- SHAWN: This week on The Checkup ` are you an early bird or a night owl? - Research suggests that the time we hit the hay can be hardwired in your genes. - Mataroria investigates a medical misconception. - Younger people could be ignoring important symptoms. - It may be achy,... - ...but can the human heart truly break from being heartbroken? - But first, I create quite a stink. Natural skincare, natural food, natural clothing. Modern advertising thrives on trying to convince us that natural is better. In many cases, this may be true, but when it comes to body odour, I'm not convinced. We all have BO to some degree, but where does it come from, and what can it tell us? It starts with our sweat. We have two types of sweat glands ` eccrine, which are found all over the body and mainly consist of salt and water, and apocrine glands. These are restricted to hairy areas, like our groin and underarms. From puberty onwards, apocrine sweat is an oily mix of proteins and fats which is pumped out when we exercise, overheat or are under emotional stress. The recipe for this mix? A dash of age, a pinch of what we eat... But the main ingredient? Our genes. Our genes determine what proteins and fats are in our sweat, but our sweat itself is actually odourless. It's when it mixes with the bacteria living on our skin that it becomes smelly. But what does our pong say about us? (WHISTLE TRILLS) Research suggests that the scents that we exude can contain powerful clues about our gender, health, emotional state, identity and personal traits. To discover what our smell could be communicating to others, I've asked the guys from Central United to hold off on the deodorant before training this week. (SCATTERED SHOUTS) For the past 12 hours, each player has worn a cotton pad like this one under each armpit. (PLAYERS SHOUT, WHISTLE TRILLS) - Now I've got a pretty unpleasant job to do. (CHUCKLES) All right, mate, so, I need to get that pad from under your armpit, and I'm gonna get you to do that up nice and tight so I don't have to smell it, all right? (LAUGHS) - OK. - Perfect. Smells good, mate (!) Smells like` Smells really good (!) - No surprises. - What do you reckon? - Very heavy as well. - Yeah, dense. - Dense. - That is dense with odour. - (CHUCKLES) - Phew! - That's a good one. - Enjoy. (LAUGHS) - Thanks, mate. - Cheers. - We're going to marinate these pongy pads overnight and then put them to the ultimate sniff test. Phew. The women at Empire Dance Studio are also no strangers to sweat, but tonight, it's their noses that will be getting a workout. Women tend to have a stronger olfactory system, or sense of smell, than men. After getting a good whiff of the boys' BO, the women will use a personality questionnaire to rate their observations. CHUCKLES: I wouldn't wish this task on my worst enemy. - Oh, wow. (COUGHS) - Whoo! (GAGS) - Kinda smells like food. Which I don't think is normal. - That, like, doesn't even smell like a person. - Almost, like, citrusy. (LAUGHS) - (COUGHS) That's actually so terrible. - The test is designed to rate traits of extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness. - Who are you? (CHUCKLES) - I'm trying to, like, suck the personality through my nostrils. (LAUGHS) Could be an engineer. - Gonna say it smells like he makes a mess of things. Nothing personal. - According to genetics expert Professor Andrew Shelling, when it comes to BO, there's a lot to pick up from what others sweat out. - The olfactory system is very important for maintaining social bonds. We know this is probably a really important survival mechanism in our evolutionary history. - 'I like order.' Yes. For some reason, you strike me as the orderly type of person. - I definitely feel like you're relaxed a lot of the time. Like that. - 'I have a soft heart.' Mm. Disagree. I think he's... a player. - Our smell is believed to have a key role in identifying who is genetically related to us and who isn't. - One of the things about reproduction is that we want to get somebody who's actually different to us, and so it's thought that recognising a different smell on somebody else is an important part of bringing diversity by mating with somebody who's quite different in terms of their genetic background. - 'I get stressed out easily.' That's probably me. (SNIFFS) That's it. - I think that he may also get stressed out easily. - I think he... doesn't get irritated easily. - According to a number of studies, certain personality traits may be easier to sniff out than others. - The matching rates may be higher for some personality traits where there is a clear link to something hormonal within that personality trait. - 'I start conversations.' No. You don't really smell like a conversation starter. - 'Talk to a lot of different people at parties.' Disagree. He's just the mate that plays beer pong with his friends all night. - 'Don't mind being centre of attention.' 