KNIGHT WATCH

HAS LIFE BECOME STRESS FRACTURED?

Stress could become a national health crisis. In a 2010 survey by the American Psychological Association, nearly 75% of Americans said they were stressed to the max – to levels that could put them at risk for chronic illnesses like heart disease, diabetes and depression. Seventy-six percent of the respondents were concerned about money, 70% about work and 65% about the economy. Although 33% of parents felt extreme stress, most didn’t think it affected their teens and sub-teens. However, only 14% of their children said they were unaffected. Obviously, parents’ stress causes “stress fractures” in family life.

Job strain is a form of job stress and it increases women’s heart-attack risk. Researchers at Harvard Medical School analyzed 10 years of medical data on more than 17,000 women, all in their 50’s and early 60’s when the study began. The women who experienced job strain – who were required to work very hard or very fast with little say about day-to-day tasks – were 88% likelier to have a heart attack. They were also 43% likelier to need heart surgery. According to the researchers, women are likelier than men to experience job strain. That’s to say, women need more say in their jobs.

The stress of city living may negatively affect brain performance. According to the World Health Organization, dealing with competing stimuli – crowds, honking horns, and flashing neon signs – can be mentally exhausting. In a University of Michigan study, one group of undergraduates spent a day in the suburbs and another spent a day in the city. Overall, those in the city scored lower on attention tests and developed worse moods. However, spending a few minutes daily in a park relieves mental exhaustion. Considering more than half the world’s population lives in cities, more city dwellers need to “go green”.

Another study by the World Heath Organization found the stress of secondhand smoke kills more than 603,000 people a year – that’s 1 in 100 people and nearly two-thirds of them are children. The study based on 2004 data from 192 countries also found 40% of children, 35% of women and 33% of men are regularly exposed to secondhand smoke indoors. Based on this study scientists estimate secondhand smoke annually causes about 379,000 deaths from heart disease, 165,000 from lower respiratory disease, 36,900 from asthma and 21,400 from lung cancer – that’s 1% of the world’s deaths – lives that are needlessly going up in smoke. 

 

IS CRIME THE EASY WAY OUT?

One’s choice of career usually requires education and/or training. Success in one’s career usually depends on attention to detail – especially for those who choose a career in crime. Nevertheless, Salvatore LaRosa and an unidentified accomplice followed home the owners of a pizzeria in Staten Island, New York. The wannabe robbers wore the prerequisite masks. They also had guns, which they pointed at the pizzeria owners when they demanded they be given the bag holding the day’s proceeds. The so-called criminals then fled with what they thought was a bag full of dough. It was - pizza dough.

A thief in Fairbanks, Alaska wasn’t cut out to be a criminal either. The unidentified man was successful in taking a safe from a home without leaving signs of breaking and entering – not easy for beginners. However, the safe – which measured about a cubic foot and was relatively light – only made it to the backyard of the victim’s home. The thief carried out the crime, but he didn’t carry it very far or proceed very thoroughly. According to state troopers, the safe contained $100,000 when it was stolen and it contained $80,000 when it was found. Obviously, the thief’s heart wasn’t completely in his work.

And it might be time for 43-year-old Bonnie Usher to reconsider having a life of crime. Although the Manchester, New Hampshire woman was successful in robbing a Rite Aid store, a motorist not only saw her run from the pharmacy parking lot, but he also saw her throw objects from her car as she made her getaway. The police were able to find a ski mask in the area pointed out to them by the witness, but that’s not what led the police directly to her home to make the arrest. It seems Bonnie Usher’s getaway car had vanity plates that said “B-USHER”.

If first you don’t succeed as a criminal – give up. Hopefully, that was the lesson learned by India Banks. When the 23-year-old resident of Clairton, Pennsylvania was pulled over at a roadblock, state trooper Stefanie Plume asked to search the car. After agreeing, Banks asked the trooper to toss her child’s wet diaper into a garbage bag in the backseat. Thinking it was strange Banks didn’t do it herself, the trooper checked inside the diaper and found a small bag a marijuana – giving new meaning to the colloquial expression “Pee or get off the pot”.

 

ARE MEN AND WOMEN REALLY SO DIFFERENT?

