Why do we feel sleepy after heavy meals?

           In the human body, the mechanism is such that the oxygen we breathe in and the vital nutrients in the food that we eat are absorbed by the blood and supplied to the different organs, This job is accomplished efficiently by about 5 liters of blood that circulates in a normal adult.

           The amount of blood supplied to each organ depends on the oxygen and nutrition requirement of the tissues of the organ and the importance of the function it plays at any given time.

            Under normal conditions, the liver receives slightly less than one-third of the blood that the heart pumps. Likewise, the kidneys get about one-fourth, and brain about one-sixth. The remaining goes to the muscles and other parts of the body. These quantities change depending on the body work and needs.

            When we eat, the food needs to be digested and the nutrients absorbed by the blood. That is the focus of the work shifts to digesting the food and so more blood is sent to the stomach walls. Automatically, the flow of blood to other parts of the body, including the brain, is reduced.

             Only a few other very important functions like the functioning of the heart and lungs are continued. Once the blood flow to the brain is reduced, the body becomes lethargic and sleep sets in. So, better take a nap after meals, it is absolutely Normal!

What causes Hiccups?

           Two sudden and involuntary contractions within the diaphragm cause Hiccups. There is a diaphragm located between the chest and the stomach. While inhaling air the diaphragm presses down on the stomach and the lungs are filled with air. While exhaling the diaphragm presses on the lungs and we exhale air. The diaphragm works like a piston. But sometimes due to the formation of gas or increase of acidity in the stomach the diaphragm gets irritated and as a result contracts suddenly. In such a situation the air passing into the lungs experiences obstruction and makes a peculiar sound. This is nothing but a Hiccup. Hiccups can also be caused by eating too fast or too much. It can occasionally be a symptom of mineral disorders, pneumonia, pancreatitis, bladder irritation and stomach disorders.

            For mild Hiccup attacks, we need to hold breath for a tolerably long spell, drinking a glass of water while holding your breath and swallowing in rapid successions three times a glass of water duly holding your breath. If these methods do not work, hold a paper bag tightly over your nose and mouth, breath in and out for a minute or two. The relatively high level of carbon dioxide in blood shall inhibit Hiccups.

   

Motion Sickness - Vomiting while travelling

        Giddiness occurs when we lose our sense of balance. The sensations perceived by the eye, inner ear, skin,  muscles and joints help  the body to know its stability. Several unusual situations, such as travelling in a bus or looking down from a great height, overstimulate and confuse that part of the brain which controls balancing. This condition is called Motion Sickness.

        Researchers have discovered that motion sickness  is caused by the temporary disturbance in what is known as the Vestibular Membranous Labyrinth. This is the part of intricate series in the structure of inner ear, and helps to maintain the body's equilibrium. If the Labyrinth becomes overloaded with information from the eyes and other senses, it can trigger a sudden desire to vomit.

       The Motion sickness can sometimes be avoided by shifting the vision from objects at short range and those  far off. This is the reason why car drivers are not usually affected, while backseat passengers  often are. Those  in the front seat  have a panoramic, more stable and slower-moving scene. Passengers in the back seat see through the side windows, where the scenery flashes past and the brains labyrinth has more information to process.

How does Scratching stop Itching?

       Itching is the result of damage to cells in our skin. As a result of the damage, substances like Histamine (the amine that causes widening f blood vessels and plays a role in allergic phenomena) are set free and irritate the nerve fibers in the skin. These send signals, similar to pain signals, to the Central Nervous System (CNS).

       One can compare the nerve fibers to telephone lines and the central nervous system to a switchboard. The switchboard routes incoming telephone calls, and makes sure that only one line at a time is connected with each telephone number. By occupying the line you can prevent others from having a conversation with the same number. Likewise, the itch message can be blocked by occupying the central nervous system with another signal, for example, the one generated by Scratching, which is less irritating.

Hence scratching is the best remedy for Itching.

Posh people really do think they're better than others

According to new research, Posh people really do think they are better than others. People in higher social classes are "overconfident" about their abilities which means they come across as more competent - even when they don't know what they are talking about.

The study concludes that being able to confidently express what they think means they better at job interviews than working-class people who are socialized to embrace humility and authenticity. Social class shapes the attitudes that people hold about their abilities and that, in turn, has important implications for how class hierarchies perpetuate from one generation to the next. This overconfidence means people who are born into the upper echelons of society are likely to remain there.

