Balanced Immune Health

A story in last week’s New York Times got me..and scores of others, I’m sure…thinking about our wired world. The story described new research showing the brain needs downtime, away from constant stimulus. This was illustrated in studies at The University of California San Francisco and the University of Michigan. The story discusses the growing habit in the developed world of people incessantly texting, checking mobile email and web alerts, gaming, watching movies, all during what might normally be some cranial breathing space. When my wife and I are on a walk on a trail near our home and we see moms pulling their kids in wagons while texting or listening to I-Pods (anything except interacting with their kids), it really makes me wonder.

The story points out that even when we think we’re relaxing by plugging into some kind of digital device, we’re still taxing our brain. Here’s a great piece that gives some thoughtful guidance to dealing with overworked brains and how that may impact immune response and long-term health. Balance, it seems, is not only an immune health concept, it’s a cognitive health concept as well.

Filed under Balanced Immune Health, Research