Monday, February 23, 2009
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Run For Your Eyes
Every day there seems to be a new claim to the benefits of exercise. As a new runner who began training for a half-marathon just for the heck of it (and the extra guilt-free food, to be honest), I am fascinated with the physical and psychological changes taking place within myself, and a recent study once again reinforces my motivation to continue my new hobby. Researchers who studied the relationship between exercise and vision loss found evidence to support a correlation between long-distance running and sustained vision throughout the life cycle.Take a peek:
Reuters Health
Long-distance runners reduce vision-loss risk
Thursday, February 19, 2009
By Anne Harding
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Regular, vigorous physical exercise may lower the risk of visual loss and help preserve eyesight, two new studies in a large group of runners show.
The more miles the men and women ran, the less likely they were to develop age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a deterioration of the central portion of the retina that is a major cause of vision loss and blindness among older people. Running also lowered the cataract risk for men.
"We often think of loss of vision as we get older as sort of an inevitable consequence of aging," Dr. Paul T. Williams of the Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, California, who conducted both studies, told Reuters Health. "I think what we are seeing is that there are things people can do when they're younger to prevent that."
More than half of men and women older than 65 years have cataracts, a clouding of the lens covering; while 28 percent of Americans 75 and older have AMD, Williams notes in the studies, which are published in the journal Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. Aging, sun exposure, diabetes, obesity and other factors may contribute to the development of cataracts, he adds, although poor fitness and sedentary lifestyle don't seem to be cataract risk factors. While exercise is also not seen as a way to prevent AMD, which has been linked to cigarette smoking and obesity, three studies suggest that it could.
The researcher investigated the relationship between exercise and vision loss in the National Runner's Health Study, which includes nearly 42,000 men and women 18 or older recruited between 1991 and 1993. During 7 years of follow-up, 733 of the men and 179 of the women developed cataracts, while 110 men and 42 women reported being diagnosed with AMD.
The longest-running, leanest, and speediest men were all at lower cataract risk, Williams found, although there weren't enough women who developed cataracts to conduct a more detailed analysis.
The body mass index (BMI) of the patients was measured -- the ratio of height to weight that is often used to determine if an individual is obese or overweight. A normal BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9; lower than 18.4 is underweight and 30 or higher is considered obese.
Men with a BMI higher than 27.5 had an 88-percent greater likelihood of developing cataracts than men with a BMI lower than 20.
The risk for men who ran at least 64 kilometers a week -- or nearly 40 miles was 35-percent lower than for the men who ran less than 16 kilometers, or about 10 miles, weekly. Men who ran faster than 4.75 meters per second had half the cataract risk of the slowest runners.
And for both men and women, Williams found, AMD risk declined as mileage rose. On average, people diagnosed with the vision condition ran less than those who hadn't been diagnosed. Risk for runners who logged 2 to 4 kilometers a day (1.2 to 2.5 miles) was 19 percent lower than for those who ran less, while people who ran 4 or more kilometers daily cut their risk by 42 percent to 54 percent.
The least active runners in the study, who averaged less than 2 kilometers a day, were getting about the minimum amount of exercise recommended by current guidelines, which suggests people walk briskly for 30 minutes a day 5 days a week, Williams noted. Although there are clearly health benefits to meeting these minimal standards compared to being sedentary, he added, the findings provide yet more evidence that more exercise is good for one's health.
SOURCE: Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, January 2009.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
For those of us who live in and around Pullman!
All Campus Challenge WSU Wellbeing Fair
2009 ALL CAMPUS CHALLENGE
Washington State University Wellbeing Fair
Get out, get active, and join University Recreation in celebrating National Recreational Sports and Fitness Day!
SRC admission is free for everyone the entire day and there will be self-directed fitness tests, t-shirts, and refreshments while supplies last.
Monday, February 23SRC 5:30 am-11:30 pm
Learn more!
Learn more about living well in your community at the WSU Wellbeing Fair.
Free blood glucose, cholesterol, and body composition testing, chair massages, giveaways, and much more!
FREE! Monday, February 23SRC 4:00 pm-7:00 pm
Learn more!