Twenty-five percent of men experience hair loss as early as age 21. According to the American Hair Loss Association, 66% of men will experience appreciable hair loss by 35 and by 50 almost 85% will have significant hair thinning. Male pattern baldness – the most common type of baldness – is 95% genetic and can be passed down by either parent. Non-genetic causes for hair loss include medication and severe stress or illness, as well as nutrient deficiencies like protein, calcium and iron. These things also cause hair loss in women, as does childbirth – in spite of it often being a “hair-raising” experience.

However, women are more affected by alcohol than men are. Men’s and women’s physical differences cause them to metabolize alcohol differently. Women are smaller in size, so their internal organs are more exposed to alcohol. Women’s bodies contain more fat and less water than men’s, so their bodies dilute alcohol more gradually. Women also have much lower levels of the enzyme “alcohol dehydrogenase”, which helps break down alcohol. Thus women absorb about 30% more alcohol into their bloodstreams than men do. Women experience the effects of alcohol more quickly and longer – information women need to drink … in.

For both men and women birth order shapes their lives. In 1972 birth order experts researched how many firstborns were in the U.S. Congress. Out of 121 congressmen and senators in the sample, 51 were firstborns, 39 were middle children and 31 were youngest children. Since then several studies have found there are more firstborns in high-achieving professions like corporate CEO’s, college professors, U.S. presidents and Supreme Court justices. There’s also evidence firstborns are 3 IQ points smarter than second-born siblings. These differences were attributed to “undivided parental resources” – making it necessary for younger siblings to be more … resourceful.

Nevertheless, the happiness of both men and women may depend on their spouses. In a study published in the journal Developmental Psychology, researchers analyzed responses from 178 married couples in data from the Seattle Longitudinal Study, a study that has followed over 6,000 people since 1956. What the researchers discovered was an individual’s happiness is closely linked to their spouse’s – especially in long-term married couples. When the happiness level of one spouse went up, so did the other’s and vice versa. It seems “For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health” basically means in happiness and unhappiness.

 

IS THERE ANYTHING THAT DOESN'T CHANGE?

The most recent change in minimum wage occurred in 2009. Minimum wage is now $7.25 per hour, but it hasn’t kept up with inflation. According to the Economic Policy Institute, the minimum wage was worth $8.54 in 1968. People earning minimum wage are likely to be under age 25 and not be high school graduates. They are also likelier to work in service occupations, such as food preparation. Approximately 3.6 million workers earned wages at or below minimum wage in 2009. That’s 5% of all hourly paid workers. However, 14 states have a higher minimum wage. The national minimum isn’t the maximum.

According to a study done by CQ Press, there’s been a change in which U.S. city is the most dangerous. In 2008 (2003 and 2004) it was Camden, New Jersey. In 2009 Camden was second and St. Louis was first. The annual ranking is based on population and FBI data. St. Louis had 2,070.1 violent crimes per 100,000 residents compared with the national average of 429.4. Detroit; Flint, Michigan; and Oakland, California rounded out the top five. For the second straight year the safest city with more than 75,000 residents was Colonie, New York. I don’t know where Colonie is.  Obviously, criminals don’t either.

Communication is changing too. According to a 2010 survey by Sheraton Hotels, 60% of travelers use social media to “call home” instead of using phones or e-mail. The phone survey of 4,024 people in the U.S., U.K. and China also found that 64% use social media to make travel plans; and when traveling, 20% said that they checked social media sites several times daily. When at home, 77% said they access social media sites throughout the day. Finally, 39% of respondents said they “could not live without” social media sites. These people are social media “diehards”.

Guinness World Records – the best selling copyrighted book in the world – is the ultimate book of change. The editors receive approximately 1,000 applications weekly from people wanting to break a record in one of its 40,000 recognized categories. Ashrita Furman, a 56-year-old man from Queens, New York, holds the most records – 312, of which 120 still stand. Furman has somersaulted continuously 12 miles and clapped for 50 hours straight. November 18, 2010 was Guinness World Records Day, the book’s 56^th anniversary. To celebrate Furman attempted to walk 33 feet wearing 160-pound shoes – which would be another record-breaking “feet”.

