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Get Better Sleep To Function Better At Work

Many people sleep less than the recommended hours and are under-performing at work due to sleep deprivation. A good night’s sleep includes both the quantity and quality of your slumber.

Pulling an all-nighter may provide short-term results, but regularly skipping sleep can be detrimental to your ability to focus and to perform higher-level brain functions for the days to come.

It is essential to give your body the restorative rest it deserves. Here are four ways to improve your sleep.

#1: REDUCE YOUR EXPOSURE TO LED LIGHTS

Exposure to LED lights inhibits the increase in sleepiness during nighttime. Aside from watching television, using your hand phones and tablets before you go to sleep can suppress melatonin levels. Melatonin is a hormone primarily released by the pineal gland at night. It has long been associated with the control of the sleep–wake cycle. Thus, having a lamp with a lower color temperature is recommended at night.

#2: AVOID DRINKING CAFFEINE

Caffeine is a strong stimulant that can interfere sleep. It can increase your adrenaline production and block sleep-inducing chemicals in the brain. Get better sleep at night by avoiding the consumption of caffeine. The National Sleep Foundation recommends avoiding coffee, tea, chocolate, and soft drinks before bedtime.

Apart from coffee and tea, chocolate contains caffeine in varying degrees. A dark chocolate bar may have about 30 milligrams of caffeine. This is equivalent to the caffeine content in a cup of instant tea.

Chocolate has other stimulants too! One of its stimulants is theobromine. Theobromine is the compound that makes chocolates dangerous for cats and dogs. Theobromine, found in small amounts in chocolate, increases heart rate and causes sleeplessness.

#3: HAVE A CONDUCIVE SLEEPING ENVIRONMENT

Ensure that your bedroom is welcoming and relaxing. Remove unnecessary distractions like the television and other devices with blue light. Moreover, you must keep the room temperature cool and use curtains to block the natural light. Natural light can keep you awake, while blue light will disrupt your sleep.

#4: CREATE A SLEEPING ROUTINE

Sleeping routines can improve the length and quality of sleep. Getting a good night’s sleep is vital to maintaining long-term healthy habits. Enjoying a quality slumber is free and is perhaps the most budget-friendly step you can take towards wellness.

At least 6 to 8 hours of sleep is ideal for teens and adults. Learn how much sleep you really need and maintain a consistent sleep schedule. Then, set up a conducive sleeping environment without distractions. You can also develop a curfew for your electronics usage.

Image Credits: unsplash.com

Please reduce the intake of caffeine and avoid physical activity before you go to bed. Practice calming activities such as taking a warm bath or listening to relaxing music instead.

Have a wonderful rest!

4 Surefire Ways To Create Better Study Habits At Home

Ministry of Education announced that lower primary and lower secondary students will continue with home-based learning (HBL) after June holidays. These arrangements were made to “ease into full resumption of school” when Term 3 starts on June 28.

Studying from home can be challenging! All of us have study habits that we would like to break and others that we would like to develop. People often blame these unpleasant habits to laziness or unhealthy personality. However, Behaviorism dictates that we can learn and unlearn these habits.

Effectively reinforcing a positive behavior and not rewarding a negative one can help change various areas in one’s life. With this principle in mind, here are 4 things that you can do create better study habits at home.

#1: SET YOUR STUDY GOALS

It is not enough to say that you want to study more! You must set quantifiable and realistic goals to meet your objectives for the day. Setting your study goals includes two things – identifying your goals and knowing which resources you will need.

For instance, you want to study for 3 hours daily (i.e., quantifiable and realistic). You successfully meet this study goal by utilizing a conducive study space and by having school supplies on-hand.

#2: TAKE ACTION

After clearly setting your goals, you must bravely take your first attempt. If it is too much to drastically start with 3 hours of study time per day, you can start with at least 45 minutes daily. Gradually increase your study time as the weeks pass by.

Having a physical boundary between your study area and your relaxation area could be very helpful. This can also help you to contain your academic stress within the study space. Furthermore, you can stay focused when studying from home by following a routine. Establishing a routine will provide more structure to your life and more cues to your brain.

#3: MONITOR YOUR PROGRESS

Monitoring your progress includes tracking your milestones and altering your goals based on your evaluation of the current situation. To illustrate this, you can have a study log to record your study time and daily assignments.

You can also analyze the factors that hinder you from studying, such as distractions from external noises or social media. Then, add another goal that is fit to counteract these distractions such turning your handphone off for 3 hours. Use this time to take down notes during your online classes.

#4: REWARD YOURSELF

Positive reinforcement such as entertaining or monetary compensation can increase the repetition of the desired behavior. Therefore, different companies use positive reinforcement to attract you into purchasing more of their products.

Image Credits: unsplash.com

You must figure out a well-deserved reward for successfully studying during the allotted amount of time. You can indulge in your favorite dessert, have a relaxing bath, or call your friends via Zoom. For optimum results, keep the reward scheme consistent each time you reach a study goal.

Sources: 1 & 2

BTS Meal To Launch In Singapore On June 21

In 2013, a South Korean boy group called BTS or 방탄소년단 debuted under Big Hit Entertainment (HYBE Corporation). The group smoothly made its way to the hearts of many and had since become a global icon.

