October 06, 2019 at 12:00AM by CWC In the US, the average life expectancy is 78 years. But there are a few places in the world—specifically Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and Icaria, Greece—where living to be over 100 isn’t uncommon at all. In these regions, known as Blue Zones, the life expectancy isn’t just higher; centenarians are generally also healthy, their minds and bodies still working well. National Geographic journalist Dan Buettner spent years studying each culture, pinpointing the exact reasons why they thrived before publishing his findings in the best selling book, The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest. Buettner found that despite the geographical differences, people living in the Blue Zones all had nine key lifestyle habits in common, which he named the “Power 9.” Here, each pillar is explained, with input from doctors about why it’s so crucially connected to health and longevity. Keep reading for the complete intel, including how to apply the pillars to your own life. 1. Move naturally Buettner found that in all the Blue Zones communities, movement was a regular part of daily life for the residents. The Longevity Plan author John Day, MD saw this first-hand as well when he spent a year living in remote China. Even in their advanced age, he saw centenarians working in the fields and throughout the village. Of course, here in the States, our jobs are a lot more sedentary. But Dr. Day still says we
Day: October 5, 2019
A product formulator says that this is the best place to save money in your beauty routine
October 05, 2019 at 10:00PM by CWC We hear from facialists and dermatologists somewhat regularly (every single day, if you’re me), but it’s not often that we get to tap the brains of the actual people in the lab formulating the beauty products that we’re using. Recently, when I got that beyond-exciting opportunity (I’m a beauty geek, okay?), I had to ask: Out of all the personal care products out there on the shelves, which of them do we have expert-backed permission to buy on the cheap? Perry Romanowski, a cosmetic chemist and founder of Chemist’s Corner, says to save your money on shampoo. “Skip expensive shampoos,” he tells me. “If you are going to use a post-shampoo conditioner, then the shampoo you use doesn’t matter much.” This is news to me, especially as someone who gets googly-eyed browsing hair products. It’s really easy to want to get those fancy-looking shampoos that promise to thicken and detox and give you good hair days on repeat, but product formulators say cheap ones are just as good at doing their hair-cleansing job. “Brands like Pantene, Garnier Fructis, and Tresemmé are good shampoos and relatively inexpensive,” says Romanowski. “They would be fine to use alone because they contain moisturizing ingredients and are often two-in-one shampoos without advertising that they are.” Victoria Fu, cosmetic chemist and co-founder of Chemist Confessions, agrees. “Considering hair isn’t alive, we actually don’t have too many concerns about shampoo,” she tells me. “We’re almost certain most shampoo products are able
What your go-to confidence coat says about you
October 05, 2019 at 08:00PM by CWC With the arrival of autumn, half of the women in my office started wearing plaid blazers… so I started wearing a plaid blazer. It isn’t that it’s a cute look—I’m a tiny-headed waif so I look full David Byrne—so much as it’s a power blazer. It makes me feel confident, in control, studious, and like I can definitely front a prolific new wave band. It’s why; selecting the right outerwear at the beginning of those cold months is so important; since you wear it every day, it helps determine what kind of person you want to be. Call it a confidence coat. Believe it or not, there is something a bit psychological to this. Ever hear of enclothed cognition? Research tends to show that the clothes we wear influence us to be whatever they mean symbolically. In the OG study on enclothed cognition, in fact, wearing a lab coat helped improve participant’s attentiveness versus not wearing a lab coat. That means they felt more empowered when a coat transformed them into Dr. Somebody. Using this line of thinking, whatever your chosen autumnal armor is empowers you to be that person. Or it should. Hopefully. Kind of. Because you’re curious, I broke down what your confidence coat says about the person you want to be this season. Denim Jacket You’re carefree, fun, laid-back, and probably look great without a trace of make-up. Something about rocking a jean jacket as your go-to feels super all-American, and you rock that effortless
The 3 most important things to keep in mind when dealing with under-the-skin breakouts
October 05, 2019 at 06:00PM by CWC Out of all the breakouts that I get, closed comedones make me especially angry. They’re like ghosts—you can kind of feel that they’re there, but it’s really hard to figure out how to get rid of them. (You feel me on this?) That’s because closed comedones, unlike all the other types of acne we so amazingly have in this world, are not fully exposed on the surface of your skin yet. They’re not quite there, but you can definitely still feel them brewing… it’s as if they’re haunting you. “A closed comedone, AKA a whitehead, is an accumulation of dead skin cells trapped within a pore,” explains Loretta Ciraldo, MD, FAAD, board-certified dermatologist and founder of Dr. Loretta Skin Care. “It’s covered with a layer of skin at the top, which is compared to an open comedone, or blackhead, where there’s no cover of skin and we see the black buildup of dead cells.” Because its head isn’t present on your skin, it’s more difficult to treat topically. “Since it has a covering of skin, products don’t readily penetrate into it as they do open comedones,” says Dr. Ciraldo. “Even red pimples, because they’re inflamed, tend to have blood vessels around them that more readily absorb topical acne products.” Great! That’s not to say there’s no hope in nudging pesky closed comedones into the end of their life cycle, though. For one thing, retinol can help (of course it does). “Retinoid creams can help
