Trying to Sleep!

Sleep is the time when body and mind rest and recover from the wear and tear throughout the day. Trying to sleep is usually not difficult since it is part of our natural body clock. If you're not able to sleep for at least three nights a week then you are suffering from insomnia.

According to the National Sleep Foundation in the US, women are 20% more likely to suffer from insomnia than men. Conversely men are more likely to suffer from sleep apnoea, which is difficulty breathing (or snoring) while sleeping.

Lack of sleep for both men and women leads to increased risk of illness and heart disease, depression and irritability, lack of concentration, fatigue and weight gain. Roughly seven hours of sleep at night is sufficient. Even those women who don't have insomnia are sometimes not able to sleep because of their menstrual cycle, stress, drinking alcohol or coffee at odd hours, and lack of exercise.

If you have trouble trying to sleep, there are many different ways of making your brain doze off:

1. Meditation helps reduce stress by freeing the brain of all thoughts and worries. If you are not able to sleep because of too much thinking then meditate on one spot in the brain, till the brain is empty of thoughts, and you eventually drift off into sleep.

2. Listening to music which is slow and soft can lull your brain to sleep.

3. Writing down stuff instead of keeping it in your brain will help you to sleep. Keep a diary on your bedside and jot down all the stuff that you have to do the next day, instead of thinking about it.

4. Watching TV works for some people but not others. While the sound of the TV has the same effect as music, the light from the TV set supposedly disturbs our body clock. But it does work for some people.

Avoiding alcohol and coffee late in the evenings and getting plenty of exercise will help you to sleep better. Sleeping helps you look better, improves memory, and keeps you slim. Victoria's Secret model Adriana Lima says that the secrets to her beauty are to, "Drink plenty of water and get enough sleep.":

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Orexin stops weight gain

A natural chemical found in the brain, called Orexin, is involved in controlling appetite and sleep. Dr. Masashi Yanagisawa, professor of molecular genetics at UT Southwestern, found that reduced levels of orexin lead to the sleep disorder narcolepsy in both rodents and humans.

The researchers increased the levels of orexin in mice, either through genetic engineering or by administering the hormone into the brain. When these mice were fed a healthy diet, the increased levels of orexin made little difference in their weights compared to normal mice; however, when the mice were fed a high-fat diet, the high-orexin mice remained lean while the normal animals became obese.

Finding a way to boost the orexin system may prove useful as a therapy against obesity, said Dr. Yanagisawa. A primary hurdle to orexin-based drug development is a defense system in the body called the blood-brain barrier, which prevents many substances in the blood from penetrating into the brain. Because of this, orexin cannot reach the brain when it is given orally or as an intravenous or subcutaneous injection.

"This study suggests that if we can develop a compound that mimics the action of orexin on its receptor, we might be able to treat narcolepsy and other sleep disorders, as well as obesity," Dr. Yanagisawa said. "We have already screened out some such 'orexin mimics.' The next step is to do serious medicinal chemistry to make variations of these compounds to get them more potent and specific. If we could advance to early clinical trials in five years, I'd say we'd be lucky."

UTSouthwestern

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Kate Beckinsale anorexia

Kate Beckinsale fought and won her battle with anorexia as a teenager. Now the 35-year old actress stays in shape with a sensible eating regime and four exercise sessions per week with a personal trainer. "I am a lot more body confident now I'm in my thirties, and in better shape too. If someone turns up with cupcakes mid-afternoon, I'll have one. And I'd hate to be one of those people who won't allow themselves a slice of birthday cake."

At age 15 Kate Beckinsale developed anorexia and her weight plummeted to only 70 pounds. The reason for this according to the British actress was her family situation; the early death of her father, comedic actor Richard Beckinsale, and her mother's remarriage four years later. "I believe anorexia, alcoholism and drug abuse in teens are more about what is happening in the home than a problem with images in the media. It is the nice girl's way of becoming a crack whore."

