to an actual clock, ticking away as you read this article. But rather than ticking you can hear, the body clock is a network of genes and proteins that regulate each other. This network sends signals to organs via hormones and the nervous system. These complex loops of interactions and communications have a rhythm of about 24 hours. In fact, we don’t have one clock, we have trillions of body clocks throughout the body. The central clock is in the hypothalamus region of the brain, and each cell in every organ has its own. These clocks work in concert to help us adapt to the daily cycle of light and dark, aligning our body’s functions with the time of day. However, our body clock is not precise and works to a rhythm of about 24 hours (24 hours 30 minutes on average). So every morning, the central clock needs to be reset, signalling the start of a new day. This is why light is so important. The central clock is directly connected to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/07487304231225706">light-sensing cells</a> in our retinas (the back of the eye). This daily re-setting of the body clock with morning light is essential for ensuring our body works well, in sync with our environment. In parallel, <a href="https://theconversation.com/does-it-matter-what-time-of-day-i-eat-and-can-intermittent-fasting-improve-my-health-heres-what-the-science-says-203762">when we eat food</a> also plays a role in re-setting the body clock, but this time the clock in organs other than the brain, such as the liver, kidneys or the gut. So it’s easy to see how our daily routines are closely linked with our body clocks. And in turn, our body clocks shape how our body works at set times of the day. <h2>What time of day?</h2> <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/627494/original/file-20241023-14-729bed.gif?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="" /></a><figcaption>Matt Garrow/The Conversation. <a class="source" href="https://delos.com/blog/why-natural-light-is-important-for-mental-and-physical-health/">Adapted from Delos</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></figcaption></figure> <h2>Let’s take a closer look at sleep</h2> The naturally occurring brain hormone <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30311830/">melatonin</a> is linked to our central clock and makes us feel sleepy at certain times of day. When it’s light, our body stops making melatonin (its production is inhibited) and we are alert. Closer to bedtime, the hormone is made, then secreted, making us feel drowsy. Our sleep is also <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/articles/10.3389/fphys.2019.00944/full">partly controlled</a> by <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-genom-121222-120306">our genes</a>, which are part of our central clock. These genes influence our <a href="https://theconversation.com/does-it-matter-what-time-i-go-to-bed-198146">chronotype</a> – whether we are a “lark” (early riser), “night owl” (late sleeper) or a “dove” (somewhere in between). But exposure to light at night when we are supposed to be sleeping can have harmful effects. Even dim light from light pollution can impair our <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2113290119">heart rate and how we metabolise sugar</a> (glucose), may lead to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s44220-023-00135-8">psychiatric disorders</a> such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder, and increases the overall risk of <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2405924121">premature death</a>. The main reason for these harmful effects is that light “at the wrong time” disturbs the body clock, and these effects are more pronounced for “night owls”. This “misaligned” exposure to light is also connected to the detrimental health effects we often see in people who <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-does-night-shift-increase-the-risk-of-cancer-diabetes-and-heart-disease-heres-what-we-know-so-far-190652">work night shifts</a>, such as an increased risk of cancer, diabetes and heart disease. <h2>How about the gut?