University Recreation, PO Box 641830, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164-1830 Unsubscribe
2009 ALL CAMPUS CHALLENGE
Washington State University Wellbeing Fair
Get out, get active, and join University Recreation in celebrating National Recreational Sports and Fitness Day!
SRC admission is free for everyone the entire day and there will be self-directed fitness tests, t-shirts, and refreshments while supplies last.
Monday, February 23SRC 5:30 am-11:30 pm
Learn more!
Learn more about living well in your community at the WSU Wellbeing Fair.
Free blood glucose, cholesterol, and body composition testing, chair massages, giveaways, and much more!
FREE! Monday, February 23SRC 4:00 pm-7:00 pm
Learn more!
University Recreation, PO Box 641830, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164-1830 Unsubscribe
7 Tips to Decrease Cancer Risk and Help Prevent Recurrence
Since it is, among many other declared celebratory and awareness months, the Cancer Prevention Month, I wanted to share a Harvard Health Publication article, adapted by MSN, about simple and generalizable lifestyle changes to reduce cancer risks.
It is now well-established that a healthy, plant-based diet, physical activity and weight control help decrease cancer risk. But one of the hottest areas in cancer research right now is the connection with health-promoting behaviors and improved cancer survivorship.
Cancer survivors can help cancer-proof their bodies by managing their weight in the healthiest way possible. The same way of eating that will help you lose weight in a healthy manner is the same way of eating that will help you improve your immune function and promote anti-cancer activity in your body. Here's how:
1. Eat a plant-based diet
Plant-based foods include a wide variety of delicious foods, such as fruits and vegetables; whole grains like wheat, oats, barley, and quinoa; nuts and seeds; tea; spices like turmeric, ginger, garlic, cilantro and basil; and soy foods. You don't have to become a vegetarian to include more plant foods at every meal and snack. It's easy to do this with this tool: How to Make a Balanced Plate (.pdf)
2. Be physically active every day
You don't need to train for a marathon, join a gym or even "exercise." Physical activity includes just moving around more in your day. You can do this in a variety ways throughout the day and in small time increments:
* Park farther away, walk to nearby destinations, get off public transportation one stop earlier, take the stairs for even one flight, walk down extra aisles or lengths of shopping malls and grocery stores.
* Take one 30- minute or two 15- minute walks. In separate studies, walking three to five hours a week helped reduce breast cancer recurrence by 40 percent and walking six hours a week at a moderate pace reduced colon cancer survivors' risk of recurrence by 50 percent.
3. Try activities such as Qi Gong and yoga
They help improve quality of life, reduce fatigue, promote recovery and strengthen the mind and body.
4. Get more good-quality sleep
Sleep disturbance is a very common side effect of cancer diagnosis and treatment and contributes significantly to fatigue. Research shows that sleep loss can elevate appetite and hunger hormones, especially for high calorie and high sugar foods. Sleep loss also impairs nutritional metabolism and promotes insulin resistance, diabetes and high cholesterol. Lack of sleep and poor quality sleep increase a person's chances of gaining weight.
* Avoid watching TV, reading or eating in bed.
* Don't go to bed until you are feeling tired.
* Set a schedule for waking up around the same time everyday and limit daytime naps.
* After 15 minutes of tossing and turning, get out of bed and try a relaxing activity. Be careful not to do anything stimulating such as watching TV. Relaxing activities, such as deep breathing exercises, mindfulness meditation or listening to a guided imagery CD may help get your body more ready to fall asleep.
5. Integrate mindfulness
New and exciting research is teaching us that how we eat is as important as what we eat. Distractions, such as driving, typing, reading, watching TV and even walking while we eat cause us to eat more food, eat more quickly and even reduce the amount of healthy nutrients we absorb from our meals.
* Taking a moment to sit up straight and breathe deeply before, during and after a meal can help slow things down.
* Eating slowly, in a relaxed environment with minimal distractions, is another way to help promote health, wellness and weight loss.
6. Address emotional eating
Learning you have cancer and going through treatment can dramatically affect a person's life. Cancer can be isolating, and depression affects up to 38 percent of cancer patients. To cope, many people turn to food. It's natural to want to cope the best way you know how even though you may know it's not good for you. The best way to help deal with emotional eating is to work with a health psychologist who specializes in cancer. For more information on diet and cancer please visit http://www.danafarber.org/nutrition.
