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Tag Archives: winter

Even if it’s gray outside, wear your sunglasses.

23 Thursday Jan 2020

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cataracts, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, eye damage, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, radiation, sunglasses, sunshine, UV raiation, UV rays, winter

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Because UV rays go right through clouds, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology. And with snow and ice, 80% of those UV rays can be reflected back up at you. By comparison, grass only reflects 10% of UV rays. And all that ultraviolet light can damage your retinas and lead to issues like cataracts. So wear sunglasses, even in winter, and make sure they block 99% of UV radiation.

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We yawn more in winter…

13 Monday Jan 2020

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brain, cold, cold air, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, cool air, Frontiers in Evolutionary Neuroscience, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, winter, winter air, yawn, yawning

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Not because we’re more exhausted – it’s because the air is cooler. According to the journal Frontiers in Evolutionary Neuroscience, we yawn to keep our brain at the top of its game. Because when we inhale deeply, we’re replacing the hot, stagnant air in our lungs with the cool, fresh air around us. And the brain operates best when it’s cool – so yawning draws in cool air, and makes us more alert and quicker thinkers. So we yawn more in winter than summer because the air is cooler.

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Good news for those who wait for the bus in the winter!

30 Monday Dec 2019

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brown fat, burn calories, burn fat, bus, bus stop, cold weather, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, cooling blanket, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, irisin, lose weight, waiting for the bus, weight loss, winter, winter weather

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If you had to wait outside for 15 minutes in winter weather for the bus today, I have good news. According to a study in the journal Cell Metabolism, those 15 minutes of shivering in the cold have a similar effect on the body as an HOUR of moderate exercise. In the study, researchers put subjects under cooling blankets – and saw that they had a rise in the hormone irisin. That hormone turns our main type of body fat – white fat, which is bad – into BROWN fat, which actually burns calories to warm us up. Cold weather – and the study’s cooling blankets – work, because when we’re cold, our muscles contract in a way that’s similar to what happens when we exercise. So the next time you’re literally cooling your heels outside this winter, just think, “My brown fat is switching on, and burning calories like crazy!”

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Low-fat or full-fat?

30 Friday Nov 2018

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chocolate, chocolate ice cream, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, full-fat, ice cream, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, low-fat, satisfaction, satisfied, satisfy, satisfying, vanilla, vanilla ice cream, winter, wintertime

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Just because it’s wintertime that doesn’t mean we can’t have ice cream. When you have a craving, which is better – low-fat or full-fat? The answer is full-fat! A Cornell study found when people served themselves snacks labeled “low-fat,” they ate up to 50% more than when they thought they were eating the full-fat version. That’s because people often assume any reduced-fat item is much healthier – so, it’s okay to eat a bigger portion. But since high-fat ice cream has better flavor and texture, we’re satisfied with less.

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There’s a reason your face is breaking out.

14 Wednesday Feb 2018

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acne, bacteria, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, dry weather, germs, hot showers, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, moisture, pimples, scarf, Spring, summer, winter, zits

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It’s Winter. Dermatologist Dr. Ellen Marmur says acne gets worse in Winter – and it’s down to the dry weather. She says cold outside air has significantly less moisture than the warm or hot air from Spring and Summer. Combine that with windy conditions, and your skin is stripped of natural fats and oils. Those oils usually act as a barrier, keeping bacteria out – and holding moisture in. So without them, it’s a lot easier for dirt, pollution and bacteria to access our pores. The next thing you know: Hello, zits! Another problem in winter are the hot showers we love. They also strip skin of its natural moisture. Add to all of that a dirty scarf rubbing against your chin – and it’s a recipe for skin flare-ups. So wash your scarf once a week, try to take lukewarm showers, and moisturize your skin more in winter than any other season to avoid breakouts.

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Winter and stinky feet go hand in hand…

16 Tuesday Jan 2018

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chees, cold, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, cotton socks, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, isovaleric acid, smelly cheese, smelly feet, stinky, stinky cheese, stinky feet, sweat, winter, wintertime, wool socks

stinky-feet-winter-wp

Because stuffing your feet into closed-toed shoes increases sweating – since your feet can’t breathe. And each foot has about 125-thousand sweat glands. Now, I’m not suggesting you wear flip-flops in winter. Just switch from cotton socks to wool socks. Wool absorbs twice as much moisture as cotton and wicks it away from your feet. Then, when you get home, soak your feet in a warm foot bath with a couple drops of orange essential oil. The oil has antimicrobial properties that prevent the growth of isovaleric acid – which is what causes your feet to smell like cheese.

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Do you have greasy winter hair?

29 Wednesday Nov 2017

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Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, dry scalp, greasy, greasy hair, greasy scalp, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, moisturizing shampoo, oily scalp, winter

greasy-hair-wp

Weirdly, our hair gets greasier in the winter. It sounds counterintuitive, since you’re sweating less – but here’s how it works: Outside winter air is drier, and our scalp secretes more oil to compensate. So don’t make your scalp any drier by using a clarifying shampoo. Instead, you may want to try a moisturizing shampoo.

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If the weather outside is frightful, here are a few tips to help you warm up fast:

27 Monday Nov 2017

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baking party, body heat, body temperature, cold outside, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, get warm, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, room temperature, temperature, thermostat, warm clothes, warm-up, winter, winter time

cold-thermostat-wp

First: Warm yourself up instead of trying to warm up your environment. Because it’s easier to change your body temperature than the room temperature. So instead of turning up the heat, add another layer of clothing.
Next: Invite a bunch of friends over for a cookie baking party. The oven will warm up the house – as will the body heat from having people over.
One final way to warm up – move your bed away from the wall. If your bed butts up against an exterior wall, the cold will seep through. So, move it away from the wall – and raise the whole thing higher… Like on bricks. Because the cold can be conducted up through the floor, too.

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Our lips are more likely to get chapped in cold, dry, windy weather…

09 Thursday Nov 2017

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argan oil, beeswax, camphor, chapped lips, coconut oil, cold weather, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, Dr. Leslie Baumann, dry lips, fall, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, menthol, occlusives, shea butter, winter

lip-care-winter-wp

But don’t let your lip balm make things worse!
Dermatologist Dr. Leslie Baumann says balms that contain camphor and menthol – that make lips feel tingly – will suck moisture from your already dry lips and it’ll evaporate away.

So, they actually make our lips drier! Those ingredients only work on lips if they’re counterbalanced by moisturizing ingredients called “occlusives.” Those include beeswax, shea butter, and things like coconut or argan oils – which block moisture loss.

So, check the ingredients on your lip balm and make sure – if it includes camphor or menthol, it also has something like beeswax or shea butter.

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Massage this part of your body if you’re feeling achy…

06 Monday Nov 2017

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aches, achy, Acupressure, Connie Sellecca, conniesellecca, endorphins, fall, feel-good endorphins, intelligence for your life, intelligenceforyourlife, massage, massage your ears, reduce pain, rub, winter

rub-ears-aches-11.6.2017-wp

If you feel achy when the days get shorter, and the temperatures start to drop, you’ve got a lot of company. The reason? Because our body’s production of mood-boosting and painkilling endorphins drops as we head from Fall into Winter – when our pituitary kind of goes into hibernation.

But studies show acupressure can boost endorphin production. The trick: Firmly massage the outside edge of your ears from the tops, to the lobes, for one minute… And it’ll soothe your aches and pains for at least an hour.

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