Brief online mindfulness interventions requiring only two hours of training and practice per week are effective at reducing fatigue and negative work-related rumination and at improving sleep quality.

These are the findings of Dawn Querstret and Professor Mark Cropley from Surrey University in partnership with the Mental Health Foundation. The research is being presented at the British Psychological Society’s Division of Health Psychology annual conference in York.

Porcelain crowns are used for both cosmetic and restorative results for discolored, chipped or broken teeth. Yet, there are two factors to consider: First, porcelain crowns are more costly than other treatments and second, a crown requires the removal of a significant amount of tooth structure.

On the other hand, crowns are stronger than the other cosmetic choices and can last for many years with good dental health habits. Porcelain crowns are reserved for permanent teeth that are fully erupted with the gum tissue at its adult position.

Engineers have created a shape-changing “soft” robot that can tread over a variety of adverse environmental conditions including snow, puddles of water, flames, and the crushing force of being run over by an automobile.

The engineers from Cornell and Harvard Universities will detail the robot in an upcoming edition of the journal Soft Robotics.

There are a group of gum diseases that affects the periodontium (periodontium is made of the alveolar bone, the gums, the periodontal ligament and the cementum) at different levels.

The first stage is gingivitis: Gingivitis is inflammation of the gums on the surface and does not touch the alveolar bone. Gingivitis can be treated by a dentist along with having proper at home dental care habits.   However when inflammation and infection reaches the perodontium in a deeper manner, the disease is called perodontitis.

Perodontitis has several stages which depend on how much tissue and alveolar bone is destroyed.   The dentist is about to determine at what stage the periodontitis is by measuring the perodontal pockets (The space between a tooth and the gum around it) at six sites around each tooth. By doing this the dentist can get an idea of the destruction of the bone and the severity of the periodontitis

With the longstanding debate over whether violent movies cause real world violence as a backstop, a study published in PLOS One found that each person’s reaction to violent images depends on that individual’s brain circuitry, and on how aggressive they were to begin with.

The study, which was led by researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the NIH Intramural Program, featured brain scans which revealed that both watching and not watching violent images caused different brain activity in people with different aggression levels. The findings may have implications for intervention programs that seek to reduce aggressive behavior starting in childhood.

In a prior posted dated we talked about what periodontitis is and how it affects your dental health.  However you can avoid getting periodontitis simple by having good at home dental care habits, and seeing your dentist at least twice a year or as often as advised by your dentist.  By having dental insurance it help keep your dental care cost low.

One main factor as to why people do not see a dentist regularly was cost factors. However with insurance most dental plans benefits provide free preventive care. Thus helping you maintain your regular dental visits and  your dental health care.

Vulnerable populations in ethnically diverse Toronto reported more discrimination by health care workers based on their housing status, mental health or substance abuse issues than race, a new study has found.

Forty-two per cent of people surveyed reported at least one form of perceived discrimination by health care workers, lead author Dr. Vicky Stergiopoulos wrote in a paper published today in the journal BMC Health Services Research.

Periodontitis is an inflammatory disease that affects the periodontium, which is the group of all the tissues that surround and support your teeth. Among these tissues, the periodontium is made of the alveolar bone, the gums, the periodontal ligament and the cementum.  Periodontitis is a progressive loss of alveolar bone around teeth.

If periodontitis is not treated, teeth begin to move, shift and eventually fall out.  This disease is mainly caused by harmful bacteria and protozoa, and an aggressive response of the immune system against these microorganisms. The dentist makes the diagnosis by detecting the presence of periodontal pockets (spaces created between the gums and the teeth) and the analysis of X-rays to evaluate bone loss.

Young people have a more robust immune response to the loss of a loved one, according to new research from the University of Birmingham, providing insight into how different generations cope with loss.

The study, published in the journal Immunity and Ageing, shows how the balance of our stress hormones during grief changes as we age — meaning elderly people are more likely to have reduced immune function and, as a result, suffer from infections.

It is the first research to compare different generations and display the relationship between stress hormones and immune function across different stages in our life.

Vacations are fun, there nothing like getting away and forgetting your worries if only for a limited time. However one thing you should not forget about is your dental hygiene.  Often times peoples dental routines are broken while on a trip. This is mostly do to forgetting your dental care products.  If you travel often or if you are going a trip make sure to put together a oral hygiene kit. Put all your dental care products, like travel toothbrush and paste, dental floss and even a pact of sugar free gum in a see though zip lock bag. By keeping these dental care products together you will have everything ready and waiting to go.

A new study has revealed that positive outlook and social support can help diabetic patients to deal with emotional, psychological and social difficulties of the disease, which could ultimately improve their health outcomes. The Second Diabetes Attitudes, Wishes and Needs (DAWN2) study would be the largest analysis yet undertaken of personal accounts of people living with diabetes. The original DAWN study in 2001 found that 41 percent of adults with diabetes have poor psychosocial well-being. In the follow-up study, almost half, 46 percent, of people with diabetes had negative emotional, psychological and social experiences related to their illness.

Making sure you take proper care of your child’s baby teeth is very important, as these teeth help reserve the space for their adult teeth.  Here are is some additional facts about your child’s baby teeth.

* If your child baby tooth decays or is removed too soon, the space necessary for their adult teeth is loss and can only be regained though orthodontic treatment.

* Decaying and infected baby teeth can cause their permanent adult teeth to develop improperly, resulting in stains, pits and weaker teeth.

* Your child baby teeth also serves to helps speech development and aid in chewing food properly.

* Generally children begin losing their baby teeth around ages five or six and continue to lose baby teeth until the age of twelve and thirteen. With the exception of third molars (wisdom teeth) which begin to appear around age seventeen to twenty-one.

The main purpose of the study, which involved 19 adult participants, was to evaluate the safety, feasibility and effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) for migraine sufferers.

There is evidence that MBSR can help alleviate chronic pain but not much evidence on its effect on migraines. Study showed MBSR safe and may reduce frequency and severity of migraines

MBSR is a standardized 8-week program that teaches people to become more mindful through learning mindfulness meditation, body awareness and yoga. It was developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn, a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, as a way to help people cope with stress, anxiety, pain and illness. The researchers found that the patients who completed the MBSR program tended to have 1.4 fewer headaches per month that were less severe.

Health experts warn that excessive alcohol consumption causes mouth cancer and dental disease. According to the experts, in order to tackle this as fast as possible, screening and treatment for alcohol abuse is critical.  According to the report, individuals do not visit their general practitioner unless they are ill, whereas the majority of people visit their dentist for a routine check-up, as a result dentists have the chance to identify alcohol abuse.

The bacteria released with chronic oral infections can spread and contribute to disease in other parts of the body. Gum disease is linked to several other health conditions in seniors, including coronary heart disease and stroke. Having periodontal disease makes it more difficult for people with diabetes to manage their blood sugar levels. It can also pose a threat to people with respiratory diseases or osteoporosis.

Apples may be good for the Doctor but not for your teeth.  According to studies done eating apples can be up to four time more damaging to your teeth then carbonated drinks such as soda.   Doctors are right in saying that eating apples is good, however what is bad for your teeth is the way you eat apples.  The high acidity level in apples can damage your teeth if you eat them slowly. Where as drinks most often associated with dietary erosion, particularly cola, showed no increased risk.