7. Maintain a healthy weight
If you're one of more than 10 million cancer survivors living in the United States, maintaining a healthy weight is vitally important.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 66 percent of American adults are overweight or obese. Approximately 72 million American adults were obese in 2005-2006. The prevalence of obesity among American children has more than doubled in the past 30 years.
Overweight is also associated with increased risk for colorectal, post-menopausal breast, pancreatic, kidney and esophageal cancers. Excess body weight accounts for at least 20 percent of all cancer-related deaths each year.
Carrying extra pounds, especially in your abdomen, can also inhibit the cancer patient's response to treatment. For women receiving treatment for early-stage breast cancer, gaining more than 13 pounds increases her risk of breast cancer returning by one and a half times.
Obesity and weight gain increase a man's risk of prostate cancer recurrence, death and the cancer spreading to other parts of the body (metastases).
It is now well-established that a healthy, plant-based diet, physical activity and weight control help decrease cancer risk. But one of the hottest areas in cancer research right now is the connection with health-promoting behaviors and improved cancer survivorship.
Cancer survivors can help cancer-proof their bodies by managing their weight in the healthiest way possible. The same way of eating that will help you lose weight in a healthy manner is the same way of eating that will help you improve your immune function and promote anti-cancer activity in your body. Here's how:
1. Eat a plant-based diet
Plant-based foods include a wide variety of delicious foods, such as fruits and vegetables; whole grains like wheat, oats, barley, and quinoa; nuts and seeds; tea; spices like turmeric, ginger, garlic, cilantro and basil; and soy foods. You don't have to become a vegetarian to include more plant foods at every meal and snack. It's easy to do this with this tool: How to Make a Balanced Plate (.pdf)
2. Be physically active every day
You don't need to train for a marathon, join a gym or even "exercise." Physical activity includes just moving around more in your day. You can do this in a variety ways throughout the day and in small time increments:
* Park farther away, walk to nearby destinations, get off public transportation one stop earlier, take the stairs for even one flight, walk down extra aisles or lengths of shopping malls and grocery stores.
* Take one 30- minute or two 15- minute walks. In separate studies, walking three to five hours a week helped reduce breast cancer recurrence by 40 percent and walking six hours a week at a moderate pace reduced colon cancer survivors' risk of recurrence by 50 percent.
3. Try activities such as Qi Gong and yoga
They help improve quality of life, reduce fatigue, promote recovery and strengthen the mind and body.
4. Get more good-quality sleep
Sleep disturbance is a very common side effect of cancer diagnosis and treatment and contributes significantly to fatigue. Research shows that sleep loss can elevate appetite and hunger hormones, especially for high calorie and high sugar foods. Sleep loss also impairs nutritional metabolism and promotes insulin resistance, diabetes and high cholesterol. Lack of sleep and poor quality sleep increase a person's chances of gaining weight.
* Avoid watching TV, reading or eating in bed.
* Don't go to bed until you are feeling tired.
* Set a schedule for waking up around the same time everyday and limit daytime naps.
* After 15 minutes of tossing and turning, get out of bed and try a relaxing activity. Be careful not to do anything stimulating such as watching TV. Relaxing activities, such as deep breathing exercises, mindfulness meditation or listening to a guided imagery CD may help get your body more ready to fall asleep.
5. Integrate mindfulness
New and exciting research is teaching us that how we eat is as important as what we eat. Distractions, such as driving, typing, reading, watching TV and even walking while we eat cause us to eat more food, eat more quickly and even reduce the amount of healthy nutrients we absorb from our meals.
* Taking a moment to sit up straight and breathe deeply before, during and after a meal can help slow things down.
* Eating slowly, in a relaxed environment with minimal distractions, is another way to help promote health, wellness and weight loss.
6. Address emotional eating
Learning you have cancer and going through treatment can dramatically affect a person's life. Cancer can be isolating, and depression affects up to 38 percent of cancer patients. To cope, many people turn to food. It's natural to want to cope the best way you know how even though you may know it's not good for you. The best way to help deal with emotional eating is to work with a health psychologist who specializes in cancer. For more information on diet and cancer please visit http://www.danafarber.org/nutrition.