 

ARE RELATIONSHIPS BECOMING LESS "RELATIVE"?

Previous studies have shown that marriage reduces stress. According to a study published in the journal Stress, committed relationships do too. Five hundred and one masters of business administration students (348 men and 153 women) took a 90-minute, computerized test that they were told was a course requirement and would affect their career placement. Saliva tests for cortisol – the stress hormone – were taken before and after the testing. Although cortisol concentrations increased in all the students, it “shot up” in the single students. It seems that both married and committed couples handle stress better because of “twogetherness”.

Unfortunately, a phone survey of 2,691 adults by the Pew Research Center found that 39% of Americans think marriage is becoming obsolete – that’s up 11% from a 1978 Time Magazine survey. That statistic is reflected in Census data that shows the percentage of married adults is decreasing. There were 72% in 1960, 57% in 2000 and 54% in 2010. However, the median age for first marriages is increasing. In 2010 it was the highest ever – 28.2 for men and 26.1 for women. Although the survey also found that 44% of adults have cohabitated, 64% of those considered cohabitation a step toward marriage – especially if it’s a “baby step”.

More information extracted from the Pew Research Center’s survey showed that American adults are redefining what “family” means. Eighty-six percent of those surveyed said a single parent and a child are a family, 80% said an unmarried couple living together with a child are a family and 63% said a gay or lesbian couple living together with a child are a family. Childless married couples were also considered to be families by 88% of the survey participants, but 54% of them said cohabitating couples without children weren’t families – cohabitating couples were more familiar than familial.

Different groups consider themselves families. The brotherhood of NBA teams is shown in high fives, chest bumps and head slaps. In a study published in the journal Emotion, researchers taped the 2008-2009 early season games for all 30 teams, recorded the number of times each team’s players communicated through touch and followed the teams’ successes throughout the season. Touch was linked to more cooperative play. The more touching a team displayed, the better they played and the more successful they were as individuals and as a team. Obviously, NBA teams wanting to be more successful should “touch up” their games.

 

DO GOOD IDEAS HAVE GOOD RESULTS?

The idea of training Labradors and golden retrievers to be service dogs for veterans in wheelchairs became reality in 2008 when “Paws for Purple Hearts” was started at a California Veterans Affairs hospital and at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. However, the program has a second benefit. For the first 2 years of the dogs’ lives they are trained by veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. The emotional skills these vets have to relearn to train dogs are skills that will help them function in everyday life. Paws for Purple Hearts gives new meaning to “going to the dogs”.

In 2009 baby boomers were changing marketing ideas. Traditionally marketers paid the most attention to 18- to 34-year-olds. Older people were thought to spend less and have little interest in new products or brands. However, there are 77 million U.S. baby boomers – people born from 1946 through 1964. In 2009 the 116 million consumers 50 and older spent $2.9 trillion – up 45% in 10 years. The 182 million under 50 spent $3.3 trillion – up 6%. Considering people 50 and older will inherit $14-$20 trillion in the next 20 years, boomers are key to boom markets.

In 2010 San Francisco turned the revolutionary idea of banning happy meals into law. The law passed by the Board of Supervisors requires meals that offer a free toy to contain fruits and vegetables and not to contain more than 600 calories or have more than 35% of those calories from fat –including the beverage. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 17% of 2- to 19-year-olds are overweight and 17% are obese. In 2006 approximately $870 million was spent on advertising meals to children under 12. The ban is meant to prevent fast food restaurants from “toying” with children’s health.

Finally, big trees reduce crime – at least that’s the idea of the U.S. Forest Service. The Forest Service did a study involving 2,813 single-family homes in Portland, Oregon. The number of crimes committed on those properties – 394 property crimes and 37 violent crimes – were compared to the number and size of the trees in the area. Supposedly, big trees signal potential criminals that neighborhoods are better cared for and that criminals are likelier to be caught. Also big trees don’t have branches that can provide cover for criminals, as well as block views. Maybe it’s just me, but I think alarm systems are “treemendous” help.

 

WHAT ARE SOME LESS STUDIOUS STUDIES?