</h2> Digestion also follows a circadian rhythm. Muscles in the colon that help move waste <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1572-0241.2004.40453.x">are more active</a> during the day and slow down at night. The most significant increase in colon movement starts at 6.30am. This is one of the reasons why most people feel the urge to poo <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-do-i-poo-in-the-morning-a-gut-expert-explains-229624">in the early morning</a> rather than at night. The gut’s day-night rhythm is a direct result of the action of the gut’s own clock and the central clock (which synchronises the gut with the rest of the body). It’s also influenced by when we eat. <h2>How about focusing?</h2> Our body clock also helps control our attention and alertness levels by changing how our brain functions at certain times of day. Attention and alertness levels improve in the afternoon and evening but dip during the night and early morning. Those fluctuations <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/molecular-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnmol.2012.00050/full">impact performance</a> and can lead to decreased productivity and an <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-40914-x">increased risk</a> of errors and accidents during the less-alert hours. So it’s important to perform certain tasks that <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30923475/">require our attention</a> at certain times of day. That includes driving. In fact, disruption of the circadian clock at the start of daylight savings – when our body hasn’t had a chance to adapt to the clocks changing – <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982219316781?via%3Dihub">increases the risk</a> of a car accident, particularly in the morning. <h2>What else does our body clock control?</h2> Our body clock influences many other aspects of our biology, including: <ul> <li>physical performance by controlling the activity of our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-023-00805-8">muscles</a></li> <li>blood pressure by controlling the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-time-of-day-should-i-take-my-medicine-125809">system of hormones</a> involved in regulating our blood volume and blood vessels</li> <li>body temperature by controlling our metabolism and our level of physical activity</li> <li>how our body handles drugs and toxins by <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/17460441.2023.2224554">controlling enzymes</a> involved in how the liver and kidneys eliminate these substances from the body.</li> </ul> <h2>Morning light is important</h2> But what does this all mean for us? Exposure to light, especially in the morning, is crucial for synchronising our circadian clock and bodily functions. As well as setting us up for a good night’s sleep, increased morning light exposure benefits our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165032721008612?via%3Dihub">mental health</a> and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/101/9/3539/2806883">reduces the risk of obesity</a>. So boosting our exposure to morning light – for example, by going for a walk, or having breakfast outside – can directly benefit our mental and metabolic health. However, there are other aspects about which we have less control, including <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168952524001100">the genes</a> that control our body clock.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/236780/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/frederic-gachon-1379094">Frederic Gachon</a>, Associate Professor, Physiology of Circadian Rhythms, Institute for Molecular Bioscience, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/benjamin-weger-1646210">Benjamin Weger</a>, NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow Institute for Molecular Bioscience, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-light-tells-you-when-to-sleep-focus-and-poo-236780">original article</a>.

