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To the long list of the benefits of physical activity, researchers have just added one more thing: a greater ability to handle pain.

A exact study published in the journal PLOS One found that regular exercise is an effective way to reduce or prevent chronic pain without the use of medication.

"The main takeaway is that engaging in habitual physical activity in your leisure time seems to be connected with your pain tolerance — the more active you are, the higher your tolerance is likely to be," Anders Pedersen Årnes, the lead author from the University Hospital of North Norway, told Fox News Digital in an email.

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Researchers analyzed a demo of 10,732 participants from the Tromsø study, Norway’s largest population study. 

The participants completed questionnaires to report their level of physical activity (sedentary, light, moderate or vigorous).

Pain tolerance was measured using the cold pressor test (CPT), which is when people's hands are immersed in ice water between 32 and 41 degrees Fahrenheit to see how long they can endure it. 

The study was repeated twice, seven to eight years apart.

The higher the total activity levels, the greater the person’s pain tolerance.

In evaluating the results, the researchers found that for both rounds, any activity level was better than being sedentary in terms of pain tolerance.

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"Secondly, there were indications that both total amount of physical activity over time, as well as the direction of change in activity level over time, [impacts] how high pain tolerance is," Årnes said.

The higher the total activity levels, the greater the person’s pain tolerance.

"We found large effects for the most active versus the least active participants — close to 60 seconds tolerance on average for the sedentary group versus above 80 seconds tolerance for the most active participants," Årnes said. 

The results were consistent for those who were already experiencing chronic pain, the researchers were surprised to discover.

"Chronic pain did not seem to diminish the effect of physical activity on pain tolerance, which appeared just as strong for those with pain as for those without," Årnes said.

"We expected to see smaller effects for women, but that was not the case here."

Another surprise was that no difference was seen between women and men. 

"We expected to see smaller effects for women, but that was not the case here," the researcher said. 

This was an observational study, Årnes pointed out — researchers were looking at averages for groups of the population in general.

Additionally, because the exercise levels were self-reported, there was the potential for some degree of bias or inaccuracy.

"We would not use these results to predict pain tolerance for small, clinical subpopulations," he said.   

This wasn’t the first research to examine the relationship between exercise and pain tolerance. 

"Increasing your physical activity level could do you a lot of good."

In a 2017 study led by Southeastern Louisiana University, published in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 24 college-age students showed a higher threshold for pain after participating in two sessions of strength training and circuit training.

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And in 2020, an Australian study published in the journal BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders evaluated nearly 600 participants who suffered from chronic musculoskeletal pain.

Those who did regular aerobic physical activity, including walking or cycling, experienced higher pain thresholds, researchers from Monash University found. 

While additional research is needed, Årnes said the findings from the exact Norwegian study established that every additional bit of activity could help Improve pain tolerance, which has been suggested to protect against chronic pain.

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"You don’t have to perform as a top-tier athlete to enjoy the benefits of it," he added. 

"The most important thing is that you do something — and increasing your physical activity level could do you a lot of good."

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During 2021, nearly 21% of U.S. adults (51.6 million people) experienced chronic pain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Beyond higher pain tolerance, regular physical activity has many other benefits. 

Those include weight management, improved heart health, lower risk of cancer, stronger bones and muscles, greater longevity and increased ability to perform daily functions, per the CDC.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Researchers at the Rochester Institute of Technology want the public’s help to study galaxies far, far away.

It may seem like something out of Star Wars, but the goal is to use measurements of light distribution, called spectra, from galaxies to study their characteristics.

Volunteers can look at spectra to study how galaxies and their surrounding gases are related to the universe’s structure, how supermassive black holes contribute to their galaxy’s evolution, and how dark energy drives the expansion of the universe.

RIT collaborated with NASA to start a website asking for volunteers for the project, called Redshift Wrangler. NASA has previously collaborated with citizen scientists to help make thousands of critical scientific discoveries.

Sadie Coffin, a Ph.D. student in RIT’s astrophysical sciences and technology program, said recruiting citizen scientists is a great way to analyze a massive amount of data quickly and encourage the public to learn about the research process.

“Citizen science can often succeed where traditional science can’t,” Coffin said.

By looking at a spectrum of a galaxy, scientists can make conclusions based on the different characteristics of the wavelengths. Different elements have peaks and dips that always occur at the same places, like a fingerprint. Scientists can determine which elements are present and make other conclusions about what the galaxy is like.