Short people burn more calories walking than tall people do. In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, scientists used a new equation to measure the energy cost of walking which takes into account height and weight. According to the equation, everyone uses about the same amount of energy per stride; but because people with shorter legs take more steps to cover the same distance, they burn more calories on a per pound basis. However, long-legged people tend to burn more calories overall because they weigh more pounds. That’s the long and short of it.

Longer noses, shorter noses - cosmetic procedures are a $10 billion-a-year industry. That’s according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. In 2009 there were 12.5 million surgical and nonsurgical procedures performed in the U.S. Of those 15% were surgical and 85% were nonsurgical. Broken down by sex, women had 91% of the procedures and women ages 40-54 made up 47% of the women. The most popular surgical procedure was breast implants (average cost $3,331) and the most popular nonsurgical procedure was Botox injections (average cost $405). It seems women are less satisfied with their looks – or with the looks from others.

Drunk is not a desirable look and champagne makes you drunk faster than other alcoholic drinks. That’s according to Dr. Roshini Raj, assistant professor of medicine at New York University Medical Center, medical editor for Health magazine, contributor to the Today show and co-author of “What the Yuck?!”. Although Champagne has the same alcohol content as a glass of wine or basic cocktail, the bubbles – gas – it contains cause it to be absorbed faster into your stomach and bloodstream. Also, because Champagne is put through 2 fermentations when it’s made, it contains more congeners – chemicals that make hangovers worse – occasionally “hangdog” worse.

By the way, dogs and cats drink differently. Dogs use their tongue like a scoop to lift liquids into their mouth; but according to a study published in the journal Science, cats – from tabbies to tigers – drink differently. They rapidly flick their tongue on liquids, causing a little jet of liquid to fly into the air, which they catch in their mouth. Although scientists think the way dogs drink is functionally better, cats’ tongues might help in designing ultraflexible robots and help scientists in dealing with very small amounts of droplets. Such projects put the cat in “catalyst”.

 

DOES IT TAKE ALL KINDS TO MAKE A WORLD?

Denver residents don’t want to track space aliens. They voted against an initiative on the city's 2010 ballot that would have established a commission to track extraterrestrials. The initiative also would have allowed Denverites to post their observations and report alien sightings on the city’s Web page. Jeff Peckman, a meditation instructor, promoter of new technology and person responsible for the initiative, says that civilian participation is necessary because the government is tracking space aliens but won’t make its reports public. Previously, Peckman had proposed an ordinance requiring Denver to offer stress-reduction measures – perhaps for those feeling “stressed-outer space”.

Two police officers in Connellsville, Pennsylvania decided that driving a police cruiser prevented them from serving warrants. Instead, they drove a van decorated with the black and gold colors of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the team logo. Arriving at their destinations, they honked the horn and the curious inhabitants came out to see the van – and be served the warrants. Then, when transporting the “servees” to a district judge, the officers played the Steelers fight song. Unfortunately, news coverage has made it necessary for the officers to get a new cover. The Publishers Clearing House van might “warrant” concern.

A Brazilian court ruled that McDonald’s must pay a former franchise manager $17,500 because he gained 65 pounds while working there for 12 years. The obese 32-year-old man said he felt forced to sample the food every day because McDonald’s hires “mystery clients” to randomly report on its restaurants. He also attributed his weight gain to the company’s policy of offering free lunches to employees – although the company also has a policy to offer food options to meet employees’ dietary needs. If the former manager hasn’t lost the 65 pounds, maybe the court’s decision will be “weight off his mind”.

Francisco Silva, better known in Sao Paulo, Brazil as Grumpy the Clown, won a congressional seat in the 2010 election. In fact, his 1.3 million votes were almost twice as many as the next-highest vote-getter. One of Silva’s campaign slogans was “It can’t get any worse”. Another was “What does a federal deputy do? Truly, I don’t know. But vote for me and you’ll find out”. However, allegations arose that Silva – like 10% of Brazilians” - can’t read or write; and literacy is constitutionally mandated for federal lawmakers. I wonder if there’s such a mandate for the “clowns” in the U.S. Congress.

 

WHAT'S BEST ABOUT THE U.S.?

