Compassion and Socioeconomic Status

Differences in how rich and poor people respond to others in need is a popular theme in fiction, with the rich mostly shown as indifferent and the poor mostly shown as generous and willing to help. In real life, there are certainly a wide range of behaviors shown by people of all socioeconomic statuses when a situation of need arises.

Researchers at UC Berkeley have found, however, that individuals of a lower socioeconomic status may show a stronger compassion response at physiological and emotional levels.

Lower Classes Quicker To Show Compassion In The Face Of Suffering

Binge Eating and Depression

The co-occurrence of depression and eating disorders has been long noted, especially in the adolescent female population that is most likely to develop eating disorders. A study done by researchers Harvard Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health examined the relationship between binge eating and depression in nearly 5,000 teenage girls in the United States. Findings revealed that participants who were depressed were significantly more likely to engage in future binge eating or overeating.

Binge Eating And Depression Often Linked In Teenage Girls

Babies and the Art of Conversation

One of the hottest You Tube videos of 2011 is of two adorable twin boys who seem to be having a conversation. The gestures, the body language, the pacing of "words", and the rise and fall of their voices mimic adult conversation to an uncanny degree. Babies watch, listen, and learn from other people around them.

Research from the University of Notre Dame suggests that from the time babies are very small, they are absorbing word patterns that will assist them in learning and producing words as they reach toddlerhood.

Babies Track Word Patterns Long Before Word-Learning Starts

One Treatment Method Is Not Enough to Conquer Depression

Modern society is focused on quick fixes for problems. Products for rapid weight loss, online diploma mills, and technology that provides instant communication with others all stem from this collective mindset. Unfortunately, we tend to extend that "instant results" mentality to solving health issues.

A common scenario in someone diagnosed with depression is that he/she goes to a family physician and is given a prescription and perhaps a referral to counseling. Quite a few people do not follow through with the counseling, because "I'm too busy, I don't have time." Others will go to counseling and expect the counselor to tell them exactly what to do to feel better right now, and will stop going after one or two sessions. Likewise, many people expect immediate relief from their prescriptions, as if depression were merely a headache that goes away with one pill. Premature discontinuance of prescribed medication for depression is extremely common.

Depression is a whole body illness, and research published in an online seminar by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center supports treating it from multiple perspectives at once.

Major Depression Requires Several Treatment Steps For Remission

The Benefits of Faith

Regularly attending religious services may be protective factors against pessimism, cynicism, and depression. Research conducted by Yeshiva University using a sample of over 92,000 women showed more positive life outlooks for 56% of the participants and lower depression symptoms in 27% of the participants.

Attending Religious Services Lowers Depression Risk And Raises Optimism

Depression Is Not "Just In Your Head"

There is increasing evidence that depression is indeed a whole body illness. Research findings from Concordia University suggest that a malfunctioning stress system is implicated in depression and also impairs the body's ability to recover from the fight-or-flight response. It would be wise for individuals with depression to be evaluated for heart disease/heart attack risks as well.

Depression Impacts Stress System, Fight Or Flight Response, Can Lead To Heart Disease

How Often Do People Think About Sex?

A very common urban legend states that men think about sex every seven seconds. Researchers at Ohio State University have evidence that debunks that myth, and also shows that men think about sex and food in nearly equal amounts (19 times per day versus 18 times per day). Nonetheless, men in the study did think about sex almost twice as often as women.

New Study Says Men Are Not Sex Crazed After All