The saying ‘you are what you eat’, suddenly doesn’t sound as appealing when you think of all the junk food being consumed on a daily base. On the other hand, it does explain the level of health we see in many people today. In the United States especially, the statistics are extremely worrying when it comes to the percentage of people who are obese and morbidly obese.

Two-thirds of all Americans are overweight, one in every three people nowadays is considered to be obese and one in every twenty people is considered as morbidly obese.  These high numbers are accompanied by quite some health issues, with some that can even lead to death.

Here is a list of just a few of the health issues we know can be caused by being overweight:

– type 2 diabetes
– heart disease
– high blood pressure
– nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (excess fat and inflammation in the liver of people who
drink little or no alcohol) – osteoarthritis (a health problem causing pain, swelling, and stiffness in one or more joints)
– some types of cancer: breast, colon, endometrial (related to the uterine lining), and kidney
– strokes Continue reading →

In our busy society today, stress is an often recurring phenomenon. Not only does this influence us as adults, this also influences the children. Occasionally they do not get the care and attention they deserve and need, as a result, children do not get to enjoy their childhood in the way they should.

Education and facilities where the children stay during the day have become essential in the upbringing of a child’s life. That is why many parents are really concerned when it comes to where and in who’s care they leave their child while they work during the day.

This led to many different kinds of education in school and preschool around the world, taking a more holistic approach. From Waldorf education to Montessori and many others.  All with their own different philosophies and theories in the best ways of educating children. Every single one with their unique way of handling a child. All have many interesting benefits.  The following type of preschool takes it even a step further and is one of a kind.

In this video, we follow the story of a boy called Matheus. He got neglected and abused by his mother. His neighbor Joel became the boy’s main caregiver and was very scared in leaving the boy with other people. There is one place though where he trust to leave the Matheus; Continue reading →

The connection between learning music and a language. 

Everything we learn seems to go so much easier when we are young. Children function like sponges. Give them some kind of information and they will suck it up. Your childhood is the best period to learn different subjects that will benefit you in the long run.

This is also the reason why many parents encourage their children to play a musical instrument or to learn one of the multiple languages that are being offered at school. For children, it can sometimes be seen as a hazard but most of the times this gets replaced by gratitude as they grow older.

“Language and music defines us as humans.” – Psychologist A. Pattel

Is there a way which makes it easier to learn a language or music when we have passed the threshold of childhood? How does one influence the other? What is the connection between learning a language and music simultaneously?
In several ways, music and languages can be compared.

Think about it, they have the same buildup. When you start to learn a language, the first thing you learn are the basic most common words. The next step is combining the words into simple sentences and making yourself understood. This will be followed by learning the matching grammar. Continue reading →

The way we use the word ‘sorry’ has a whole lot of different meanings nowadays. It goes together with a meaningful intonation. It varies from sarcasm, to pointing out rudeness and also from asking someone to repeat themselves to showing sympathy. But of course, it’s mainly for apologizing.

Being able to say sorry is not as easy for everyone as most would think. This word can allow you to be forgiven by another person or it may help resolve a conflict. This all with the help of a sincerely meant five letter word.
Some people, however, are too apologetic.

They tend to say ‘sorry’ for the tiniest little things. If meant or not, it doesn’t particularly matter. It has become a force of habit, one which is not easy to stop. Over apologizing may seem polite but is just unnecessary.

Listed below are 16 things you should never apologize for. When presented in a similar situation, next time you can keep that sorry to yourself without feeling guilty.

Otherwise it is merely a waste of breath and often a way to make feel uncomfortable for no good reason.

You do not ever have to apologize for:

1. A situation which is not your fault
You do not have control over everyone and everything. Things happen. Even though sometimes you feel you want to apologize, it is not your responsibility to do so. Take a deep breath and just go on with your day. You have better things to focus on.

Continue reading →

When you think of love, what is the first thing that comes to mind?

Most people will answer romantic love. The love we all hope to find, the happy ending to every love story when watching movies or reading books. Of course, when you take another second, the love you feel for a family member will come to mind next.

Does love in general come from the same source, or can we categorize different kinds of love? And which factor leads to which kind of love?

Psychologist John Allen Lee used several Greek words for love to portray the different kinds we come across. In his book “The colors of love: An exploration of ways of loving”, he differentiates between primary and secondary types of love and explains the differences.

The color wheel of love

By John Allen Lee

Primary types of love

Within this category of primary types of love, we will find three kinds of love. These are the base for the secondary types. You could compare this module to the three basic colors (yellow, blue and red), when combined in different ways, the rest of the colors come out as a result. Continue reading →

Fireflies are amazing. Imagine you’re walking through a dark forest and all of a sudden you’re surrounded by tiny, glowing lights. They look like something right out of a fairytale, fireflies create a strange sense of magic in our world. 

What makes this phenomenon so captivating? It’s so intriguing and leaves many people in a state of pure awe. This caused us to ask the question, how exactly do these beautiful fireflies light up the darkness; what causes them to glow?

The science behind fireflies

For a very long time the question of how do fireflies glow stayed a mystery. For decades it was only theorized about back and forth as some of the key steps were still missing. But now, this age-old puzzle has finally been solved.  Bruce Branchini of the Connecticut college and collaborates from Yale, managed to replicate the chemical reaction of the fireflies in his lab.

Fireflies and other bioluminescent organisms glow thanks to a compound called Luciferin. Yet, there was still an important chemical missing in the equation. Branchini and his team discovered an extra oxygen molecule, the missing key, called superoxide.

Other organisms and even humans have built up their immune system to protect themselves from this chemical because it can cause inflammation and cell damage. Continue reading →