There has been a great deal of interest in the potential for dark chocolate to help lower blood pressure. Now it seems as if eating dark chocolate can also help to stimulate your brain. Northern Arizona University reported on May 7, 2015, eating dark chocolate may help you beat the midday slump.
Larry Stevens, who is a professor of psychological sciences at Northern Arizona University, says he eats a piece of high cacao content chocolate daily because he likes the taste of unsweetened dark chocolate. He eats some dark chocolate every afternoon also because research has shown that it lowers blood pressure and it improves attention. This becomes of great importance when you hit that midday slump.
Stevens says chocolate is a stimulant which activates the brain in a really good way. Chocolate can help to increase brain characteristics of attention while also significantly affecting blood pressure levels. The most interesting results in this study were seen with one of the control conditions wherein a 60 percent cacao chocolate included L-theanine. L-theanine is an amino acid which is found in green tea that behaves like a relaxant. This combination of chocolate with L-theanine.has not yet been introduced to the market.
Stevens said L-theanine is a really interesting product which decreases blood pressure and produces what are called alpha waves in the brain that are very calm and peaceful. The researchers observed participants who ate the high cacao content chocolate with L-theanine experienced an immediate decrease in blood pressure. The potential seen is for a heart healthy chocolate confection which contains a high level of cacao with L-theanine which decreases blood pressure and helps you pay attention.
This study was sponsored by the Hershey Company and has been published in the journal NeuroRegulation. This is the first study to investigate the acute effects of chocolate on attentional characteristics of the brain via observing acute EEG effects of consuming chocolate. The potential for an attention enhancing effect from consuming dark chocolate is remarkable. Eating some delicious dark chocolate daily may really help you to maintain a low blood pressure and an alert and attentive mind.
Kids sleep better when they have a bedtime routine
Sleep is essential for the physical and emotional well being of children. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine reported on May 7, 2015, a new study shows that when they have a nightly bedtime routine kids sleep better. A regular bedtime routine has been observed to be associated with better sleep in young kids up to 6 years old.
The positive impact on sleep in kids from a regular bedtime routine increases with the consistency of the nightly routine. The researchers observed that kids who had a consistent bedtime routine had better sleep outcomes, which included earlier bedtimes, a shorter amount of time spent in bed prior to falling asleep, decreased night wakings, and increased duration of sleep.
It was found that kids who had a bedtime routine every night slept for an average of greater than an hour longer per night than kids who never had a bedtime routine. The institution of a regular bedtime routine was also associated with less sleep problems and daytime behavior problems according to mothers.
This study has been published in the journal Sleep. It has been recommended that as part of healthy sleep habits a bedtime routine should be established. When kids have a regular nightly bedtime routine they generally have improved sleep. Furthermore, the more consistently a bedtime routine is instituted and the younger it is started the better the outcomes are. It seems like a good idea to help your kids establish a nightly bedtime routine to help them sleep well naturally.
