You will have heard of the nature-nurture debate. In the last decade researchers have come to a deeper understanding of how the two interact. The field is called epigenetics and there is an interesting example of this in the link between stress and attachment. Research has shown that rats who have been raised by mothers […]
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DNA analysis of thousands of people in three separate studies has shown that the disorder is linked to the interaction of a large number of genetic variants on chromosome 6, in an area called the Major Histocompatability Complex which has one role in the immune system and another in controlling the switching on or off of other genes. […]
Read moreSuppose you had an awful experience, something traumatic which shook you up and upset you deeply. What would the effects of that be? How would you cope? Would you be able to deal with your memories, or would you have flashbacks, panic attacks, feel unable to get on with your life? Researchers in Germany and […]
Read moreSpeaking of nature and nurture, there is a three part series starting this week on BBC 1, called The Making of Me. It looks at three well known people – the hurdler Colin Jackson, the violin virtuoso Vanessa Mae and the gay star of Torchwood, John Barrowman – and asks ‘What made these people, was […]
Read moreNature – the great outdoors, trees, sky, flowers, water – has a psychological and physiological effect which can help lower stress levels; at least that is what researchers at the University of Washington have demonstrated. They had student participants who completed quite difficult mental tests. During these tests some had a view of trees and […]
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