Dark chocolate is frequently promoted as a heart-healthy treat because it contains a lot of beneficial plant components called flavonols. But an investigation by Consumer Reports that came out in December 2022 found that many well-known brands of dark chocolate have amounts of lead and cadmium that could be dangerous.
Exposure to either of these heavy metals over an extended period of time, even at low levels, has been associated with a number of health issues, including cardiovascular disease. Researchers calculated the danger caused by dark chocolate using California's maximum permissible dose limits for lead (0.5 micrograms, or mcg) and cadmium (4.1 mcg). Eating just one ounce of any one of the 23 out of the 28 chocolate bars would put an adult over the limit for at least one of the heavy metals. Lead and cadmium levels were over the limits in five bars.
This research among black adults in Georgia reveals that feeling a part of the community and interacting with neighbors may significantly improve diet, exercise habits, and weight control. Moreover, fewer heart attacks and strokes, two of the main causes of disability and mortality, may result from improved cardiovascular health.
According to Dr. Dhruv Kazi, associate director of the Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology and director of the cardiac critical care unit at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), "there are a variety of interactions within the community that can improve one's cardiovascular health, not to mention the effect on mental health—the sense of belonging, of being seen—which is tightly related to cardiovascular outcomes in the long run."
He continues, "Another way to say it is that these particular elements of community resilience may directly influence nutrition, activity, weight, and mental well-being, all of which lead to improved cardiovascular health."
A favorable viewpoint on health in African communities
The latest study is a component of the Morehouse-Emory Cardiovascular Center for Health Equity (MECA) investigation that is now being conducted in Atlanta. MECA expands on earlier studies showing that having a cardiac disease or dying from it is more common in underprivileged communities. However, the new study fills a gap in previous research, which focused on undesirable characteristics of black areas that may contribute to poor cardiovascular health. It focuses on advantageous neighborhood characteristics, particularly interpersonal relationships, which might support excellent cardiovascular health despite greater risks associated with racial or socioeconomic status.
Dr. Fidencio Saldana, dean for students at Harvard Medical School and an attending physician in medicine and cardiology at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), explains that researchers typically focus on factors that cause health disparities on the negative side, such as deaths or co-existing diseases, or that increase rates of a specific disease. His research interests include racial disparities and outcomes in cardiovascular disease. It's pretty unusual to be able to look for solutions or consider how to emulate these beneficial characteristics of communities.
Assessment of the social context and cardiovascular health
392 black adults in the Atlanta area, ranging in age from 30 to 70, were involved in the study. None of them had a cardiovascular condition already. Men made up about 4 out of 10 participants.
The social environment is made up of opinions about one's neighbors, any available support systems, and how frequently neighbors interact. Participants provided information on seven neighborhood characteristics, including appearance, the ease of getting around by foot, the availability of wholesome foods, safety, social cohesion, neighborly interaction, and violence.
The American Heart Association's Life's Simple Seven (LS7) scores, which are used to gauge optimum cardiovascular health, were used to gauge heart health. Seven factors that affect cardiovascular health are taken into account by LS7, including self-reported diet, exercise, and smoking history as well as measured blood pressure, sugar, cholesterol, and body mass index (BMI). Also, researchers acquired data on yearly income, education, marital status, employment status, and physical examinations, including blood tests.
The study, which will be published in The Journal of Nutrition in November 2022, drew on nutrition and health information from almost 29,000 participants in two ongoing studies. Researchers concentrated on the consumption of ordinary sodas, lemonade, fruit drinks, and other drinks with added sugar by the participants. Increased levels of undesirable blood fats (lipids), such as LDL (bad) cholesterol, triglycerides, and other lipids linked to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, were shown to be associated with higher intakes (more than one 12-ounce serving per day).
The findings are in line with prior studies on this subject, despite the fact that they do not demonstrate that sugary beverages raise blood lipid levels.
In our modern-day generation, aside from working in an office, side hustles are now part of our work and daily lives. In order to balance work and hustle, you need to have a strategy to manage your finances. Nevertheless, having a side business can provide you the chance to grow your network, hone your leadership abilities, and keep learning—all of which can be advantageous for your primary career, outlook, and financial situation. But don't worry if you haven't yet developed a strategy for handling your side business' funds. By doing this, you can achieve your financial objectives more quickly than you ever thought possible.
Pay attention to your budget.
Because some side businesses are irregular in nature, it's crucial to alter your budget accordingly. In the course of finding the right balance, you can choose a use for your side hustle money at the end of the month once you get your final stats. Typically, this entails making additional contributions to the emergency and sinking funds.
