Why Highly Intelligent People Struggle to Find Love

In a conversation the other day, a friend of mine implied that he was single because he was too smart. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that it probably had more to do with the fact that he looks like the secret love child of Rick Moranis and a woodland creature. Alas, being single myself, I wondered to myself, “does being smart make it harder to find love?”

In the end, I think it really does. I’m not saying that if you’re in love that you are stupid. I’m not saying that at all, so let’s be clear. I’m saying that highly intelligent people have a harder time falling in love, and here is why:

Intelligent People are More Analytical when it Comes to Love

Intelligent people tend to have better foresight. Foresight, in and of itself, is basically just the ability to analyze a situation, recall relevant past experiences, and make an educated assessment of the future possibilities of the situation. Apply that mentality to a relationship and you get situations where smarter people are quicker to duck out of a relationship at the first sign of trouble. If experience is the best teacher, then the smartest people will rely on experience to guide them. Relying on experience to navigate a relationship can be tricky, though.
Every relationship has similar situations. What ruined one relationship doesn’t always have to ruin another, but for people who rely heavily on their experiences, they can often walk away at the first signs of trouble.

Intelligent People are Guarded

Another side-effect of relying on experience when it comes to love is that intelligent people tend to be way more guarded. They have a harder time opening up because that analytical brain never stops reflecting back on past situations where they opened up to someone, and ultimately got hurt in the process. For this reason, other people assume the person is cold or distant, two characteristics no one wants in a partner.

Intelligent People are often Single by Choice

Highly intelligent people think analytically, even when it comes to things like relationships. Therefore, intelligent people realize that being alone is better than being with the wrong person. It’s a rational, thought-out decision. So, in essence, most really smart people are single because they want to be. It is a rational, thought out decision – not a circumstance of their situation.

8 Basic Truths Even The Smartest People Forget

Even the smartest people out there sometimes forget some of those obvious concepts:

1. Not feeling ready can be a good thing

Opportunities rarely come when we are 100% ready to seize them. They are more likely to knock on your door when you feel insecure with your preparation, knowledge and skills. But that doesn’t mean you should be ignoring them until you feel ready. Most of our lifetime opportunities force us to grow both emotionally and intellectually. They push us to give the best of ourselves, even if that means getting out of our comfort zones. But sacrificing our comfort can give us the chance for personal growth. If you want to change your life for the better, you should open yourself to the opportunities that arise, even if you don’t feel 100% ready.

2. Success and failure go hand in hand

Often times people tend to misinterpret the meaning of the word “failure”. Why are we so afraid of failure? It is just as natural as succeeding. Failure doesn’t mean not succeeding. It is actually a part of the circle of success. And success itself shouldn’t be measured by the achievement of a particular goal. Success is a state of being and therefore- everyone can feel successful.

3. Action is the key for all success

We often hear that knowledge is power. But it only is power if you use it. Knowing how to do something and actually doing it are two completely different things. It doesn’t matter if ,for example, you read books and articles on fighting procrastination, and take no particular action to overcome that problem. Knowledge and intelligence are useless without action.

4. Even mistakes mean progress

If you look back in your life, maybe you will realize that the mistakes you have done in the past have taught you valuable lessons. So why should we be scared of making mistakes, if they help us grow stronger and wiser? Every mistake you make on the way to a particular goal brings you one step closer to achieving it. It is highly possible that the mistake you will regret the most in your life is not taking action because of the fear of making mistakes. This way you will always be wondering what could have happened, if you hadn’t been so scared. And most importantly- you wouldn’t have made any progress. So don’t be afraid of feeling uncertain about something- give it a try and see what happens.

5. Making decisions is impeded when there are too many options

We live in times when there are so many opportunities for us to choose from when it comes to determining our career and life paths. But when we have so many choices before us, we can often times get confused and indecisive. Business and marketing studies prove that when a consumer has more product choices, he’s predisposed to buy less. If you think about it, choosing one product out of three product choices feels much easier than choosing one out of three hundred. Most people will give up easily, if the buying decision process is tough.

6. Success doesn’t necessarily mean happiness

Many people believe that they can only be happy if they accomplish a particular goal. In my opinion, we can choose to be happy every day, no matter where on the path to our goals we are at the moment. “The monk who sold his Ferrari” by Robin Sharma is one of the most inspiring books I have ever read. One of the main ideas shared by the author is that you don’t have to wait to accomplish your dreams to be happy. The main character was one of the most successful layers in the country but even though he had everything he ever wanted, he wasn’t a happy person. The most important thing is to cherish every moment of every day and to be thankful for who you are and what you have now.

7. You can be the best at something even if you don’t like doing it

Some people say that in order to be good at doing something, you should love doing this thing. In my opinion, this isn’t necessarily true. If a person devotes their time and effort to learn a particular skill, they can become excellent at it. How they feel about the activity doesn’t determine their success in it.
Read: Why Highly Intelligent People Struggle to Find Love

8. What we see in others exists in us

When we have a problem with someone, this can actually help us learn more about ourselves. It can help us learn why we see that problem in the other person, and the reason can be that we hold it inside of us, too, and seeing it exposed before us can be frustrating. But acknowledging that what we see in others is a reflection of ourselves, can help us overcome our unsolved issues.

Hate Small Talk? One Approach Anyone Can Use

Chatting with people you don't know is easy if you follow one simple rule.

Contributing editor, Inc.@jeff_haden

24 COMMENTS

I was at a conference with a client. Everyone knew him. He was the guy. I was just some guy with him. No problem... until he got pulled away.
Then I was just some guy who didn't know a soul. And I'm really, really bad at being that guy.
Stick me on a stage in front of thousands of people I don't know and I'm nervous, but only at first. I feel like I belong there (which, if you think about it, is a nice definition of confidence.) But stick me in a room with a bunch of people I don't know and expect me to mingle and everything changes. Instantly, I'm shy and insecure.
I dread the thought of walking up to people I don't know and making small talk. Not because I don't like people, but because in that situation I really don't like me. I'm not outgoing, I'm not gregarious, not extroverted. I'm the ultimate wallflower.
So I did the little moonwalk shy people do when we want to slip unnoticed to the edge of the crowd. I smiled at people who made eye contact, nodded to others, but stopping to actually talk was a prospect too uncomfortable to entertain.

