"Breast is Best"

"Extended breast feeding linked to higher IQ and income in study"

By: Sandee LaMotte

Source: CNN

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/18/health/breastfeeding-iq-income/index.html

      Breast feeding has been said to be the best option for babies. Past studies show that breast feeding is related to a 7.5 point increase in IQ for school aged children. It was also known to be linked with overall better IQ in adults who were breast fed as babies. Breast feeding is also deemed the better option (as opposed to formula or the like) because it is linked to lower mortality rates of babies and has smaller risk of leading to the contraction of milk-related diseases. So what is new?

Recently, the results of a 1982 Brazilian study on the results of breast feeding were released. It kept in touch with nearly 6,000 Brazilian mothers who breast fed their babies for an extended period of time (near twelve months) and recorded the results thirty years later. The thirty year length of the study makes it unique. The 68% of the study participants who they were able to get a response from showed nearly 4 points higher IQ and 20% more income than average income level people. Breast feed may be beneficial because of its long chain of polyunsaturated fatty acids, but the results of this study can be tied to a multitude of uncontrolled factors. 

       Regardless, the study is greatly important because it may benefit mothers from lower-income families who can not afford expensive formula or other costly milk alternatives for babies. Even if the increase in income and IQ in breast fed subjects is caused by other factors, if soon-to-be mothers catch wind of this news and demonstrate interest toward it, they would also watch for its positive changes in their children over the years. They would unconsciously out in more effort in order for their children to perform better in school and, in the long run, attain better paying jobs. 

Come Together

Marketing done wrong.

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   Gender roles are dangerous things. Even in a contemporary context, gender roles spell restriction. Gender roles strive to draw solid lines between genders. Those who dare stray past said boundaries are labeled and looked down upon. Manufacturers of products as unisex as pens take advantage of and harbor these societal limitations through senseless gender marketing. Pens for her. Body wash for him. They nurture the fear within male consumers of being too feminine by offering products designed for strong, rough men. They nurture the fear within female consumers of being too masculine by offering products designed for subtle and submissive women. Gender roles are inflicted upon the youth from a very young age. Parents often fear the preference their preschool-aged son may show toward the colour pink. This preference is associated with being homosexual. Oftentimes, that is not the case; the child merely likes the given colour Why should a colour be limited to a single gender? What a drab world this must be... In either case, why should homosexuality be looked down upon? If people were not so dead set in their opposition of homosexuality or any other types of sexuality that differ from the traditional heterosexual mode, then maybe the world would be a more peaceful and loving place. The truth is sex is merely a biological term and gender is a social construct. Gender roles attempt to restrict individuals from achieving their desired potential and expressing their individualism. Gender roles should be viewed as an anachronism within the twenty-first century. If a "male" individual wishes to dress like a female, then kudos to that individual. If a woman wishes to work in a male-dominated line of work, and her husband wishes to be a stay-at-home dad, then all the power to them. In order to free this world of mundanity and hate, individuals must advocate the abolishment of gender roles. 

Marketing done right.

The Sound of Silence

"A billion at risk for hearing loss from exposure to loud music"

By: Sandee LaMotte

Source: CNN      

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/06/health/hearing-loss-loud-music/index.html

  It happens to the best of people. People try to prove that they are "ballsy" by raising volumes to their highest levels as angry music is blasted into the dark confines of their ears. It is a battle of endurance, a mating call, a show of valor. They want to forget their troubles and immerse themselves into the words and melodies weaved by others. They do not wish to exert the additional effort in filtering out the external world through concentration, and instead seek refuge behind earbuds and adamantly keep their fingers locked on the button that keeps the noise to its pinnacle and the internal pain to a minimum. This is contemporary suicide. People are knowingly abusing their ears, merely allocating pain from within, generating a state without [hearing].

          "More than one billion teens and young adults are at risk of losing their hearing, according to WHO (that's the World Health Organization, not the rock band)" (LaMotte, 1). The risk is a result of damaging levels of music played on personal devices or at night clubs and venues. Countless artists experience the downsides of extremely loud music at concerts. Chris Martin, the lead singer of Coldplay, is among them; he suffers from tinnitus, or a type of hearing loss that brings about a constant ringing in the ears. These are indelible issues, but they are preventable. WHO recently release their Make Listening Safe campaign which advocates change from manufacturers on music devices and promotes education to consumers. 

         This issue is of upmost importance as 360 million people have hearing loss, with more than 50% of those cases being preventable ones. Music is sacrosanct, but abusing its power threatens to bring about the sound of silence. Perhaps the masses will find beauty in the latter as well...