Body

How to rewire your brain to feel good on Monday

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cristina-r-reschke-1413051">Cristina R. Reschke</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rcsi-university-of-medicine-and-health-sciences-788">RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jolanta-burke-315263">Jolanta Burke</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rcsi-university-of-medicine-and-health-sciences-788">RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences</a> If you hate Mondays, you’re most certainly in good company. After a couple of days off, many of us have difficulty settling back into our routines and work duties. You may even have dread and anxiety that seeps into the weekend in the form of “<a href="https://theconversation.com/three-ways-to-tackle-the-sunday-scaries-the-anxiety-and-dread-many-people-feel-at-the-end-of-the-weekend-187313">Sunday scaries</a>”. You can’t always change your schedule or obligations to make Mondays more appealing, but you may be able to “reprogram” your brain to think about the week differently. Our brains love predictability and routine. Research has shown that lack of routine is associated with <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0003122418823184">decline in wellbeing and psychological distress</a>. Even though the weekend heralds a leisurely and pleasant time, our brain works hard to adjust to this sudden change to a routine. The good news is that the brain does not need to make too much effort when adjusting to the weekend’s freedom and lack of routine. However, it’s a different story when coming back to the less pleasant activities, such as a to-do list on Monday morning. One way to adjust to post-weekend change is introducing routines that last the whole week and have the power to make our lives <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0146167218795133">more meaningful</a>. These may include <a href="https://portal.research.lu.se/en/publications/routines-made-and-unmade">watching your favourite TV programme, gardening</a> or going <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22976286/">to the gym</a>. It is helpful to do these things at the same time every day. Routines improve our <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16448317/">sense of coherence</a>, a process that allows us to make sense of the jigsaw of life events. When we have an established routine, be it the routine of working five days and taking two days off or engaging in a set of actions every day, our lives become <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0146167218795133">more meaningful</a>. Another important routine to establish is your sleep routine. <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-021-00400-z">Research shows</a> that keeping consistent sleep time may be as important for enjoying Mondays as how long your sleep lasts or its quality. Changes in sleep patterns during weekends trigger <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/13/12/4543">social jetlag</a>. For instance, sleeping in later than usual and for longer on free days may trigger a discrepancy between your body clock and socially-imposed responsibilities. This is linked to higher stress levels on Monday morning. Try to keep a set time for going to bed and waking up, avoid naps. You might also want to create a 30 minute “wind-down” routine before sleep, by turning off or putting away your digital devices and practising relaxation techniques. <h2>Hacking your hormones</h2> Hormones can also play a role in how we feel about Mondays. For instance, cortisol is a very important multifunction hormone. It helps our bodies to control our metabolism, regulate our sleep-wake cycle and our response to stress, among other things. It is usually released about an hour before we wake up (it helps us feel awake) and then its levels lower until the next morning, unless we’re under stress. Under acute stress, our bodies release not only cortisol, but also adrenaline in preparation for fight or flight. This is when the heart beats fast, we get sweaty palms and may react impulsively. This is our amygdala (a small almond-shaped area in the base of our brains) hijacking our brains. It creates a super fast emotional response to stress even before our brains can process and think whether it was needed. But as soon we can think – activating the brain’s prefrontal cortex, the area for our reason and executive thinking – this response will be mitigated, if there is no real threat. It is a constant battle between our emotions and reason. This might wake us up in the middle of the night when we’re too stressed or anxious. It shouldn’t be surprising then that cortisol levels, measured in saliva samples of full-time working individuals, tend to be higher on Mondays and Tuesdays, with the lowest levels reported on <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2824866/">Sundays</a>. As a stress hormone, cortisol fluctuates daily, but not consistently. On weekdays, as soon as we wake up, <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2007-18151-008">cortisol levels soar</a> and variations tend to be higher than on <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11324714/">weekends</a>. To combat this, we need to trick the amygdala by training the brain to only recognise actual threats. In other words, we need to activate our prefrontal cortex as fast as possible. One of the best ways to achieve this and lower overall stress is through relaxation activities, especially on Mondays. One possibility is mindfulness, which is associated with a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23724462/">reduction in cortisol</a>. <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00722/full">Spending time in nature</a> is another method – going outside first thing on Monday or even during your lunch hour can make a significant difference to how you perceive the beginning of the week. Give yourself time before checking your phone, social media and the news. It’s good to wait for cortisol peak to decrease naturally, which happens approximately one hour after waking up, before you expose yourself to external stressors. By following these simple tips, you can train your brain to believe that the weekdays can be (nearly) as good as the weekend.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199236/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cristina-r-reschke-1413051">Cristina R. Reschke</a>, Lecturer in the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences & Funded Investigator in the FutureNeuro Research Centre, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rcsi-university-of-medicine-and-health-sciences-788">RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jolanta-burke-315263">Jolanta Burke</a>, Senior Lecturer, Centre for Positive Health Sciences, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rcsi-university-of-medicine-and-health-sciences-788">RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-rewire-your-brain-to-feel-good-on-mondays-199236">original article</a>.