–– ADVERTISEMENT ––

(Yeah, it sucks to be me. I'll stop whining.)
Then a guy walked over. "Hello," he said. "My name is Bond. James Bond." (Not his real name, but he turned out to be so smooth and self-possessed it might as well have been.)
He asked where I was from. He asked what I do. He noticed my shirt and asked if I ride bikes. We talked about where we live, we talked about our families, we talked about what we like to do. It was great.

Finally I couldn't stand it.
"How did you do that?" I asked. "How do you walk up to complete strangers and make small talk? I'm terrible at it. I always feel like I'm forcing myself on people. I think I'm being presumptuous. I think, 'Who wants to talk to me?' Yet you make it seem so easy."
He said it wasn't easy for him either. He said he always feels uncomfortable mingling with people he doesn't know. "Tell me this," he said. "Do you think it's presumptuous when people walk over to speak to you? Does that make you uncomfortable?"

"Absolutely not," I said. "I'm really glad when they do. I'm grateful."
"Then do what I do," he said. "Look around the room. Pick someone who looks uncomfortable. Pick someone who seems to feel out of place. Pick someone just like you.
"Then go talk to them. Make it your goal to make that one person feel more comfortable. Then you'll feel more comfortable too."

Try it. If it's painful to mingle, if it's awkward to make small talk, use those feelings in a positive way. Turn sympathy for yourself into empathy for another. Go rescue someone.
Just introduce yourself to people and ask a basic question: what they do, where they're from, why they're attending. You don't need to be a conversational genius. The people you rescue won't notice. They'll be too busy feeling less like wallflowers and more like people who belong--and they will always remember that it was you who made them feel that way.

Next time, instead of focusing on how uncomfortable you feel, focus on making just one other person feel more comfortable.
She'll be really glad you did.
You'll be really glad you did. And you'll never find it hard to mingle again.
If it works for me, it will definitely work for you.

The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own

image: http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Screen-Shot-2016-07-24-at-5.12.52-PM-768x531.png

30 Acts of Self-Love for 30 Days of Happiness

This is the year that you grow into a kinder, happier, and love-giving person. I’ve put together a 30-day self-love challenge for you that will fuel you into becoming a ball of lively positivity. Each of these habits is designed to take you less than 10 minutes a day so you won’t have any excuses. I want this to be measurable and attainable because it will hold you accountable and energized upon achievement.
Day 1 – Write down 5 things that you love about yourself.
Day 2 – Find an old picture of you and a family member. Write a comment about how this person has helped you without expecting anything back and give thanks. It can be on Facebook or anywhere else.
Day 3 – Stand in front of a door that gets decent traffic. Open the door for people and smile. Smile until they smile back. Do this for at least 2 minutes.
Day 4 – Find one homeless person and give them some money. It doesn’t have to be a lot, but when you give it to them, make eye contact and smile.
Day 5 – Look yourself in the mirror and say to yourself with emotion, “I love you.” Repeat 5 times.
Day 6 – Write ten things that you are proud you accomplished in your journal
Day 7 – If you have to pay for something (like a restaurant bill, bar tab, or toll booth), pay for the next person who comes by even if you’ll never meet him or her.
Day 8 – Find somewhere to volunteer where people are less fortunate than you and make a monthly commitment to participate.
Day 9 – Write a thoughtful comment that has at least 100 words to a blogger that expressed something that made you feel something.
Day 10 – Eat a bunch of fruit and savor every moment. Marvel at every morsel and how it tastes. Appreciate how easily you have access to this fruit. Consider how others in the world don’t. Chew slowly.
Day 11 – Leave a book you love in a public place. Hopefully, the next person will love it too.
Day 12 – Share an article that brings positivity to a friend. Make an effort to get them to read it.
Day 13 – Find a video that makes you laugh. Watch it and then share it with at least two people.
Day 14 – Read out loud everything you wrote in your journal previously. Look yourself in the mirror and say, “I’m proud of you.”
Day 15 – Look yourself in the mirror in the eye. Tell yourself three things you have accomplished that was difficult.
Day 16 – Pick one small challenge that you might fail at. Do it. If you fail, celebrate with a mini-dance party. Realize that failure teaches you and moves you forward.
Day 17 – Order flowers for someone you appreciate.
Day 18 – Talk to yourself in the mirror in second person. Tell yourself all the things you are proud that you accomplished that other people haven’t.
Day 19 – Do something brand new you have never done. It could be a tango class. It could be rock climbing. Do it. Celebrate it.
Day 20 – Meditate for 5 minutes.
Day 21 – Pick five people who made a positive impact in your life. Send each a handwritten thank you letter.
Day 22 – Find someone who is a great friend that you haven’t connected with in a long time. Reach out to them and arrange a quick meeting.
Day 23 – Donate blood to a cause you support
Day 24 – Spent 5 minutes leaving compliments on as many friends’ social media posts as you can.
Day 25 – Go to a local meet up that you haven’t been to before. Make a new friend. Hug him or her.
Day 26 – Write 10 complimentary notes in a jar. Give them to a friend or stranger.
Day 27 – Find a stranger. Give him or her a genuine compliment about something they do (how they walk, what they’re wearing, and so on).
Day 28 – Shout at the top of your lungs, “I am me and I’m proud of every part of me!” Repeat five times.
Day 29 – Drink some green tea and spend five minutes to appreciate all the tasks you’ve accomplished in this challenge.
Day 30 – Congratulations for completing the challenge! Buy yourself a small, healthy gift you’ve been wanting to get. Be kind and love yourself!
I hope you enjoyed this challenge. Imagine how much better you would feel about yourself after performing these activities for 30-consecutive days. I snuck a bunch of science-backed techniques that have been proven to increase happiness and self-esteem into most of these.  

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7 Ways To Get The Respect You Deserve

 

 

Respect is a basic human need, and every single human deserves respect, although we don’t always know how to get it. In this article, we will look at some ways to ask for and get the respect that you deserve.