“The spectra of galaxies allow us to look into the past,” said Jeyhan Kartaltepe, a professor at RIT’s School of Physics and Astronomy and the principal investigator on the project. “If we’re going to understand better our early universe and how galaxies have changed over cosmic time, we need to study these far away systems. This will deliver us critical information about the history of our galaxy and how we fit in.”

Kartaltepe said studying a spectrum is time-consuming, which is why the public’s help is critical. You can learn how to sign up to volunteer here.

Pregnant women may already be taking prenatal vitamins, but some may want to consider adding omega-3 fatty acids, too, according to new research. A woman's body doesn't make omega-3s, so she has to get them elsewhere, like in a supplement or through diet. Salmon is a highly recommended healthy omega-3 food for pregnant women. Mercy Medical Center pediatrician Dr. Ashanti Woods said new research shows omega-3s may benefit a developing baby's brain, heart, eyes, and now, even gut health.

• New research shows that flavonoid-rich foods may help to prevent frailty in older adults.
• Researchers found this to be especially true in quercetin-rich foods.
• Here, nutrition experts explain the findings.

As we age, our body naturally loses a degree of bone strength and frailty, or weakness, becomes a more common issue. Now, a new study shows how eating certain foods, including apples, may help keep frailty at bay and keep you feeling stronger as you get older.

A study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition looked at how certain foods that contain quercetin, a specific subclass of flavonoids (compounds found naturally in many fruits and vegetables that are rich in antioxidant activity), affect frailty in older adults.

The study looked at 1,701 individuals who were not considered frail at the start of the program, and had them fill out a self-questionnaire that assessed flavonoid intake. After 12 years, 13.2% of the participants had developed frailty. Frailty is a common clinical syndrome in older adults that carries an increased risk for poor health outcomes including falls, incident disability, hospitalization, and mortality.

Although total flavonoid intake was not associated with frailty development, each 10 mg/day of higher flavonol intake was linked with 20% lower odds of frailty onset. More specifically, every 10 mg/day of higher quercetin intake was associated with 35% lower odds of frailty onset, while other subclasses of flavonoids showed no association.

So, what is quercetin and how does it affect frailty?

Quercetin is a plant compound with antioxidant properties, explains Keri Gans, M.S., R.D., registered dietitian and author of The Small Change Diet. Quercetin is important for our health because they combat inflammation, adds Melissa Prest, D.C.N., R.D.N., national media spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and member of the Prevention Medical Review Board.

Quercetin is found naturally in many foods, including:

• Yellow and green peppers
• Cherries
• Apples
• Red grapes
• Kale
• Berries
• Tea
• Tomatoes
• Broccoli
• Olive oil
• Capers
• Parsley
• Asparagus
• Citrus fruits
• Leafy vegetables

Quercetin has been the subject of scientific research in the past. It has been studied and considered a promising agent in improving bone health and another ongoing clinical trial is specifically studying quercetin’s ability to protect against bone loss and stimulating bone formation. And according to this new study, a higher intake of quercetin was associated with a lower risk of frailty in adults, says Gans.

What can older adults do to prevent frailty?

Aside from loading up on quercetin-rich foods, there are other things you can and should do to maintain your strength and lower your risk of frailty later in life. “In order to decrease the risk of frailty in aging adults, one should consume adequate calories daily, especially protein,” says Gans. Protein is very important for older adults and many do not eat enough, adds Prest. “Add some protein-rich foods, low-sugar or plain low-fat yogurt, low-fat milk, beans, eggs, or chicken, to each meal and snack.”

Incorporating a fitness routine that includes walking and resistance exercises is also key, Gans adds. Muscle mass decreases as we age, so engaging in activities like walking and/or strength training can help you stay strong, explains Prest.

People who have strong social connections and continue learning also have a lower risk of frailty, says Prest. So it’s important to keep your mind sharp to keep your body strong.

The bottom line

Frailty is not uncommon in older adults, and studies have found that it only becomes more common the older we get. One study found that frailty increased steadily with age, starting with 4% of adults 65-69 years, 7% of adults 70-74 years, 9% of adults 75-79 years, 16% of adults 80-84 years, and 26% of adults aged 85 years and older.

