More Than a Third of US Adults Not Getting Enough Sleep

Two reports released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(...) reveal the sleep habits of adults in the United States, including their increasing tendency to get fewer than seven hours a night, hurting their ability to concentrate and raising the risk of driving.

Residents of Hawaii have particular trouble sleeping well, according to the responses to one survey, and the CDC said more research on the matter is needed.

In one report, based on a survey of nearly 75,000 people in 2009, CDC researchers examined four unhealthy sleep behaviors: inadequate sleep, snoring, nodding off during the day and nodding off while driving.

Thirty-five percent reported getting fewer than seven hours of sleep on an average night, 48 percent reported snoring, 38 percent reported unintentionally falling asleep during the day sometime in the previous month, and nearly 5 percent said they'd nodded off while driving in the previous month.

The number of U.S. adults reporting that they get fewer than seven hours of sleep rose from 1985 to 2004, and that increase could be attributed to trends such as the increased use of technology and more people working night shifts, the CDC said.

Among people ages 25 to 54, nearly 40 percent reported getting fewer than seven hours of sleep. People over 65 were the least likely to say they got fewer than seven hours of sleep about 25 percent of them reported this.

About 46 percent of those currently unable to find work said they got fewer than seven hours of sleep, compared with 37 percent of employed people. And, of the 12 states in which adults were surveyed, Minnesota had the lowest rate (27 percent) of residents who got fewer than seven hours of sleep, while 45 percent of Hawaiians said the same.

In fact, Hawaiians had the highest prevalence of all of the unhealthy sleep behaviors.

The National Sleep Foundation suggests seven to nine hours of sleep per night for adults. Both shorter and longer durations can be worse for your health, the CDC said.

More than 56 percent of men reported snoring, while 40 percent of women did.

People ages 18 to 24 and those over 65 were the most likely to unintentionally fall asleep during the day about 44 percent of these groups reported nodding off.

And people ages 25 to 34 were the most likely to say they'd fallen asleep while driving sometime during the last month(...)

MyHealthNewsDaily Staff   |   March 03, 2011

http://www.livescience.com/35524-sleep-habits-us-adults-duration-concentration.html

A Complete Guide to Hand Washing

http://youtu.be/mWe51EKbewk

Gross! Just 5 Percent of Bathroom Users Wash Hands Correctly

After using the bathroom, 95 percent of people fail to wash their hands long enough to kill harmful bacteria, a new study finds.

Researchers also found that only two in three people use soap, while one in 10 skips the sink altogether, and men get much lower marks for hand hygiene than women.

A team from Michigan State University trained a dozen students to inconspicuously observe and collect data on hand-washing behaviour in restrooms in bars, restaurants and other public places in a college town. In all, 3,749 people were observed.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that you wash your hands vigorously using soap and water for 15 to 20 seconds, or the time it takes to sing or hum "Happy Birthday" twice. But on average, bathroom users only washed their hands for 6 seconds, and just 5 percent washed their hands for 15 seconds or longer, the researchers found.

Among men, only half used soap and 15 percent didn't wash their hands at all, compared with 78 percent of women who used soap and 7 percent of women who didn't wash their hands.

"These findings were surprising to us because past research suggested that proper hand washing is occurring at a much higher rate," study researcher Carl Borchgrevink, a Michigan State associate professor of hospitality business, said in a statement.

The researchers additionally found that people were less likely to wash their hands when faced with a dirty sink, whereas a clean sink increased the length of time spent hand washing. People also were more likely to wash their hands earlier in the day and if there was a sign encouraging them to do so. The study suggests such signage could be particularly helpful in men's bathrooms.

The CDC says hand washing is one of the most effective ways to cut the spread of infectious diseases. Dirty hands are estimated to contribute to 50 percent of all foodborne illness outbreaks.