Abraham Maslow wrote about self-respect and respect for others in his 1943 paper “A Theory of Human Motivation” that lists a hierarchy of needs, starting with our most basic, functional needs and progressing to higher levels of emotional fulfillment needs. Maslow said that ‘Satisfaction of the self-esteem need leads to feelings of self-confidence, worth, strength, capability and adequacy of being useful and necessary in the world.’
Because we live in a society where we rely on others to provide things that we do not make ourselves, this need for respect is almost as necessary as the need for food, water, and shelter. Failing to feel respected can lead to depressed mood and feelings of low self-worth.

7 Ways To Get The Respect You Deserve

When you think about the people you most respect and admire, they are selflessly confident in how they carry themselves and in how they act. This self-confidence comes from asking for, and getting the respect that they deserve. You can learn to do this too and have people respect you as a role model for exceptional behavior.

1. Ask for it

Some people, especially jealous or stingy people, are unlikely to give you respect unless you tell them to do so. By not asking for it, you imply that you don’t need it or expect it. Direct people are able to state their needs without fearing what will happen if they do.

2. Use your very best posture

Standing erect states to others that you refuse to be disrespected because you are not a spineless person. The expressions that we use come from the postures that we use to communicate to others with our bodies and the term ‘spineless’ comes from this.

3. Use effective eye contact

Looking down, looking to the side, looking up; looking everywhere except at the person who is speaking to you means that you are not going to get the respect you deserve. Meet the gaze of anyone you are dealing with, confidently, and competently by using these tools.
Related article: 5 Ways To Spot Someone With Hidden Motives
Staring is rude and is seen as aggressive, but making solid eye contact is assertive. Try looking at one eye of the person you are facing until you notice you have been looking at the eye for a long time, move your gaze to the eyebrow above the eye for a brief second, then to the other eye. After a length of eye contact with that eye, again move your gaze to the eyebrow and then back to the first eye.
Looking at the eyebrow or the area above the eye is a way of asserting dominance over the person you are speaking with. Looking lower than the eye level is a sign of being passive. These subtle eye contact clues are the ways that people use to judge whether or not you think you deserve respect for yourself.

4. Keep track of your success and be ready to tell others about it

You do more than you think you do, whether it is for your family, your boss or your friends. In fact, you may have forgotten some of your best achievements, just because you didn’t take enough time to congratulate yourself on that achievement.
Being able to tell others about your past success helps them to see what a capable person you are, while at the same time affirming that to yourself as you say the words aloud to someone else. Researchers studying respect and cooperation found that people who feel respected are more likely to contribute more to a group work environment.
Tell yourself ‘I did an amazing job today on ___ and I’m so proud of myself.’ What you would say to your boss, for example, sounds more like this ‘I approved the payroll and I finished the presentation for tomorrow and it’s only 11:00. Do you have other responsibilities that you could delegate to me?’ This says that you are capable by giving specific examples of your work efficiencies and lets your boss know that you can handle more as well.

5. Get used to other people being unhappy with you

When you set appropriate boundaries, you are more likely to get the respect you deserve. However, you are also more likely to make other people unhappy. Let yourself be okay with not having to please others. You are more important, and if you are asking for something you need, do not back down because the other person is unhappy about it.

6. Avoid rising inflection

Do not make your statements into questions. A rising tone to your voice at the end of a statement sounds like a question. Asking, instead of stating what you need is the difference between getting what you want and letting other people choose for you.
Related article: 7 Things Introverts Need to Know About Relationships

7. Command it

Insist upon getting respect when you feel disrespected. Tell people exactly what behavior they did or words that they used to disrespect you, and tell them what you need them to say to you or do for you instead. Do not accept less than what you deserve.

10 Things Confident People Never Do

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be?” – Marianne Williamson

If you have confidence, you can walk into any room in the world and feel assured and comfortable with who you are, without needing the approval from others. Confident people don’t need to justify themselves or explain themselves to other people; they just express their individuality and flow through life without analyzing their every thought and action. Confident people have simply learned to accept themselves, and share their unique nature with other people without feeling self-conscious. Thankfully, we can learn self-confidence if we feel uncomfortable or unhappy with ourselves, but in order to get to that point, we must first understand the behaviors that confident people avoid.

Here are 10 things confident people avoid doing:

1. They don’t ask other people for approval.

Confident people don’t need permission from others in order to make a decision; they feel totally comfortable and worthy of making choices on their own without needing to ask others first. They will listen to other people’s opinions and consider them, but they don’t put those opinions above their own in the decision-making process. They simply live their lives in congruence with their hearts, and feel that going to other people for acceptance will only lead them astray.

2. Confident people don’t blame other people or situations for what happens to them in life.

They take full ownership of everything that happens to them. Confident people don’t blame the barista at the coffee shop for running late to work, or the fact that they don’t have enough money this month to pay rent. They take full responsibility for their actions, and realize that they are the conductor of their lives. They might not have the ability to control everything that happens to them in life, but they can choose to respond in a way that benefits their life and not wallow in self-pity or play the blame game.

3. They aren’t scared of things that will challenge them, mentally and physically.

Confident people don’t feel scared to accept a challenge or get a little outside their comfort zone; they willingly charge ahead toward new experiences, and get a thrill out of being uncomfortable. They don’t put limits on what they can achieve; they have confidence in themselves and know that every new experience poses an opportunity to grow and learn.

4. They don’t second-guess themselves.

Confident people don’t mull over their thoughts endlessly after making a decision; they simply watch life unfold and stand behind their choice. Even if it didn’t work out according to plan, confident people still don’t second-guess themselves, because they know that they made a certain decision for a reason. They have faith in themselves to take the proper steps in life to reach their goals and achieve success.

5. Confident people don’t tear others down to boost their self-esteem.

One of the most defining characteristics of a confident person is their ability to feel completely comfortable with themselves without needing to belittle other people in the process. They can stand in their truth and express themselves openly without squashing every person in their path.