"I got to the stage where I think I was about to die. I had no energy and my main goal was to be able to stand up. Finally I realised I had to choose between being a person or a professional anorexic. You can't commit to anything else when your mind is exhausted and homed in on one thing," says Kate. To cure her eating disorder, Beskinsale underwent Freudian analysis, for five long years. But like many anorexics Kate Beckinsale was accomplished in her studies completing her A-levels in Russian, German and French, which resulted in her admission to Oxford University. She won many literary awards for poetry but did not complete her degree; choosing instead to pursue a career in acting.



Body image issues though continued to dog Kate; her breasts were digitally enhanced on the posters of her 2003 movie Underworld, where she portrayed a vampire. Beckinsale was required to gain weight for some of her movie roles; ten pounds for Van Helsing (2004), where she played a vampire-hunter, and another ten pounds to portray the voluptuous Ava Gardner in The Aviator that same year. Early in her career Kate says she was forced by a director into doing a nude scene; to take revenge she mixed some of her pee in his coffee! This might by the 1994 thriller Uncovered.



There are also some nude scene in Kate's latest movie Whiteout, which is set in Antarctica and has Beckinsale as a US marshall tracking a killer through that snowy white wilderness. Kate says she hated phys ed in school and works out only for maintaining her figure and not so much for health.....among her addictions is smoking, which she picked up from her step-brothers as a teenager.

5'7" Kate says, "I find it impossible to work out and feel spiritual at the same time, so no Yoga or Pilates for me. I like to find a sweaty muscle gym where all the guys are obsessive and on steroids and it's down and dirty." For her role in the 2006 movie Underworld: Evolution Beckinsale had an intense workout that included boxing, running, weight training, and martial arts.



Kate has a nine-year old daughter Lily (above) from her first husband Michael Sheen. She is married to director Len Wiseman. Beckinsale got a golden retriever puppy (above) in July last year.

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Dangers of Diabetes

Diabetes is a disease where the body is unable to produce enough insulin to process sugar into energy. Type 1 diabetes, which is also called early-onset, stems from the immune system's destruction of insulin-producing "beta" cells in the pancreas. The more common form is type 2, which is linked to a poor diet, obesity, and lack of exercise; it is believed to affect close to a million people in the UK and 21 million in the US.

AOL Health
by Laura Colarusso

According to the National Institute of Health one quarter of those with the diabetes don't know they have it. People can suffer for years without knowing diabetes is silently wreaking havoc on their bodies. With that in mind, here's a list of diabetes symptoms that everybody should know:

Irritability: Emotional changes are something to watch out for, according to Sue McLaughlin, a certified diabetes instructor with the American Diabetes Association. Dramatic changes in blood sugar can cause mood swings, she said.

Peeing frequently: Frequent urination is one of the most common symptoms of the disease, said Dr. John M. Miles, an endocrinologist with Mayo Clinic. When your blood sugar rises past normal levels, your kidneys pass the excess into the urine.

Excessive Thirst: As an indicator of diabetes, excessive thirst goes hand in hand with the frequent urination. Because the fluid is flushing out of the body, your system can't stay hydrated. But, don't worry if you're thirsty from time to time. The real concern is when you feel a chronic insatiable need for fluids, Miles added.

Extreme Hunger and Fatigue: "When the blood sugar is high, everything is going into the toilet," McLaughlin said. You wind up with insatiable cravings and legs that can't make it up the stairs. People often attribute fatigue to getting older, but McLauglin advises taking a closer look because it can also mean that the muscles aren't getting enough nutrients.

Blurry Vision: Like many of the other diabetes symptoms, blurred vision has to do with fluids. When a person's sugar levels spikes, fluid is drawn out of the lens of the eye, which then changes shape in response.

Unusual Weight Loss: Though diabetes is often associated with obesity, unexplained weight loss can point a blood sugar imbalance, according to Miles.

Leg Pain: When a person's blood sugar rises, they will start to notice pains they might not have felt before, said McLaughlin. This phenomenon is especially evident in the legs and feet, McLaughlin noted. That is because people tend to put a lot of stress on their lower limbs.