7. Maintain a healthy weight
If you're one of more than 10 million cancer survivors living in the United States, maintaining a healthy weight is vitally important.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 66 percent of American adults are overweight or obese. Approximately 72 million American adults were obese in 2005-2006. The prevalence of obesity among American children has more than doubled in the past 30 years.
Overweight is also associated with increased risk for colorectal, post-menopausal breast, pancreatic, kidney and esophageal cancers. Excess body weight accounts for at least 20 percent of all cancer-related deaths each year.
Carrying extra pounds, especially in your abdomen, can also inhibit the cancer patient's response to treatment. For women receiving treatment for early-stage breast cancer, gaining more than 13 pounds increases her risk of breast cancer returning by one and a half times.
Obesity and weight gain increase a man's risk of prostate cancer recurrence, death and the cancer spreading to other parts of the body (metastases).
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Neti pot
On the Oprah Winfrey show Dr. Oz says this treatment may be more effective than medication. "The [ear, nose and throat] doctors who are specialists in this area will often say this is a better treatment than a lot of the other drugs that we try to offer folks, because it mechanically cleans out the problem," he says.
Even recovering drug addicts can benefit from the neti pot.
here is an article from netipot.com
http://www.neti-pot.com/neti-pots-helps-ex-drug-users-art.cfm
As we know, sniffing drugs is both dangerous to the health and illegal. Nevertheless, millions of people, particularly young people, in this country wind up using drugs, much of it under peer pressure or for excitement. Eventually of course, the excitement wears off and they find out that they have harmed their bodies in more ways than one. One of the lesser known, but important issues is the fact that these drugs tend to be extremely irritating to the nasal passages, lead to dryness, excess mucus production and reduction in the efficiency of the nasal “filter”. Anyone who has seen or met someone who has sniffed drugs can relate to the fact that virtually all these individuals have irritated their nasal mucous membranes and imbalanced their body’s natural breathing mechanism.
Obviously the best action is for them to discontinue using the drugs that are causing this irritation. One way or the other, they also need to begin to address the need to restore the proper functioning and balance to the nose and that is where the use of the Ancient Secrets Nasal Cleansing Pot can come in. Known as a “neti pot”, this simple device delivers a saline solution to gently and easily rinse out the nostrils, restore needed moisture to the nasal mucosa, and clear excess mucus generated by the irritation process. They can breathe easier and if the ancient practitioners of yoga are correct, and enhanced breathing capability increases the life enegy, or prana that can flow through the body, and thereby clarifies the mind, maybe we have a way to provide them a “natural high” of pure vitality and life energy, and provide them both some physical benefits to their nose, and some new clarity and vitality to offset the effects of past drug use. In any case, they have nothing to lose, and much to gain.
I personally use a neti pot when I get sick. My sinus clears up about 2x faster and I can breath! Here is a video so you can see what it looks like!
Even recovering drug addicts can benefit from the neti pot.
here is an article from netipot.com
http://www.neti-pot.com/neti-pots-helps-ex-drug-users-art.cfm
Neti Pot Helps Ex-Drug Users Get Their Noses Back Up To Snuff!
Obviously the best action is for them to discontinue using the drugs that are causing this irritation. One way or the other, they also need to begin to address the need to restore the proper functioning and balance to the nose and that is where the use of the Ancient Secrets Nasal Cleansing Pot can come in. Known as a “neti pot”, this simple device delivers a saline solution to gently and easily rinse out the nostrils, restore needed moisture to the nasal mucosa, and clear excess mucus generated by the irritation process. They can breathe easier and if the ancient practitioners of yoga are correct, and enhanced breathing capability increases the life enegy, or prana that can flow through the body, and thereby clarifies the mind, maybe we have a way to provide them a “natural high” of pure vitality and life energy, and provide them both some physical benefits to their nose, and some new clarity and vitality to offset the effects of past drug use. In any case, they have nothing to lose, and much to gain.
I personally use a neti pot when I get sick. My sinus clears up about 2x faster and I can breath! Here is a video so you can see what it looks like!
