All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Workers may sense it intuitively but their mouse clicks prove it: Friday afternoon is the least productive time of the work week. It’s also when workers make the most typos. A Texas A&M University team studied this using the computer usage metrics of 789 in-office employees at a large energy company over two years. “Most studies of worker productivity use employee self-reports, supervisory evaluations or wearable technology, but these can be subjective and invasive,” said co-author Mark Benden, head of the university’s Department of Environmental and Occupational Health. “Instead, we used computer usage metrics — things like typing speed, typing errors and mouse activity — to get objective, noninvasive data on computer work patterns,” he said in a university news release. The researchers compared computer use across different days of the week and times of the day to see what kinds of patterns emerged. “We found that computer use increased during the week, then dropped significantly on Fridays,” said study leader Taehyun Roh, an assistant professor of epidemiology and biostatistics. “People typed more words and had more mouse movement, mouse clicks and scrolls every day from Monday through Thursday, then less of this activity on Friday.” Computer use fell off every afternoon — especially on Fridays — the data revealed. “Employees were less active in the afternoons and made more typos in the afternoons —…  read on >  read on >

Ever feel like your job is pointless? A big part of the population feels just that way — that the jobs they do matter little to society. And a Swiss study that delved into what’s been dubbed the “bullshit jobs theory” found that feeling was especially likely for folks in financial, sales and management jobs. About 19% of employees found their work rarely or never gave them “a feeling of making a positive impact on community and society” and “the feeling of doing useful work,” the study found. That finding is in line with the “bullshit jobs theory” espoused by the late American anthropologist David Graeber, who maintained that some jobs are socially useless. “Employees’ assessment of whether their work is perceived as socially useless is a very complex issue that needs to be approached from different angles,” study leader Simon Walo, a sociologist at the University of Zurich, said in a university news release. “It depends on various factors that do not necessarily have anything to do with the actual usefulness of work as claimed by Graeber. For example, people may also view their work as socially useless because unfavorable working conditions make it seem pointless,” Walo explained. In addition to Graeber’s theory, other researchers have suggested that people consider their jobs useless not because of the importance of their work but because it…  read on >  read on >

When studying which personality types were more likely to resist getting vaccines, researchers got a surprise. It was the extroverts who were more vaccine resistant. Compared to other personality styles, extroverts were 18% more likely to refuse the COVID-19 vaccine, the new study finds. “We expected that people who were especially high in extroversion would be more likely to get the vaccine,” said lead author Melissa Baker, an assistant professor at the University of Texas at El Paso. “We figured those people would want to get back out in the world and socialize, right? It’s actually the opposite,” she added in a university news release. The researchers hope their findings may help with future public health messaging and vaccination campaigns. “We wanted to look at vaccine hesitancy a different way,” Baker said. “Of course, politics can help explain some of it, but there are personal differences between people, too — and that led us to this personality aspect.” Joining with a researcher from the University of Toronto, the study team used surveys of more than 40,000 Canadian adults, taken between November 2020 and July 2021. Questions evaluated each participant’s personality, based on a model known as “big five.” This gauges someone’s openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and emotional stability. Other questions were focused on vaccination, including, “When a COVID-19 vaccine becomes available, will you be vaccinated?”…  read on >  read on >

The trauma and unhappy family dynamics of childhood may follow kids into old age, affecting both their mind and body, according to new research. “We looked at self-reported disability, as well as objectively measured physical and cognitive impairment, and learned that early-life stressful experiences can have ramifications all the way into older age,” said senior author Dr. Alison Huang, a University of California, San Francisco professor of medicine. “This can mean a higher likelihood of difficulty walking, or carrying out activities of daily living, or problems with memory when people are in their 60s, 70s, 80s or older,” she said in a university news release. Exposure to physical violence or abuse, severe illness, family financial stress or separation from parents are considered major childhood stressors. The study found that those who experienced violence in childhood were 40% more likely to have mobility impairment and 80% more likely to have difficulty with daily activities. Those who came from unhappy families were 40% more likely to have mild cognitive impairment. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost 60% of adults in the United States have experienced one or more types of adverse childhood experiences. These can undermine a child’s sense of safety or stability, and are tied to later heart disease, diabetes, autoimmune disease and depression. California was the first state to mandate…  read on >  read on >

A Louisiana woman is suing the makers of two type 2 diabetes drugs used off-label for obesity, saying they failed to adequately warn about the risk of severe stomach problems. The lawsuit seeks “very significant” but unspecified compensation from the makers of both Ozempic and Mounjaro, said attorney Paul Pennock of the Orlando, Fla.-based firm Morgan & Morgan. Pennock filed the lawsuit Wednesday on behalf of Jaclyn Bjorklund, 44, NBC News reported. The lawsuit against Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly claims Bjorklund was “severely injured” after taking the two diabetes drugs, which are part of a new class of medication called GLP-1 agonists. Pennock said she is suffering “persistent” vomiting and severe gastroparesis, also known as stomach paralysis. Gastroparesis slows or stops food from moving out of the stomach and into the small intestines. It can be caused by underlying medical issues, including diabetes, according to the American College of Gastroenterology. Infections and some medication can also cause it. The GLP-1 agonists slow food’s movement and have been found to cause some GI issues in clinical trials. Those are listed as side effects on the drug labels. Both Ozempic and Mounjaro have the phrase “delays gastric emptying” on their prescribing information, though they don’t specifically use the word “gastroparesis,” NBC News reported. A U.S. Food and Drug Administration spokeswoman said it was unclear whether the…  read on >  read on >

