Health

What feeds our fear in times of crisis, such as this pandemic we are in? How can we avoid letting fear paralyze our search for information and our ability to make the right decisions?

The prevailing message in the context of the pandemic was clear, but also disturbing: "Don't go out! Stay home! Work from home!" But what about those who do not have a home?

It can be simple or complicated to find and, especially, apply strategies to increase your level of happiness. What we can be sure of, however, is that in this ongoing discussion about what makes us happy, brain health is not a topic that can take a backseat.

Dwight D. Eisenhower, a former US president, had a heart attack at the age of 64. Later, despite his cholesterol levels being within the normal range, he adopted a low-fat diet. However, despite the diet, he gained weight and his cholesterol levels rose, calling the effectiveness of the diet into question.

Breast cancer claims the lives of more women than most other forms of cancer. In the United States, the incidence of this disease in women is about one in eight, which is nearly 13 per cent, while in Australia and New Zealand it’s slightly lower at one in nine (11 per cent).

Any large-scale phenomenon, such as a pandemic, activates our instinct to preserve our state of being—especially when we feel like we are losing it.

What if there was no good news to give us confidence that we could get through the troubles facing us now? What if there was no good news to assure us that we are cherished, loved and supported, that we are not alone?

While most of us have been staying inside for several weeks, many leave the safety of their homes every day to help us live our lives as normally as possible.

All COVID-19 statistics lead to the same conclusion: the young ones, our children, are at the lowest risk of getting ill or dying from the virus. That’s comforting. But the pandemic does pose a certain danger to them.

One of the most powerful pieces of literature illustrating the proper preparation for a financial crisis comes from antiquity. More precisely, from the Bible.

When we are isolated with our family, problems that are sometimes easy to ignore become more acute, and the need to receive and offer forgiveness to those around us becomes increasingly evident.

Many certainties and convictions will be swept away. Many things that we thought were impossible are happening. The day after we have won, it will not be a return to the day before; we will be stronger morally.

Our bodies reap the first benefits of giving up smoking almost immediately after we have ceased the habit. The scientifically proven changes that are visible within the next hours, days, months and even years after we quit smoking reinforce the fact that putting out that last cigarette is one of the best decisions you will ever make for the benefit of personal health.

Tueday, 31 March 2020, marked exactly three months since the World Health Organization, the Chinese office, was notified of incidences of pneumonia from an unknown cause. According to specialists from the Robert Koch Institute in Germany, we have not yet reached the peak of the pandemic in Europe. We hear about mild and asymptomatic cases, but also about many deaths globally.

On any given day, a typical person checks the clock several dozen times.