Mind

Music and dementia: researchers are still making discoveries about how songs can help sufferers

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rebecca-atkinson-1288605">Rebecca Atkinson</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/anglia-ruskin-university-1887">Anglia Ruskin University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ming-hung-hsu-2215063">Ming-Hung Hsu</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/anglia-ruskin-university-1887">Anglia Ruskin University</a> Music is woven into the fabric of our everyday lives. Whether it’s lifting our spirits, pushing us to run faster or soothing us to sleep, we can all <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.713818/full">recognise its power</a>. So it’s no wonder it is increasingly being used in medical treatment. As well as proving very useful in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3863265/">cancer treatment</a>, managing <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1526590022000153">chronic pain</a> and even helping the brain <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2014.00245/full">recover after a stroke</a>, researchers have also been making great strides in using music to help patients with dementia. It reduces patients’ <a href="https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD003477/full">anxiety and depression</a>, and <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(23)00401-7/fulltext">improves wellbeing</a> both for them and their carers <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-british-journal-of-psychiatry/article/individual-music-therapy-for-depression-randomised-controlled-trial/A1CD72904929CECCB956F4F3B09605AF">by enhancing</a> everyone’s ability to adapt and cope with adversity or stress. <a href="https://www.bamt.org">Music therapy</a> in the form of playing, singing or listening to music can also have a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1362361309105660">positive effect</a> on cognitive function – particularly for <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/1472-6882-10-39">older adults</a> either with dementia or memory issues. So why does music appear to have such a powerful effect for people with dementia? <h2>Music and the brain</h2> About a decade ago, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1053811911013000">researchers discovered that</a> when people listened to music, multiple areas of the brain were involved in processing it. These included the limbic (which processes emotions and memory), cognitive (involved with perception, learning and reaction) and motor areas (responsible for voluntary movement). This challenged preconceptions that music was processed more narrowly in the brain – and helped explain why it has such a unique neurological impact. Not only that, research has shown that music might help <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306987708002880">regenerate the brain</a> and its connections. Many <a href="https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dementia/about-dementia/causes/">causes of dementia</a> centre around cell death in the brain, raising the possibility that music could help people with dementia by mending or strengthening damaged neural connections and cells. It’s not just any music that has a regenerative effect on the brain, though. <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2016.00103/full">Familiar and favourite music</a> has been shown to have the biggest impact on the way we feel, and is closely linked with memory and emotions. This is because listening to our favourite songs <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nn.2726">releases feel-good hormones</a> that give us a sense of pleasure. Curated music playlists of favourite music could be the key in helping us deal with the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/10298649211030318">stress of everyday life</a>. This is relevant to Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia because researchers have discovered that parts of the brain linked with <a href="https://academic.oup.com/brain/article/138/8/2438/330016">musical memories</a> are less affected by these conditions than other areas of the brain. This explains why memories and experiences that are linked to <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.14283/jpad.2018.19">favourite music</a> are often preserved for people with such conditions. Listening to music can also <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34346261/">help manage</a> their experiences of distress, agitation and “<a href="https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/about-dementia/symptoms-and-diagnosis/symptoms/sundowning">sundowning</a>” – where a person is more confused in the afternoon and evening. In a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0197457224002209?utm_campaign=STMJ_219742_AUTH_SERV_PA&utm_medium=email&utm_acid=224973760&SIS_ID=&dgcid=STMJ_219742_AUTH_SERV_PA&CMX_ID=&utm_in=DM500444&utm_source=AC_">small study</a> conducted by us and our colleagues at the Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research, we showed just how great of an effect listening to music can have for people with dementia. We found that when people with dementia repeatedly listened to their favourite music, their heart rate and movements changed in direct response. This showed that people’s physical responses were affected by musical features like rhythm and arrangement. Their heart rate also changed when they sang along to music, or when they began reminiscing about old memories or stories while listening to a song or thinking about the music. These changes are important because they show how music affects movement, emotions and memory recall. Studies have also shown that during and after listening to music, people with dementia <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/13/7/1103">experienced less agitation</a>, aggression and anxiety, and their general mood was improved. They even needed less medication when they had regular music sessions. Other researchers have even begun testing the effects of <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/gps.4721?casa_token=VufeKQP7aNsAAAAA%3AMSOgiwUQYKqmmrLsUFv9glmSnc5BMxoqeMmmt3HX4BJX2Fs2UKeXjnN2850o1Umz0j1NvmrpQ3W3Pw">music training programmes</a> to support cognition for people with dementia. Results have been promising so far – with adults in the study showing improved executive functioning (problem solving, emotion regulation and attention) compared to those who took part in just physical exercise. So, music is likely to continue to be a useful medical treatment for people with dementia. But based on what we know so far, it’s important that it comes from the patient’s own music collection – and is used alongside other management techniques such as using drugs that can slow the progression of dementia or help manage symptoms to support self-care and wellbeing.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/239446/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rebecca-atkinson-1288605">Rebecca Atkinson</a>, Researcher in Music Therapy, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/anglia-ruskin-university-1887">Anglia Ruskin University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ming-hung-hsu-2215063">Ming-Hung Hsu</a>, Senior Research Fellow, Music Therapy, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/anglia-ruskin-university-1887">Anglia Ruskin University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/music-and-dementia-researchers-are-still-making-discoveries-about-how-songs-can-help-sufferers-239446">original article</a>.

Mind

I have hay fever. How can I tell what I’m allergic to?