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma is the most affordable city in the U.S. Forbes ranked cities with populations over 100,000 on 5 measures: groceries, health care, transportation, cost of housing and unemployment. Being both a state capitol and a university city, Oklahoma City has good jobs and low cost of living. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Buffalo, New York; and Rochester, New York were second, third and fourth respectively. All 3 cities are recovering from losing manufacturing economies. Now they have newly diversified economies and histories of low costs. In 2010 there are affordable cities – where it makes “cents” to live.

Dubuque, Iowa is the best small city to raise a family. This time Forbes ranked cities with populations under 100,000 on 5 measures: percentage of residents spending more than 1 hour commuting to work, percentage of adults 25 and older with at least a high school degree, median household income, rate of home ownership and housing affordability. Based on those measures Manitowac, Wisconsin was second and Marquette, Michigan third. Not only were the top 3 cities all in the Midwest, 12 of the top 15 were. It seems the Midwest is the best place to raise tomorrow’s “middlemen and women”.

Thankfully the U.S. isn’t best for corruption. Somalia is the world’s most corrupt country. That’s according to Transparency International’s 2010 report, which ranked 178 countries. Because war and chaos breed corruption, it’s not surprising Burma was #2, Afghanistan #3 and Iraq #4. The least corrupt country is Denmark, New Zealand was second and Singapore third. Countries that fell in this ranking had financial crises precipitated by “integrity deficits”. Greece fell from seventy-first to seventy-eighth, Italy from sixty-third to sixty-seventh and the U.S. from nineteenth to twenty-second. It seems the housing crisis, the Madoff ponzi scheme and fights over political funding put the “up” in U.S. corruption.

However, many things that used to be best about the U.S. are gone. Mattel, the world’s largest toy company, ended American production in 2002. Now 65% of production is in China. Levi jeans were last made here in 2003. Then production was outsourced to Latin America and Asia. Vending machines haven’t been made in this country since 2003; televisions haven’t been made here since 2004; and although 1.2 billion cell phones were sold in 2008, not one has been made in the U.S. since 2007. Soon Americans will only be able to make the best … of it.

 

ARE OUR HEALTH CONDITIONS CONDITIONAL?

Trouble sleeping at night? Wake up feeling tired? According to a study published in the journal Neurology, people with the gene variant DQB1*0602 are more likely to feel sleepy, be light sleepers and wake fatigued after an extended night’s sleep. Of the 130 people in the study, those who had the gene variant slept less soundly, had less REM sleep and were more tired than those without the gene after the same amount of sleep. Supposedly only 25% of the population has this condition, but I’m sure 90% of us think we’re part of that 25%.

One of the consequences of feeling tired is drowsy driving – an increasing risk to road safety. A study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found 10% of drivers had fallen asleep while driving the previous year and 25% had trouble staying awake the previous month. Crash data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration showed 16.5% of fatal crashes and 13% of accidents requiring hospitalization between 1999 and 2008 involved drowsy driving. It seems drivers underestimate how tired they are and overestimate their ability to handle being tired when driving – causing an estimate of 2.4% of the fatal crashes in 2008.

Something else that’s increasing is fast food advertising aimed at children. Companies selling sugary cereals and drinks have reduced their TV ads, but researchers found preschoolers are seeing 21% more fast food ads than they did in 2003 and older children are seeing 34% more. According to a Yale University study, the average preschooler in 2010 sees 3 fast food commercials a day and the average teenager sees 5. In 2006 industry leaders voluntarily agreed to limit marketing unhealthy food to children and devote at least 50% of their ads to choices considered “better for you”. Now we know better.

From fast food to fat, which affects sperm quality. Harvard researchers analyzed sperm of 91 men who had been questioned about their diet. They discovered that men who ate the most saturated fat (meat, dairy) had 41% fewer sperm than those who ate the least and men who ate the most monounsaturated fat (vegetable oils, nuts, seeds) had 46% fewer sperm than those who ate the least. However, the sperm of men who ate more polyunsaturated fat (fish, whole grains) had better movement, shape and size. It’s not just about what women eat. Men wanting to be fathers should be polyunsaturated “fat-hers”.