6. They don’t care what other people think of them.

Confident people show up to any situation in life fully ready to show people the real them, without needing to hide any part of themselves or conceal any “imperfections.” They know they have flaws, but realize that everyone does, which means we should all feel comfortable showing those to people. They understand that they incarnated into their bodies for a reason, so why waste their time hating themselves or wishing they were someone else? Confident people love themselves, and don’t care if anyone else does or not.

7. They don’t give up on their dreams and goals.

Confident people see their dreams through to the finish, no matter how many roadblocks they encounter along the way. Being confident doesn’t mean that they don’t have doubts along the way, but they push past their insecurities and trust themselves to follow their heart no matter what. They know that no one else can achieve their goals for them, so they must do the work to see the results.

8. Confident people don’t try to impress others.

They could care less how much money they have, what brand of clothing they buy, or what kind of car they drive. They know that possessions don’t define a person, and feel confident in themselves because of their character. They realize that someone’s true essence comes from their soul, and don’t waste time impressing other people with things they don’t even care to own. They only want to impress themselves, and work on having the best possible relationship with themselves.

9. They avoid putting things on the back burner.

Confident people don’t procrastinate; they get things done as needed. They dive headfirst into life, and won’t allow outside forces to knock their persistence. Confident people don’t just watch life happen; they create it.

10. Confident people don’t agree with people just to make them feel comfortable.

They don’t mind a healthy debate to get a fresh perspective or maybe to teach the other person something, too. They don’t allow people to walk all over them or treat them as a doormat; confident people remain steadfast in their beliefs, regardless of who agrees with them.

The Alkaline Diet Info Every Cancer Patient Needs to Read Immediately

The Alkaline Diet Info Every Cancer Patient Needs to Read Immediately

This article is really useful! Not only to cancer patients, but to everyone as it provides an explanation of the pH balance of numerous foods. Every human being needs to maintain the body alkaline in order to promote health and prevent serious illnesses such as cancer.

According to Raw Food Health “The human body goes to great lengths to maintain a slightly alkaline pH of 7.35, but poor diet and stress can change the PH to an acidic one in which disease can thrive.”

You will protect yourself and your health to a great extent if you change your eating habits.

An alkaline diet, which is great cancer prevention, cannot be easily followed nowadays, especially in the fast-paced Western countries, when numerous people consume packages snacks, processed foods, fast foods and microwave meals. These foods are no good for your entire well-being, and are especially unhealthy in the case of cancer.

  

Therefore, as soon as a patient is diagnosed with cancer, it is advisable to start a healthy and balanced, alkaline diet. This will significantly elevate the chances of healing.

The proper diet would be abundant in minimally processed, fresh food. These are the most important dietary changes you need to do in the case of cancer:

Alkaline diet

An alkaline diet reduces inflammation and improves intracellular pH

Nowadays, numerous people consume foods which increase the intracellular pH and cause inflammation. The state of an increased intracellular pH is known as latent acidosis, which is the ideal environment for the proliferation of cancer.

Hence, a healthy alkaline diet will enhance the intracellular pH with time, and will fight inflammation.

Eat Alkaline foods

It primarily includes organic leafy green vegetables, broccoli, root vegetables, herbs and spices, beans, lentils and peas, cauliflower and cabbages, garlic, onions, leek and chives, nuts and seeds, along with a small amount of non-gluten grains like rice. You should eat as much fruits and vegetables as you can.

Avoid gluten

Glutinous grains lead to inflammation, which is beneficial for the progression of cancer. Therefore, you should eliminate high-gluten grains like whole grains, rye, wheat, as well as cereals, pasta, cakes, bread, muffins, crackers, cookies and other baked goods.

On the other hand, you should consume whole, non-gluten grains like rice, quinoa, buckwheat, amaranth and millet. Moreover, you should avoid “gluten free” prepared products, as they contain added sugar or processed oils.

Avoid sugar

This diet excludes sugar, as cancer cells use more glucose per unit of time than other cells. Namely, the metabolism of sugar leads to acidity, which is beneficial for cancer progression.

Also, a diet rich in sugars, as well as too much fruit (yes, eating too much fruit is not good as well. Try to eat more bitter fruits like granny smith apples, grapefruits, etc.) will stimulate the insulin response. Thus, if you frequently consume fruits during the day, you may suppress the immunity and elevate the levels of insulin in the body, and thus lead to insulin resistance, which is directly related to cancer proliferation.

Processed sugar drains the body’s magnesium and contributes to cancer. Also, high fructose corn syrup, due to its processing methodology, is rich in mercury, which is a toxin that causes cancer.

Therefore, you should avoid all kinds of sugar, even “natural” sugars such as agave and honey, high fructose corn syrup and white sugar.  You can eat a few figs, of dried apricots, unsweetened applesauce, or fresh pineapple.

Keep in mind that even fruit should be consumed in moderate amounts since research has shown that fructose raises the cancer cell division rate two times more than other sugar types.

Avoid dairy products

 A major study conducted by Prof. (Emeritus) T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D., Cornell University Cow showed that dairy is one of the most cancer promoting foods. Namely, this is due to the casein protein.

Also, yogurts rich in proteins made with added powdered milk or whey are even a bigger threat than cheese, yogurt or plain milk.

If you are struggling with cancer, you should avoid all kinds of dairy products, as they may lead to bone deterioration, due to the high acid production, inflammation, and promote cancer proliferation.

Read The Full Original Article Here: The Alkaline Diet Info Every Cancer Patient Needs To Read Immediately

The Top 27 Alkaline Foods On The Planet (Eat More To Prevent Cancer, Obesity And Heart Disease)

The Top 27 Alkaline Foods On The Planet (Eat More To Prevent Cancer, Obesity And Heart Disease)

The standard American diet wreaks havoc on our organism and we continue to ignore the fact that processed foods, fast food, GMOs and sugars destroy our body day in day out. The food is not just unhealthy and damaging to our overall health, it’s also disrupting our pH balance which is very dangerous.
Our bodies are designed to be alkaline and if we eat too much processed and junk food there is a big chance that we’re disrupting this alkaline environment and making our organism acidic.
If our pH changes from the normal alkaline level to harmful acidic conditions it will start affecting our immune system and make us more susceptible to disease.

