Space Snacks, Heatstroke Help, and the Divorce Dumps
What astronauts eat in space, avoid the dangers of overheating, and the toll of divorce.
Moon Munchies
Before, I was fascinated to learn that astronauts have to work out a couple of hours a day to help them maintain bone mass in a zero-gravity environment. Now I’m fascinated by what goes into the space diet. In the early space days, astronauts ate pureed food in tubes—probably unappetizing after about one meal. Add to this the fact that astronauts need extra calcium to make up for that bone loss, and the fact that weight loss in space is virtually inevitable, and the space diet gets a little tricky. Read on to see how space food has evolved over time, some of the interesting eats on board, and some staples astronauts don’t go without.
Caution in the Summer
A lot of factors play into developing heat-related illnesses when you’re pushing yourself in warm weather. As you work out, muscles generate energy, some of which is used to power you through the workout, but most of which becomes body heat. When that heat isn’t removed from the body—like when humidity prevents the evaporation of sweat—your body’s core temperature increases.
Some factors predispose you to heat illness, such as being out of shape or overweight, drinking alcohol before exercising and overdressing for the activity. For those who are in shape, being acclimated to the weather is very important, but that can take anywhere from a few days to a few months. If you’re feeling weird or woozy, take a break, head to shade and cool off. I prefer to take my workouts indoors when it get obnoxious outside. No passing out for me!
Loss and Your Health
I’m pretty sure no one goes into marriage thinking it’ll end in divorce. But when it does, studies show that it can take a negative and lasting toll on your health, both mentally and physically (the same goes for the death of a spouse). The stress of the loss, along with poor sleep and a lack of exercise, can put your health at risk. And while remarriage helps, new studies show that it’s hard to get over that initial deficit of putting yourself on the back burner for so long.
Because both divorce and spousal death had similar impacts on health, experts think that the big D operates much like a major trauma. While divorce may be an inevitable end to some marriages, remember to incorporate healthy behaviors when you’re going through any sort of major stress. Work that stress out!
—Erin
Photos grabbed from Kevin, SashaW and walknboston at Flickr.