By Richard Alleyne, Science Correspondent in Chicago

Lack of connection with others not only makes us unhappy but it is also bad for the wellbeing of the body and mind, research finds.

A sense of rejection or isolation increases blood pressure, stress levels and general wear and tear as well as increases your chances of developing Alzheimer’s Disease.

It also reduces will power and perseverance, thus affecting the ability to follow a healthy lifestyle, according to scientists.

The findings were outlined by Professor John Cacioppo, of the University of Chicago, at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual conference.

Loneliness not only alters behavior, but loneliness is related to greater resistance to blood flow through your cardiovascular system, Professor Cacioppo said.

Loneliness leads to higher rises in morning levels of the stress hormone cortisol, affects the immune system, higher blood pressure and an increased level of depression.

Loneliness, or perceived social isolation, also is related to difficulty getting a deep sleep and a faster progression of Alzheimer’s disease, said Professor Cacioppo.

Healthwise, he said the difference between a lonely person and a popular person was akin to “a smoker and a non-smoker”.

“That stunned all of us, myself and all my colleagues in terms of the effects it had,” he said. “It shows just how powerful it is.

“The lonely have poor health. They exercise less, are more likely to quit. Eat more calories. They comfort eat more fats and sugars.

“Loneliness lowers the ability to control yourself. It is really easy after a bad day to have a second scotch and a third to get some comfort.”

One of the founders of a new discipline called social neuroscience, Professor Cacioppo, traced the need for connection to its evolutionary roots.

In order to survive in the past, humans needed to bond to rear their children. In order to flourish, they needed to extend their altruistic and cooperate, he concluded.

Just as physical pain is a prompt to change behavior, such as moving a finger away from the fire, loneliness evolved as a prompt to action, signaling an ancestral need to repair the social bonds.

The problem of social isolation is likely to grow as conventional family structures die out, said Professor Cacioppo, the author of Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection.

People are living longer, having fewer children later in life and increasingly mobile around the world.

Surveys also show that people report significantly fewer close friends and confidants than those a generation ago.

Source

As quickly as it started, the first decade of 2000, dotted with the ill-predicted Y2k and not ending with exactly a “space odyssey” quite yet, the first decade of the 2000’s is coming to a close.

Surf smarter, stop using Microsoft Internet Explorer, don’t download those free movies, free ringtones, free software, free pr0n… just come back to good ol’ Pixelvomit for all your good R&B, gossip, sex talk, and randomness in 2010.

This is a very cost efficient alternative to smoking. Its also probably one of the easiest routes to edible cannabis out there.  The high lasts a lot longer than smoking, and is a lot more of a physical, sedating high.

Click here for instructions

If you love movies like I do, you’ll love this website that I found. It introduces you to more movies you might like. If you’d like to add me as a buddy, my user name is amnesiadream.

MovieLens

It’s fun living next to artists because they come up with things like this.

Do not worry about how the good that has been planned for you will come.

It will come.

Do not worry, obsess, think you have to control it, go out hunting for it, or tangle your mind trying to figure out how and when it will find you.

It will find you.

Surrender to your Higher Power each day. Trust your Higher Power. Then, stay peaceful. Trust and listen to your
self. That is how the good you want will come to you.

Your healing, your joy, your relationships. Your solutions. That job. That desired change. That opportunity. It will come to you–naturally, with ease, and in a host of ways.

That answer will come. The direction will come. The money. The idea. The energy. The creativity. The path will open itself to you. Trust that, for it has already been planned.

It is futile, a waste and drain of energy, to worry about how it will come. It is already there. You have it already. It is
in place. You just cannot see it!

You will be brought to it, or it will be brought to you.

The Pussy Snorkel allows a man to continue breathing while performing oral sex on a woman in a spa, bathtub or even a bowl of green Jell-O. Insert the breathing apparatus into your nostrils, rub the clitoral stimulator against your favorite coral reef and start with the tongue action.
Also offered is the “Glow in the Dark” PUSSY SNORKEL – The One and Only Now Glows in the Dark! Great for night diving.

Get it here

I’ve spent alot of time recently researching the trends in Plus-size fashion.  Even with the average woman now being at least a size 14, you think there’d be better alternatives to fashion than what’s force fed to the masses.  With amazing plus-sized women such as Monique, Queen Latifah, etc… I often wondered, how can you look as fabulous as them but with a shoe-string budget?

One of my favorite places to shop online has to be Alloy. Their jeans run from 0-25 in all fits, colors, and inseams.  You can often find good deals in their clearance section and they have sales all the time.

Alight boasts that it has “illuminating styles” for sizes 14-30. The prices are a bargain hunters dream. I’m not a big fan of the search engine but check out their clearance section and hopefully you can find something.

ShopTranslated has some beautiful ensembles that can be a bit pricey but well worth it.  Well crafted styles come in sizes 1x-3x.

Check out Size Appeal when you wanna get jazzy on them hoes. When the usual jean and t-shirt routine is not enough  to impress,  “be bold and sexy, because you can.”

How can I describe Evogues? Do you ever go shopping with a skinny friend and see all these wonderful clothes but they’re all like a size 2?  Well this store has those types of clothes from 10-20 (1X-5X) and the prices are to be rivaled.  Evogues sells accessories also. First time buyers get 10% off on their first order.

LA Fashion is an ebay store that lets you plus size clothing as low as $9.99.  I personally love their shrugs.

Big & Beautiful’s ebay store has alot of cute spaghetti strapped shirts and camis shipped to you from Thailand.

Great Glam – for when you need to get your club on.

Part 2 coming soon.

It’s time for a new slim-down mantra: Eat more to weigh less. No joke! The right foods help you drop pounds by revving your calorie burn and curbing cravings. We consulted top experts for the best picks and asked leading chefs for easy, tasty ways to prepare them. Add these eats to your plate today and you’ll be slimmer and healthier in no time!

1. Steak

Beef has a rep as a diet buster, but eating it may help you peel off pounds. In a study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, women on a diet that included red meat lost more weight than those eating equal calories but little beef. “The protein in steak helps you retain muscle mass during weight loss,” says study author Manny Noakes, Ph.D. Try to consume local organic beef; it’s healthier for you and the environment.

Read more here…