Study links height of pillow to elevated risk of stroke

Study links height of pillow to elevated risk of stroke

2024-03-11

A new study suggests that the height of your pillow might be connected to your risk of stroke. The study from Japan found that people with high pillows had up to 10 times the risk of stroke than average. But while some doctors hold store in the pillow theory, others say that stroke risk can’t yet be categorically linked to such choices. They say that paying attention to risk factors like blood pressure should come first.

“A good night’s sleep guarantees good health.” It’s a saying grounded in good evidence. A Japanese study has suggested that sleeping on a pillow that’s too high can raise the risk of stroke, a conclusion corroborated by this Taiwanese cardiologist.

Lin Wei-wen
Taiwan Adventist Hospital cardiologist
We all know that if you sleep on too high a pillow, because your neck is bent for a long time, it can have an impact on blood vessels in our necks, such as carotid arteries or vertebral arteries.

The study looked at patients of spontaneous vertical artery dissection or VAD. It found that pillows over 12 centimeters high increased the risk of VAD by 289%. A pillow over 15 centimeters high increased the risk by over 1,000%. VAD is a rare cause of stroke. But the firmness of the pillow also plays a role, as well as its composition – memory foam, down, or otherwise. People have widely differing preferences about pillows.

Li Shih-chen
FTV reporter
There are hundreds of different types of pillows on the market. How should you choose? Doctors suggest that support for the neck is the most important thing.

This physiatrist recommends that your neck should be able to rest on the pillow so that it can relax fully. If your sleep quality is poor, insomnia and a stiff neck are common symptoms, alongside many other minor and more serious ailments. But more data is still needed to prove a link between the height of your pillow and the risk of stroke.

Chung Pei-chen
Taiwan Adventist Hospital physiatry
Your pillow and your risk of stroke are two separate things. Regarding the debate about stroke, we should find the risk factors, for example, does the person have high blood pressure, diabetes, and so on.

Doctors also recommend that while many people sleep however they hit the mattress, when you get up, you should avoid rising too suddenly. Roll onto your side first, put both your feet onto the floor and then get up slowly. That will protect your vertebra and prevent pulls to your lower back. All that – and a good pillow – might be a recipe for a bright and bushy-tailed morning.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
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Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

高枕真的無憂? 日本研究枕頭過高恐增腦中風風險

2024-03-11

"高枕無憂"這句成語，恐怕得打上問號了！有日本最新研究指出，枕頭高度超過12公分，罹患自發性椎動脈夾層風險高出2.89倍，心臟科醫師證實，若枕頭太高可能影響頸部血管，但也有醫師認為沒聽過這類說法，枕頭睡得舒服最重要。

睡覺睡得好健康免煩惱，這句話可不是隨便說說，日本研究表示，如果躺在太高的枕頭上睡覺，恐怕腦中風的風險也跟著提高，國內心臟科醫師也證實。

[[台安醫院心臟科醫師林謂文]]
“我們都知道枕頭若睡太高，由於長時間的頸部彎曲，都有可能影響到我們頸部的血管，像是頸動脈或是椎動脈，而造成剝離的風險，所以提醒大家頸部的保護是非常重要的”

這項研究調查了自發性椎動脈夾層患者，發現枕頭高度大於12公分，罹病風險就高出2.89 倍，大於15公分風險更飆升到高出10.6倍，不過枕頭也有分軟硬度，甚至包括記憶枕和羽絨枕等等，顯示民眾喜歡躺的枕頭類型都不盡相同。

[[民視記者李世宸]]
“市面上枕頭百百種，要怎麼選擇，專業醫師建議，在脖子上的支撐是最重要的”

復健科醫師提醒，脖子要靠在枕頭上，讓頸部能獲得充分休息，畢竟睡眠品質不好，失眠、落枕問題通通爆發，大小疾病也將找上門，不過枕頭高度和腦中風之間的關聯，仍需要更多數據佐證。

[[台安醫院復健科醫師鍾佩珍]]
“枕頭跟腦中風是完全是兩回事，針對是腦中風的話題的話，應該去找他的危險因子，譬如說他有沒有高血壓、糖尿病等等”

醫師也建議，很多人倒頭就睡隨便睡，下床時要避免猛然起身的彈跳方式，應該先在床上側躺，伸出雙腳踩地再緩緩站起來，保護脊椎也避免閃到腰，加上慎選自己喜歡的枕頭，維護良好睡眠品質。

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U.S. news outlet CNN was recently welcomed into TSMC, after trying to get access for two years. Reporter Will Ripley got up close with the company’s high-end technology, and took a stroll through the newcomer training center. During an interview, a top executive shared the company’s “secret weapon” for success.

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U.S. news outlet CNN visited a TSMC facility in Taichung. With a market cap of US$671 billion, TSMC has been named one of the most important companies in the world, the reporter said. During an interview, TSMC Chair Mark Liu said the company’s “secret weapon” was Taiwan’s talent.

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We can prove to the world we can run this highly sophisticated manufacturing everywhere.

CNN also covered TSMC’s global expansion. It noted the company’s labor challenges in the U.S. and Germany, and said that TSMC had just opened a plant in Kumamoto, Japan. It said TSMC was on the verge of producing a 1.4 nanometer chip.

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Microchips are the oil of the 21st century. And if Taiwan is attacked, the whole world could grind to a halt, plunging in to a global great depression.