 Researchers believe that this overconfidence might be due to the differences in values between middle and working-class people. They carried out four investigations into the connection between social class and overconfidence.

To measure social class, researchers looked at information about the applicants income, education level and perceived standing in society. They also had to complete a psychological assessment which involved using a flashcard game and a cognitive test. After completing the test, they were asked to guess how well they did on a scale of 1 to 100.

When psychologists compared the actual scores with the applicants' predictions, they found people with more education, income and perceived social class had an exaggerated belief that they would perform better. The results suggest that finding solutions to mitigate class inequalities may require a focus on subtle and seemingly harmless human tendencies.

                                                                                             Source: The Independent

Parental Factors That Shape You

       "Five Ways in which your parents behavior has molded your personality today."

Whether your parents were your best friends or you barely knew them, your relationship with your mother and father have had an impact on who you are today.

Sigmund  Freud had said that when he theorized that our adult personality develops from early childhood experiences, an insight empirically tested by attachment theory and developmental psychology through the 20th century up until today.

Below are the Five Points that your parents behavior has impacted you:


1  If your parents made you do chores, you are likely take on tasks independently.

       If your parents constantly berated you for not making your bed, they were actually doing you a favor. Children who grow up doing chores take more responsibility at work instead of waiting for tasks to get assigned to them. They also better collaborate with their coworkers and can better empathize with others. By making them do chores like taking out the garbage, doing their own laundry etc. will make them realize that they are part of Family, part of ecosystem and part of a workplace.


2 If your parents taught you social skills, you were more likely to get a college degree and a high-paying job.

     A recent American study says that when parents taught their young kids social skills, like how to be helpful or cooperative with their peers, they were more likely to earn a college degree and have a full-time job by the age of 25. Those without social skills were more likely to drink and get arrested.


3 If your parents set high expectations for you, you probably did better in school.

     A recent study found children whose parents expected them to go to college performed better on tests than parents with low expectations. The trend occurred among both wealthy and low-income families.


4 If your mother was loving and attentive when you were a baby, you were more likely to do better in school.

   According to the recent study when parents foster loving environments around the time children are as young as three,those kids grow up to score better on exams.


5 If your parents taught you to verbalize your feelings, you are less likely to get divorced.

    A recent study reveals that if your parents told you to 'describe how  you feel', you can better communicate during adult romantic relationships. Styles of Communication are often formed by observation and direct experience of our primary role models in childhood.


                                                                                                               Source: Business Insider

Evolution Made Us Prone to Heart Attacks

"Loss of Single Gene in Our Ancestors Resulted in Increased Risk of Cardiovascular Disease"


A recent study suggests that the loss of single gene, two to three million years ago in our ancestors may have resulted in a heightened risk of cardiovascular disease in all Humans as a Species. The same evolutionary gene loss may also have set up a further risk for red meat eating humans.

Atherosclerosis - the clogging of the arteries with fatty deposits, is the cause of one-third of deaths worldwide due to Cardiovascular disease. There are many known risk factors, including blood cholesterol, physical inactivity, age, hypertension, obesity and smoking. However, in roughly 15% of first-time cardiovascular disease events (CVD) due to atherosclerosis, none of these factors apply.

Researchers noted that naturally occurring Coronary heart attacks due to atherosclerosis are virtually non-existent in other mammals, including closely related chimpanzees in captivity which share human-like risk factors, such as high blood lipids, hypertension and physical inactivity.

The new study shows that mice modified to be deficient (like humans) in a Sialic Acid Sugar Molecules called Neu5Gc showed a significant increase in atherosclerosis compared to control mice, who retain the CMAH gene that produces Neu5Gc. They said that human-like elimination of CMAH and Neu5Gc in mice caused an almost two-fold increase in severity of Atherosclerosis compared to unmodified mice.

This may help explain why even vegetarians without any other obvious cardiovascular risk factors are still very prone to heart attacks and strokes, while other evolutionary relatives are not.

However, in consuming red meat, humans are also repeatedly exposed to Neu5Gc which prompts an immune response and chronic inflammation they call "xenosialitis".

                                                                                                                        Source: Airbus