Health Risks from Sitting Still

Physical Inactivity from Sitting Increases Health Risks

By Wendy Bumgardner

Walking Expert

Updated August 29, 2014. 

Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Board.

Sitting might be killing you, even if you get in a daily dose of moderate or intense exercise. Research is mounting that hours of sitting is its own health-risk factor.

Sitting Still Risks Found

Sitting Raises Risk of Type II Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease, and Early Death: A compendium of studies published in 2012 found that sitting for long periods raised the relative risk of type II diabetes and cardiovascular disease over 100%; the association was strongest for diabetes. The studies found this effect regardless of whether the sitter got the recommended amount of moderate and vigorous intensity exercise the rest of the day.

Sitting Slows Metabolism: Dr. Marc T. Hamilton says research shows that fat-burning is slowed by prolonged sitting, so you burn less fat when you finally get up and exercise. "Sitting time and non-exercise activity have been linked in epidemiological studies to rates of metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease," Dr. Hamilton concludes.

Sitting Increases Diabetes Risk in Women: A study found that the more sitting hours per day reported by women over age 40, the more their markers of insulin resistance and inflammation were increased. This points to an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. This was true whether or not they got moderate exercise each day.

Two-Minute Walk Breaks Improve Glucose Control and Insulin Response: Breaking up sitting time with two-minute walk breaks every 20 minutes improved the body's response to a meal by 30% in a 2012 study. The study simulated an office environment with middle-aged, overweight people. Walking at light or moderate intensity for two minutes after each 20 minutes of sitting helped maintain glucose control and insulin response. There may be good benefits in developing habits of getting up more frequently during the workday and at home while video gaming, watching television or using the computer.

Screen Time Is a Health Risk: Two hours a day of sitting in front of the TV or computer may double your risk of a heart attack or other cardiac event. Four hours a day of screen time increases your risk of death by any cause by 50%, according to findings of a study of more than 4,500 middle-aged men in Scotland.

Sit More-Die Younger: The American Cancer Society's Cancer II study of more than 100,000 healthy people tracked since 1992 found that women who sit for more than six hours during their leisure time each day had a 37% greater chance of death than women who sat for three hours or less. Men had an 18% greater chance of death. This finding was independent of whether the people got in a good dose of exercise each day. However, the good news is that those who also got exercise had a lower risk of death than those who didn't—just not enough to overcome the presumed effects of the sitting hours.

Sounding the Alarm About Sitting: An editorial in the British Journal of Sports Medicine concluded that "recent observational studies have suggested that prolonged bouts of sitting time and lack of whole-body muscular movement are strongly associated with obesity, abnormal glucose metabolism, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease risk and cancer, as well as total mortality independent of moderate to vigorous-intensity physical activity," say the authors.

Six Ways You Can Decrease Sitting Time

Decrease the amount of time you sit still throughout the day by using these tactics:

1. Wear a pedometer: Aim not only to increase your total daily steps gradually to 10,000 steps per day, but also to log 500 steps per hour to ensure you are not sitting still for long periods of time. If you carry your phone with you all day, you may only need a pedometer app.
2. Activity monitors and apps with sitting time alerts: Some activity monitors and apps can be set to alert you when you've been inactive too long.
3. Screen Alerts: Those with computer-based jobs may want to install a program, such as RSIGuard, that pops up to alert them to move around each hour. For those tied to the cubicle, this can mean standing and walking in place, desk stretches, pacing while on the phone, etc.
4. Treadmill Desk: Build or buy a treadmill desk so you can walk slowly while working on the computer, reading, gaming or watching videos.
5. Switch to Active Video Games: Rather than play sitting-based computer games, switch to a Wii or other gaming device that includes active games that have you standing and moving.
6. Walk on Your Breaks: Use your break and lunch times to get in a brisk walk.