100% agree. - The studies found that traits of neuroticism, dominance and extroversion were more easily identified. - It's entirely possible that when we are nervous or under stressful situations that hormones are released. Serotonin, cortisol and adrenaline could lead to changes in the composition of our sweat and the way we smell. - I just think it's really weird that you can form a picture of somebody that may be completely wrong, but it's from the fragrance, regardless. I'd really like to know what people think about me. (LAUGHS) - Personality traits not linked to hormones are much harder to match. - 'I feel little concern for others.' Mm, how can you tell if someone's a sociopath via sweat? 'I leave my belongings around.' No, you don't strike me as the type, and I don't know why I feel that way. - 'Do not have a good imagination.' I'm neutral on that. - A rich vocabulary. - I feel like I know this person. Could be a Blake... (SNIFFS) or a Thomas. - Using just their noses, our dancers were able to formulate opinions and pick up on perceived personality traits from our sweaty soccer players. Our armpits could be piping out more important social clues than we think. Our body odour may reveal more than just whether or not we showered this morning, but I, for one, am not giving up on the deodorant just yet. You'll thank me for it, honestly. - JAYANI: Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, or broken heart syndrome, is a serious heart condition. - MATARORIA: When it comes to problems with our back passage, it's not something many of us like to talk about ` but that needs to change. Go a little crazy with Toyota. Right now, buy any new or Signature Class Toyota, and every time Emirates Team New Zealand win a race, someone will win their money back. That's up to seven winners. Sarah! Jenny Craig works. Start today and save $30 on your first weekly menu on our Rapid Results weight loss plan. Call Jenny Craig now. (TENTATIVE, PLAYFUL MUSIC) - JAYANI: No flowers on Valentine's Day? A forgotten anniversary. (MUSIC CONTINUES) (CELL PHONE CHIMES) An unexpected break-up? As Billy Shakespeare himself said, 'The course of true love never did run smooth,' and never a truer word was spoken. But can a human heart truly break from being heartbroken? The answer is yes. Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, or broken heart syndrome, is a serious heart condition where during an attack, the heart weakens, changes shape or has a hard time doing its job. Instead of looking like this healthy heart, the left ventricle of a broken heart balloons out, creating a narrow neck and a wide bottom. The Japanese doctor who first documented the syndrome believed this misshapen heart resembled the shape of a Japanese octopus trap, or 'takotsubo'. A third of takotsubo heartbreaks are thought to be triggered by physical stress and a third by emotional stress or by intense emotions and in rare cases can be life-threatening. A 2020 US study revealed that the stress brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic increased the numbers of those presenting with the condition. This phenomenon also occurred in New Zealand after the shock of the Christchurch earthquakes. Approximately 90% of people that experience the syndrome are women with an average age of 66. The symptoms may mimic those of a heart attack. The effect on our heart, however, is quite different. Most heart attacks are due to blood clots and blockages in the arteries. But with broken heart syndrome, it's thought after intense stress, an excessive surge of stress hormones like adrenaline essentially stun the heart temporarily. There may be no permanent damage, and people generally recover quickly. The precise cause of broken heart syndrome remains a mystery, but a million cowboys can't be wrong. So the next time you hear a sad, sad song, spare a thought for the broken-hearted. (WISTFUL STRING MUSIC) (FUNKY MUSIC) - MATARORIA: Although we all have one, when it comes to problems with our back passage, it's not something many of us like to talk about ` but that needs to change. No 'butts' about it ` our reluctance to talk about our bowels is killing us. New Zealand has one of the highest bowel cancer rates in the world. In fact, it's the second-highest cause of cancer death in New Zealand. But it doesn't need to be that way. Bowel cancer is treatable and beatable if it's detected early enough. For that to happen, we need