A nature-based health intervention at a military healthcare center: a randomized, controlled, cross-over study.

We describe a mixed qualitative and quantitative research study in a military facility regarding the role of nature in well-being. Study intervention included two 20-minute walks. One walk was in an intentionally designed woodland environment (Green Road) and the other was on a busy campus road in a medical treatment facility (Urban Road).

A wearable patch for continuous monitoring of sweat electrolytes during exertion.

Implementation of wearable sweat sensors for continuous measurement of fluid based biomarkers (including electrolytes, metabolites and proteins) is an attractive alternative to common, yet intrusive and invasive, practices such as urine or blood analysis. Recent years have witnessed several key demonstrations of sweat based electrochemical sensing in wearable formats, however, there are still significant challenges and opportunities in this space for clinical acceptance, and thus mass implementation of these devices. For instance, there are inherent challenges in establishing direct correlations between sweat-based and gold-standard plasma-based biomarker concentrations for clinical decision-making.

"Living in the moment" among cancer survivors who report life-transforming change.

Background: Some cancer survivors say that while coping with their illness they have had what they identify as a highly beneficial, personal, life-transforming change (LTC; a self-subscribed condition among participants in this study, not a researcher-defined construct). Previously we found that the content of LTC was highly individual; but certain features of the LTC process were quite uniform. For example, LTC was driven by a very rational desire to remain genuinely functional as a person in the midst of highly stressful circumstances.

Quantification of cortisol in human eccrine sweat by liquid chromatography - tandem mass spectrometry.

Cortisol has long been recognized as the "stress biomarker" in evaluating stress related disorders. Plasma, urine or saliva are the current source for cortisol analysis. The sampling of these biofluids is either invasive or has reliability problems that could lead to inaccurate results.

New and Future Directions in Integrative Medicine Research Methods with a Focus on Aging Populations: A Review.

This review discusses existing and developing state-of-the-art noninvasive methods for quantifying the effects of integrative medicine (IM) in aging populations. The medical conditions of elderly patients are often more complex than those of younger adults, making the multifaceted approach of IM particularly suitable for aging populations. However, because IM interventions are multidimensional, it has been difficult to examine their effectiveness and mechanisms of action.