This Kid Designed A Wearable Health Device For His Grandfather With Alzheimer's

By Ben Schiller

15-year-old Kenneth Shinozuka has created a sensor that sets off an alert when his grandfather gets out of bed.

People with Alzheimer’s have a tendency to wander. Left alone for a while, they may get up and walk around aimlessly, creating headaches for caregivers who have to keep up with them.

Kenneth Shinozuka saw how his grandfather, who has Alzheimer’s, would wander and how his aunt would struggle to cope. "About two years ago, my grandfather started wandering out of bed, which caused a lot of accidents," he says. "My aunt had to stay awake all night to keep an eye on him and, even then, often failed to catch him leaving the bed."

Shinozuka, who is 15 years old, came up with something to help: A thin pressure-sensor that attaches to the heel and alerts his aunt when his grandfather gets out of bed.

The flexible film contains a wireless circuit about the size of a quarter. Via Bluetooth, it connects with a smartphone app (which Shinozuka also designed), setting off a sound. See more in the video here:

"My aunt has been testing the device on my grandfather for eight months. So far, it's had a 100% success rate," Shinozuka says. "It's definitely helped her. She's felt less fatigued during the day, because she's not having to wake up every 30 minutes at night to check on my grandfather."

Shinozuka, who lives in the Bronx, is currently staying in Southern California with his grandfather. He plans to beta test the device at three residential care homes, and, after that, bring a product to market.

The project recently won first prize at the $50,000 Scientific American Science in Action Award, which is part of the Google Science Fair.

It's just a shame Shinozuka's grandfather can't appreciate his achievements, though his aunt is definitely happier.

What Does Depression Physically Feel Like?

The Huffington Post  | By Meredith Melnick & Alissa Scheller

For people with depression, it can be a truly difficult task to explain their condition. Because it is a disease that is more commonly associated with mental symptoms -- not outward, physical ones --those on the outside are often curious about what depression feels like. And it certainly feels like something: "In general, the worse the painful physical symptoms, the more severe the depression," researchers wrote inan overview of depression and physical symptoms in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. "Symptoms have been found to increase the duration of depressed mood."

In fact, patients often first complain of physical symptoms to a primary care physician, making depression more apt to be misdiagnosed.

That's what makes discussions about the physical experience of being depressed all the more important. In this regard, look no further than forums on Reddit, in which those who have struggled can commune over the truly all-encompassing physical reality of their illness.

We chose a few of their honest (and anonymous) descriptions and illustrated them in an attempt to gain some insight into the experience.

"When I'm on my lows, my girlfriend says it's like I'm on autopilot."

"Physically to me, it feels like someone with an army boot is pressing down on my chest."

"I always likened it to trying to run up a hill made of mud, every bit of progress you seem to make, you just slide right back down."

"I don't remember that last time I didn't feel like a tiny black hole."

"I feel really tight in the chest, like someone has grabbed my heart and holding on tightly."

"Getting off the couch to make a sandwich is akin to climbing Mount Everest, so fuck that."

"At the worst times I would describe it as, having my insides on fire while I slowly drown. It's overwhelming and exhausting."

"Most of you say you feel heavy.. Am I the only one who feels absolutely nothing at all? Physical and psychological. Just empty space."

"Each little action felt like climbing a dozen flights of stairs."

"Heavy. Claustrophobic. Like I'm moving through syrup, not air. It makes me feel much weaker."

What does depression feel like to you? Emailstrongertogether@huffingtonpost.com, or give us a call at (860) 348-3376, and you can record your story in your own words. Please be sure to include your name and phone number.

Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

15 Tips to Fall Asleep, Stay Asleep, and Wake Refreshed

By Ellen G. Goldman 

How many times have you collapsed into bed at night and found yourself too exhausted to sleep? Doesn't seem to make much sense -- you're feeling so tired, but your body does not seem to want to relax and allow you to fall into the sleep you so desperately need. Your mind is a whirlwind of all the things you wanted to get done that day and didn't accomplish. Tomorrow's "to-do list" keeps getting longer with each passing minute.

