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14 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com IN THE KNOW To read more about the ideas featured, visit us online GravitasMag.com Sign up to receive our weekly E-newslet ters with the latest news, ideas, giveaways and inspiration. GravitasMag.com FITNESS On A Bicycle Built For Two TRANSPORTATION UberPOOL HEALTH Key To Happiness Is In The Gut Recently, the Taga Bike-Stroller has been blowing up over social media. is hybrid transportation device combines a high-end toddler stroller with a bicycle. Now, parents can spend quality time with their children while getting a great workout. When you get to where you're going, toggle effortlessly to stroller mode to go shopping or pop in for a latte. When it's time to go, switch back into bike mode and continue the adventure. You'll pedal with the satisfaction of knowing Taga is great eco- friendly alternative to the car. Even better, the Taga can convert to a double-seat stroller with the purchase of an additional seat. Plus, when the kids have outgrown it, the stroller portion can be replaced with a giant cargo basket. With the new UberPOOL, you share a ride—and split the cost with another person who just happens to be requesting a ride along a similar route. e beauty, though, is that you still get Uber-style on-demand convenience and reliability: just push the button like before and get a car in a matter of minutes. e service is already available in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Seattle and 25 other cities. Discounts for ride sharing vary depending on the region. Riders can save up to 50 percent in heavily traveled areas. Apart from the savings, Uber boasts that their new ride-sharing service benefits the environment. Since November, more than 800,000 miles have been saved in Miami alone. at translates to more than 17,000 gallons of fuel and over 150 metric tons of CO2, according to the company. In other words, UberPOOL allows commuters to get over that "first-mile-last-mile hurdle" that makes mass transit less convenient. Unfortunately, many of us refuse to consider public transportation if it involves walking great lengths—in some instances, the physical demand is too great—but UberPOOL is a game-changer. e gut—a.k.a. our enteric nervous system—stretches roughly nine metres from the oesophagus to the anus and is concentrated with some 100 million neurons connecting to the brain, more than any other body part. Outnumbering the neurons, though, is the microbiome, which is made up of trillions of bacteria and microorganisms that live in our intestinal tract. ese microscopic creatures help our bodies digest and absorb nutrients, boost our immune system, fight infections and regulate our metabolism. However, more and more scientists are concluding that they also play an important role in supporting our mental health. Researchers are now looking for pyschobiotics—bacteria that form a connection between our guts and our brains. Ted Dinan, a clinical psychiatrist at University College Cork in Ireland, minted the term and has been a key player in this young bio-pharmacologic offset. With all the facts surfacing on the key link between the gut and the brain and their bidirectional communication, it seems logical that diet management can be a great tool in combating the depression, and perhaps a preferred alternative to anti-depressant medication.

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