Yoga is known for its benefits to both the mind and body. And a gentle form of yoga may be an ideal early intervention technique for older women at risk of Alzheimer’s disease, new research suggests. In a small study involving kundalini yoga, participants reported that its stress-relieving effects translated to more efficient memory. “Women tend to practice yoga more readily than men. And I’ve done other studies previously in people, older adults with mild cognitive [mental] impairment and in caregivers with similar interventions,” said Dr. Helen Lavretsky, the lead psychiatrist on the study. “We are focusing now on women who are not as impaired as in my previous study, but still at risk for cognitive decline. And the idea is to get to the level where doing yoga would prevent future cognitive decline and development of Alzheimer’s disease,” said Lavretsky, a professor-in-residence at the University of California, Los Angeles. Kundalini yoga involves chanting, singing, breathing exercises, meditation and gentle poses with the aim of increasing awareness in the mind and body. Previous scientific research has found that yoga can help regulate blood pressure and increase cardiorespiratory fitness, as well as benefit the hippocampus, or the region in the brain that is associated with memory. In this study, scientists examined the effects of kundalini yoga versus memory enhancement training (MET) on the hippocampus in 22…  read on >  read on >

Golfing may be a great way to get outdoors and enjoy the pleasures of a classic summer pastime. But a new study warns that walking the greens for hours on end without adequate sun protection may notably increase the risk for skin cancer. Researchers in Australia found that more than one-quarter of golfers in that country have been diagnosed with skin cancer at some point, making Aussie players 2.4 times more likely to get the disease than their non-golfing peers. “Our previous research, and that of others worldwide, has demonstrated the positive impact of golf on people’s health, including physical, mental and cognitive well-being,” said study lead author Brad Stenner. At the same time, “Australia is well known for its high skin cancer rates, and frequency and intensity of sun exposure,” said Stenner, a lecturer in health and human performance at the University of South Australia in Adelaide. However, “the cumulative effects of sun exposure do increase the risks of skin cancer, regardless of where you live,” he added. Knowing this, golfers should more actively strive to protect themselves, Stenner and other experts said. In the new research, just 7% of those in the general public reported ever having a skin cancer diagnosis versus 27% of the golfers. This suggests golfers face a nearly 250% greater risk of developing skin cancer than non-players, the study…  read on >  read on >

More girls started puberty before age 8 during the COVID-19 pandemic, a phenomenon called precocious puberty, researchers say. The reasons include potential risk factors such as increased screen time and less exercise, according to a new study, published online Aug. 3 in the Journal of the Endocrine Society. In precocious puberty, children’s bodies begin changing into adult bodies too soon. These changes normally begin between age 8 and 14. The number of girls referred to pediatric endocrinologists for precocious puberty rose substantially over the past two years, researchers found. COVID-19 has also been linked to endocrine diseases, including obesity, which can contribute to early puberty in girls. “Our study confirms the rise in precocious puberty diagnoses during COVID-19 and identifies contributing factors such as poor eating and exercise habits, too much screen time and impaired sleep,” said study author Dr. Mohamad Maghnie, of the University of Genoa and the Giannina Gaslini Institute in Italy. “We found an increase in weight gain among girls diagnosed with precocious puberty during the pandemic, and rapid increase in body weight is associated with advanced pubertal development,” he said in a journal news release. The researchers studied data on rates of precocious puberty from before and after the pandemic in 133 girls in Italy. They also considered the possible relationship between COVID-19 and pandemic-related lifestyle changes. They found 72 cases…  read on >  read on >

J.D. Butler was planning a future with his girlfriend at his favorite New York City restaurant when that future came to a sudden, crushing halt. “They were planning on when she was moving in and arranging floor plans on the table, with where the furniture was going to go,” said his mother, Karen Butler, a lifelong New York resident. “And he had a grand mal seizure, and then his heart stopped.” A subsequent autopsy revealed that J.D.’s fatal seizure was brought on by mitragynine toxicity, caused by long-term ingestion of the widely used herbal supplement kratom, Butler said. “She said there was evidence in his organ tissue that it had been in his body consistently for a while,” Butler said. “It’s one of those drugs to which you develop a tolerance, so you have to keep taking more and more and more.” Kratom is coming under fire in the United States, targeted by a series of lawsuits following wrongful deaths associated with its use. A Florida jury awarded $11 million last week to the family of a woman who died after taking kratom, in a lawsuit against the company that sold her the supplement, according to NBC News. The woman, a 39-year-old mother of four, collapsed in her kitchen while making breakfast for her family in June 2021. A coroner said Krystal Talavera died from…  read on >  read on >

So, your high schooler has been complaining of headaches. Should you worry? Maybe, claims new research that finds bullying and suicidal thoughts are both linked to more frequent headaches in teens. “Headaches are a common problem for teenagers, but our study looked beyond the biological factors to also consider the psychological and social factors that are associated with headaches,” said study author Dr. Serena Orr, of the University of Calgary, in Canada. “Our findings suggest that bullying and attempting or considering suicide may be linked to frequent headaches in teenagers, independent of mood and anxiety disorders.” This isn’t proof that bullying causes headaches, but shows an association between the two. A study limitation is that headaches were self-reported. The research included more than 2.2 million teens who were an average age of 14. About 0.5% of all the participants self-reported being gender-diverse, including transgender or nonbinary. The participants answered questions about their headaches, including if they had them in the past six months and how often. The teens also answered questions regarding mental health, including whether they had diagnosed mood or anxiety disorders or both; about bullying in the past year and about suicidal thoughts and attempts. About 11% of participants reported having frequent, recurring headaches, defined as headaches occurring more than once a week. About 25% of the participants reported being victims of frequent…  read on >  read on >