You are locked into a catch-22. If only you had more energy during the day, you would be more efficient and get more done. But if you cannot sleep at night, how in the world will you have the energy? There are so many reasons why you might be having difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep soundly, but rather than wrack your brain trying to figure it out, try some of these tips and see if the problem resolves itself.

1. Get the number of hours of sleep each night you need to function optimally. Although it varies, most individuals need between seven and eight hours of sleep every night. When sleep-deprived, you are less efficient and focused during the day, and may be leaving yourself open for health risks as well. Research has shown sleep deprivation can affect appetite, weight gain, diabetes risk, the strength of your immune system and even your chance of developing depression. If you have been trying to get by on less sleep, try backing up bedtime by 15 minutes each week, until you are getting the amount of sleep that leaves you feeling refreshed in the morning.

2. Create a calming atmosphere in your bedroom. If your room is cluttered with work, books that have not been read, papers to attend to, and dirty laundry, it will be a constant reminder of all you need to do. Take 15 minutes each day and begin clearing the clutter and making your room one you will look forward to relaxing in at the end of each day.

3. Make your bed in the morning. A straightened bed is so much more appealing to go to at night then one that is a jumble of sheets and blankets.

4. Reserve your bed for sleep and sex only. This will allow your mind to associate your bed with rest and relaxation only. Watch TV, use your computer, talk on the phone, and eat somewhere else.

5. Create a calming nighttime ritual. Turn off your computer, shut the TV, and do not answer your phone for an hour before you want to go to sleep. Choose activities you find calming. Take a warm bath, read a magazine or novel, have some decaffeinated tea or cookies and milk.

6. Keep your bedroom cool at night. For most individuals, 65 to 67 degrees Fahrenheit will allow the dip in core body temperature you need to induce sleep.

7. Avoid caffeine in the later afternoon and evening. Caffeinated coffee, tea, soft drinks, chocolate and sugar-laden snacks can all keep you too wired to fall asleep at bedtime.

8. Avoid late night workouts. Exercise is a great sleep aid, but a vigorous workout too late in the day may keep you up at night. However, a leisurely walk after dinner could be just the thing to calm your body and mind.

9. Avoid alcohol and spicy foods in the late evenings. Although a nightcap may help you fall asleep, you will probably experience fragmented sleep, and find yourself wide-awake within a few hours. Steer clear of spicy foods or anything you know causes you heartburn or gastric distress.

10. If an evening party or celebration finds you consuming wine or cocktails, drink plenty of water throughout the evening, and keep a water bottle by your bedside. This way, if you do wake up dehydrated, you will not need to get out of bed.

11. Spend a few minutes creating your "to do list" and preparing for the next day. This will allow your mind to know everything is ready and your morning will be calmer as well.

12. Keep a pad and pen by your bedside. If you wake in the middle of the night, and your mind is racing with thoughts of things you neglected to do, or need to get done, writing them down will release your mind from worrying about forgetting in the morning, allowing you to drift back to sleep.

13. If you have not fallen asleep after 20 minutes, get out of bed and find a relaxing spot to read. Do not use your technology or watch TV, do anything that requires brain work, or look at a clock. Any of these will stimulate you and increase your anxiety. As soon as you feel sleepy, return to bed.

14. Eliminate or reduce afternoon naps to a maximum of 30 minutes, regardless of how little you slept the night before. Napping too late in the day or for too long can set you up for another sleepless night and a vicious cycle.

15. Go to bed and get up at the same time every day no matter how much sleep you had the night before. The closer you can keep to a routine, the more your body will recognize and respond appropriately to your bedtime and wake up hours. Don't attempt to make up for lost sleep during the week by sleeping in all weekend.