Alkalizing Foods
Maybe you feel that you’re eating healthy and you have nothing to worry about the following alkaline foods will be beneficial for your overall health anyways. You should start consuming them no matter how healthy you think you are, they can’t do you harm, just promote your health further.
Top Five Alkaline Foods

1. Swiss Chard

Swiss chard is one of the best alkaline foods which also has the ability to protect your organism from viruses and bacteria and fight off the free radicals in your body.

2. Melon

In case you didn’t know melon is an excellent colon cleanser which in addition to its 8.5 pH level makes it a superfood you must include in your diet. Any kind of melon will do fine. Watermelon is also very beneficial because it’s rich in fibers and contains 92% water.

3. Buckwheat

If you think you can’t give up wheat you’ve probably never tried buckwheat. It will provide you with enough energy to last you throughout the day and protect your heart and cardiovascular system as well.

4. Olive Oil

I don’t think that there’s a person on this Earth who hasn’t heard about the health benefits of olive oil but let’s just repeat how good it is for your overall health. It’s rich in vitamin E and monounsaturated fatty acids like no other food.

5. Flax Seed

Flax seeds are not just alkaline, they are also rich in fibers and vitamin E. They have anti-inflammatory properties and can ease the hot flashes in menopausal women.
Other Alkaline Foods

• Avocado – Contains healthy monounsaturated fats for a healthy heart.
• Bananas – When ripe, bananas can an excellent superfood.
• Berries – Rich in antioxidants.
• Carrots – High levels of beta-carotene which can improve your eyesight.
• Garlic – Keeps your blood pressure under control.
• Broccoli – Steam it for cholesterol- lowering benefits.
• Grapes – Rich in multivitamins and antioxidants, they can lower high blood pressure.
• Pineapple – Boosts weight loss.
• Alfalfa Sprouts – Easy to digest and rich in enzymes which maintain hormonal balance.
• Lemons– Maybe the most alkalizing food, lemons can prevent cold, cough and flu.
• Brussels sprouts – Have anti-cancer properties.
• Sauerkraut – By adding fermented foods you actually add probiotics to your diet.
• Cauliflower – Eat it instead of bread.
• Grapefruit – Rich in vitamins A and C.
• Seaweeds – High amounts of iron and have anti-acid properties.
• Quinoa – Keeps your blood sugar levels under control.
• Cucumber – Its 90% water content will keep your skin healthy and youthful.
• Parsley –Intestinal detox.
• Mango – An excellent fruit for colon cleansing.
• Spinach – The ultimate, vitamin-packed vegetable.
• Oranges – Excellent protection against colds.
• Papaya – Has natural laxative properties which cleanse your colon from toxins.

Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease With These 8 Foods

Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease With These 8 Foods

Did you know that simply eating foods that cleanse the in plaque your arteries can prevent and reverse heart disease? IMAGINE BEING ABLE TO PREVENT A HEART ATTACK! When your arteries are clogged, your heart is unable to get the blood that it needs. Once you get rid of the plaque, this problem goes away. It's a simple as that! Now that you have this knowledge you can take charge of your health!

Caldwell Esselstyn is an amazing Dr. that has been helping his patients reverse heart disease for many years. He has some wonderful tips. You can read them here.

Here are the top 8 foods to help prevent and reverse heart disease: 

1.) Lots of greeny leafy vegetables

These ones will heal the endothelial lining of your blood vessels: Kale, Swiss Chard, Cilantro, Collards, Bok Choy, Parsley, Spinach, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cauliflower

2.) Garlic

A numerous of researches confirmed that garlic is very effective in treatments of heart diseases and high blood pressure. It is particularly beneficial against coronary artery calcification.

 3) Cranberry Juice

If you drink 3 cups of cranberry juice a week it will unclog your arteries and increase the cell ability to absorb fats.

4) Tomatoes

Tomatoes are abundant in Lycopene which is beneficial against hardening of the arteries and protect us from cardiovascular diseases.

5) Oats

2 cups of oats per day can reduce cholesterol levels by 20%.They contain soluble fiber which prevents the formation of cholesterol.

6) Pomegranates

Pomegranate is the best fruit which prevents hardening of the arteries. It is rich in antioxidants and prevents cholesterol accumulation, reduce blood vessel damages and protect us from atherosclerosis.

7) Kiwi and Melon

They reduce the LDL or bad cholesterol and they can be very effective in unclogging the arteries.

8) Grapes

Grapes are abundant in flavonoid, quercetin and resveratrol. They prevent oxidation of cholesterol thus inhibiting the buildup of plaque on arteries walls.

The Possible Cause of Flashbacks Discovered

By: James Bisby, Posted on: May 20, 2016

Traumatic events can stop the brain storing the context in which they took place. www.shutterstock.com

Remembering the past is an important function and defines who we are. In some situations though, the normal processes that store our experiences into memory can go wrong. After experiencing a distressing event, people can develop memory disturbances where they re-experience the event in the form of flashbacks – distressing vivid images that involuntarily enter consciousness, as happens in post-traumatic stress disorder.
Our latest study shows that a distressing experience has opposite effects in two different parts of the brain: the amygdala and the hippocampus. The amygdala, a region of the brain involved in emotion, seemed to strongly encode the negative content of an experience while the hippocampus, which is involved in storing new memories, is only weakly activated.

Free Chapter Download: Etiology of PTSD: What Causes PTSD?

When remembering something from the past, we can bring to mind what we were doing, the people we were with, and where the event took place. An important aspect of memory is that these separate pieces of information are bound together as a single memory so that all of it can easily be recalled at a later time. But when experiencing a distressing event, the normal processes that help to integrate this information in memory can be disrupted.
The hippocampus is crucial for forming these associations so that all parts of a memory can be later retrieved as a single event (and damage to this brain region can stop a person from forming new memories). In contrast, the amygdala is involved in processing emotional information and making basic responses to things associated with fear, such as recoiling from a snake or spider.
People who have suffered a trauma often have difficulty remembering the context of the event. We thought that, while processing in the amygdala might be increased during a negative experience, processing in the hippocampus might be decreased, disrupting the way it binds the different aspects of the experience together as a single memory.