Monday, February 16, 2009
Many Americans Unaware of Food Recalls, Survey Finds
By RONI CARYN RABIN NY Times
Published: February 13, 2009
Just about everyone has heard about the recent recall of peanut products, but many Americans don’t realize that cakes, snack bars, brownies, cookies and ice cream may also be contaminated with salmonella, a Harvard University survey has found.
Of the 93 percent of Americans in the survey who knew of recent recalls, fewer than half knew that some snack bars had been recalled, and fewer than half were aware cakes, brownies and cookies had been recalled.
“I eat protein bars all the time, and I didn’t even think about it,” said Robert J. Blendon, professor of health policy at the Harvard School of Public Health, who designed the survey.
Only about one-quarter of those surveyed knew that some ice cream brands had been recalled, and less than one-quarter knew plain jars or cans of dry-roasted peanuts had been recalled.
“It’s logical — many of the snack bars have the word ‘chocolate’ in their name,” said Dr. Blendon. “They mix the peanuts with chocolate and caramel, so unless you look at the ingredients, you won’t realize they are being recalled.”
He said he was “popping protein bars over lunch” as usual until members of his staff insisted he check the list of ingredients as well as the Food and Drug Administration’s list of recalled products.
The survey also found that one in four of those aware of the recent recalls mistakenly believe that major national brands of peanut butter should be avoided. Major national brands are safe, Dr. Blendon said.
“Peanut butter is an awfully good food at low cost, and you wouldn’t want people throwing that out at this economically difficult time.”
The survey of a nationally representative sample of 1,283 adults was done by the Harvard Opinion Research Program through a grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It found that more than six in ten Americans said they have only “some” or “very little” confidence that food manufacturers and government inspections systems could keep food safe.
Published: February 13, 2009
Just about everyone has heard about the recent recall of peanut products, but many Americans don’t realize that cakes, snack bars, brownies, cookies and ice cream may also be contaminated with salmonella, a Harvard University survey has found.
Of the 93 percent of Americans in the survey who knew of recent recalls, fewer than half knew that some snack bars had been recalled, and fewer than half were aware cakes, brownies and cookies had been recalled.
“I eat protein bars all the time, and I didn’t even think about it,” said Robert J. Blendon, professor of health policy at the Harvard School of Public Health, who designed the survey.
Only about one-quarter of those surveyed knew that some ice cream brands had been recalled, and less than one-quarter knew plain jars or cans of dry-roasted peanuts had been recalled.
“It’s logical — many of the snack bars have the word ‘chocolate’ in their name,” said Dr. Blendon. “They mix the peanuts with chocolate and caramel, so unless you look at the ingredients, you won’t realize they are being recalled.”
He said he was “popping protein bars over lunch” as usual until members of his staff insisted he check the list of ingredients as well as the Food and Drug Administration’s list of recalled products.
The survey also found that one in four of those aware of the recent recalls mistakenly believe that major national brands of peanut butter should be avoided. Major national brands are safe, Dr. Blendon said.
“Peanut butter is an awfully good food at low cost, and you wouldn’t want people throwing that out at this economically difficult time.”
The survey of a nationally representative sample of 1,283 adults was done by the Harvard Opinion Research Program through a grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It found that more than six in ten Americans said they have only “some” or “very little” confidence that food manufacturers and government inspections systems could keep food safe.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Study Finds Art Therapy Increases Well-being in Breast Cancer Patients
Reuters Health
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Reuters Health
Link to the article here.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women having radiation treatment for breast cancer experienced lasting improvements in mental and physical health and quality of life after participating in five sessions of art therapy, Swedish researchers report.
The findings "strongly support art therapy as a powerful tool in rehabilitation of patients with breast cancer and, presumably, also in the care of patients with other types of cancer," Dr. Jack Lindh of Umea University, Umea, Sweden, and colleagues conclude in the European Journal of Cancer Care.
Women face major stresses after a diagnosis of breast cancer and art therapy could offer a way for women to express and "process" their emotions, the researchers say, thus improving their quality of life.
To investigate, they randomly assigned 41 breast cancer patients receiving radiation treatment to five once-a-week, hour-long sessions of art therapy or to a control group who didn't receive art therapy. Study participants completed surveys addressing their quality of life and self-image before beginning radiation, two months after radiation treatment began, and six months after the beginning of treatment.
