Benefits:

Some of the benefits of stretching are as follows:
- physical fitness

- increased suppleness

- ability to learn and perform skilled movements

- reduced risk of injury to joints and muscles

- reduced muscular soreness

- less painful menstruation in females

- increased relaxation and a feeling of general well being

Common Mistakes:

While stretching is good for your health, it needs to be done correctly. Unfortunately, even those who stretch do not always stretch properly and hence do not reap some or all of these benefits. Some of the most common mistakes made when stretching are:

- improper warm-up

- overstretching

- performing the wrong exercises

- performing exercises in the wrong (or sub-optimal) sequence

Stretching Tips:

Here are some tips to take care while stretching:
- Stretch for at least five to seven minutes

- Begin with gradual mobility exercises of all the joints, i.e. simply rotate the wrists

- Hold each stretch for a minimum of 20-30 seconds

- Breathe comfortably, with deep breaths through your nose, and out via your mouth

- While stretching you must feel a slight discomfort, else you may be doing the stretch incorrectly

- Stop immediately if you feel any pain.

Also: Stretching Techniques

The new world record broken by Tony Wright stands at 266 hours (though it is yet to be confirmed), which he started at 0600 BST on 14 May in Penzance.

The existing world record for 264 hours - 11 days, was undertaken as part of a science study project by a 17 year old, Randy Gardner, in the US in 1964.

According to Mr Wright, it is easy to go on without sleep for a long time without any side effects. However, he felt constrained by having to stay in the same place for the last 11 days at a Studio bar in Penzance. He spent the time playing pool and writing an online diary. At point, he almost fell asleep while writing his online diary.

Mr Wright relied on a raw food diet, including fruit, salad, seeds and nuts, to help keep him awake. He said that his diet, which was based on his research on sleep and herb tea “seemed to make a big difference to my ability to stay awake and remain functional”.

He has conducted 15 years of research into human sleep, and claimed each side of the human brain requires a different amount of sleep. As part of his research, he had conducted over 100 experiments on staying awake ranging from periods of two to eight days.

He said that it has still not sunken in that he has set a new record. Though he does not plan to break his own record, he said that he could not guarantee that he will be able to sleep right away and so may extend his record by another day.

Also BBC.

Many economists have insisted the specialization of roles in a traditional marriage with the husband as the breadwinner and the wife as the homemaker was more efficient. With both the spouses opting for a career outside home, the balance is destroyed causing instability in marriage.

Social conservatives too have maintained that the higher the income of the women, the greater the divorce rate.

In fact, last year, an article called ‘Don’t marry career woman’ by Michael Noer was published in Forbes and was flamed universally by feminists across the Internet world. This forced Forbes to remove it and repackage it is as an opinion with a counter opinion.

Things have changed over time as more and more women are earning and marriages are working ‘in spite of’ this.

Recently, Nancy Burstein, a senior consultant at Apt Associates, reviewed years of research on marriage and divorce for an article in the latest Journal of Policy Analysis and Management. She found that marriages of working women are more stable than marriages of their non-working counterparts. In fact, there seems to be a more equal participation in decision-making, parenting and household chores by both partners. This trend would help in promoting the argument for more paid maternal and paternal leave as well as for better child care.

These studies have forced the social conservatives such as David Popenoe, founder and co-director of Rutgers University’s National Marriage Project in New Brunswick, N.J., to admit that marriages are more stable with working women.

Margarines that reduce cholesterol, yoghurts to improve digestion and sports drinks that boost energy are the hot favorites. Fruit juices and even mineral water with added vitamins are very popular with the health conscious.

Some Probiotic drinks claim to take oxygen into your body while others promise to act as food for good bacteria in your guts.

Ask a regular consumer, whether they have noticed any healthy difference after consuming the Probiotic drink and they will swear by it. However, ask them to quantify how exactly have they benefited from it, and they will tell you that they feel better than before. It makes one wonder if the benefit is really psychological rather then physiological.