Itchy, Dry Skin: Everybody gets dry skin from time to time, so when should you worry? It depends on what's normal for your skin and how big of a change you see, said McLaughlin. If there's a persistent, dramatic change, then it's probably time to see your doctor.

Slow to Heal Cuts: Slow-healing cuts or sores are another often overlooked symptom of diabetes. Diabetics might notice it's taking longer for something as simple as a superficial scrape on a knee or elbow to go away. Even pimples might linger for a few days more than before.

American actress Halle Berry had a first-hand experience of the dangers of diabetes when she collapsed on the TV show, Living Dolls, in 1989 and was rushed to hospital where she was in a diabetic coma for a week.

"None of my family had suffered from the illness and although I was slightly overweight in school, I thought I was pretty healthy," says Halle. And then doctors told her of the dangers of diabetes: "They told me I might lose my eyesight, or I could lose my legs," she remembers, with a shudder. "I was scared to death, I thought I was going to die."

"I started to eat loads of wonderful fresh vegetables, chicken, fresh fish and pasta. I cut out red meat and cut back on fruit because it can contain quite a lot of sugar. Now one of my favourite dishes is something simple but tasty such as grilled tuna and garlic mashed potato."

Halle takes daily insulin injections. Apart from working out with a trainer, she does Yoga and loves to rollerblade near her Hollywood home.

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Yelena Isinbayeva

Russian Yelena Isinbayeva is described as the greatest female pole vaulter in history. Yelena has been named World Athlete of the Year three times, has set 24 world records, has won 9 major championships, and two Olympic golds.

Women's pole vault only became an Olympic sport in the year 2000, when Stacy Dragila of the United States won the gold medal. Yelena Isinbayeva, who is now 26, would like to compete till the 2012 Olympics in London. By that time she hopes to break more than 35 world records in pole vaulting! This by the way is the record held by her mentor, and Ukrainian male pole vault legend, Sergei Bubka.



"I like that I can control my body," says Elena about pole vaulting. "I like to fly. I like those feelings when you’re over the bar. It's more beautiful than other track and field events."

Her parents put Isinbayeva and her sister into gymnastics, which Yelena continued with till she was 15. But then Isinbayeva grew too tall (5'9") for gymnastics. Because of her upper body strength and all those years of jumping and flipping in gym, Yelena became a natural for pole vault, suggested to her by her gym coach.

Yelena Isinbaeva's mother is Russian, while her father is of Tabasaran ethnicity. She was born in Volgograd and has an honorary rank of captain in the Russian army. Yelena now trains and lives mostly in the Principality of Monaco (in the photo on the right above, Yelena Isinbayeva poses for a portrait during the IAAF World Athletics Gala at the Sporting Club November 25, 2007 in Monte Carlo, Monaco. Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images). She told Spikes Magazine that along with hard training, she loves chocolate, and eats 100g daily in the off-season. But when in training Yelena reduces her chocolate intake to 20g a day.

Isinbayeva lowers her general carb intake during competitions. "During the season I try not to eat a lot of sweets, chocolate, bread, pasta and sugar," she says. In fact Yelena even denied herself food ahead of the Olympic final last year. "Beijing was only the one time I didn't eat, I was hungry. If I'm hungry it helps me to jump higher."

"It's tough to break records on your own. Just like in any other sport, you need serious rivals to push you to greater heights," Isinbayeva boasted in an interview last year. "I know if I do my best, it's impossible to beat me. There's no chance for anybody. Sorry."

The female pole vaulter who came closest to challenging Yelena was American Jenn Stuczynski who jumped 4.92 meters at the U.S. Olympic trials last year. "Everybody was saying Ah O.K., Isinbayeva is finished, we have a new star," the Russian said. "So today I was really angry." That was after the fired up Yelena leaped 5.03 meters, or 16-foot-6, in Helsinki to break her own world record. "I just wanted to show everyone that I'm still the old Yelena. The one and only."



