Do Trees Talk?

Walk into any forest, and beneath your feet is an elaborate social network that helps make life on Earth possible. It’s called the “Wood Wide Web”, a massive and intricate network of fungi that exchange water, nutrients, and chemical signals with the plants they’re living in a symbiotic relationship with. This network of fungi is essential to the health and function of forests and to controlling climate change itself. You’re about to look at fungi in a whole new way!

Mayo Clinic Minute: Living Near Nature Linked to Better Health

A new study says living near green space can help women live longer and improve their mental health.

"This was a large survey of nurses who were asked about where they live and how much green space nearby," explains Dr. Vandana Bhide, a Mayo Clinic internal medicine specialist, who was not part of the research. "Results suggest people who live in the greenest areas actually had a lower death rate."

Study authors believe the findings would be similar in men.

In this Mayo Clinic Minute, Dr. Bhide highlights more of the study's results and explains how they can inspire a healthier life. Jeff Olsen reports.

How Stress Affects Your Body - Sharon Horesh Bergquist

Our hard-wired stress response is designed to gives us the quick burst of heightened alertness and energy needed to perform our best. But stress isn’t all good. When activated too long or too often, stress can damage virtually every part of our body. Sharon Horesh Bergquist gives us a look at what goes on inside our body when we are chronically stressed.

Lesson by Sharon Horesh Bergquist, animation by Adriatic Animation.

Lack of Sunlight Exposure Linked to Depression and Poor Sleep

Aside from getting your daily dose of Vitamin D, there is now another reason why you need to have yourself exposed to sunlight, our natural light. A new study published by Chronobiology International reveals that the lack of natural light exposure increases the risk of developing depression and having a poor quality of sleep.

View from the Treetops | National Geographic

Steve Sillett climbs a massive redwood, 350 feet in the sky, in order to study the unique environment of the forest canopy.

How Hangin’ In A Hammock Can Help Your Health

What is better for sleep: hammocks or beds? We’re accustomed to beds, but the benefits of sleeping in a hammock should be taken seriously.

A University of Geneva Study found that the gentle rocking motion of a hammock helps people fall asleep faster and encourages a deeper state of sleep. Research conducted on 12 healthy adults noted that they fell asleep quicker in a rocking bed, and the rocking also boosted certain types of sleep-related brain wave oscillations. It increased slow oscillations and bursts of activity in the brain known as sleep spindles, which are associated with deep sleep and memory consolidation.

The researchers also found the swaying motion increased the duration of stage N2 sleep, a type of non-rapid eye movement sleep that usually takes up about half of a night’s worth of good sleep.

Though the study was small, it could mean that hammocks should be considered in treating insomnia and other sleep disorders. Further, a good night’s sleep has all sorts of benefits, such as greater ability to concentrate, a better mood, better body repair and recovery and increased learning.

It’s worthwhile to note hammocks may be good for back pain, they are dust-mite free, and breathe well in hot weather.

Hammocks are also a solution to disrupted sleep because of tossing and turning. When you sleep on a flat bed, your body weight collects in different areas, called pressure points, as explained by Hammock Life Tips. That leads to moving around all night as you try to relieve tension and discomfort to different areas and parts of your body. A hammock, however, adjusts to your body shape.

Likewise, a hammock facilitates sleeping in what is considered the healthiest position: flat on your back with the head slightly elevated. The position gives the brain optimal blood circulation, and allows for unobstructed breathing, according to one doctor at the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Other non-health-related benefits of hammocks include convenience and affordability. When camping, pitching a hammock is quick, and there won’t be any rocks sticking in your back as you sleep. And in hot weather, there’s great air circulation; while in cold weather, just stay in your sleeping bag, in the hammock.

And then there’s the view. One of my most memorable nights was spent in a hammock on the patio of a palafito (house on stilts in the middle of a lake) in Venezuela, watching the midnight Catatumbo lightning.

How to sleep in a hammock

Whether on your balcony, in your bedroom or camping, you should make sure your hammock is hung with a nice loose curve. The curve will prevent any shoulder squeeze, and will ensure you don’t fall out, according to The Ultimate Hang. Sleep in it diagonally for a flat position, and bring in a pillow, if you like (though a hammock does naturally elevate your head).

The diagonal line works equally for those who prefer to sleep on their side, or even in fetal position. However, with the way the netting holds you, conforming to your natural curves and removing pressure points, a hammock will often keep you happily sleeping on your back, even if that’s not your usual style.

Avoid hammocks that have horizontal rods at each end (spreader-bar hammock): They are unstable, and won’t bring the same positive benefits, though they may look nice.

Hammock history

Hammocks appear to date back around a thousand years, to when the Maya and other indigenous groups in Central America and the Caribbean used them. Hung from trees, they offered distance from the dirty ground and from snakes and spiders. Sometimes people would place hot coals or kindle small fires under the hammocks in order to stay warm or ward off insects.

The earliest hammocks were woven from the bark of the Hamak tree. Then fibers from the Sisal plant were used as they could be softened quite easily. Cotton rope hammocks have only really been around for the last 60 years.

The word “hammock” may come from the Taino people of the Caribbean, who used the word hamaca to refer to fish nets, or it might come from the Hamak tree.

Seaside Hammocks estimates that at least 100 million people around the world use hammocks as their beds. But if you want to take a gentle sleep to an amazing extreme, you can copy the participants in the International Highline Meeting in Italy, and sleep in a hammock suspended thousands of feet in the air, with a great view of the Italian Alps.

Whatever your preference, it’s worth thinking about alternative ways to sleep instead of the typical bed. Sometimes there are better ways to do things — don’t be afraid to try them!

Article Source: https://www.thealternativedaily.com/how-hangin-in-a-hammock-can-help-your-health/

Why Does Nature Make You Feel Better?

It’s not a huge surprise that nature is beneficial to our mental health. But why? Hosted by: Hank Green

Special Baby Deer Loves To Play Mom To Her Friends & Other Deer Stories | The Dodo Top 5

Baby Deer Loves To Play Mom To All Her Friends | This baby deer was just days old when she was rescued. She lives with other orphans now, and even though she's still a baby, she likes to pretend she's everyone's mom.

Happy 4th of July!

America is hope. It is compassion. It is excellence. It is valor. 

Paul Tsongas

The Secret Language of Trees - Camille Defrenne and Suzanne Simard

Learn how trees are able to communicate with each other through a vast root system and symbiotic fungi, called mycorrhizae.

Most of the forest lives in the shadow of the giants that make up the highest canopy. These are the oldest trees, with hundreds of children and grandchildren. They check in with their neighbors, share food, supplies and wisdom gained over their lives, all while rooted in place. How do they do this? Camille Defrenne and Suzanne Simard explore the vast root system and intricate communication of trees.

Lesson by Camille Defrenne and Suzanne Simard, directed by Avi Ofer.