 

Brain imaging study

To test this idea we showed 20 volunteers pairs of pictures and asked them to remember the pictures while lying in an MRI scanner. Some of the pictures were of traumatic scenes, such as a badly injured person.
The volunteers’ memory of the pictures was then tested in two ways. First, they were shown one picture from each pair and asked if they recognised previously seeing it. Second, if the picture was recognised, we then asked whether they could remember what other picture had been part of the original pair.

The hippocampus. The brain region involved in consolidating new memories. decade3d – anatomy online/www.shutterstock.com

When asked whether they recognised the individual pictures, people showed better memory for previously seen pictures that were negative (traumatic) compared with pictures that were neutral, such as a person sitting at an office desk. Improved memory for negative pictures related to increased activity in the amygdala. In contrast, their memory for remembering what pictures were presented together as a pair was worse when one of the pictures was negative.
We also found that activity in the hippocampus was reduced by the presence of negative pictures suggesting that its function in storing the associations between the pictures was impaired. This imbalance could lead to strong memories for the negative content of an event that is not properly stored with the other parts of the event and the context in which it took place.

Implications for psychotherapy

This work supports the view that experiencing a traumatic event might alter how memory works. The re-experiencing of intrusive images in post-traumatic stress disorder might happen because of strengthened memory for the negative aspects of a trauma but not their context – that is, the location where the event occurred or the time it occurred. This may result in the person involuntarily retrieving the traumatic event “out of context” and experiencing it as though it was in the present.
In this case, therapy should focus on strengthening or recreating appropriate contextual associations for the negative event. This view is supported by current psychotherapies where a person is taken back to the place where the traumatic event took place to help in strengthening memory for the context.
These findings also highlight potential issues with eyewitness testimony as trauma sufferers with poorly contextualised memories are likely to provide a fragmented report of an event.
The author of this James Bisby, Research Associate, University College London. This article was originally published in The Conversation under a Creative Commons Attribution No Derivatives license. Read the original article here.

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If you are interested in more information about PTSD, you may interested in the book Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, 2nd Edition: Scientific and Professional Dimensions, which is an overview of current research and clinical practice in assessment, treatment, and prevention of PTSD. The authors, Julian D Ford, et al, have written a chapter called “Etiology of PTSD: What causes PTSD?” You can access the chapter below:

7 Things You Need to Know About Loving A Woman

In many cases, women harbor more secrets than men about a variety of things. It’s just in the makeup of a woman to keep secrets, or to expect their partner to know what they want without them having to say it outright. Women have long been regarded as being more complex than men, and science backs this up because men and women’s brains are actually wired differently.

Women tend to speak through their emotions and remember faces and words more clearly. They have a high level of intuition, and usually feel more compassion and understanding toward others than men do. Since women operate through their feelings more than their minds, this can often confuse and frustrate men (and even other women) since women’s emotions fluctuate so frequently.
However, just because women are complicated creatures, does not mean they aren’t capable of being understood. While women may not voice the following things to you, she still wishes you could read her mind somehow.
We’ve made the deciphering a bit easier for you, and found some common things that most women want their partner to know.

Here are 7 secrets women want their partner to know:

1. Speak up for yourself.

In the realm of relationship advice, this is an often overlooked point when it comes to dating women. However, women generally enjoy dating someone who doesn’t just shake their head ‘yes’ to everything they say. Although they don’t want someone extremely contrary and argumentative, most women enjoy relationships with people who know how to stand up for themselves. Who can back up their opinions and not cave under pressure. You can still have a wonderful relationship with a man or woman without agreeing with every single thing they say or do.

2. Make time for your friends.

While most women don’t want you to spend all your free time with friends, they do appreciate it when you go out a couple times a week. (They have the house to themselves, and can spend some time relaxing and doing ‘girl things’.) Women want you to know that they encourage you to spend some time with your buddies, as long as you’re making enough time for them, too.

3. It’s okay to have a wild side, but make sure you are there for her when she needs it.

Advice for men: most women really do want someone who embodies the whole package – an unapologetic bad boy who loves to show off and lives life on the edge, and also a stable, sweet person who goes out of his way for his lady. You can still have your motorcycles and fast cars, and have that macho thing going on that every woman craves, while also getting in touch with your more sensitive side. When dating a woman, it all comes down to striking a perfect balance, and this includes your demeanor, as well.

4. Don’t just hear her words, actually listen to them.

Perhaps one of the biggest complaints women have is that their partners just don’t listen to what they have to say. They hear a few words out of the conversation, but don’t actually reflect on their meaning. Make sure in relationships, you listen to every word she says and don’t let the words get lost in translation. Respect her enough to care about what she says, and value her opinion. Relationships cannot survive without open lines of communication, and being able to listen to each other without interjecting.

5. Dig a little deeper.

Sometimes, women don’t tell the full story of how they feel or what’s on their minds. When dating a woman, it’s your job to uncover these secrets by asking more questions and really showing her you’re interested in knowing how she feels. She isn’t trying to play games with you, but rather, protect herself from feeling too vulnerable, or feeling like a burden to you. Let her know that you will always be there for her, and that anything she says is safe with you. In a sea of emotions, women require stability and safety. If you can be her rock, she will never leave your side.

6. Do nice things for her that show you care (even opening the door goes a long way).

After a while in a relationship, both people involved tend to slack on the sweet gestures and words of affection. However, even if this sounds like your relationship, you can always do something small, such as leaving a nice note for her to read before she leaves for work, or just taking her out to eat. You don’t have to do anything fancy; just let her know that you love and appreciate her, and still care deeply about her.

7. More than anything, remind her why she’s so special to you.

Dating a woman doesn’t have to be as complicated as some people make it seem; all women truly want is to feel wanted. They want to feel loved, important, and taken care of. They want to feel like someone’s entire world, not just a part of it. Don’t hesitate to tell her all the reasons why you fell in love with her in the first place; remember, women speak in the language of emotions, so don’t be afraid to show your more sensitive side to her.