A trained art therapist led each session, in which women were given a wide variety of art materials. Goals of the intervention were to offer time and space for expression and reflection; give support in the process of restoring body image; and reduce stress.
By six months, the researchers found, women who had participated in art therapy showed significant improvements in their overall quality of life, general health, physical health, and psychological health, while the control group only showed improvements in psychological health. The art therapy group also showed specific improvements in their body image, perspectives on the future, and radiation therapy side effects.
In previous studies, Lindh's team demonstrated improved coping skills and better ability to deal with others' demands in the breast cancer patients who did art therapy.
Art therapy may have improved the women's quality of life by helping them to maintain a positive identity, to deal with pain, and to feel control over their lives, the researchers say.
"The results of our studies suggest that the women, through image-making and reflection on their images, were able to give legitimacy to their own interpretations and experiences," as well as to "recognize and question" limits and boundaries imposed by traditional gender roles, they conclude.
SOURCE: European Journal of Cancer Care, January 2009.
Reuters Health
Link to the article here.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
The Flu Flourishes in Dry Regions
Watch the humidity, flu likes it dry
Study: Virus survives longer and transmission goes up when humidity is low
Associated Press 2009
WASHINGTON - Grandma may have been right about keeping a teakettle warming on the stove in winter to moisten the air.
Studies of seasonal influenza have long found indications that flu spreads better in dry air.
Now, new research being published Tuesday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, indicates that the key is the absolute humidity — which measures the amount of water present in the air, regardless of temperature — not the more commonly reported relative humidity.
Relative humidity varies depending on air temperature; absolute humidity doesn't.
"The correlations were surprisingly strong. When absolute humidity is low, influenza virus survival is prolonged and transmission rates go up," said Jeffrey Shaman, an Oregon State University atmospheric scientist who specializes in ties between climate and disease transmission
The finding "is very important for the scientific community and the medical community to know to develop better prediction models of influenza," Shaman said in a telephone interview. It will offer the chance to better understand and forecast the spread of the disease.
For the public, he added, it offers a "more elegant explanation for why we see these seasonal spikes" in flu. And, he added, it shows that in some cases it may be worthwhile to add humidity to the air. Beware of overdoing it, though — too much humidity can lead to other problems, such as mold.
The correlation with flu and low humidity is important because in cold winter weather, when flu is most common, even a high relative humidity reading may indicate little actual moisture in the air, and the less moisture there is, the happier the flu virus seems to be.
Shaman and co-author Melvin Kohn, an epidemiologist with the Oregon Department of Health Services, reanalyzed data from a study published in 2007 in the journal PLoS Pathogens by researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. That report found there were more flu cases when it was colder and drier.
The Oregon researchers said relative humidity could only explain about 12 percent of the variability of influenza virus transmission and 36 percent of virus survival in the 2007 study.
In their new analysis, Shaman and Kohn said using absolute humidity explains 50 percent of influenza transmission and 90 percent of virus survival.
So why is relative humidity misleading?
The answer is that more moisture can be present in warm air than in cold. Some people like to say warm air can hold more moisture than cold air. While that's not scientifically correct, it is a convenient way to think about it.
What that means is warm air at 30 percent relative humidity and cold air at 60 percent relative humidity may actually have the same amount of water in the air.
So, while the cold air sounds moist, it might be pretty dry — just what the flu likes.
Absolute humidity is expressed in weight of water, grams or pounds, in a volume of air, such as a cubic meter or yard. The higher the reading the wetter. The wetter, the worse for flu virus.
"In some areas of the country, a typical summer day can have four times as much water vapor as a typical winter day — a difference that exists both indoors and outdoors," Shaman said. "Consequently, outbreaks of influenza typically occur in winter when low absolute humidity conditions strongly favor influenza survival and transmission."
Study: Virus survives longer and transmission goes up when humidity is low
Associated Press 2009
WASHINGTON - Grandma may have been right about keeping a teakettle warming on the stove in winter to moisten the air.
Studies of seasonal influenza have long found indications that flu spreads better in dry air.
Now, new research being published Tuesday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, indicates that the key is the absolute humidity — which measures the amount of water present in the air, regardless of temperature — not the more commonly reported relative humidity.
Relative humidity varies depending on air temperature; absolute humidity doesn't.