This study is another good reminder that a variety of plant-based foods should be consumed daily for health-promoting benefits, says Gans. So take a good look at what your daily diet looks like, and if you could stand to load up on more quercetin-rich foods, they might just help you maintain your bone strength and keep you from feeling weak in the long run.

While fruits and vegetables are a great way to get quercetin, some people may want to take a quercetin supplement, says Prest. “Make sure to discuss taking a quercetin supplement with your provider since there are some possible interactions between quercetin supplements and antibiotics, anticoagulants, chemotherapy, corticosteroids, cyclosporine, digoxin, fluoroquinolones, and medications changed by the liver,” she notes.

Dietary supplements are products intended to supplement the diet. They are not medicines and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure diseases. Be cautious about taking dietary supplements if you are pregnant or nursing. Also, be careful about giving supplements to a child, unless recommended by their healthcare provider.

Madeleine, Prevention’s assistant editor, has a history with health writing from her experience as an editorial assistant at WebMD, and from her personal research at university. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in biopsychology, cognition, and neuroscience—and she helps strategize for success across Prevention’s social media platforms. 

The way you prepare your food could be making you fat.

A study from Wageningen University in the Netherlands found that the texture of your food can greatly affect eating speed, which in turn might increase or decrease your overall calorie consumption.

One of the first things we are told on any weight loss journey is to eat more slowly. This is largely because it takes time for your brain to register that you have had enough food.

When we eat, our stomachs begin to stretch, sending a signal to our brain that says we are full. But this physical stretching is not the only factor involved in satiety. Our bodies also release a complex cocktail of hormones that help us feel satisfied after our meals and control our hunger levels throughout the day.

The hormones act more slowly than physical feelings of fullness, with many taking between 10 and 20 minutes to reach their maximum level. Therefore, it is important to deliver your body the time it needs to process these signals.

Fast eating might also affect digestion and long-term blood sugar control, potentially increasing your risk of diabetes.

But trying to eat more slowly is easier said than done. We are often told to practice mindful eating, concentrating on every bite and pausing between each mouthful, but there might also be more practical ways to slow your eating.

In the Wageningen University study, which was published in the journal of Food Quality and Preference, 54 healthy participants were given 12 different meals with a range of textures and toppings. These comprised penne pasta and/or carrots that were either served al dente (just cooked) or well boiled. The participants also received the same dishes with the addition of a simple tomato sauce.

The researchers found that the softer dishes were eaten with larger bite sizes and fewer chews than the harder dishes, and the addition of sauce made the food more swallowable by moistening its texture and sticking it together.

In total, the soft penne was consumed 42 percent faster than hard penne, while soft carrots were eaten roughly 94 percent faster than hard ones. The addition of the tomato sauce also increased eating speed, by a further 30 percent.

The researchers did not directly measure the impact of eating speed on energy consumption, but previous research has demonstrated that energy intake can increase by roughly 26 percent for an increased eating speed of 35 percent.

So simply by opting for harder or raw foods and cutting back on sauces, you can passively reduce your calorie intake without having to make any drastic dietary changes.

A new study is suggesting that robots with more "charismatic" voices – as opposed to flat, matter-of-fact ones – can help people be more creative. 

Scientists from Denmark found that students who are given a task by a robot with a voice programmed to be more "engaging" and "inspiring" performed better.

These students were also more creative than students who received instructions from an identical robot with a flat voice, according to the findings from researchers in Denmark as published by Frontiers in Communication, a peer-reviewed, open-access science journal. 

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Increasingly, social robots are being used for support in educational settings, as SWNS, the British news service, noted.

But the Danish research team wanted to determine if the sounds emitted by a robot actually affected the students' performance.

While teamwork is a key factor in human creativity, boosting collaboration and new ideas, the researchers said they wanted to understand whether robots using a voice designed to sound charismatic would be more "successful" as creativity facilitators.

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Said Dr. Kerstin Fischer of the University of Southern Denmark, one of the study's authors, "We had a robot instruct teams of students in a creativity task. The robot either used a confident, passionate – i.e., charismatic – tone of voice or a normal, matter-of-fact tone of voice," as SNWS reported.

"When the robot spoke in a charismatic speaking style, students’ ideas were more original and more elaborate."

She went on, "We found that when the robot spoke in a charismatic speaking style, students’ ideas were more original and more elaborate."