Focus your energy on one tip for an entire week, adding one each week once the previous ones feel like habit. Notice whether or not you are falling asleep easier and sleeping more soundly. If you are still feeling exhausted and sleep deprived, talk to your doctor. Chronic insomnia, sleep apnea (a breathing disorder that causes sleep disturbance) or restless leg syndrome (leg pains that lead to frequent movement while asleep) are all treatable with professional help.

With some small changes in your habits and routines, you will notice big changes in your quality of sleep. As a result, rise and shine will take on a new meaning.

5 Reasons Potatoes Don't Deserve Their Bad Reputation

The Huffington Post  | By Sarah Klein

The potato isn't inherently bad, and, really, it shouldn't be treated as such.

Yes, it's often smothered in cheese, mixed up with mayo, doused in sour cream or deep-fried -- but when it isn't is when the potato truly shines. In its purest, most potato-y (and perhaps organic) form, it actually packs some very real health perks. Here are five very good reasons to love potatoes.

They're loaded with potassium.

One large spud baked with the skin on contains a whopping 1,600 milligrams of potassium, nearly half the recommended amount for an entire day and almost four times as much as a medium banana, famed for its potassium count. Not only is it an essential electrolyte key to hydration and athletic performance, potassium may also play a role in lowering blood pressure.

Potatoes are packed with fiber.

If you eat the skin, at least. That same large spud contains 7 grams of dietary fiber, about a quarter of what you should aim for in a day -- but without the skin that fiber count drops to just 1 gram. A diet rich in fiber will not only help you stay fuller for longer (thereby leading to less snacking), it's also been shown to reduce heart attack risk, lower cholesterol and help prevent diabetes.

They've got a hearty dose of vitamin C.

Also in the skin of your potato is a solid amount of vitamin C -- you'll nab nearly 29 milligrams of the stuff in a large tater, to be exact, nearly half of your goal for the day, and more than a third of the amount found in famed vitamin C deliverer, the orange. While getting enough C probably won't nip a cold in the bud, it plays an important role as an antioxidant and helps heal wounds.

Potatoes are a good source of manganese.

You might be less familiar with this nutrient, but that doesn't mean you don't need it. Manganese plays an essential role in processing protein, carbs and cholesterol and may also be involved in bone formation, according to WebMD. One large potato with the skin on contains 33 percent of your recommended daily amount of manganese.

And they're rich in vitamin B6.

This vitamin does much of its work "behind the scenes," American Dietetic Association spokesperson Dee Sandquist, MS, RD, CD, told Everyday Health, but it's working hard, in the cardiovascular, digestive, immune, muscular and nervous systems. It also produces essential brain hormones, the website reported. With 46 percent of your daily recommended B6, a potato (with the skin!) is a good place to start.

Why Biting Your Nails Is More Than Just A Bad Habit

By Amanda Chan

The question: I've always been told that I should stop biting my nails because it's "bad for me." But why is it bad?

The answer: Sure, biting and picking at your nails is kinda gross. It also is a sure-fire way to make your manicure that was supposed to last all week last only a day. And while it's a nervous habit that's certainly on the more innocuous side of the spectrum, it can still affect your health.

For starters, biting your nails can raise the risk of catching a cold or other illness because you're putting your unwashed hands in your mouth. It can also raise the risk of paronychia, or infection of the skin surrounding the nail, says Rochelle Torgerson, M.D., Ph.D., a dermatologist at the Mayo Clinic.

You can "end up with redness and swelling and pain and discomfort -- that's a sign of infection," Torgerson tells HuffPost. While most instances of paronychia are bacterial, they can also be fungal.

In addition, if you have a wart, biting your fingernails is a way to raise your risk of spreading warts to other parts of your hands. That's because warts are caused by one of the many kinds of human papillomavirus (HPV), a virus that spreads as an infection. "The more open skin you have, the more you're going to spread" the virus, she says.

