The internet today is like a lifeline, we cannot do without it. Many people, including influencers and even healthcare providers, are now using social media to spread awareness around health. With all these internet personalities talking about health, the new buzzword around health, specifically sexual health is "aftercare".

What does aftercare mean?

Aftercare refers to the act of taking care of your partner and making them feel safe and attended to after sexual intercourse. The term actually originated in the BDSM community as a way to make sure that everyone is taken care of after the act and to provide reassurance that whatever happened in the act was just an act, hinting towards role plays. Relationship experts and experts point out that especially for those who are submissive, aftercare plays an important role in reassuring them that the dominant or the submissive roles are only limited to the sexual act.

This can involve cuddling, talking, or giving each other a massage. It is an intimate act and can help strengthen bonds and help individuals feel safe and secure.

Is It Backed Scientifically?

In a 2014 study Post Sex Affectionate Exchanges Promote Sexual and Relationship Satisfaction found that affectionate behaviour after sex leads to higher sexual and relationship satisfaction. This includes cuddling, shared intimacy, talking about what a person liked and what they did not enjoy to have a better understanding, massaging each other, bathing together, and sensual touching.

A 2019 study titled The Effects of Cuddling on Relational Quality for Married Couples: A Longitudinal Investigation found that married people who cuddled more frequently reported increased levels of relationship satisfaction.

It is also a way to help your body and mind adjust to the chemicals like oxytocin and dopamine, which are released during sex and help to avoid postcoital dysphoria (PCD) known as the post-sex blues.

Late-night hustle culture may still be glorified in some corners of the tech world, but not everyone is buying into it—especially not billionaire entrepreneur and longevity advocate Bryan Johnson. The 46-year-old tech mogul, known for his extreme anti-ageing lifestyle, recently called out an Indian software engineer who boasted on social media about working until 4 a.m. "It's 4 AM, guys, but builders are building. What’s your excuse?” the programmer posted on X (formerly Twitter), celebrating his grind.

Johnson, however, wasn't impressed. "It may feel heroic," he replied, “but you’re spending down your human capacity.” He went on to explain the physiological cost of burning the midnight oil: a 30% reduction in brain oxygen, suppression of melatonin due to blue light, disrupted deep sleep, and impaired insulin sensitivity the next day. “The missed sleep raises cortisol, increases visceral fat, and decays memory,” Johnson added. His critique struck a nerve, triggering a wave of agreement from other users on the platform.

"No good code is being written at 4 a.m. and ruining your morning focus—the best focus of the day,” one commenter noted. Another wrote, “Whatever they are building now by staying awake will be built by an AI agent in 10 minutes, five years from now. What’s the point?" A third user summed it up bluntly: “The excuse is to feel good, rest, be healthy, and make better decisions.”

Man Behind The Mission

Johnson is not your average tech mogul. Best known for founding Braintree (later acquired by PayPal) and Kernel, a company developing brain-machine interfaces, he has poured millions into an audacious personal experiment: to slow, and possibly reverse, ageing.

Through what he calls Project Blueprint, Johnson adheres to a meticulous regimen involving diet, exercise, and sleep optimisation. He follows strict health protocols, including unconventional methods like plasma transfusions from his teenage son—a procedure that has sparked both fascination and ethical debate.

In a recent post on X, Johnson shared his detailed morning routine, which begins at 4:30 a.m. and lasts until 10 a.m. His day starts with monitoring his inner ear temperature, applying a custom "BP hair serum," and donning a red light cap. He then exposes himself to 10,000 lux of light to reset his circadian rhythm.

Breakfast is a carefully curated "Longevity Mix" consisting of protein, collagen, extra virgin olive oil, and antioxidant-rich berries, followed by a personalised supplement stack. His morning workout includes strength training, flexibility drills, balance exercises, and either Zone 2 cardio or high-intensity intervals. Johnson’s message is clear: productivity shouldn’t come at the cost of long-term health. In his eyes, sacrificing sleep to meet deadlines is not a badge of honour—it’s a sign of unsustainable living. As more voices from the tech community question the glorification of burnout culture, Johnson’s warning serves as a timely reminder: no innovation is worth your health.

Cognitive decline is one of the most difficult things that people go through. It is believed to be a part of aging, however, there are many things that can affect this. While there has been extensive research and studies done on different cognitive diseases like dementia, there is not a lot of evidence regarding how to cure it or what causes it. However, to make sure people with these conditions get proper care, researchers have meticulously studied things that show what helps our brains stay sharp.

Not just our lifestyle habits, but things like what food we eat, how much we exercise as well as our social life, these are all things that affect our brain’s ability to retain memories, functions, and survival skills. While you may think of some habits as insignificant or not pay much mind to it, they could be crucial for your mind’s health and well-being.