Another report focused on TSMC founder Morris Chang, saying he transformed Taiwan’s history. The report described TSMC as a “silicon shield” for Taiwan, pointing out that 90% of the world’s advanced chips are made on the island.

Joseph Wu
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TSMC is going to be a deterrence against the idea of aggression against Taiwan.

TSMC has garnered attention around the world, highlighting the key position of Taiwan’s semiconductors in global geopolitics.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

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NDC starts renovation of Cold War housing in Taipei’s Zhongshan

Taiwan has launched the renovation of a U.S. dormitory complex in Taipei’s Zhongshan District. The homes were built 71 years ago, for U.S. civilian personnel sent to Taiwan during the Cold War. Now in a state of disrepair, the dorms will be renovated and repurposed in a project by the National Development Council.

A cozy Western cottage with Japanese roof tiling. Step in the door to find a living room with a fireplace, three spacious bedrooms, an American-style kitchen, and ample storage on the side. This dorm was built by the KMT for U.S. officials 71 years ago. It’s about to get a new lease on life through a restoration project.

Kung Ming-hsin
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This dormitory complex offers a glimpse into history. In 1949, the KMT government moved to Taiwan, and the Korean War broke out the next year. Seeking to unify the region against the Communist threat, the U.S. sent military, economic, and technical support to Taiwan. This led to the construction of the dorms in 1953. The homes were initially used by American officials, as well as personnel of the Sino-American Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction. After the U.S. cut ties with Taiwan in 1979, they were used by personnel of the AIT. To the north of the cluster is Taipei’s first American school. There’s also Zhongshan Girls High School, which was established during the Japanese colonial period. Jianguo Brewery is another landmark in this historically important neighborhood.

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This ceremony is a testimony to the long-standing and robust ties between the United States and Taiwan. Since that time, Taiwan has developed into a model advanced economy and a vibrant democracy, and the United States-Taiwan partnership has steadily deepened.

There are old American dormitories all across Taiwan. The best-known ones in the north include the Yangmingshan military housing and the civilian accommodations on Chang’an East Road and Longjiang Road. Similar accommodations can be found along Taichung’s Meicun Road and Kaohsiung Zuoying District. Taiwan officials say the goal is to eventually preserve them all, so that they can continue to bear witness to history.

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Spotlight on Taiwanese visual artist, Mia Liu

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This work is called "Beard has a Face." Mia Liu’s work was inspired by Hong Kong writer Xixi. She used pen, acrylic paint, french watercolor paper, denim fabric, mulberry paper, crayon, and aluminum panel mounting to create the piece. Liu is exhibiting her works at a zero-waste fashion exhibition in Taipei till April.

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This work is called “Beard Has a Face.” What is unique about this work is that you can see that there is a denim circle on the outside. It is a special denim cloth. I read a novel by the late Hong Kong writer Xixi. The novel is about "Beard Has a Face” – which is the name of a person. This person is very interesting and often asks, "Why do the tables touch the chairs?" When I was working on this piece, I thought, maybe we can imagine something different and put cloth and paper together.

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After her Taipei exhibition concludes, Liu will exhibit her works in London from May 16 till 19.

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Wielding golden shovels, National Taiwan University President Chen Wen-chang and other administrators break ground on new staff dormitory.

To improve employee welfare, NTU Hospital is building a new dormitory on Ren’ai Road, inside the Bo’ai Special Zone in Taipei.

Wu Ming-shiang
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This land used to belong to the National Property Administration. We expect construction to wrap up and the building to open in 2028.

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NTU Hospital says it hopes to provide young medical professionals with a quality home, so that they can focus on their careers while enjoying life in a prime urban location.

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Many people get shortsighted in childhood. On average the degree will increase by 75 to 100 degrees every year, eventually impacting life and study capacities. How can you prevent that? Families have a lot of influence in how they bring up and educate their kids.

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A survey by the Health Promotion Administration shows that spending more than 11 hours outdoors per week will reduce the incidence of developing shortsightedness within one year by 55%. But in this age of technology, more and more pre-school children are using digital devices. Caring for our eyesight is lifelong. Helping kids develop good habits could protect them from extreme shortsightedness for life.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
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Using bamboo props in the shape of horses, the dancers chant and communicate with ancestral spirits.

The performance takes place in a former villa of the Dutch elites who controlled Indonesia’s sugar industry. This is one of the video works created by Indonesian artist Timoteus Anggawan Kusno. Through this work, he tells the story of Indonesia’s past and the effects of the sugar industry on local society and culture.

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He collaborated with local Indonesian dancers. For the artist, communicating with the ancestral spirits is a bit like having a dialogue with the local history of Indonesia. Through the video, he hopes to use dialogue with spirits to explore local Indonesian history. The video also draws inspiration from Indonesia’s own elements. Indonesia was ruled by the West in the 19th century, including by the Dutch. The footage delves into the sugar industry, which was developed during the Dutch colonial period, showing the villas where high-ranking officials lived and sugarcane fields.

Another video work was shot on a railway built during the Dutch colonial period in Indonesia. The artist included archival footages of the Dutch colonization, political propaganda, and past totalitarian regimes. The exhibition aims to provide a deeper understanding of the period of political transition in Indonesia and the country’s colonial culture.

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Using railway imagery, the artist simulates the colonizers’ perspective on Indonesia. Although these colonial and authoritarian cultures are no longer part of Indonesia today, there are still traces of memories and indelible relics remaining in the fabric of daily life.

The exhibition will be on show until April 21 at MOCA in Taipei.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
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