10 Critical Things You Should Never Tolerate In A Relationship

Your relationship, whether it be romantic or not, should make you feel excited and happy about life, not stifled, repressed, or unloved. Many people stay in unhappy relationships just because they fear being alone or can’t picture their life without the person, even if their current situation doesn’t truly fulfill them anymore.

Everyone deserves respect, compassion, and love in relationships, but if you don’t feel as though your partner gives those to you, you might want to rethink your relationship with him or her.

Here are 10 critical things you should never tolerate in a relationship:

 

1. Disrespectful language

First and foremost, a healthy relationship begins with respect for both individuals. You should never tolerate someone who calls you names, puts you down, or makes you feel uncomfortable in any way. Even if you’re having a heated argument, it doesn’t give your partner the right to treat you with disrespect just because they can’t control their language.

2. An overly controlling partner

If you have a partner who can’t let you out of his or her sight without freaking out or thinking you’ll break their trust, then this should definitely raise some red flags. You should never tolerate someone who feels the need to control every aspect of your life and your relationship. According to an article on psychologytoday.com, Andrea Bonior, Ph.D., says,
“Toxic relationships can sneak up on almost anyone. And controlling behavior on the part of a partner knows no boundaries—people of any age, gender, sexual orientation or socioeconomic status can be in controlling relationships, playing either role.”

3. A breach of trust

Aside from respect, mutual trust must exist in a relationship for it to thrive. If you can’t trust your partner, you should either talk to them about it, or end the relationship before you get in too deep. Both partners must feel totally comfortable, open, and supported in the relationship for it to work, and a lack of trust will kill an otherwise healthy relationship.

4. Incessant neediness

 Of course, feeling wanted and needed in a relationship is normal, but it can go overboard if you’re not careful. Most people enjoy having a partner that asks them for help with certain things or just needs a hug or a shoulder to cry on sometimes. These things are perfectly normal – what isn’t normal, however, is an overly clingy, needy partner who can’t seem to do anything without you. It’s important to feel like you can live on your own without your SO around 24/7, so a partner who doesn’t display any independence should be a red flag to you.

 

5. Feeling like you don’t come first

While there are other important parts of life outside of relationships, your partner should prioritize you over other things. If he or she hangs out with friends more than you, for example, that shows they don’t take the commitment very seriously. Never tolerate someone who doesn’t take the time to make you feel special – you deserve someone who will treat you like the king or queen that you are.

6. Negativity

Now, of course negativity will be a part of any relationship in life, but it shouldn’t take precedence over a positive attitude. A negative outlook on life will translate into negative thoughts, and ultimately, a negative mind. People who focus on the negative tend to have low energy, blame others for their problems, and in general, won’t be the most fun, inspiring people to hang around. Don’t ever settle for someone who displays such negativity about life – it will only drag you down in the process.

7. Emotional unavailability 

Your partner should be emotionally available; otherwise, you won’t be able to have a successful relationship with them. If they feel insecure or shy about displaying emotions, then they probably have deep-seated issues to work out before they can partake in a healthy, thriving relationship.

8. A partner who doesn’t listen

Both of you should feel comfortable talking honestly and openly to each other. If your partner regularly talks over you or makes you feel like your opinion or thoughts don’t matter, this means he or she doesn’t really value you as a person. And you should never tolerate this sort of behavior in a relationship.

9. Someone who doesn’t support your dreams

Your partner should also back you 150% when it comes to your dreams and goals. You should never tolerate someone who gets jealous or tries to undermine your success – a truly supportive partner will encourage you and help you every step of the way.

10. Irresponsibility

Finally, you should never tolerate a partner who isn’t willing to pick up the slack and take care of business. Adult responsibilities aren’t fun by any means, but they should at least take care of the minimum amount of chores and responsibilities needed for survival, and not depend on you to do all the dirty work.

Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system

Date:

June 5, 2014

Source:

University of Southern California

Summary:

In the first evidence of a natural intervention triggering stem cell-based regeneration of an organ or system, a study shows that cycles of prolonged fasting not only protect against immune system damage -- a major side effect of chemotherapy -- but also induce immune system regeneration, shifting stem cells from a dormant state to a state of self-renewal.

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FULL STORY

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During fasting the number of hematopoietic stem cells increases but the number of the normally much more abundant white blood cells decreases. In young or healthy mice undergoing multiple fasting/re-feeding cycles, the population of stem cells increases in size although the number of white blood cells remain normal. In mice treated with chemotherapy or in old mice, the cycles of fasting reverse the immunosuppression and immunosenescence, respectively.

 

 

In the first evidence of a natural intervention triggering stem cell-based regeneration of an organ or system, a study in the June 5 issue of the Cell Press journal Cell Stem Cell shows that cycles of prolonged fasting not only protect against immune system damage -- a major side effect of chemotherapy -- but also induce immune system regeneration, shifting stem cells from a dormant state to a state of self-renewal.

In both mice and a Phase 1 human clinical trial, long periods of not eating significantly lowered white blood cell counts. In mice, fasting cycles then "flipped a regenerative switch": changing the signaling pathways for hematopoietic stem cells, which are responsible for the generation of blood and immune systems, the research showed.

The study has major implications for healthier aging, in which immune system decline contributes to increased susceptibility to disease as we age. By outlining how prolonged fasting cycles -- periods of no food for two to four days at a time over the course of six months -- kill older and damaged immune cells and generate new ones, the research also has implications for chemotherapy tolerance and for those with a wide range of immune system deficiencies, including autoimmunity disorders.
"We could not predict that prolonged fasting would have such a remarkable effect in promoting stem cell-based regeneration of the hematopoietic system," said corresponding author Valter Longo, the Edna M. Jones Professor of Gerontology and the Biological Sciences at the USC Davis School of Gerontology, and director of the USC Longevity Institute.

"When you starve, the system tries to save energy, and one of the things it can do to save energy is to recycle a lot of the immune cells that are not needed, especially those that may be damaged," Longo said. "What we started noticing in both our human work and animal work is that the white blood cell count goes down with prolonged fasting. Then when you re-feed, the blood cells come back. So we started thinking, well, where does it come from?"

