The effects of sleeping less than 6 hours on our brains

Oct 25 2021

We often hear of doctors recommending people getting around 6 to 8 hours a sleep a night. But what are the effects on one’s brain should one keep a schedule of sleeping less than 6 hours a night? Speaking to the Telegraph, Dr Rebecca Robbins said that just one hour can have a massive difference impacting one’s day. She pointed out how changing our sleep schedules by an hour or longer from one day to the next, the brain receives signals that we are attempting to transition to a new time zone. This makes the next night’s sleep a challenge. Robbins said that the brain produces toxins throughout the day, and the build up of these can lead to some serious consequences.

The accumulation can lead to neurocognitive decline such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, with people who are sleep deprived having higher risks of colds and flu. Adults, it turns out, need bed time schedules in the same way kids do. Combatting such potential harm can be done by establishing a healthy sleeping pattern, avoiding looking at your phone before you sleep and practicing some visualization before sleep. Anything that can help you fall asleep easier can have massive positive impact on your entire day.

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Photo Source: Healthline

Is Pawlu Borg Bonaci teasing the return of Rockestra?

Oct 25 2021

A social media post by artistic director Pawlu Borg Bonaci has got us thinking – will Malta see the return of renowned crowd-favorite festival Rockestra? Last year’s event was cancelled due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases and directives issued by the health authorities. However, as test events and the return to normality pick up pace on the island, it wouldn’t be such a bizarre thing to see the return of the fund-raising concert.

Rockestra is organized by the MCCFF and is much anticipated by both locals and foreigners who love the musical celebration. Last year would have marked the 12th edition of the event, but the pandemic had to go and take this anniversary as well. However, Bonaci’s photograph with Malta Philharmonic Orchestra CEO Sigmund Mifsud and Yanis Azzopardi, captioned ‘Something’s cooking… Are you ready?!’ has got us thinking! This event would be a well-needed return to the live music scene, as well as an opportunity to raise money for those in need. Fingers crossed!

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Photo Source: Pawlu Borg Bonaci FB

Increase of post-secondary and tertiary student enrolments from 2019-20

Oct 25 2021

The 2019-2020 academic year saw a 3.1% increase of student enrolments into post-secondary and tertiary institutions. Compared to the previous year, the total enrolment ranked at 26,673 revealed the National Statistics Office (NSO). 9,620 enrolments came in for post-secondary institutions such as sixth form and others. This is however a 1.8% decrease over the previous academic year. The NSO revealed that the largest proportion of post-secondary students (87.8%) were aged under 19 years, with 995 foreign students enrolling (10.3% of total amount of students).

For tertiary students, the numbers ranked at 17,053 during the 2019-20 academic year. This is an increase of 6.1% when compared to the previous year of 2018-19. Female students comprised 57% of the total students enrolled at tertiary level. Full time students amounted to 66% (a total of 11,255) and part time students saw an increase of 15.5% over the previous academic year. During the 2019-20 academic year, foreign tertiary level students totaled 2,498, which is 14.6% of all tertiary enrolments.

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Bernard Grech urges PM to stop ‘teasing’ election date

Oct 25 2021

Addressing a political activity yesterday, Opposition leader Bernard Grech lashed out at Prime Minister Robert Abela for refusing to clarify when the next general election will take place. The topic has been on everyone’s mind for the past couple of months as the end of Labour’s term in government draws nearer, but the Prime Minister has not unveiled any information about the election. Grech said that this points to the PM ‘having fun’ by not telling the public this otherwise crucial information.

Rumors of a November election have been spreading wild, and the Nationalist Party leader has stated that as the Christmas holidays commence, businesses need to plan for this festive period and not be worrying about such an announcement. ‘Businesses have suffered enough, don’t increase their suffering with your cheek’ said Grech. Abela’s focus instead seems to be in implementing the budget, but he did tease some information by stating that it’s the people that will get to decide if this latest budget is implemented or not.

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Photo Source: Bernard Grech FB, Robert Abela FB