With smash hits like Dynamite and Butter, BTS made its way to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Global 200. In fact, its newly released song Butter blasted with a record-breaking 289.2 million streams and 249,000 sold worldwide in the May 21-27 tracking week.

Another surprise came earlier this year as McDonald’s promoted the “BTS Meal”. BTS Meal went on sale in South Korea, United States, and 10 other countries last May 2021. This meal consists of a 10-piece Chicken McNuggets, Medium Fries, Coke, and two new dipping sauces. These new flavors are Sweet Chili and Cajun. The packaging for the BTS Meal comes in purple and was printed with the group’s logo.

BTS MEAL CRAZE

As BTS’ popularity skyrocketed, there have been concerns that the launch of the meal could draw crowds in some Asian countries where COVID-19 cases have risen and where vaccination levels remain relatively low.

McDonald’s was instructed to temporarily shut some outlets in Indonesia last week when the introduction of the BTS Meal sparked frenzy. Several delivery riders were seen massing inside and outside of the food chain during the meal’s launching. Their local police said that the temporary closure of several outlets was “because they were found to have violated health protocols”, including limiting capacity to 50%.

Thus, Indonesian fans created a crowdfunding page to raise money for drivers and their families. They have acknowledged that the delivery drivers faced long lines and possible exposure to the COVID-19 to bring them their meals.

LAUNCH IN SINGAPORE

Due to the tightening of social distancing rules and the ban on dine-in options, the meal’s rollout in Singapore was delayed last month. The launch was re-scheduled to June 21 instead. Please adhere to the safety procedures when scoring your coveted meal.

Image Credits: facebook.com/mcdsg

Fans must know that the BTS Meal does not come with photo cards or other related merchandise. Instead, you can order the collaboration’s official BTS x McDonald’s merch at HYBE Merch.

Sources: 1, 2, 3 & 4

A climate activist says it’s impossible to tackle climate change solely on individual efforts

Other than the ongoing pandemic, climate change’s the rage right now.

That’s why our country’s environment minister recently noted that Singapore is facing twin challenges from climate change. The problems Grace Fu is referring to are coastal floods and extreme rainstorms that could result in more intense inland flooding.

Some people may think it’s not something to worry about excessively at the moment, considering the trend to live in the present. But do you know the potential impact climate change can have on our lives?

Here’s a good look at some findings from the National Climate Change Studies:

Live in Singapore long enough, and you would have constantly read or heard about attempts to reduce carbon footprint. This includes messages by the authorities or corporations to uphold the 3Rs and switch off lights when not in use.

But are individual efforts enough to tackle climate change? A climate activist begs to differ.

Governments can do more for cooling

One common method recommended by authorities to reduce carbon footprint is to reduce the usage of air-conditioners for cooling. But do you know that home air-conditioning only contributes to 2% of carbon emissions in Singapore?

Climate activist Ho Xiang Tian said in his commentary that there are alternative cooling methods to consider. For example, authorities can paint the exterior walls of buildings white to reduce heat gain. They can also plant more trees to bring down surrounding temperatures.

An individual simply can’t implement the above solutions alone.

Education efforts needed on recycling

Reducing our waste is also another familiar call by the authorities to do our part for the climate. Even so, one should be aware that domestic waste only accounts for a quarter of the total waste generated in Singapore.

Yes, we agree that 25% may be no considerable number, but it’s not tiny either. That’s why education efforts on recycling have to be increased. Just do a soul-search and ask yourself if you ever use the blue bin below your HDB block. Even if you do, are you using the proper method to recycle?

Just so you know, 40% of recyclables in these blue bins are contaminated and cannot be recycled. Thus, they are sent for incineration instead. This defeats the ultimate purpose of recycling from the start, isn’t it?

Maybe it’s about time for the government to review existing measures to increase recycling rates.

Biodegradable disposables aren’t any better

Image Credits: sea-trading.com.sg

There are numerous local shops and retailers offering biodegradable alternatives, all in the name of love for the environment.

But what these businesses and their consumers do not know is that waste is burned in Singapore, not buried in landfills. This means these products cannot degrade and aren’t very different from the impact of plastics, considering how waste in Singapore is managed.

According to a 2017 lifecycle analysis authorised by the National Environment Agency (NEA), biodegradable disposables that contain plastic and additives might do more harm than good.

This leads us to question if allowing the sale of biodegradable disposables in our little red dot is necessary.

Final thoughts

With all that mentioned above, while individual efforts contribute to a certain extent, living more sustainably is merely on a personal level. To scale this up and truly mitigate climate change, a bigger picture has to be considered.

The COVID-19 vaccination programme is being progressively rolled out to all Singaporeans and long-term residents.

The Ministry of Health announced that they have extended the vaccination programme to Singapore citizens aged 12 to 39 years old. For individuals who have had an earlier Covid-19 infection from over six months ago are also recommended to receive a single dose of vaccine to boost their immunity against reinfection.

Those who fall in the above groups can register for Covid-19 vaccination from 11 June 2021. For individuals below 18 years of age, and who are not part of the MOE vaccination exercise, the parent/guardian should register on behalf of the individual.

vaccine.gov.sg

If you require any assistance, please call the MOH COVID-19 hotline at 1800-333-9999.

Check out the Frequently Asked Questions here.

Governments can do more for cooling

Education efforts needed on recycling

Biodegradable disposables aren’t any better

Final thoughts

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