Yelena Isinbayeva has a muscular frame, with good upper body strength. She does strenuous workouts in the gym and 30 minutes of jogging; then she's in the swimming pool to relax her muscles. Before any competition Yelena has to avoid jogging or even walking too much, to prevent any injury to her feet. And talking about feet, Isinbayeva is passionate about shopping for shoes! With all the money she makes from endorsements, Yelena would also like to buy a yacht and a car.

What about boyfriends or marriage? Speaking about about her newly-born nephew last summer Yelena said, "I can feed, nurse and make the child calm. We went with Vanyechka for long walks, and he often fell asleep on my hands. He even kissed me on the cheek!". And the Russian beauty adds, "Of course some day I want and plan to have my own children."

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Meditation helps reduce stress

Pretty girl Amy Smart says, "Meditation helps me greatly. It starts me off on my day trusting the world, rather than thinking someone is out to get me. I recommend it to anyone."

Meditation is an exercise for the mind. By concentrating on a single point of reference, and shutting out distractions and normal thinking, meditation helps to reduce stress and generates a sense of calm and well-being. While some people meditate early in the day, like Amy Smart, others prefer to wind down and empty their minds of the day's worries when they're back home. And some find time in the middle of the day for meditation.

When the brain is under stress, it alerts the body by increasing heart rate and breathing, and tensing the muscles. Some people use cigarettes, alcohol, drugs or medicines to calm the body; but these substances have terrible side-effects and don't calm the mind where the real problem lies. Meditation tackles this real problem, and the result is immediately felt in the body, with a lowered heart rate and relaxed muscles.

Meditation is an important part of the ancient Indian health system of Yoga, but even without the breathing techniques, asanas, and stretching of Yoga, meditation is useful and easy to do. The basic principles of meditation require the person to be physically still, either lying down or sitting, in a place where there are no outside distractions. The mind is then focused till other thoughts and distractions are emptied from it. This induces a sense of calm and relaxation in the body.

However most people who meditate find it difficult to stay focused, or keep the mind free of any thoughts, for more than a few minutes. Therefore when the mind starts to wander you simply start all over again.



By reducing stress, meditation also helps in tackling stress-related diseases like high blood pressure and cholesterol. It is supposed to generally improve the body's immune system. Meditation is also known to improve memory and concentration, and helps you to sleep better, which makes it essential for students. But how much meditation is enough? If you're taking up meditation to fight stress, and for other health reasons, then 10-30 minutes a day is sufficient.

Jason Walsh, a fitness trainer to celebrity clients such as NFL star Jason Tayor and beautiful Jessica Biel, says that meditation is something you tend to grow into. Among the mistakes made by those taking up meditation Jason says, "The public goes wrong by forcing themselves to do too much too soon."

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Hormones and Attraction

Hormones are chemical messengers that travel around the body co-ordinating complex processes like growth and development, metabolism, fertility, and almost everything the body does to stay alive. They orchestrate the changes that occur at puberty, they affect the immune system, and they can alter behaviour. Secreted by a network of endocrine glands and distributed through the bloodstream, they enable communication with distant organs to co-ordinate the body's actions and reactions in events as diverse as disease, pregnancy and stress.


The Independent
Roger Dobson

A woman's smile may not be all it seems. When her zygomaticus major cheek muscle moves the upper lip upward and outward to produce that warm smile, it may be more than a friendly gesture – it could be a sign of hormones at work.

Researchers have found when a woman sees images of men, her smile muscle is more active during the follicular stage of the monthly cycle, and they suggest it may be a way of increasing the chances of intimacy. Progesterone, the hormone that prepares the womb for a possible pregnancy, is thought to be implicated. It's the latest research to show the effects of hormones on mood and behaviour. Other hormones have been linked to depression, stress, anxiety, forgetfulness, social bonding, fatherhood, lying, generosity, romance and trust, as well as sexual relationships. Some of these hormones helping in sexual attraction and romance are:

Oxytocin

It stimulates contraction of the uterus and milk ducts in the breast. Research shows that breast-feeding women who have higher levels are calmer than bottle-feeders. Also known as the hormone of love, it has been shown to increase social bonding.