Biting or picking your nails could also lead to temporary or permanent effects to your actual nail. Torgerson explains that the majority of the fingernail is produced in the area of the nail bed where there is a "white hill," also called the lunula. The fingernail is made there, as well as the area beneath the lunula that extends down underneath the skin. "So if you end up with a lot of inflammation or an infection of that skin ... where the fingernail is made, you can start making a funny fingernail," she explains. "You may end up with a fingernail that's bumpy or ridge-y."

Sometimes these effects are temporary. An infection that lasts a week or two might lead to a funny-looking nail for a short period of time, she says. But "you can also do permanent damage to the area, so you forever make a funny nail."

Aside from nail biting or picking, some people also have the nervous habit of using one hand to push down the cuticles of fingers on their other hand (most commonly the thumbs). People who do this "push back the cuticle so often and so aggressively that [they] end up making a fingernail that has horizontal ridges in it" -- called a habit-tic deformity, Torgerson explains. This is "repeat trauma to that area," which can also result in a funny-looking fingernail.

Nail biting can also have effects on your teeth: As Everyday Health points out, it can lead to teeth shifting out of place, as well as potential breaks in teeth or tooth enamel.

So what can you do to kick the habit? Torgerson notes that most people bite or pick at their fingernails as a way of relieving, or channeling, stress. Finding another way to release that stress -- that doesn't involve picking at or gnawing on a part of your body -- could be useful. Try twirling a ring instead, or playing with a hair tie on your wrist. "Basically, instead of telling someone [to] just stop, maybe you can come up with another way of relieving the stress that's driving you to do it that doesn't end up causing damage," she says. 

Workers In Windowless Offices Lose 46 Minutes Of Sleep A Night

TIME TO START PETITIONING FOR THAT CORNER OFFICE.

Nothing tops an office with a door on the universal workplace wish list, but a desk near a window that lets in natural light probably ranks a close second. Outside views are often badges of seniority or achievement in the work world--understandably, given that they're in short supply. But new evidence suggests employers should look at daylight exposure less as a mark of accomplishment and more as a matter of public health. 

So says an interdisciplinary team of architects and medical researchers that recently conducted a small case study comparing people exposed to natural light at their jobs with those who aren't. The window workers scored better on common self-report health and sleep surveys; they also slept 46 minutes more a night, on average, as measured by a sleep monitor. The findings will be reported in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

"We really wanted to look at some health issues related to lack of natural light in people's lives in general," Mohamed Boubekri, study leader and architectural scholar at the University of Illinois, told Co.Design. "The reason why we selected office buildings is because … that's where most of us spend a good chunk of our lives."

The study found that 27 workers who sat in windowless offices (or so far from a window as to get no natural light) scored worse than 22 workers who did get daylight on all eight dimensions of a health survey known as the Short Form 36. The windowless group fared significantly worse on two particular areas, including "vitality." Workers without daylight exposure also showed worse overall sleep quality on a well-established self-report sleep index.

To go beyond self-report measures, Boubekri and collaborators arranged for 21 of the study participants to wear a watch capable of tracking light exposure and activity patterns. These actigraphy measures confirmed that the windowless workers received less daylight, were less physically active during the work day, and slept an average of 46 minutes less on work nights. Windowless workers also fared worse on five other sleep measures, including sleep fragmentation (or waking up during the night), though these differences weren't statistically significant.

Interestingly, window workers slept more soundly than windowless workers on non-work nights--roughly 8.5 hours versus 6.5 hours--according to the actigraphy measures. And workers in the window group also received significantly more natural light than those in the windowless groupafter work and on free days. That finding caught the researchers by surprise and is tough to explain, but Boubekri speculates that workers who get daylight at the office may have more energy to go outside during their off time.

Overall, the findings suggest that the health benefits of exposure to daylight during the work day extend far beyond quitting time and even beyond the work week. In addition to more overall light exposure, these workers sleep better, seem more active, and have higher quality-of-life ratings than those who work in artificial light all day. The source of the sleep troubles, in particular, might be disruption of their circadian rhythms--the internal clocks that operate best when exposed to sufficient daylight.