Dr. Fischer and colleagues used a text-to-speech function engineered for characteristics associated with charismatic speaking, such as a specific pitch range and a certain way of stressing words. 

Two voices were developed – one charismatic and one less expressive, said SWNS.

The scientists recruited five classes of university students; the students were all taking courses that included an "element of team creativity," as SWNS noted.

A robot speaking on video "led" the workshop. 

Students were told they were testing a creativity workshop, which involved "brainstorming" ideas based on images and then using those ideas to come up with a new chocolate product.

A robot speaking on video "led" the workshop: It introduced the task, reassured the teams of students that there were no bad ideas – and then, afterward, congratulated them for completing the task. 

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It then asked them to fill out a self-evaluation survey, as SWNS noted.

The questionnaire evaluated the robot’s performance, the students’ own views on how their teamwork went – and the success of the session.

Creativity levels of each session were measured by the number of original ideas produced and by how elaborate they were; the researchers measured them as well. 

The group that heard the "charismatic" voice rated the robot more positively, finding it more interactive.

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Their perception of their teamwork was also more positive and they produced more original and elaborate ideas. 

"Our study provides clear evidence for the effect of charismatic speech on listener creativity."

They also rated their teamwork more highly.

But the group that heard the non-charismatic voice perceived themselves as more resilient and efficient, possibly because a less charismatic leader led to better organization by the team members themselves, although they produced fewer ideas.

Study co-author Dr. Oliver Niebuhr, also of the University of Southern Denmark, said, "I had suspected that charismatic speech has very important effects, but our study provides clear evidence for the effect of charismatic speech on listener creativity," as SWNS reported of his remarks.

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"This is the first time that such a link between charismatic voices, artificial speakers and creativity outputs has been found," he also said.

Although the sessions with the robot's charismatic voice were generally more successful, not all the teams responded identically to the different voices. The researchers acknowledged that previous experiences in the students' different classes may have affected their response.

"We would expect that the same stimuli will not yield the same results in all languages and cultures."

The scientists said that bigger studies are needed to understand how external factors affected team performance.

Added Dr. Fischer, "The robot was present only in videos, but one could suspect that more exposure or repeated exposure to the charismatic speaking style would have even stronger effects," as SWNS reported.

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She also said, "We have only varied a few features between the two robot conditions. We don't know how the effect size would change if other or more features were varied."

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"Finally, since charismatic speaking patterns differ between cultures, we would expect that the same stimuli will not yield the same results in all languages and cultures," Dr. Fischer also said, as SWNS reported.

Memory benefit of multivitamins lasted three years

Slowing of cognitive aging

Future research on multivitamins

Taking a multivitamin supplement may help slow memory loss in people aged 60 and older, a study suggests.

Researchers in the US looked at data from more than 3,500 adults who were part of the COSMOS-Web clinical trial.

The scientists found that memory improved for people taking a daily multivitamin, compared with those who took a placebo.

Study leader Adam Brickman, professor of neuropsychology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, said: “Cognitive ageing is a top health concern for older adults, and this study suggests that there may be a simple, inexpensive way to help older adults slow down memory decline.”

For the study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the participants were randomly assigned to take a daily Centrum Silver multivitamin or placebo for three years.

They did memory tests every year to see how it affected them.

Those taking the multivitamin did significantly better on the tests after the first year, with benefits continuing throughout the three-year study period.

Participants with underlying cardiovascular disease saw a particular improvement in performance when taking the supplement.

Prof Brickman said: “There is evidence that people with cardiovascular disease may have lower micronutrient levels that multivitamins may correct, but we don’t really know right now why the effect is stronger in this group.”

The researchers said further studies are needed to identify the specific nutrients contributing to the benefit and the underlying mechanisms involved.

Lok-Kin Yeung, a postdoctoral researcher in Columbia’s Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Ageing Brain and first author of the study, said: “Our study shows that the ageing brain may be more sensitive to nutrition than we realised, though it may not be so important to find out which specific nutrient helps slow age-related cognitive decline.”

The participants in the study mostly comprised of white people of European descent so further research is needed to determine whether the findings can be applied to a more diverse study population, the team said.

They also warned that supplements should not replace a healthy diet.

Prof Brickman added: “Though multivitamins are generally safe, people should always consult a physician before taking them.”