to know what we're dealing with. The bowel, which is also known as the intestine, is part of our digestive system. We have the small bowel, which digests our food, and the large bowel, which includes the colon and rectum. This is where the waste is dealt with. It's a pretty hardworking system and one we should pay attention to, especially if we think it's not working properly ` like Kate Ellison did. - The very first time I remember thinking something was wrong was I had very severe abdominal pain, kind of centrally, right in the middle, right where the tummy button is, you know, and that's... that's not down the other end. So I thought, 'Yeah, stomach pain. That's not good.' Went along to have a test. The GP ended up diagnosing food poisoning. And as time went by, the pain was persistent, and it got worse and more intense, and I was getting it in the middle of the night. One night, I was in such agony I had to call the ambulance and was admitted to the emergency department at Auckland Hospital. They did run a lot of tests ` blood tests, urine samples, all sorts of things ` but I was sent home with a diagnosis of urinary tract infection, which I personally didn't feel I'd had any symptoms for. I felt like exploding. After that, I rang my GP in quite a state, and she said, 'You've got private health insurance; 'book yourself in to get an ultrasound scan.' Which I did, and probably about three days later, they found the tumour. Very clearly. - While Kate's symptoms included severe pain, this is not always the case. Other clues that something might not be quite right are changes in bowel habits, blood in your poo, unexplained tiredness, weight loss and anaemia. - I could not have imagined in my wildest dreams I would get cancer. No way. It was the furthest thing from my mind. - As a qualified dietitian, Kate followed a healthy diet and lifestyle. She didn't tick any of the boxes for risk factors, and yet there she was, at the age of 34, with a devastating diagnosis. - Unfortunately, the incidence of bowel cancer in people under 50 is rising quickly, and for everybody that gets diagnosed with bowel cancer in New Zealand, one out of 10 is under 50, which is quite surprising. - Most bowel cancer start as benign, fleshy growths called polyps that grow on the wall of the bowel. Some are a tiny raised area or bulge, some look like a grape on a stalk, and others take the form of many tiny bumps clustered together. Benign polyps are common as we get older, but there's some types, like adenoma, that can become cancerous. If these cancerous growths are detected early, these and portions of the bowel can be successfully removed. But if left undetected, the cancer can enter the wall of the bowel and travel through the bloodstream or lymph nodes to other organs in the body. That's why early detection is so important. Kate had surgery for stage III cancer a week after being diagnosed. She's been in remission for five years and is now cancer-free. - It's important that if people are feeling something is wrong, they go and they see a GP. If they feel they don't get the tests they need or they still don't feel they've had the investigations, and they know in their gut` they have a gut feeling that something's wrong, seek a second opinion. It's OK to do that. Go and talk to someone else. - For those between 60 to 74, a free national bowel screening programme is being rolled out. But if you have any symptoms, don't sit on them. The bottom line with bowel cancer is ` the sooner you know, the better the chance of beating it. - SHAWN: Motion sickness affects one in three people. Why is it a third of us can't find our sea legs? - (YAWNS) - I don't really get lying in. It just feels like a waste of time to me. (PLAYFUL MUSIC) - SHAWN: The great holiday road trip is as kiwi as pineapple lumps and pavlova, but the memories aren't as fond for everyone. As a kid, I used to dread those long-distance car rides ` the nausea, the vomiting, the cold sweats, and, of course, missing out on the ice cream stops. Motion sickness affects one in three people and happens when our body's balance system, namely our eyes and ears, get confused. Our inner ears have loop-shaped canals that contain fluid and fine hair-like sensors. When we move or rotate, the fluid touches the hairs. These tell our brain which direction we're moving in ` vertically, horizontally or not at all. When we travel in a car or a plane, our inner ear correctly signals that we're moving, but our eyes don't see it. This is because to our eyes, our bodies are effectively motionless in regards to our immediate environment, such as our seat, the floor, or the seat in front of us. The