Are You Resistant To Diet Plans? This Might Be The Cause.

Welcome to the positive corner of the internet. Every weekday, we make sense of the confusing world of wellness by analyzing the headlines, simplifying the latest research, and offering quick tips designed to make you healthier in less than 5 minutes. If you were forwarded this message, you can get the free daily email here.

Today’s Health Upgrade

• Number you won’t forget

• A breakthrough for treating severe depression

• Weekly wisdom

• Are you resistant to diet plans?

Social Health
Number You Won’t Forget: 95 Percent

Some stats hit harder than others, and this is one we can’t stop thinking about. 

By the time your child turns 18, you will have spent approximately 95 percent of the time you will ever spend with them in your lifetime.

That was one of many perspective-shifting insights from The 5 Types of Wealth by Sahil Bloom (it’s also the featured book this month in The Pump app). 

Here’s an exclusive excerpt that explores how you spend your time.

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For ten years, you are your child’s favorite person in the entire world. After that, children have other favorite people—­best friends, girlfriends, boyfriends, partners, and, eventually, their own children. But during those ten years, you are everything to them. You occupy a unique place in their world.

In a viral Reddit post from May 2023, a user wrote, “20 years from now, the only people who will remember that you worked late are your kids.” 

Commenters responded with emotion-­ filled posts, such as “The graveyard is full of ‘irreplaceable’ and ‘important’ people” and “I’ve missed so many birthdays, plays, and events for work, and I can’t even tell you why. I don’t remember what I was working on, I can’t tell you why it was important. But I can tell you how my not being there made my kids feel.”

There are specific windows—­much shorter than you care to imagine or admit—­during which certain people and relationships will occupy your life. You may have only one more summer with all of your siblings, two more trips with that old group of friends, a few more years with your wise old aunt, a handful of encounters with that coworker you love, or one more long walk with your parents. If you fail to appreciate or recognize these windows, they will quickly disappear.

Writer and philosopher Sam Harris once said, “No matter how many times you do something, there will come a day when you do it for the last time.”

There will be a last time your kids want you to read them a bedtime story, a last time you’ll go for a long walk with your sibling, a last time you’ll hug your parents at a family gathering, a last time your friend will call you for support.

How many moments do you­ really have remaining with your loved ones? It’s probably not as many as you’d like to believe. All the tiny moments, people, and experiences that we take for granted will eventually be ones we wish we had more of.

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If you want help making the most of your time, we recommend The 5 Types of Wealth. And if you want to interact with Sahil in an exclusive Q&A, become a member of The Pump app. He’ll be joining the village in a few weeks to answer your questions. 

On Our Radar
A Breakthrough For Treating Severe Depression

A groundbreaking study on psilocybin—the active ingredient in magic mushrooms—might change the way we approach seemingly untreatable mental illness.

Researchers found that a single, carefully administered dose of psilocybin can produce rapid and sustained improvements in individuals with severe treatment-resistant depression, offering new hope when traditional therapies have failed.

The participants had tried at least five prior treatments without any improvement. Then, they received one 25-milligram dose of psilocybin alongside psychological support.

Just three weeks after treatment, the changes were hard to deny. Nearly 70 percent of participants experienced a signification reduction in their symptoms, and 42 percent achieved complete remission. 

The results indicated that the benefits lasted up to 3 months, suggesting one treatment could have long-term benefits. The treatment was well-tolerated with no serious adverse effects reported, underscoring its potential as a safe alternative for people with limited options.

It was a preliminary study of just 12 individuals, and there wasn’t a control group. But it’s not the first time that psilocybin has been used in the treatment of severe depression.

Remember, the study was conducted in a controlled, supportive environment with professional guidance. If new treatments become available, ensuring they’re administered safely is essential, but it’s a promising result for people who have tried other options without success. 

Mindset
Weekly Wisdom

Nutrition
Are You Resistant To Diet Plans?

When people talk about “stress eating,” it usually refers to abandoning healthy eating habits when times get tough.

But new research suggests that your stress levels don’t just cause occasional moments of eating an entire gallon of ice cream — it also makes it harder for you to stick to a nutritious plan.

Scientists tested what happens when you give people all the diet planning they need to eat more fruits and vegetables. One group received daily menu-planning exercises that helped them understand how to eat more produce, adjusting for when and how to make it happen, while the other group received no guidance. 

The group that received diet coaching nearly doubled their fruit intake after two weeks, while the control group showed no change — but there was a big exception.

The researchers also measured stress levels, and those with the highest daily stressors did not see the same diet improvements, despite the extra guidance and assistance

If you want a place to start, a study we shared previously suggests you can train your brain to crave healthier options and reduce your stress at the same time. 

The next time you’re stressed, set a timer for 6 minutes. Practice tensing every muscle in your body and then letting go and relaxing (this is called progressive muscle relaxation, and this video walks you through a sample). 

This can reduce anxiety and stress, but one more step can turn this exercise into something that supports better eating. 

About 5 minutes in, start eating fruit. Ideally, it will be something you don’t eat very often (so you don’t have prior associations). Keep tensing and relaxing as you eat the fruit. You’re training your mind to associate the two actions, meaning that eventually, eating fruit alone can become a trigger to reduce stress and anxiety. In the study, participants did this once daily for seven days and then saw a difference.

And that’s it for this week. Thanks for being a part of the positive corner of the internet. We hope you all have a fantastic weekend!
-Arnold, Adam, Daniel 

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Publisher: Arnold Schwarzenegger​

Editors-in-chief: Adam Bornstein and Daniel Ketchell