The Most Important Part of Building Your Baby’s Brain? You
October 05, 2019 at 04:20PM Finding a loving bond with your baby is the primary way to encourage development. Continue Reading… Author Vanessa Lapointe, PhD | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC
62% of you hate working out at night—here’s how to get to the gym anyways
October 05, 2019 at 04:00PM by CWC After a full day of sitting through meetings that could have been emails and trying not to lose your cool at Karen for forgetting to re-fill the office coffee pot again, the last thing most people want to do is haul to the gym. In fact, in a recent Instagram survey, 62 percent of our readers revealed that they would rather work out in the morning than at night. And personally, I’m right there with them. I’m one of those people who is constantly singing a refrain of: “If I don’t workout in the morning, it isn’t gonna happen.” That’s mostly because I would rather go home and drink wine on my couch than go sit on a spin bike after the clock strikes 7 p.m. “After work workouts can be tough because there are more chances that a variety of things can happen during the day to deter you,” says Colette Dong, co-founder of New York City’s the ness. “In the mornings there is usually only one variable —can you wake up?—because your day hasn’t been long enough to let in as many distractions.” At night, though it can be a combination of work, exhaustion, or the desire to just mindlessly watch television, she adds. But every once in a while, even if you’re a die-hard member of the morning workout tribe, every once in a while, you find yourself in a position when you’ve gotta motivate to get to the gym after a
This Is How Fiber In Your Diet Helps Combat Diabetes & Heart Disease
October 05, 2019 at 03:05PM New study shows how eating a high-fiber diet for six months can prevent heart disease and diabetes. Continue Reading… Author Gretchen Lidicker, M.S. | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC
10 Pinterest-perfect braided hairstyles that make you feel like a girl on fire
October 05, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC When it comes to doing my hair, I have two main styles: down and wavy or straight, or up in a ponytail. As you can probably tell, there’s not much experimentation going on here. Now don’t get me wrong: I used to rock my fair share of butterfly clips and pigtails back in the day. There’s one area I don’t have as much experience in, though: braids. While I can handle the basics, you won’t catch me doing a French fishtail braid anytime soon. But now’s your chance to freshen up your style. If Katniss Everdeen can nail the look, so can you. Switch things up with these braided hairstyle tutorials [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3PEEPI_UXU] 1. French fishtail braid I always thought fishtail braids looked hard, but this step-by-step tutorial makes them seem easy. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyGIiw4XoTw] 2. Bubble braid Grown-ish star Yara Shahidi made a big impression with her braided bubble ponytail, and here’s how you can master the look at home. Instead of using a traditional braiding technique, you’re getting a braided appearance using small elastic hair ties. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FydhU_gnBQ] 3. Braided top knot You’ve probably seen this braided bun style all over Pinterest. Because you’re only braiding a small section of your hair, it’s quick and easy. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm0omGre9D0] 4. Hair scarf milkmaid braid The most effortless way to give your milkmaid braid a pretty upgrade is to add in a scarf. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2ouuFyXEYI?start=47] 5. Side braid There’s a secret to creating a
6 Hours Of Sleep Or Less & Chronic Disease Make A Deadly Combo, New Study Finds
October 05, 2019 at 01:12PM Sleep now or face the potential consequences. Continue Reading… Author Ray Bass, NASM-CPT | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC
The McKenzie Method for stretching will have your back and neck thanking you forever
October 05, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC There are so many different ways to stretch. There’s dynamic stretching, stretches you can do in doorways that feel like full-body massages, movements specifically for your feet… it’s kind of amazing. But the McKenzie Method is the one I’d never heard of that could be the solution to relieving chronic back and neck pain for good. Despite being around since the 1960s—and basically all of Reddit swearing by it!—the McKenzie Method isn’t something you hear about every day. Created by a physical therapist in New Zealand, the evidence-based technique focuses on extending the spine through a series of movements, helping those with back and neck pain self-treat their current problems (and prevent further issues in the future), says SpineOne. So, how does the McKenzie Method work, exactly? Each exercise uses gravity to get displaced intervertebral discs back on track, helping improve your overall spine health. As you’re breathing and relaxing, they’re drawn back into the spine, and that’s good news on the pain front. When your spine is happy, so are you. You can start small, too. Every exercise comes as a series of progressive positions. If your back hurts really bad, for instance, you would just start with the initial position then slowly work your way through the rest over time. If you want to try out the method at home, there are a handful of different exercises you can start with demonstrated in the video below, including extension in lying and