Never Give Up Following
You won't be able to truly determine whether the effort you are putting in is paying off if you aren't meticulously recording all the extra money you are bringing in (versus your side hustle expenses). The good news is that keeping track of your side hustle income doesn't necessarily require a sophisticated bookkeeping system. A spreadsheet can be used to keep track of every financial expense for the entire month. Maintaining regular financial records for your side business has an additional benefit. Whether your side hustles are earning you $300 or $3,000 extra per month, you are now considered an entrepreneur, meaning you will likely need TurboTax's Taxcaster tool since you are now required to file taxes.
The word "marketing" sounds like a big word to some people, and while marketing remains at the top of the job industry, a lot of people are still struggling to understand how to get into it. Marketing is booming, and it all depends on what type of marketing you want to get into, but the question is, what type of marketing is paying at the moment, and how do you get into marketing?
Marketing is a field that doesn't discriminate, as you don't even need a degree to get into it. While a lot of people had different dreams of becoming doctors, lawyers, pilots, etc., the job market hasn't been so fair. If you think you are both creative and smart, marketing could be a fun job for you. But it's likely that you started a few businesses when you were young and liked the idea of building a brand and trying to find users or customers.
If you have never worked in marketing before, it can take a few months for you to learn if you have an interest. To get started in marketing (and to progress to the level of actual expertise in the field), you will need to make sure that you:
1. Start a side project. A side project is the single most beneficial thing you can do for yourself if you want to start a career in marketing without having to have a degree in marketing. You will be able to gain a plethora of experience that the majority of recent marketing college graduates do not have by beginning a side enterprise.
Determine the area in which you have the most interest. You'll discover that marketing is a big field when you learn more about it. Identify the area of marketing that most interests you. Do not rush into it; gradually learn.
2. Determine the area in which you have the most interest.
Content marketing
A marketing approach known as "content marketing" is one that involves the production and distribution of relevant articles, videos, podcasts, and other forms of media in order to attract, engage and keep an audience. This is a good way to show that you know what you're talking about, raise brand awareness, and keep your company at the top of customer's minds when they're ready to buy your products or services.
SEO
The process of improving the quality and quantity of website traffic that originates from search engines and visits a website or a web page is referred to as search engine optimization (SEO). Instead of focusing on direct traffic or bought traffic, SEO focuses on organic traffic.
Advertising
Advertising is a form of promotion that is done with the intention of selling a product or service to a specific demographic of people. It is one of the oldest ways to market something, and the goal is to get the people in the target audience to buy, sell, or do something else.
Email marketing
Email marketing is a method of marketing that can make people on your email list aware of new products, promotions, and other services that you offer. Educating your audience about the value of your brand and keeping them interested between sales can also be thought of as a "softer" way to sell something.
Brand marketing
The process of developing and maintaining a relationship between a consumer brand and its end users is referred to as "brand marketing." Brand marketing promotes the entire brand as a whole rather than singling out a specific product or service to be the focus of attention. The products and services offered by the brand are used as evidence to back up the promise made by the brand.
Growth marketing
The technique of utilizing the data obtained through marketing campaigns and experimentation to generate growth is referred to as "growth marketing." It is possible for you to better anticipate change and plan your tactics in order to achieve continuous improvements with its assistance. Growth marketers are always examining data and feedback to determine which strategies are successful and which ones are not.
A lot of people want to jump straight into social media marketing without understanding the core foundation of what it takes to create a good user experience. But first, what exactly do we mean by "user experience"?
The way in which a user interacts with and experiences a product, system, or service is referred to as the "user experience" (UX). It takes into account how useful, simple, and effective something is perceived to be by a person.
User experience, abbreviated as UX, emphasizes having an in-depth understanding of users, including what they require, what they place importance on, their capabilities, and the constraints they face. Also, the business aims and objectives of the organization that is administering the project are taken into consideration. UX best practices encourage the improvement of the quality of the user's interactions with your product and any connected services, as well as the user's impressions of such interactions.
It is easy to fall into the trap of focusing solely on the specifics that assist in communicating what it is that you want people to know (such as product information) and what it is that you want them to do (such as clicking the "purchase now" button). But the point of a good user experience (UX) is to help people reach their goals when using a company's products or services.
Because of this, you should think about how people are feeling as a result of their encounters with your website and apps.
Developing a powerful user experience (UX) that organizes all of your information and interactions in a way that is appealing to people can be accomplished by keeping the feelings of your audience in mind. And when visitors have a positive experience using your website or app, they are more likely to continue using it and eventually become paying customers.
To create a user experience that will please a large number of people, follow these four UI/UX design principles:
Imagine that you are one of the potential customers. What kinds of interactions do you think they'd like to have with your website or app? For instance, individuals could be looking to gather information, see videos, contribute their thoughts, conduct research on products or services, and possibly even make a purchase.