#WHOOPEd Weekly Digest, Vol. 15

By WHOOP

August 18, 2017

What you eat vs. when you eat, the importance of 12-hour ultradian rhythms, and wearable devices powered by clothing?

Monday, August 14

The facts behind early sport specialization and increased injuries

A study last fall from the National Federation of State High School Associations suggests young athletes who specialize in a single sport are 70% more likely to suffer an injury than those who play multiple sports.
Results from a 2016 study from the Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine indicate that specialization may also lead to “loss of motivation, lack of enjoyment, stress and anxiety, and mood disturbances.”
“Overuse syndrome” is to blame, which is particularly relevant in young athletes whose bodies are not yet fully developed.
Regardless of whether or not they play one or multiple sports, rest days are an essential part of avoiding injuries for high school athletes.

Tuesday, August 15

When You Eat Matters As Much As What You Eat

Researchers in the Netherlands reviewed a previous study of shift workers and found that they gain more weight on average than people who work standard hours.
A possible explanation: The human body metabolizes glucose better during the day, so we’re more likely to gain weight by eating at night.
For other mammals, food does not always come on a regular basis, but humans have evolved to the point that it’s become normal.
Might we be better off eating less frequently?

Wednesday, August 16

NBA protecting its marquee games with latest schedule tweaks

The 2016-17 NBA season had the fewest total games lost to injury in more than a decade. Rest may be a contributing factor.
Skipping games to rest has been an escalating issue for the league in recent years, with more than 200 player games missed last season for that reason.
Two consecutive Saturday night games nationally televised by ABC were ruined last spring when the star players were held out of action to rest.
In an effort to curb this trend in 2017-18, only 14.4% of games will be player on back-to-back nights this season, down from 16.3% last year.
None of this year’s 17 nationally televised ABC games will feature teams who played the day before.

Thursday, August 17

Paperthin device produces electricity from the slowest human motions

A mechanical engineering professor from Vanderbilt University has built a device that can recognize movements with extremely low frequencies (0.01 Hz).
It uses sheets of black phosphorus which generate electricity when bent.
The thin, foil-like device could easily be built into fabric and clothing.
Regular movement from the clothes we wear could potentially create enough electricity to power fitness wearables or other small electronic devices.

Friday, August 18

How Your 12-Hour Internal Clock Affects Overall Health

In addition to 24-hour circadian rhythms, our bodies also have 12-hour ultradian rhythms that affect our overall health and well being.
A recent study shows over 3,000 genes are affected by our 12-hour biological clock.
Most notably, our metabolism, reactions to stress and decision making process may all be regulated by ultradian rhythms.
The best ways to maintain your ultradian rhythm look to be waking up and going to sleep at the same time each day, eating regularly at the same times and generally keeping a consistent daily schedule.