Millions of consumers are using these foods every day. On the other hand, every month newer varieties are being introduced in the market. Yet, they are not being monitored the way a new drug is monitored at its launch.

Writing in the British Medical Journal, Nynke de Jong, project director at the Dutch Institute wrote that the cholestrol lowering products could trigger reactions in people taking statins - drugs and might, in fact, increase the risk of heart disease.

When Jeremy Hamilton-Miller, a now retired professor of microbiology who has studied probiotics, analysed the contents of some of the probiotic supplements last year, he found that only a third contained the billions of bacteria claimed on the package label. However, he agrees that probiotic bacteria are not harmful and there are several interesting studies that claim its benefits for bowel related problems.

The obvious question that comes to mind, is that as we were getting along fine without these extra vitamins and bacteria so far, do we really need them today? Perhaps not!

All said and done, these products are booming in the market while the related research is too young to give us scientific proof.

Also Read: TimesOnline

2. Do I have more friends online than in real life?

3. How often do my family members complain about the time I spend online?

If you answered ‘Yes’ to one or more of the above questions, you may have been struck by the latest epidemic - ‘Internet Addiction Disorder’ (IAD). To find out whether you have IAD or not, take this online test created by the Centre for Internet Addiction.

Causes for the addiction
Psychologists have divided opinions on this disorder; some of them claim that no such addiction exists; while others say that it is similar to the addiction where people watch a lot of TV or read a lot of books.

Youngsters generally use the Internet for email access, instant messaging, chat rooms, porn, social networking websites, gaming, on-line shopping and gambling, which is fascinating at first, but becomes addictive later on.

Military Camp for Treatment
As per the Hindu, the IAD has become a serious concern, especially in China, where China’s National Children’s Centre (CNCC) reported that the number of Internet users in China had grown from virtually zero in the 1990s to a whopping 137 million in 2006. Of this 15% are under the age of 18, in other words, 2.3 million Internet users are minors.

Hence, China has started a military camp in Beijing not for training soldiers but to cure the Internet addicts through training and strict discipline.

Though we may not need to go to this extreme measure, we can try a few basic rules to prevent from getting addicted.

Parental Check Software
Installing Parental check software on your PC can help restrict access to certain web sites as well as can be used to switch off the computer after a predefined amount of time.

Setup alerts
Alerts can be setup on your computer to remind you of pending tasks at the relevant time, so that you are aware of your other responsibilities.

Create your offline social life
David Greenfield, PhD, founder of the Center for Internet Studies disagreed by quoting that “It’s (the Internet) a socially connecting device that’s socially isolating at the same time (DeAngelis, 2000, par. 7).” Thus, the most important means to overcome this addiction is to engage in outdoor activities, socialize with real friends and be on the move.

The Indian Constitution has defined the right to free and compulsory education to all children between 6 and 14 years on one hand and has prohibited employment of children in factories, mines and other hazardous employment, on the other.

The Law of the nation has the following provisions against child labour:

Occupations where child Labour is illegal
The Act prohibits employment of children in 13 occupations and 57 processes contained in Part A & B of the Schedule to the Act (Section 3). (In October, 2006, two other occupations were added to this list - domestic workers or servants and Dhabas (roadside eateries), restaurants, hotels, motels, tea shops, resorts, spas or other recreational centers)

Punishment under the law
Any person who employs any child in contravention of the provisions of section 3 of the Act is liable for punishment with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three months but which may extend to one year or with fine which shall not be less than Rs 10,000 but which may extend to Rs 20,000 or both.

Paradise for children
So ideally, every day of the academic year, every child ought to be in a classroom getting that basic education which is their right as per the Constitution of their beloved country! However, the truth is far from this idyllic paradise.

The sad truth
The law, however stringent, cannot be effective in banning child labour. This is because child labour is not a problem but the symptom of other issues that exist in our society. Some of these are:

- poverty which drives the parents to send their children to work,

- lack of education of the parents, which makes them ignorant of the importance of education or family planning, for that matter

- age old cultural desire to have a son which results in big families

- the caste system which seemingly has disappeared but exists very much in the minds of the ‘educated upper’ class.