"Some say we spend 90% of our lives indoors," says Boubekri, who's also written a book on the role of lighting in architectural design. "It's very, very significant."

The new findings extend what little research already exists on daylight and worker health, including a 1997 study that looked at lighting as a matter of "preventive medicine" and challenged designers to improve the situation. That work proposed naming the problem "ill-lighting syndrome" to draw more attention to it. Evidently the label never stuck, but more architects and design critics have sounded the alarm of late.

Writing earlier this year in the magazineArchitectural Lighting, Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg of the University of Idaho's Integrated Design Lab championed better daylighting not only for the purposes of better health and productivity, but real estate value. (Commercial buildings without windows are worth an estimated 20% less per square foot, though they cost more to build.) The energy savings are also significant, though energy-efficient bulbs have made this point less powerful in recent years.

Boubekri says designing well-lit buildings isn't nearly as much of a challenge as convincing designers it's important to do. "In an era where we're trying to limit consumption of fossil energy resources, we really should be thinking in a different way about these things," he says. "Not just using electric light to light our lives."

El hábito de dormir la siesta, más que un descanso

JUEVES, 24 DE JULIO DE 2014

La siesta es un gran recuperador de energía

En algunos países existen “cabinas de sueño” urbanas

El tiempo depende de las necesidades y posibilidades de cada persona

Un joven durmiendo la siesta en un prado / Getty

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MARÍA FONT OLIVER/ DONTKNOW

Dormir la siesta es una tradición completamente establecida y tolerada en las culturas española e iberoamericanas. Pero no sólo es cosa de nosotros, los latinos, o de zonas con un clima o filosofía de vida específicos. A lo largo de la historia, grandes personajes como Winston Churchill o Edison han disfrutado de este tiempo de descanso y son ejemplo de que hacer la siesta no supone ser un holgazán. Muchas voces se escandalizan por creer que es una pérdida de tiempo pero, en realidad, es un momento de reposo con probados beneficios. Tiene gran influencia en nuestro metabolismo y constituye un factor determinante para nuestra calidad de vida y nuestra salud. Y es que, cuando estamos cansados, nos vemos tentados a consumir ciertos alimentos –grasa y azúcares- que fomentan el sobrepeso y los trastornos asociados a él como es, por ejemplo, la diabetes.

Beneficios

Hacer un hueco durante la jornada laboral y desconectar la mente, aunque sea por unos minutos, ayuda a mantener una actitud positiva, incentiva la creatividad, puede implicar un mejor rendimiento y es bueno para nuestra salud.

·                Recuperar la energía: la siesta, a media jornada, recarga las pilas.

·                Mejora en el sistema cardiovascular: reduce el riesgo de infartos

·                Evita estados depresivos.

·                Tonifica el ánimo.

·                Favorece la creatividad.

·                Disminuye el estrés.

·                Fomenta una actitud atenta y productiva: aumenta la productividad en el trabajo y consigue que prestemos una mayor atención a lo que hacemos. La mente siente un efecto de “refresco” y está más despierta.

·                Cambios positivos en la vida sexual. 

Buscar el momento

Aunque queda claro que dormir la siesta es bueno para la salud y nuestro bienestar, social y laboralmente no está siempre bien visto. El hecho de reconocer que se necesitan unos minutos para reponer fuerzas y llegar a tope al fin de la jornada no es algo que todo el mundo se atreva a hacer. Sin embargo, cada vez se impone más como posibilidad y va adquiriendo naturalidad como hábito cotidiano. El problema es cómo hacerlo. En el entorno  laboral y dentro del horario establecido hay que agudizar el ingenio para buscar la manera más cómoda de dormir una siesta. De hecho, conscientes de que esta práctica ya es algo común para muchas personas, en determinadas zonas de algunas ciudades del mundo se han instalado “cabinas de sueño” para alquilar por minutos y descansar sin tener que ir a casa. Pero hay otras formas:

·                Encima de la mesa de trabajo: con discreción, durante la hora de comida, se puede acomodar la cabeza encima del escritorio -con un jersey, libros apilados o una pequeña almohada- para reposar unos minutos.