Oestrogen

Helps in the development of the female sex characteristics. During the menstrual cycle, it acts to produce an environment suitable for the fertilisation, implantation and growth of the embryo. Oestradiol, one of the oestrogens, also helps women to be more attractive to men, according to a Harvard study. Symmetrical-faced women, seen as more attractive by men, had a 21 per cent higher mid-cycle oestradiol level than asymmetrical women.

Progesterone

It is responsible for preparing the body for pregnancy and, in pregnancy, maintaining it until birth. Research is increasingly showing that it has a big impact on mood. Watching a romantic film boosted progesterone levels by more than 10 per cent, bringing couples closer together, according to research at the University of Michigan.

Work at the Center of Mental Health, Marienheide, Germany, shows that the smile muscle of women was most active in the follicular phase of the monthly cycle, when the hormone levels are low. Women smiled more when exposed to images of men. "Up to now, no efforts have been made to investigate the relationship between ovulation-related shifts in women's sexual desire and changes in their facial expression of emotion. Smiling... is an important precondition of social relations of any kind. A female's smile at a male might increase the probability of a more intimate contact including sexual intercourse," the research found.

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Posture helps attraction

Correct posture and exercise give health benefits, keep you looking young and slim, and is a sign of self-confidence. But a good body posture is also a signal to the opposite sex of your attraction and willingness to mate!

Poor body posture occurs because of old age, weak muscles, and lack of bone strength. Nowadays even young children suffer from poor posture because of their sedentary lifestyles and long stretches spent slouched in front of a computer. Posture can be corrected through training and exercise; for those unwilling to take out time for such training the simple way, while walking, standing, or sitting, is to point your thumbs backwards until your shoulders are pushed back. This is similar to the way the body stretches when you yawn.

If health benefits and youth aren't motivation enough, remember that sexual attraction and beauty are all about the right body language. If you're attracted to another person you try to get their attention by sitting up straight, making eye contact, and presenting a confident and healthy picture of yourself to that person. And even otherwise a person with a good posture attracts people's attention. Someone who is always slouching or has their head bowed gives out a body signal which says, "Don't look at me, I'm hideous!"

People instinctively straighten their back and push back their shoulders when a camera is pointed at them. This is also why in professions like modeling, fashion, and other visible media, men and women instinctively have good posture. Those that don't are given training on how to walk with confidence, carry themselves gracefully, enhancing their attraction for the viewer.

Israeli model Bar Refaeli with South Africa model Lorraine van Wyk

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Fergie fit for wedding

Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie, and her actor fiance, Josh Duhamel, hosted a joint hen and stag party before their wedding this Saturday in a secret location within the Los Angeles area.. The couple invited 75 friends and family to the new Dakota Lounge in Santa Monica, a beachside suburb of Los Angeles on Wednesday night for the festivities. While Transformers star Josh went for a casual look in jeans, white t-shirt and brown leather jacket, bride-to-be Fergie, real name Stacy Ferguson, showed off her newly-slimmed figure in a sequinned black mini-dress.

Guests at Wednesday's party included Fergie's Black Eyed Peas bandmates William 'Will.I.Am' Adams, Alan 'Alp.de.Ap' Lindo and Jaime 'Taboo' Gomez. During the bash, the guests feasted on Kobe beef sliders, tuna tartar and shrimp skewers and sipped champagne during the candlelight dinner, before dancing to Eighties hits.

Meanwhile Fergie, who gained 13 pounds for her recent role in the movie musical Nine, has embarked on a fitness regimen to fit into her wedding dress.


Daily Mail


33-year old Fergie has been doing daily workouts to get in shape for her big day. As well as cutting out sugar and carbohydrates from her diet, she's been doing cardio and weights to look sleek and slender.

Speaking last week, Fergie said: "It's hard, I've been working out every day. (I'm doing) a lot of hiking and doing a bunch of sit-ups, working my butt off and just, you know, try to maintain and stay healthy."