The research appears in the Journal of Environmental Health.

http://www.livescience.com/37326-bathroom-hand-washing-habits.html

Discover the astounding healing properties of clove oil

(NaturalNews)You may be familiar with clove oil used by the dentist. Some of us have used clove oil to self medicate a toothache. Clove oil is an externally applied local antiseptic that numbs on contact. But very few are familiar with a variety of other clove health benefits, which includes combating Candida.

About Cloves

Clove was originally indigenous to the Spice Islands, now known as Moluccas Islands of Indonesia. The largest producer of clove now is Zanzibar along with Pemba, an island that's part of the Zanzibar archipelago.

The evergreen Eugenia arena tree puts most of its punch into the pink flower buds that grow on it. The buds are picked before they fully flower. When the pink buds dry and turn brown, they are ready for market.

The dried buds contain an aromatic oily substance that is the essence of clove's medicinal and culinary properties. It's wise to purchase cloves in their bud forms. Purchased powders may have lost most of their potency by the time you buy and use them. Dried buds hold up to three times as long.

Whenever you want clove as a powder, you can grind the buds in a coffee grinder. When you shop for cloves, pinch the buds with your fingernails. You should get a strong aromatic scent and a slightly oily feel. Choose organic if possible to avoid irradiated clove spices.

Clove's oil is the key for spicing foods and promoting health. Cloves can be used to make teas by putting the buds or powder into hot (not boiling) water. But the biggest health bang for the buck comes from clove essential oil.

Clove Oil

Clove oil is produced by a steam distillation process. So you're probably better off buying the oil rather than trying to make it yourself. Clove oil is available almost anywhere.

Clove oil is an unusually powerful antioxidant. Antioxidant capacity is measure by ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity). Although the dried buds or powders rank highly among anti-oxidants, clove oil is the monster antioxidant.

As an essential oil, clove's ORAC rating soars to over 10 million. Most other antioxidants are rated in the tens of thousands to a maximum of a few hundred thousand at best.

Producing the oil from clove buds concentrates clove's eugenol, the main active ingredient of clove. Eugenol is an anti-inflammatory. Clove's flavonoids also contribute to the high ORAC level of the essential oil.

And clove oil is a great anti-fungal. It's even recommended by many who treat Candida. The oil is also useful for direct applications to outer skin fungi, such as ringworm and athlete's foot.

Nutritional/Medicinal Value

Clove is one of the highest sources of manganese you'll find. Manganese is vital for metabolism, contributes enzymes, promotes bone strength, and also adds to clove's high ORAC antioxidant value.

Magnesium, calcium, vitamins C and K also make strong appearances in clove. Clove is high in fiber also. Omega-3 is in abundance in clove as well as many phytonutrients that enhance the immune system. Clove greatly boosts your humoral immunity, which protects your blood and tissues.

Clove has anti-viral anti-bacterial properties as well. It has been discovered to help prevent adult onset diabetes by tripling insulin levels.

Caveat

Young children and pregnant or nursing women should avoid clove.

Clove oil is very strong. It can cause temporarily uncomfortable problems. Too much can cause manganese toxicity. So the oil should be diluted as a product or used by putting drops into tea.

September 15, 2011 by: Paul Fassa

http://www.naturalnews.com/033579_clove_oil_healing.html#

This is The Best Natural Remedy For Toothache!

Toothache can be very powerful. Those who fear the dentist delay going to him, and suffer pain or even poisoned painkillers. While not dare to go to the dentist, if necessary, try the best natural remedy for toothache that India regularly serves - cloves.

As soon as you feel the pain of teeth, put a pod of clove on the sore and tight bite. Hold for 15 minutes to half an hour. The pain will gradually decrease and then disappear altogether. When a toothache stronger, use oil of cloves (available in herbal pharmacies) that acts as an anesthetic. After placing the clove on the sore spot (on the right above or below the painful tooth, rub a little oil of cloves) - the pain will reduce in record time, as when the dentist receiving anesthesia. 
http://www.explorehealthyfood.com/best-natural-remedy-toothache/