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For the men, here's a simple test to see how aggressive you might be. Hormones act in many diverse and mysterious ways, beginning in the womb..
The Secret to Man's Aggression: in His Finger?
Fri Mar 4, 2005 - By Alison McCook
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - How long a man's second finger is relative to his fourth finger appears to predict whether he is prone to be physically aggressive toward others, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Alberta in Canada.
But it's not finger length that causes aggression; the important factor is the male hormone testosterone. Fetuses are exposed to various levels of this hormone in the womb, and research shows that men who were exposed to higher levels tend to have shorter second fingers, relative to their fourth fingers. "More testosterone, relatively longer ring finger."
"More than anything, I think the findings reinforce and underline that a large part of our personalities and our traits are determined while we're still in the womb," says researcher Peter Hurd of the University of Alberta, in a news release.
This is not the first study to link the ratio between a man's second and fourth fingers to his personality. Previous reports have found that men with smaller ratios - meaning, their second finger is much smaller than their fourth - tend to do better in sports, and are perceived as more dominant and masculine by women.
The researchers found that shorter second-to-fourth finger ratios predicted proneness to physical aggression, but not other types of aggression, and only in men, not in women. And in general, men had smaller finger ratios than women.
SOURCE: Biological Psychology, March 2005.
I've many times found that "sugar makes me hungry" a few hours after eating it. Well it turns out it's no joke. And here's proof.
New Theory on Why Low-Carb Diets Work
By E.J. Mundell, Monday March 14th
By E.J. Mundell, Monday March 14th
(HealthDay News) -- A new study involving obese individuals suggests the reason the Atkins, Zone and other low-carb regimens help people lose weight is that they simply eat less food.
"Take the carbohydrates away, and I expected the participants would just eat more of the other stuff," said researcher Dr. Guenther Boden. "But they didn't. In fact, it turned out they ate 1,000 calories less every day," he said. The findings were published in the March 15 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
To help determine the correct answer, his team sequestered 10 obese patients in a controlled, clinical environment where diets were strictly monitored for three weeks.
For the first week, participants ate their usual mixed diet. But during the last two weeks the researchers restricted their intake of carbohydrates from 300 grams per day to just 20 grams a day. At the same time, a tempting array of fatty, sugary and other foods was readily available to all. "We told them 'Look, you can eat as much of anything else as you want, whenever you want.' "
The result: By the end of the two-week low-carb regimen, patients lost an average of 3.6 pounds and reduced their daily caloric intake by nearly 1,000 calories -- from an average of 3,111 calories before they began the diet, to just 2,164 calories while on the low-carb regimen.
"In other words, they self-corrected their previously excessive appetites down to normal," Boden said.
For all women who take that baby aspirin every day, here is the reason why it's beneficial. But, like everything else, it's not without some risk. Read this next story to learn more.
Study: Aspirin Prevents Strokes in Women
By MARILYNN MARCHIONE, AP Medical Writer
ORLANDO, Fla. - Middle-age women can cut their risk of strokes but not heart attacks by regularly taking low doses of aspirin, and the pills help prevent both problems in women 65 and older, a major study found.
The results are opposite what is known about aspirin in men, where its benefit for stroke is limited and its ability to prevent heart problems is legendary. Since women proportionately suffer more strokes and men more heart attacks, this is generally good news, specialists said.
The new information comes from the Women's Health Study, the first rigorous, scientific test of whether long-term use of aspirin or vitamin E made a difference in cardiovascular risk in females. Previous research has been almost exclusively in males.
Findings were reported Monday at an American College of Cardiology meeting and also were being published online by the New England Journal of Medicine.
The study has "major public health implications," said Dr. Elizabeth Nabel, director of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
In the study, 40,000 female health professionals 45 and older were randomly assigned to take either fake pills or 100 milligrams of aspirin every other day.
After 10 years, aspirin users had a 17 percent lower risk of stroke, and a 24 percent lower risk of strokes caused by blood clots, owing, researchers believe, to aspirin's well-known anti-clotting properties.
Women 65 and older got even more benefit: They were 30 percent less likely to have a stroke caused by a blood clot and 34 percent less likely to suffer a heart attack.
Aspirin's benefits didn't vary among women who did or did not use hormones after menopause.
But the benefits did come with a cost. Aspirin can cause internal bleeding.
The study "demonstrates the importance of studying medical therapies among women as well as men," Buring said. "We finally have the evidence base needed for women to make rational decisions about the use of aspirin in preventing cardiovascular disease."
The above is not meant to be medical advice or a substitute for professional evaluation or treatment. Seek the advice of your physician or healthcare provider before any modification in the treatment of any medical condition. Also, please read the attached Disclaimer, Etc.
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