Whether trying to shed the excess flab or a way to work-off all the stress, exercise is a common tool for both. But a generic complaint about exercising is that it sets off horrendous migraine like headaches. A study shows that women prone to migraines have high levels of nitric oxide in their bodies and sudden bursts of exercise release more of the chemical which, in turn causes the headaches. Nitric oxide causes blood vessels to dilate the blood vessel inflammation that has long been associated with migraines. The study recommends a warm up or a leisurely walk for 10 minutes before a strenuous workout regime.

According to a study, overweight women in their forties who experience abnormal bleeding during menstrual cycles should be examined for endometrial hyperplasia or cancer. Hyperplasia refers to the build-up of uterus lining and can be a risk factor for endometrial cancer. The condition is commonly caused by an imbalance in the production of estrogen and progesterone. The study found that obesity was the greatest risk factor for hyperplasia, due to the overproduction of estrogen caused by hormonal and metabolic reactions to obesity. Endometrial hyperplasia is unusual in premenopausal women but can occur in women who are infertile or overweight.

If you want to tell someone you love them, you should tell them through their left ear, new research suggests. A study by psychologists at Sam Houston State University in Texas found that people are more likely to remember emotional words, such as ‘love’, if they hear them through their left ear. They also suggest that if sweet nothings are heard through the right ear, they are more likely to be forgotten.

The researchers say their findings can be explained by the fact that the left ear is controlled by the right side of the brain, which in turn is responsible for processing emotions. So if your endearments have been falling on deaf ears hitherto, it just may be that you’ve been getting on your partner’s wrong side, literally!

The kids are gonna hate this one! It seems, violent video games may indeed increase aggressive behaviour, if two Iowa State psychologists' conclusions are to believed. After conducting a comprehensive review of the literature in this hotly debated field, Dr Brad Bushman, a psychology professor at Iowa State University, has averred that violent video games do increase aggressive thoughts, aggressive feelings, physiological arousal, which might explain why they increase aggressive behaviour. He also avers that playing violent video games decreased the likelihood of the person helping another person. Some parents don’t think twice about letting their kids play violent video games, but these effects are not trivial, it seems. The researchers cite recent school shootings in the US where the shooters were reportedly fans of the video game Doom. Researchers have argued for decades that watching violence on television and in films is linked to an increase in aggression, and are now extending that assertion to the video game industry. Time to throw out that gameboy!