Each of the above causes the parents to send their children to work to satisfy their basic needs.

What can help
The solution to put an end to the problem of child labour is many-fold:

One, the cause of the problem needs to be resolved with initiatives from Government as well as NGOs to educate and encourage the parents to send their children to school.

Two, the bigger responsibility is on the society to give more value - monetary as well as in terms of respect to manual work. This will help in substantially resolving the financial problems of families where children are forced to work.

Thus, declaring and implementing a law may be fine to some extent but for total eradication of child labour, a united effort is required by the Government as well as the citizens of the country.

How does exercise help you?
Exercise makes the joints flexible, strengthens the muscles, reduces excess body fat as well as helps reach optimal weight and reduces stress levels. In addition to the above, exercise helps in lowering the blood sugar and blood pressure as well as lowers the risk of heart disease and cholesterol levels.

Before Getting Started
Having read about the multiple advantages of exercise, you are ready to go but before you start, it is important that you consult your doctor regarding the exercise that is most suitable for your condition, especially if you are not used to physical activity. Also, consult him on any change of medication that may be required as well as the time of exercise that is suitable for exercise, if you take insulin.

Kinds of Exercise
Physical activity such as walking, swimming, bicycling, dancing, aerobics, or sports such as tennis, basketball or volleyball, can be taken up.

Strengthening of muscles requires weight training using hand weights or weight machines or yogic postures. In fact, Yoga has some specific postures for diabetes such as ‘Surya Namaskar’, ‘Paschimotanasana’ and ‘Vajrasana’.

How long and how often
Exercising for 30 to 45 minutes for 5 days is generally recommended for fast results. However, if you are not used to activity, you can start for a shorter duration and gradually increase the time as you gain strength and stamina. However, note that 15-20 minutes of exercise daily is better than an hour, twice a week.

Precautions to take
Exercises that require lifting heavy weights cause strain on blood vessels in the eyes and must be avoided in case you have diabetic retinopathy.

Similarly, if you have numbness in your feet due to nerve damage from diabetes, you may not notice blisters and sores on your feet. This could later cause more serious problems. Your doctor may suggest swimming instead of walking in this case.

Physical activity can cause hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) in people, who take insulin. Hence, make sure you check your blood sugar levels before, during and after exercise. Also carry some food or glucose tablets with you when you go for exercise.

Things to remember
Wear cotton socks during exercise and check for sores or blisters after every session.

Drink water during exercise to avoid dehydration which can cause low sugar levels.

Refer also NDIC, FAQ Yoga for Diabetics

Alternative medicine includes methods such as naturopathy, ayurvedic science, yoga, aroma therapy and so on.

Naturopathy is a science which uses only natural products for curing of maladies which include fruits, vegetables and their juices. Similarly, Ayurvedic science uses certain herbs in addition to natural foods for treatment of diseases.

Aroma Therapy uses massage oils and creams made from plants and flowers for treating maladies. On the other hand, yoga consists of various postures of the body to provide strength and flexibility as well as some breathing exercises.

As of today, dietary supplements, health care practises, products and therapies promoted by CAM are not regulated by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act or the Public Health Service (PHS) Act.

FDA’s concern seems to be the large number of CAM products that are imported into the USA every year. Hence, the FDA has floated a draft proposal to act as a guidance on inclusion of the products used for treatment by alternative medicines as ‘drugs’.

As per the above, it is likely that some of the fruit and vegetable juices, herbs, massage oils and yoga apparatus may be classified as ‘drugs’ in the near future!

It would all depend on the label on the product. Hence, if the label says that ‘Water treats dehydration’ rather than just ‘It quenches your thirst’, it might be classified as a ‘drug’. This would mean that the manufacturer will have to follow all the regulations prescribed for a drug.

The FDA is considering the right approach to regulate the use of products supported by alternative medicinal methods. Thus, the manufacturers of natural products will have to wait while the FDA finalizes the list of products to be classified as drugs.