Life Hacks

According to the Harvard Study of Adult Development, the key to happiness in retirement has less to do with money and more to do with how many friends you have. Researchers surveyed hundreds of people before and after retirement and found that a strong friend support network was a big factor determining happiness. The most satisfied people had about 16 friends they could call on. Those less happy had ten friends or fewer in retirement. 

And just like financial advisors say we should be developing good financial habits to prepare us for retirement, we need to do the same with our friendships. Harvard psychology professor Marc Schulz says the social support we get from friends reduces our stress, enhances our well-being and provides mental stimulation. And just like our monetary investments, the point is to find people with whom you can grow, and whom you can count on. That will help you prepare for a happy retirement!

The average adult gains 2 pounds a year. That may not sound like much, but that creeping weight gain can add up. So what can you do to stay at a steady weight? Drink an extra glass of water every day! Harvard researchers say that one simple move could be even more important than exercise and dieting when it comes to controlling your weight. 

During the 20-year study, the researchers found that middle-aged adults who replaced one sugary soda a day with water weighed about seven pounds less than those who stuck with soda. 

Here’s a new way to protect your brain as you age. Turn your bedroom into a fragrant sanctuary! That’s according to researchers at the UCI Center for the Neurobiology Lead researcher Michael Leon says that by age 60, our sense of smell begins to decline, along with our memory. So he and his team decided to see if fragrances might make a difference. 

In the study, half of the participants were asked to sleep in a scent-free bedroom. The rest were given an essential oil diffuser to use in their bedroom for two hours every night. 

And the participants rotated through the different scents, getting a fresh, stimulating whiff before bed each night. The scents included rose, lemon, orange, lavender, eucalyptus, peppermint, and rosemary.

After 6 months, study participants with scented bedrooms scored 226% better on memory tests, compared to those in scent-free rooms! And their brain scans showed improvement in the memory-related pathways that typically decline with age.

So, why do aromas make such an impact on our brain? Because, unlike our other senses, the signals from our nose go straight to the brain areas linked to memory and emotion. That’s why a whiff of your grandpa’s cologne, or warm cookies like mom used to make can trigger vivid memories. If you’d like to try using a diffuser for two hours at bedtime, try these aromas:  rose, lemon, orange, lavender, eucalyptus, peppermint, and rosemary.

Here’s a trick that’ll reduce your stress in under a minute……

Try this exercise: Inhale deeply and as you do, raise your shoulders toward your ears. As you exhale slowly, push your shoulders down.

Repeat that 5 times. According to stress management experts, incorporating a shoulder shrug into deep breathing releases the tension we hold in our neck, shoulders and upper back. It also increases the output of endorphins, which cancel out stress hormones. And the deep breathing reduces heart rate and blood pressure. So combine it all – and you’ll shrug off your stress in under 60 seconds.