Hot MedFax

Exercise.  We all pretty much hate it, though I force myself to do an hour a day of running, swimming or using the elliptical or, my newest torture machine, the arc trainer. But a new study now says that if you compete with your friends, and even sweeter, get financial incentives, you'll be, well, at least a little more motivated. According to newswise.com, having your exercise performance compared to that of  peers motivates you to do more. And adding a financial incentive would rank it up there with nirvana.  Well, almost. Comparing performance to average peers (the 50th percentile), and offering financial incentives was the most effective method for increasing physical activity among teams of employees, according to new research, the web site reports. The study also found that different combinations of social comparison feedback and financial incentives can lead to a significant difference in outcomes within workplace competitions. “Many employers are...

Who knew? Cyber-bullying is apparently less emotionally harmful than in-person bullying. I guess it makes sense.  Someone standing in front of you calling you a racist slur is a lot more alarming because he's in your face.  But I maintain that cyber-bullying is every bit as bad, despite the conclusion a new study came to. Newswise.com reports that, contrary to popular belief, cyberbullying that starts and stays online is no more emotionally harmful to youngsters than harassment that only occurs in-person and may actually be less disturbing because it's likelier to be of shorter duration and not involve significant power imbalances, according to a study published by the American Psychological Association. Although technology-only incidents were more likely to involve large numbers of witnesses, they were least likely to involve multiple perpetrators, the study found. Also, while technology-only incidents were more likely to involve strangers or anonymous perpetr...

After battling all the issues that come with being overweight -- poor health, body image concerns, even mobility problems for some -- a new study has found that overweight kids may have a problem getting friends, too.  The study showed that overweight kids are less likely than their thinner counterparts to be chosen as a friend by their peers. Newswise.com reports that t he study, involving data from almost 60,000 students from 88 middle and high schools, used a social networking approach asking adolescent participants, at an average age of 15, to identify their five closest female friends and five closest male friends. "Body mass index was self-reported and participants were categorized as underweight, healthy weight, overweight or obese," the Web site notes.. Results from the study indicate that non-overweight youths were more likely to select non-overweight friends than friends who carried extra weight.  But while the heavier students didn't pay much attention to...