The surprising reason people change their minds

• Age 0-10: Rapid growth and heavy dietary requirements mark this time, and one has to watch out for junk food eating habits along with certain controlled eating formations in kids.
• Age 10-20: The hormonal changes in this age along with the teen lifestyle trigger unhealthy food choices in this critical age.
• Age 20-30: College, marriage, live-in or parenthood often leads to weight gain, as the body tends to send strong signals to eat, but not for overeating.
• Age 30-40: Lack of a work-life balance and certain food addictions affect one’s health during mid-life. The working population often sacrifice their hunger pangs by unhealthy snacking (like coffee and doughnuts), as the focus is on productivity, not health.
• Age 40-50: Lifestyle problems start to come in the picture in this age due to the kind of diet consumed in the earlier stages, though some symptoms are silent, like high blood pressure or cholesterol.
• Age 50-60: The body starts to decline, with a gradual loss of muscle mass (called sarcopenia) which is due to less physical activity and consuming less protein.

Age 60-70: Good nutrition along with a functioning body is crucial at an old age, due to lack of hunger which leads to a loss of weight and illnesses of the mind and body.

Food is crucial in all ages but is especially important (along with physical activity) in old age even though many complications arise like dental problems, swallowing issues and reduced taste and smell.

One should savour and relish the food we eat and follow the basic guidelines of exercise and nutrition.

The organic and unpredictable nature of conspiracy theories had led many researchers to investigate the cause of the phenomenon.

• Successful conspiracy theories always tend to invent a great villain, have a backdrop or a backstory, and a morality lesson that can be easily understood by most.
• Great stories are by nature more magnetic and appealing than the truth.
• Human beings think and understand in stories. For thousands of years, fairy tales, legends, anecdotes and mysteries have helped our brains make sense of the world.

Every society has its own, unique anxieties and obsessions, and the conspiracy theories that gain good mileage are the ones that tap into these primal fears.

Example: Many people fear vaccination of the children due to fears that the mass drive to vaccinate such a large population has some ulterior motive, like a mass medical experiment. The dodgy past record of the health care system, and the fact that the vaccination is free of charge, of course, adds fuel to the fire.

Solving any teenager problem is an exercise in futility, with broken hearts, social dramas and academic pressure making them split their heads every day.

Teens share their worries with us because they feel like sharing, and need empathy, not a solution. Reassuring and sincere words that make them feel better can be enough, and any solution offered will most probably backfire.

They may only need a vote of confidence and can easily turn well-intentioned guidance as criticism and lectures.

Teenagers talk to parents about their problems and after being offered solutions and suggestions, dismiss the ideas provided as irritating, irrelevant or both.

Teens and adolescents may just need a venting outlet and will feel better simply by articulating their worries and problems.

Adults can provide them with mental space by listening to them without interrupting, letting them sort, survey and organize their thoughts.