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Why men are more likely to catch this
15th May 2009
• Why men take more sick days than women
• How to reprogramme your mind to reduce
pain and even lose weight
• Try this tasty homemade cough syrup
Picture the scene...
A woman walks into the bathroom and finds her husband
slumped over the sink. His shoulders shudder with upset
and fear.
'What's wrong?' cries the woman, panicked.
The man turns to his wife, a tiny trickle of snot running
from his nose, his eyes red and blotchy.
'I've got a cold!' he cries. 'CALL 999.'
And with that he collapses on the floor.
What is it about some men that the slightest hint of a cold
causes almost immediate physical shutdown? Why do
colds magically turn into 'flu' when they hit a man's
immune system? Why do minor bugs seem to cause
some of us such pain and misery?
Now, at this point you may be thinking, 'What on earth,
Ray? I'm a man and I've never been off work with illness
a SINGLE DAY in my life. I'm as strong as an ox I'll have
you know. I've got a cold and yet I'm off to wrestle a bull
and slap a lion.'
In which case, fair enough. I doff my cap to you, Sir.
But if you're one of those men who get feel like the world
is ending when you get a cold, or you're a lady who
LIVES with one of those men, please read on...
You may find some vindication in today's Good Life
Letter.
'MAN FLU IS NOT A MYTH!'
...So claimed The Daily Mail on Wednesday this week.
Researchers from McGill University in Montreal have
found a reason why so many men get struck down at the
first sign of the sniffles. (INTERESTING FACTOID OF
THE DAY: Thirty percent of men take sick days,
compared with 22% of women).
The researchers say it's all down to the female sex
hormone oestrogen. Apparently this boosts women's
immune systems against the invading bacterial hordes.
Which means colds and flu don't take hold as quickly or
as powerfully as they do in men.
So men really COULD be hit harder by bugs!
This discovery could lead to something very strange in
the future... older men could be injected with female
hormones to protect them against flu.
In my view, as soon as you start offering men this option,
you'll get them saying.
'Oh, female hormones? Really? Actually, I'm feeling better...
honestly, it's just a cold... Yes, I'll be fine... In fact, I'm off
to work. BYE!'
But before you go thinking that this puts an end to the
great Men vs. Woman Flu Debate, hold your horses. This
experiment has been carried on only on mice so far. And
it's far from conclusive.
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Why pain is all in our minds
Other experts claim that the reason women feel less pain
from illness is simply a case of MIND OVER MATTER!
(No, they don't mean that 'women don't mind, and men
don't matter')
Scientists from Stanford University in California say pain
'can be blocked by telling yourself it does not exist.' I'm
not sure why women are better than this, the article
doesn't say. I presume for the same reason that women
can cope with events like childbirth whereas men would
run a mile screaming like children.
These experts say that visualisation technique can
reduce the discomfort of chronic pain by two-thirds. And I
agree that this is something that works...
How to re-programme your mind
Visualisation techniques are something I've covered
before in these letters.
If you're interested there are still copies left of a course I
recommended last year. It reveals how to re-programme
your mind using something called 'Neuropsychology'.
In this particular course, it's not about controlling pain as
such, but about re-training your mind to feel less hungry,
less addicted and reliant on food. But the principles apply
to anything really. Take a look at this:
Slim While You Sleep
Mainstream media is finally catching up with this idea
If you remember, I recommended this course in Summer
last year, saying that
Slim While You Sleep
was a new
and alternative way to deal with dieting. Instead of crash
diets and constant yo-yoing, you instead tackle the real
reasons WHY you eat.
Since then, the mainstream media have caught up on the
idea. Turning again to The Mail, a few weeks ago they
published an article how 'The devil in our mind dooms
us to diet failure'.
Neuroscientist Colin Camerer told the paper:
'After centuries of debate in social sciences we are finally
making big strides in understanding self-control from
watching the brain resist temptation directly.'
So trying some visualisation and coping strategies could
be worth a go. However, I have to remind you that I only
have a few copies of Slim While You Sleep left in stock
right now. If you want a copy, order at Slim While You Sleep
as soon as you can.
And if you are struggling with a summer cough right now,
then here's a tasty recipe for you to try. |
Make your own cherry cough syrup
I've been avidly reading James Wong's Grow Your Own
Drugs, (Published by Collins, 2009, available in most
book shops and on Amazon.co.uk). This book
accompanies the recent BBC television series of the
same name, which I raved about a few months ago.
On page 112 he has a tasty little homemade cough syrup
that uses my old favourite, honey.
The idea of the honey in this case is simply to soothe,
which means it shouldn't matter that this is a method
where you heat the honey.
You take 500g of cherries with the stones in. You slice a
lemon, and take 250ml of homey. Simmer it all for half an
hour, then strain and cool. Pour the mixture into a
sterilized bottle and take a couple of tablespoons when
your cough feels bad.
Mr Wong's book is well worth checking out. And today
the postman delivered another similar tome called Grow
Your Own Pharmacy by Linda Gray.
I'll deliver my verdict on this latest book once I've done
my chores, deal with the dog, locked the study door, put
my feet up and had a darned good read.
(This process is MUCH harder than it sounds.) |
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