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ryan-mead-hunter-1480189">Ryan Mead-Hunter</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/curtin-university-873">Curtin University</a> When we think of spring we think of warming weather, birdsong and flowers. But for many people, this also means the return of their seasonal hay fever symptoms. Around <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/health-conditions-and-risks/health-conditions-prevalence/latest-release">24% of Australians</a> get hay fever, with sneezing, a runny or blocked nose, and itchy or watery eyes the most common symptoms. In <a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/hay-fever#:%7E:text=Key%20facts,dust%20mites%2C%20and%20animal%20fur">severe cases</a>, this may impact sleep and concentration, or be linked to increased frequency of sinus infections. The exact timing of the symptoms depends on your exposure to an allergen – the thing you’re allergic to. Those impacted by tree pollen (from plane trees or cypress pine, for example) may experience symptoms at different times of the year than those impacted by grass pollen (such as rye grass). This will also vary around the country. In Perth, for example, tree pollen (cypress pine) is generally present in August to October, while grass pollen counts tend to be highest in October to November. Other cities and regions may have longer pollen seasons, which may extend further into summer. <h2>Remind me, how does hay fever impact the body?</h2> What we know colloquially as hay fever is called allergic rhinitis. Exposure to a specific allergen (or allergens) triggers an immune response in the body. This leads to inflammation and swelling of the tissue lining the nasal passages in the nose. A range of <a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/hay-fever#:%7E:text=Key%20facts,dust%20mites%2C%20and%20animal%20fur.">allergens</a> may trigger such a response: pollen (from trees, grass or weeds), dust mites, pet fur, dander, mould and some air pollutants. Those with allergies that are only present for part of the year, such as pollen, experience what we call seasonal hay fever, while those with allergies that may be present at any time, such as dust mites and pet dander, experience perennial hay fever. <h2>Getting a diagnosis</h2> Many people with hay fever self-manage their symptoms by limiting exposure to allergens and using over-the-counter <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-do-hay-fever-treatments-actually-work-and-whats-best-for-my-symptoms-213071">antihistamines and steroid nasal sprays</a>. But this may require assistance from your GP and confirmation that what you’re experiencing is hay fever. Your GP can assess your symptoms and medical history, provide a diagnosis, and help with treating and managing your symptoms. Your GP may also be able help you identify potential allergens, based on when you experience symptoms and the environments to which you’re exposed. If symptoms persist, your GP may suggest allergy testing. They may refer you to a specialist called an immunologist, to determine what particular allergen is causing your symptoms, using <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/allergy-testing/allergy-testing">skin prick tests or blood tests</a>. Tests typically involve controlled exposure to small quantities of suspected allergens. But note, there are a number of tests marketed online that are unproven and not recommended by reputable bodies. <h2>How else can I work out what I’m allergic to?</h2> For those with seasonal hay fever, resources are available to help manage exposures, based on the flowering seasons for common allergy-related species or through pollen forecasting services. The Australian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy provides a <a href="https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/allergic-rhinitis-hay-fever-and-sinusitis/guide-to-common-allergenic-pollen">useful pollen guide</a> for each species and when they’re most likely to cause symptoms, broken down for each state and territory. Pollen monitoring and forecasting services – such as <a href="https://www.perthpollen.com.au/">Perth Pollen</a>, <a href="https://www.melbournepollen.com.au/">Melbourne Pollen</a> and <a href="https://www.sydneypollen.com.au/">Sydney Pollen</a>, as well as for other cities – can help you plan outdoor activities. There are also associated phone apps for these services, which can give notifications when the pollen count is high. You can down load these apps (such as <a href="https://airrater.org/">AirRater</a>, Perth Pollen, Melbourne Pollen and Sydney Pollen) from your preferred app store. Apps such as <a href="https://airrater.org/">AirRater</a> also allow you to enter information about your symptoms, which can then be matched to the environmental conditions at the time (pollen count, temperature, smoke, and so on). Using statistical modelling, the app may be able to establish a link between symptoms and exposure. If a sufficiently high correlation is established, the app can send you notifications when the <a href="https://airrater.org/how-does-it-work/">exposure risk</a> is high. This may prompt you to limit outdoor activities and have any medication readily available. <hr /> Further information about managing allergic rhinitis is available from <a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/hay-fever">healthdirect</a> and <a href="https://allergyfacts.org.au/__interest/allergic-rhinitis/">Allergy and Anaphylaxis Australia</a> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ryan-mead-hunter-1480189">Ryan Mead-Hunter</a>, Senior lecturer, School of Population Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/curtin-university-873">Curtin University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/i-have-hay-fever-how-can-i-tell-what-im-allergic-to-240450">original article</a>.

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Music and dementia: researchers are still making discoveries about how songs can help sufferers

I have hay fever. How can I tell what I’m allergic to?