·                En el coche: si no se puede hacer en la mesa, utilizar el coche para dormir una pequeña siesta colocando el asiento en una posición cómoda.

·                En el café: establecimientos como Starbucks han apostado por ponérselo fácil a aquellos amantes de la siesta y en sus cafés ofrecen la posibilidad de sentarse en cómodos sofás o sillones para “dar una cabezadita” después de comer. Además, algunos especialistas recomiendan dormirse antes de que haga efecto la cafeína porque al despertar uno se siente especialmente despejado.

·                Al aire libre: en primavera, verano y si el clima es agradable, hacer uso de las zonas verdes para recostarse un rato es una buena opción.

¿Cuánto tiempo?

Tener la posibilidad de dormir la siesta no está al alance de todos y muchos desearían poder practicarla a diario

Lo estudios especializados en materia de sueño señalan, a la hora de determinar las horas y/o minutos que son recomendables para dedicar a la siesta, la importancia de conocer las necesidades de cada persona. Para algunos una hora o más es excesivo y para otros 30 minutos es igual que nada. Somos muy distintos en cuanto a nuestra forma de ser, nuestro ritmo de vida, nuestra salud…. Todo ello influye pero, de cualquier manera, los especialistas establecen tres tipos de siesta según el tiempo de sueño.

- Entre 5 y 20 minutos: escasa, apenas para cerrar los ojos en el peor de los casos, pero suficiente para vigorizar la mente, mejorando la atención y la capacidad motora. Especialmente indicada para los que, lógicamente, tienen menos tiempo a su disposición.

-Entre 30 y 60 minutos: En función del descanso de mitad de jornada para comer, algunas personas necesitan más de media hora para sentir los beneficios de una siesta reparadora.

- Entre 60 y 90 minutos: considerada como la siesta clásica, es de larga duración e incluye la fase REM del sueño, relajando cuerpo y mente plenamente. Sin  embargo, no a todo el mundo le sienta bien estar tanto tiempo durmiendo y se levantan “atontados” costándoles mucho “ponerse en marcha” de nuevo.

Tener la posibilidad de dormir la siesta no está al alance de todos y muchos desearían poder practicarla a diario. Es una costumbre que aporta beneficios,  echando por tierra a los que la consideran un hábito de vagos. Buscar el momento y el lugar adecuados puede suponer un aumento en la calidad de vida y en el rendimiento laboral.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? 

¿En qué momento la tristeza se torna peligrosa?

16 de julio de 2014 • 12:12 • actualizado a las 13:07

El "miedo a la tristeza es una enfermedad occidental", dice el escritor australiano Hugh Mackay. No deberíamos huir desesperadamente sino aprender de ella. Pero a su vez, la depresión es un riesgo, ¿cuándo preocuparnos?

La vida tiene sus subidas y bajadas y es normal estar triste, así como sentir dolor, ansiedad o estrés en los momentos difíciles. Es una parte normal de la existencia con la que no deberíamos luchar, sino aprender a encajarla, asimilarla y a utilizarla para conocernos a nosotros mismos, dicen especialistas.

Muchos eventos pueden hacernos sentir malestar o intensa tristeza, como problemas económicos, en el trabajo, problemas de pareja, un divorcio, una enfermedad o la pérdida de un ser querido. También podemos estar bajos de ánimo por factores físicos como desarreglos hormonales, como los cambios durante la pubertad, el embarazo o la menopausia. Sin embargo, a veces hay quien se siente mal sin motivo aparente, alerta el Servicio Nacional de Salud de Reino Unido NHS, o tristeza que se vuelve peligrosa y entraña riesgo de depresión.