Fergie fell for 36-year old Josh Duhamel after guest-starring on his former TV show Las Vegas in September 2004. Before the couple met, Duhamel confessed to having naughty dreams about the singer in an interview with InStyle magazine. He said: "I can't tell you what happens, but I can tell you it involves Fergie. I've got the biggest crush on her! God, is she hot."

The couple share a £2.5million home together in Los Angeles and Fergie recently described their life as 'practically married'.

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Paloma Fiuza bottom

Paloma Fiuza, popularly known as "Pops" in South America, is a dancer and TV celebrity. "La colita sigue siendo la parte más importante de mi cuerpo," Paloma Fiuza has said many times. It translates to "The bottom is still the most important part of my body". The female bottom is considered attractive in most parts of the world, but the most passionate admirers of this body part are found in Latin America.

Paloma Fiuza's bottom attracts so much attention that there has been media speculation over whether she had her bottom enhanced by surgery? But in an interview Paloma has clarified that she had silicone inserted in her breasts, but that her bottom is "100% natural".



Speaking to Cosas Magazine late last year, the Brazilian beauty revealed some lesser known facts about her life. Like the fact that she has a twin brother named Patric, and that she lives in Guayaquil, Ecuador with her older sister Tricia. Paloma describes Tricia as 27, blonde, and freckled....Fiuza also has another brother named Diego. Paloma has other siblings from her mother's second marriage; her mother lives in Brazil and is a pianist.

Paloma Fiuza started by learning the piano but fell in love with dancing. Paloma became very popular in Brazil with her dance group Axe Porto Seguro. Her signature move was shaking her bottom with such skill that it sent her popularity soaring among young viewers, male and female. In Ecuador she got a TV contract with RTS channel, and appeared on a TV show Mekane in Chile. Fiuza now has her own TV series Cholicienta.

It was in Chile that she first had surgery done for her breasts, which had to be corrected again in Brazil. After that, Paloma says, she has not had any other operations and calls her bottom "a gift from heaven". She stays in shape because of her dancing, but Paloma also works out, paying special attention to her bottom because in her view "defects in the body first appear there." So Fiuza does jogging and weight training; as for food she makes sure to eat lot of fiber. Paloma says, "I love sweets but try to avoid them and lately I am eating less meat."



In February last year Paloma Fiuza competed to be crowned Queen of the 49th edition of the International Song Festival of Viña del Mar in Chile. Among her competition was Argentinian hottie Jésica Cirio...both of them posing in the photo above. But Colombian model Pilar Ruiz Dufay was chosen as the Queen by journalists covering the annual event in the Chilean seaside resort. Paloma Fiuza was a close second. There are many pictures of Paloma Fiuza in skimpy bikinis, but Paloma is spectacular even when fully clothed.

As with famous female celebrities who project an overtly sexual image, scandals keep coming up with Paloma's name. It is said that she sleeps with VIPs for money, but Paloma counters: that with all her success she really doesn't need to, and that such allegations do not worry her. Fiuza is 25 and doesn't have a boyfriend because she's too busy with work.

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Kate Winslet figure

British actress Kate Winslet says she has achieved her ultimate figure, in the February issue of Elle Magazine, which comes out on January 7.


Daily Mail
Simon Cable

Kate Winslet says that she has slimmed down thanks to regular Pilates sessions at her home which she has done since having her second child five years ago. "I've actually been this way since I had Joe," Winslet said. "I still don't believe in this craziness for being skinny, but I eat sensibly and I don't stuff down chocolate biscuits. I don't go to the gym because I don't have time but I do Pilates workout DVDs for 20 minutes or more every day at home."

Kate Winslet's latest film is Revolutionary Road, for which she has received a Golden Globe nomination. It is directed by her husband and in it she appears alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, the first time the pair have worked together since Titanic in 1997.



Pilates combines strength-training and Yoga in a series of slow controlled stretches to make you lean and supple, rather than build muscle. Kate Winslet has previously admitted that her photo on the cover of GQ magazine was digitally enhanced...this was back in 2003. But just last year in November, Kate Winslet's bareback photos in Vanity Fair were also rumored to be digitally enhanced!

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