A new study suggests that regular, gentle exercise like Tai Chi can play a significant role in slowing the development of dementia. This understanding challenges previous notions about brain plasticity, with new findings from Harvard Medical School highlighting the brain's lifelong capacity for growth and adaptation.

Brain's Remarkable Adaptability

The study found an interesting fact, although it was believed that the brain's ability to generate new cells was limited to early life, experts at Harvard now confirm the brain's incredible adaptability throughout an individual's lifespan. The brain possesses the potential to produce new cells, form novel connections, and even increase in size, leading to improved cognitive functions. Tai Chi, among various exercises, is particularly beneficial in fostering brain health.

According to Harvard Health Publishing, Tai Chi, also called meditation in motion, is an ancient Chinese mind-body practice, rooted in martial arts. This gentle, low-impact exercise involves a continuous series of fluid movements, often inspired by animal actions like "white crane spreads its wings" or martial arts maneuvers such as "box both ears." As you move, you'll focus on deep, natural breathing and bodily sensations, similar to some forms of meditation.

Tai Chi stands apart from many other exercises due to its unique characteristics, movements are typically circular and unforced, muscles remain relaxed rather than tensed, joints are not fully extended or bent, and connective tissues aren't stretched.

Tai Chi's Impact on Cognitive Function

A review of 20 studies has revealed that Tai Chi significantly enhances "executive function" in individuals experiencing cognitive decline. Executive function encompasses crucial skills such as multitasking, time management, and decision-making.

For those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), Tai Chi has proven more effective than other forms of exercise in decelerating the progression of dementia. Furthermore, it demonstrated comparable benefits to other exercises or cognitive training in boosting overall brain function.

How Does Tai Chi Affect Our Brain?

Harvard experts cite compelling research demonstrating Tai Chi's advantages:

Slowing Dementia Onset

In one study involving nearly 400 Chinese men and women with cognitive impairment, participants performed either Tai Chi or a stretching and toning program three times a week. After a year, the Tai Chi group showed greater improvements, with only 2% progressing to dementia, compared to 11% in the traditional exercise group.

Increased Brain Volume and Cognitive Performance

Another study compared Tai Chi to walking, social interaction, and no intervention over 40 weeks. MRI scans revealed that the Tai Chi group exhibited the most significant increase in brain volume. This group also demonstrated superior performance on cognitive tests.

Biological aging, ways to extend one's youth and ways extending human life, have been researched extensively. People like billionaire Bryan Johnson are looking for ways that can help humans survive more years than the average human life. While there have been great strides in these studies, the concept is still widely criticized and debated. However, a new study has found that a vitamin supplement could be the answer to long-lasting youth!

New research suggests that taking daily vitamin D supplements might help slow down how quickly your body ages. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, discovered that people who took vitamin D3 every day seemed to have less wear and tear on important parts of their DNA called telomeres. These telomeres are like protective caps on your chromosomes and naturally get shorter. Scientists use the length of these telomeres to figure out your "biological age" – how old your body actually is, not just the number of years since you were born.

How Does Vitamin D Slow Biological Aging?

This study is the first large and long-term research project to show that vitamin D supplements can actually protect these telomeres and help keep them from getting shorter. This finding is even more exciting because earlier studies had already suggested that vitamin D could help calm down swelling inside the body and lower the chances of getting certain diseases that come with age, like serious cancers and immune system problems.

So, this new discovery adds another important piece to the puzzle of how vitamin D might keep us healthier as we get older. It truly gives us more reasons to pay attention to our vitamin D levels.

While the findings are promising and worth more investigation, they emphasize that more research is essential to fully understand and confirm these benefits. This step is crucial before making widespread recommendations based on these initial discoveries.

How Was The Study Conducted?

To do this research, the scientists looked at information from over 1,000 people. These people were part of a much bigger study that had 25,900 participants in total, and that larger study was trying to figure out the benefits of vitamin D and omega-3 fish oil supplements.

In the smaller group, people were randomly chosen to take either a daily dose of vitamin D3 (2,000 international units, or IU, per day) or omega-3 fatty acid (1 gram per day). For this specific study, the researchers carefully measured the length of their telomeres at the very beginning of the study, and then again after two and four years of taking the supplements. This allowed them to see any changes over time.

Important Considerations Before Stockpiling

They are clear that these good results need to be checked and confirmed by other studies. It's like finding a treasure map – you need to make sure it's real before you start digging! While these first findings are exciting and point to a lot of potential, the researchers believe it's super important for more studies to be done to prove these benefits before we change how much vitamin D everyone is advised to take. This careful approach ensures that any future health advice is based on very strong evidence.

Researchers made it very clear that while vitamin D might help our telomeres, it's not a magic bullet and shouldn't replace eating healthy foods or getting regular exercise. They stressed that eating well and staying active should always be our main focus for good health. However, for certain people who have more swelling in their bodies or a higher chance of getting chronic diseases, adding targeted vitamin D supplementation could be a helpful extra step in their health plan.