¿Cuándo preocuparse y buscar ayuda?

Según el NHS episodios en los que se está "bajo de humor", decaido y pesaroso entran dentro de lo sano y normal, e incluyen síntomas como tristeza, ansiedad, preocupación, cansancio, baja autoestima, frustración o rabia. Sin embargo, este humor suele mejorar pasado un corto tiempo, sea por sí solo o tras resolver algún problema, hacer algunos cambios en la vida, mejorar la dieta, dormir mejor, hacer algo de ejercicio, etc.

Asimilar el malestar

La vida no es solo placer y felicidad plena y entender esta realidad es clave en el proceso de aprendizaje de todos los humanos. De hecho, la escasa tolerancia a la frustración es un rasgo característico de los niños que, si no se corrige, los transforma en adultos malcriados.

Esta es una característica común de la llamada Generación Y o Generación del Milenio, según el especialista Paul Harvey, profesor en la Universidad de New Hampshire. Citado por el site estadounidense The Huffington Post, Harvey considera que la "generación del milenio" tiene "expectativas irreales y una fuerte resistencia" a aceptar lo negativo. “La idea de que todo lo que hacemos es buscar la felicidad me parece realmente peligrosa y ha conducido a la sociedad contemporánea occidental a una enfermedad, que es el miedo a la tristeza”, escribe a su vez el australiano Hugh Mackay en su libro The Good Life.

“Deberíamos buscar el todo, y la tristeza es parte de ese todo, como lo son las decepciones, las frustraciones y los fracasos; todo lo que nos hace ser quienes somos. Felicidad, victorias y conquistas son cosas buenas que nos pasan en la vida, pero no nos enseñan mucho", afirma.

De hecho la tristeza no siempre es un pesar autodestructivo, sino que puede transformarse en nostalgia, un agridulce sentimiento mucho más constructivo, tantas veces aprovechado por escritores o músicos. Tangueros, fadistas, flamencos o sambistas lo saben muy bien: la mirada hacia atrás de la nostalgia es una poderosa fuente de inspiración.

Cuándo preocuparse La línea entre lo que podemos considerar normal a lo que podemos considerar preocupante, con riesgo de depresión, no es clara. Cuando comienza la preocupación por nosotros mismos o, más fácilmente detectable, por algún ser querido, es el momento de pedir ayuda.

La vida no es solo placer y felicidad plena y entender esta realidad es clave en el proceso de aprendizaje de todos los humanos.

En general la clave está en si los síntomas se mantienen en el tiempo y se recrudecen hasta el punto de entorpecer o dificultar el transcurso de la vida diaria y el normal funcionamiento de la persona. Esta puede llegar a evitar interacciones sociales y aislarse, no poder trabajar, cuidar de los suyos, levantarse de la cama o hasta pensar en el suicidio, en casos severos.

En caso de creer que existe riesgo de depresión hay que buscar consejo médico. Terapia o incluso remedios pueden ser necesarios.

Los síntomas pueden ser parecidos a los de la simple tristeza o cambios de humor, pero más profundos, intensos, mantenidos en el tiempo y abarcando también una amplia gama de problemas físicos. entre ellos: 

- Tristeza continuada y/o llanto frecuente
- Sentimiento de desesperanza.
- Baja autoestima y sentimientos de culpa, del tipo "no sirvo para nada", "soy una mala madre", etc.
- Irritibilidad, amargura, mal humor y/o sentimientos de intolerancia hacia los otros.
- Incapacidad general de disfrute.
- Falta de motivación y desinterés hacia actividades o cosas que antes sí interesaban.
- Confusión, problemas en la toma de decisiones y de concentración.
- Ansiedad y preocupación- Pensamientos suicidas 
- Surgimiento de síntomas físicos como: dolores de espalda y de cabeza, problemas estomacales, alteraciones mestruales, del apetito, del interés, potencia o apetencia sexual, problemas para dormir, etc.