Prolonged fasting forces the body to use stores of glucose, fat and ketones, but also breaks down a significant portion of white blood cells. Longo likens the effect to lightening a plane of excess cargo.
During each cycle of fasting, this depletion of white blood cells induces changes that trigger stem cell-based regeneration of new immune system cells. In particular, prolonged fasting reduced the enzyme PKA, an effect previously discovered by the Longo team to extend longevity in simple organisms and which has been linked in other research to the regulation of stem cell self-renewal and pluripotency -- that is, the potential for one cell to develop into many different cell types. Prolonged fasting also lowered levels of IGF-1, a growth-factor hormone that Longo and others have linked to aging, tumor progression and cancer risk.

"PKA is the key gene that needs to shut down in order for these stem cells to switch into regenerative mode. It gives the 'okay' for stem cells to go ahead and begin proliferating and rebuild the entire system," explained Longo, noting the potential of clinical applications that mimic the effects of prolonged fasting to rejuvenate the immune system. "And the good news is that the body got rid of the parts of the system that might be damaged or old, the inefficient parts, during the fasting. Now, if you start with a system heavily damaged by chemotherapy or aging, fasting cycles can generate, literally, a new immune system."

Prolonged fasting also protected against toxicity in a pilot clinical trial in which a small group of patients fasted for a 72-hour period prior to chemotherapy, extending Longo's influential past research: "While chemotherapy saves lives, it causes significant collateral damage to the immune system. The results of this study suggest that fasting may mitigate some of the harmful effects of chemotherapy," said co-author Tanya Dorff, assistant professor of clinical medicine at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and Hospital. "More clinical studies are needed, and any such dietary intervention should be undertaken only under the guidance of a physician."
"We are investigating the possibility that these effects are applicable to many different systems and organs, not just the immune system," said Longo, whose lab is in the process of conducting further research on controlled dietary interventions and stem cell regeneration in both animal and clinical studies.

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Story Source:
The above post is reprinted from materials provided by University of Southern California. The original item was written by Suzanne Wu. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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Journal Reference:

1. Chia-Wei Cheng, Gregor B. Adams, Laura Perin, Min Wei, Xiaoying Zhou, Ben S. Lam, Stefano Da Sacco, Mario Mirisola, David I. Quinn, Tanya B. Dorff, John J. Kopchick, Valter D. Longo. Prolonged Fasting Reduces IGF-1/PKA to Promote Hematopoietic-Stem-Cell-Based Regeneration and Reverse Immunosuppression. Cell Stem Cell, 2014; 14 (6): 810 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2014.04.014

Your Personality Controls Your Immune System, According to Science

 

A new study shows that your personality, or more accurately how you process the emotional moments of your life is related to how your immune system protects your body from disease.

How we react to stress is just one personality trait that we know can impact our health. For example, if you are a more reactive type of personality, you may suffer poor health in the form of high blood pressure. Although the connection between stress and health is well known, the connections between our personality and our immune system is something that only recent research has been able to find.

Your Personality Controls Your Immune System, According To New Study

There are many personality traits that we see in the different people that we know. Psychologists study the personality traits that are stable over the course of our adult lives, for example we tend to be either more introverted or extroverted, optimistic or pessimistic, and open-minded or closed-minded.

Personality traits that control your immune system functioning

Researchers say that a number of personality dimensions, including repression, optimism, hostility, attributional style, and extraversion-introversion, have been related to immune parameters or immunity. Let’s look further at these personality traits and why they might be connected to immune function.
Denying negative feelings to self and others is what we call emotional repression. Repressing negative emotions was associated with a lower immune system response than that of people who quickly expressed negative emotions and moved on.

Related article: Here’s How Eating Added Sugar Hurts Your Brain

Pessimism, or having a negative mood associated with life events, was found to be associated with lower T-cell immune system response. An optimistic outlook showed a better immune system response. Similarly, hostility or an abrupt negative, violent reaction to life events is going to have a negative effect on your immune health as well.
Attributional style is our perspective on whether we think we have control over life events or a lack of control over what happens to us. People who have an internal attributional style know that they can take action to make things better when life deals them a negative event. People who have an external attributional style see life as happening to them without any sense of being able to act and control their mood or environment.
Extroverts, who tend to have a larger social support system with multiple friends also have lower stress responses in the body, and better resistance to the common cold virus. Introverts lack the social support that extroverts have, which can help improve mood in times of distress by sharing anxieties and getting emotional support from friends.

Change your personality, change your health

Researchers looking at how personality may affect your immune system’s defense against cancer say “Individual differences have an important role in modulating the relationship between environmental events such as stressors and the immune system, and stable individual differences such as personality may have an important influence not only on immunity but on the progression of chronic health problems such as cancer. However, the relationships among personality, the immune system, and health ‘especially cancer’ are controversial.”
Is your personality stable over time or is it possible to be an introvert in your youth and an extrovert as you get older? Is the same possible for your tendency to be an optimist or a pessimist? If you can change some of these negative features of your personality, you may be able to improve your immune system.
Making a choice to have a positive mood and outlook on the events of your life is a habit that you can practice, which will then become your usual personality style. The same is true of working on making more friends and becoming more social than you are now.

How you handle loneliness affects your immune system

Other research has linked the personality trait of how you handle alone time with your immune system health. Do you feel lonely when you are alone or are you able to be your own best friend? The research found that genes that determine immune cell function and even blood cell function were different in lonely versus non-lonely people. Psychcentral.com says  “Certain genes that dampen bodily inflammation were less effective in lonely people, while pro-inflammatory genes were over-expressed.”

How you handle stress affects your immune system

We know that stress is a killer, but stress is partly about how you process a frustrating emotional moment and how it affects your body’s fight or flight response. Chronic stress is linked to numerous health problems like cardiovascular disease and stroke. However, we now know that stress can also reduce your immunity to other illness.

Related article: 5 Ways Stressful Relationships Affect Your Health

Additional research found that when people monitored and scored their positive emotions and were then given a nasal inhalation of the cold virus, those scoring in the bottom third for positive emotions were three times more likely to catch a cold that those in the top third. More positive emotions than negative ones can help your immune system to help you stay healthy.