opposite can also happen. With movies, video games and flight simulators, it's your eyes that think you're moving, but your ears know you're sitting still. (CHEERY NAUTICAL FLUTE MUSIC) It's believed our balance is also affected when we're unable to maintain a stable posture, such as on a plane, a train or... on a boat. Hence the term 'finding your sea legs', which basically means learning to cope with this instability. Motion sickness is more common in women and children aged 5 to 12 and appears to be hereditary. Nausea, vomiting, cold sweats, dizziness and tiredness can all be signs of this unwelcome travel buddy. Medication can help with the nausea, but there can be side effects. To avoid sickness, others try wrist pressure pads, chewing gum and ginger or peppermint tea. But these have little effect on intense motion sickness. It appears our best bet is to lessen the discomfort. Always face forward and focus on a fixed point on the horizon, which means if you don't want to rock the boat, there's no reading or looking at your phone. Hopefully, if your eyes are picking up what your ears are putting down, when it comes to motion sickness, it'll be nothing but smooth sailing. (FUNKY MUSIC) (ROOSTER CROWS) (CROCKERY CLATTERS IN DISTANCE) - Before Zane gets up, oh, I get a lot done. - On work days, I tend to get up 5 ` then I can beat the traffic, get into town, do some exercise; and then in the weekend, I usually get up 7.30. (WHIRRING) That's kind of a sleep-in for me, to be honest. - For Robyn, it's clear ` early to bed, early to rise makes you healthy, wealthy and wise. - It's the top of the day, you know, the morning. Beautiful. - Partner Zane has other ideas. - Well, I usually go to bed about` from 11 to 1 in the morning. You know, I'm either doing a bit of editing or a bit of artwork or, you know, watching the TV long after Robyn's gone to bed. I always loved, you know, being the last person in a party, because, you know, that's where the interesting things happen. You know, people are getting a bit loose at that stage. - JAYANI: Like the majority of the population, Robyn and Zane fall into one out of two categories ` early birds and night owls. (BIRDSONG) - Late at night, you know, Robin's been up since early times and, you know, I'm just starting to get to go, and so, you know, often that leads to a bit of conflict. (YAWNS) - I don't really get lying in. Yeah, it just feels like a waste of time to me. - It may seem that our sleep habits are just personal preference, but research suggests that the time we hit the hay can be hardwired in your genes. There are genetic differences between owls and larks, and they're known as chronotypes. A person's chronotype is their natural tendency to fall asleep during a particular time in a 24-hour period. This questionnaire is designed to help me discover if I'm an early or a late chronotype. READS: 'How alert do you feel during the first half hour?' Oh. Mm... I'm slightly alert. (CHUCKLES) Our chronotype not only affects when we want to wake up but the workings of our entire body clock. This tells us the best time to sleep, eat, learn and exercise. OK, so I've tallied it up, and I'm definitely a night owl. But aside from our sleep patterns, how do we differ? For starters, scientific studies have concluded that some personality traits tend to align more with one than the other. - They suggest larks tend to be more conscientious, active and emotionally stable. - She's got thousands of sports and always doing this and that, and dogs, and... you know. It's... It's hard to keep up with her. - Owls are novelty seekers, keen to pursue new experiences with intense emotional sensations. - He's really fun-loving. His party trick is, like, running naked through the room, and I find he's very attention-seeking. - Being a night person might sound fun, but studies have shown that it has its pitfalls when it comes to our health. Being a night owl is linked to an increased risk of diabetes, psychological, neurological, respiratory and abdominal disorders. This could be a result of the higher rates of smoking, drinking and physical inactivity associated with the group, but also the lack of sleep. Unfortunately for owls, modern lifestyles, timetables and schedules often favour morning people. When owls would naturally like to be catching those last few hours of kip in the morning, they're expected at work, school or any number of activities. This means they are less likely to get an optimum amount of sleep, and their health may suffer. You can't change your genetic chronotype, but it can be modified by your age, environment and activity. Night owl or morning lark, when it comes to sleep,