This should have been up yesterday, but at least it's up right now.  I was hoping to find some random tips, or at least come across an article with a bunch.  Last week I found the latter.  This week's topic comes from a Men's Health article on Yahoo- a collection of strange health tips that are apparently true and work.  I've seen something similar to a couple on here that I read about on various home remedy sites in the past, so I wasn't weirded out by seeing them on this list, as odd as they are.



Live Longer by Changing Your Name
People with "positive" initials—ones that spell out things like J.O.Y. or W.O.W.—live nearly 4-1/2 years longer than people with neutral initials, according to a University of California, San Diego study. D.U.D.'s live nearly three years less. Other initials that may shorten life: I.L.L. and D.E.D.

Keep Your Mind Sharper by Being a Jerk
Research from the U.S. Administration on Aging suggests there's a marked difference between how younger and older people interpret misplacing their car keys. A young guy usually blames someone else. An old man typically blames himself. Never use your age as an excuse—you'll remain sharper longer.

Break a High Fever With Your Armpits
Anything up to 102°F is mild and can be treated by drinking plenty of fluids. But to quickly bring down a reading above that, put an ice pack under your arm or near your groin. Icing either spot will cool your body's core. It's uncomfortable, but it works fast. Then see a doctor.

Prevent Claustrophobia by Smelling This Fruit
If you get nervous in small spaces such as subways, elevators, and that closet of an office they stuck you in, visit your local fruit stand. A sniff of green apple may help relieve claustrophobic sensations, says Dr. Alan Hirsch, M.D., director of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation. Carry one with you. Also, if you're selling your house, placing a basket of fresh green apples on the table may make potential buyers perceive the house as larger.

Disinfect a Wound with Honey
No Neosporin in the house? Dab the cut with honey before covering it with a bandage. Believe it or not, honey has powerful antibacterial properties. A study in the Archives of Surgery found that honey is capable of destroying almost all strains of the most common wound-infecting bacteria.

Stop Bleeding with This Spice
Next time you nick yourself in the kitchen, reach for the black pepper, says Roberta Lee, M.D., vice chair of the department of integrative medicine at the Beth Israel Medical Center. Run cold water over the wound to clean it, using soap if you were handling meat. Then sprinkle on the pepper and apply pressure. In no time, the bleeding will stop. Turns out, black pepper has analgesic, antibacterial, and antiseptic properties. And don't worry—it won't sting.

See Your Tailor to Cure Back Pain
If you have an aching back, it may be because one of your legs is shorter than the other, says Steven McCaw, Ph.D., a researcher at Illinois State University. Even a slight imbalance can cause the spine to curve to the short side when you walk or run. Eventually, the bend puts painful pressure on disks. Most people can’t tell if their legs are different lengths, but a tailor can. Ask one for a quick measurement. If he finds an imbalance, correct the problem with a therapeutic, Dr. Scholl-type insert or see a podiatrist for a custom-made orthotic.

Massage Away Nicotine Cravings
If you’re a smoker who’s trying to quit, try this simple trick the next time a craving hits: Rub the skin between your index fingers and thumbs and the center of your palms. A study in Preventive Medicine found that men using this technique smoked 25 percent fewer cigarettes in a month than 10 quitters who used traditional distraction methods such as chewing gum. The quick self-massage evidently calms you and keeps your hands busy.

Drink This to Lower Your Cholesterol
The fiber supplement Metamucil can help lower elevated cholesterol levels. In one study, men who took one packet mixed in water before each meal for eight weeks experienced drops in LDL cholesterol averaging 7 percent. Metamucil also helps to lower blood pressure, blood sugar, and the risk of heart disease, according to the National Fiber Council.


Not a whole lot of tips this time, but they will help.  The tip about putting an ice pack under your armpit is very true.  Your armpit is one of the place on your body that transfers temperature to the rest of your body.  Other places include your groin, feet and both sides of your neck.  The same is true for trying to warm up your body from being cold.  Put a heating pad in any or all of those place and place a hat on your head and you'll warm up in no time.  In fact, if you did put pads covering your groin, armpits and neck while wearing warm boots and a cold-weather cap you could essentially go out into the frigid cold wearing nothing but that and stay warm for a while despite the rest of your body being exposed.  An experiment I wouldn't mind trying- as long as no one is watching.  I also read some of the comments on that page and one person said this about the honey thing-
"If you are going to use honey for wounds, you will want to use raw honey, as the heating process of commercial honey kills most of the phytonutrients and other beneficial properties that it contains."
You can still try with other honey, but it may not be as good as the "raw" stuff.

If you've anything to add to this please post it here and let share it with others.

Click here to go to "Well Being" week 10

Click here to go to "Well Being" week 8

I still don't understand the Being a Jerk section. I don't follow how the explanation connects to the title.

The break a fever section was interesting. It never occurred to me, but it makes sense. My armpits are usually warmer, so I use that to warm up my hands when my hands are cold. If my armpits are warmer then they must have more of a connection to the body's overall temperature.


Are you going to update the links? It took me until the third time I read through that to notice they were missing.

BNuge : I meant to put the link in there, but forgot. I also have to link week 8 to this one.

I think what the "jerk" part of the article is saying is that "you are what you say you are." I'm sure you've heard the saying that if you keep telling yourself, or perhaps other people, that your sick, then you'll most likely stay sick for a longer than normal time. And if you claim you're always getting better and better as time goes on then you recover a lot quicker. It's a psychological thing. In more than one way. So for that particular section, blaming yourself for losing track of your keys in the manner of "it's okay, I'm getting old and my memory is fading," is sort of letting exactly that happen. Blaming it one someone else (that's just an example) means you deny the fact that your losing your mind and that you still have a good memory. So your mind/brain adapts to that logic physically, and as the article says, "you'll stay sharper longer". It's one those things that most people don't understand how it works. It just does.

Great facts as always keep up the fun and quirky facts I just love reading through the strage but true things.