"The correlations were surprisingly strong. When absolute humidity is low, influenza virus survival is prolonged and transmission rates go up," said Jeffrey Shaman, an Oregon State University atmospheric scientist who specializes in ties between climate and disease transmission
The finding "is very important for the scientific community and the medical community to know to develop better prediction models of influenza," Shaman said in a telephone interview. It will offer the chance to better understand and forecast the spread of the disease.
For the public, he added, it offers a "more elegant explanation for why we see these seasonal spikes" in flu. And, he added, it shows that in some cases it may be worthwhile to add humidity to the air. Beware of overdoing it, though — too much humidity can lead to other problems, such as mold.
The correlation with flu and low humidity is important because in cold winter weather, when flu is most common, even a high relative humidity reading may indicate little actual moisture in the air, and the less moisture there is, the happier the flu virus seems to be.
Shaman and co-author Melvin Kohn, an epidemiologist with the Oregon Department of Health Services, reanalyzed data from a study published in 2007 in the journal PLoS Pathogens by researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. That report found there were more flu cases when it was colder and drier.
The Oregon researchers said relative humidity could only explain about 12 percent of the variability of influenza virus transmission and 36 percent of virus survival in the 2007 study.
In their new analysis, Shaman and Kohn said using absolute humidity explains 50 percent of influenza transmission and 90 percent of virus survival.
So why is relative humidity misleading?
The answer is that more moisture can be present in warm air than in cold. Some people like to say warm air can hold more moisture than cold air. While that's not scientifically correct, it is a convenient way to think about it.
What that means is warm air at 30 percent relative humidity and cold air at 60 percent relative humidity may actually have the same amount of water in the air.
So, while the cold air sounds moist, it might be pretty dry — just what the flu likes.
Absolute humidity is expressed in weight of water, grams or pounds, in a volume of air, such as a cubic meter or yard. The higher the reading the wetter. The wetter, the worse for flu virus.
"In some areas of the country, a typical summer day can have four times as much water vapor as a typical winter day — a difference that exists both indoors and outdoors," Shaman said. "Consequently, outbreaks of influenza typically occur in winter when low absolute humidity conditions strongly favor influenza survival and transmission."
Monday, February 9, 2009
An Intro To Superfoods
Chronic and most often preventable diseases including heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic respiratory disease, account for 70 percent of all U.S. deaths, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC also states most chronic diseases are preventable and can be treated through practicing healthy dietary behaviors and exercising regularly.
Diet and exercise. Big surprise.
Morbid introduction having been made, there are two things you may need to know about me: I love food, and I am a self-proclaimed nerd. Until college, processed and prepackaged foods were home. When I moved out of a dorm and discovered I had a kitchen in my first apartment, I decided I should learn how to cook. To my surprise, I discovered my passion for nutrition and exercise in an introductory food science course (subsequently squashing the joy in most of my favorite fast food staples).
My latest interest has been following superfood and clean eating trends and the extraordinary health benefit claims these foods have on the body. "Superfood" and "superfruit" are actually marketing terms used in the food and beverage industry to describe foods (usually raw fruits, vegetables and grains) with high phytonutrient content. This means they contain nutrients that are non-essential to human survival, such as antioxidants, but are scientifically proven to provide excellent health benefits. Claims range from their ability to improve brain function and energy to cancer prevention and nutrition benefits throughout the life cycle.
An article in Prevention magazine outlines a few of these foods and provides great descriptions of their benefits, how best to incorporate them into a diet, and additional resources.
Superfoods: The Next Frontier
By Denise Foley
Had it up to here with broccoli? Join the club. But it's hard to take it off the menu when it's such a great source of vitamins and minerals. Still, is a little variety too much to ask?
Not anymore, thanks to research that's shifting the spotlight to a new generation of health-boosting foods—many of which do double or triple duty to help prevent illness. Here are six on the brink of superstar status.
1. Pomegranate
If you're going to have a martini, at least make it a pomegranate one. This fall fruit has higher antioxidant activity than red wine and green tea, which may be why a number of studies show it may prevent skin cancer and kill breast and prostate cancer cells. It also helps to:
Fight Alzheimer's disease
Researchers at Loma Linda University found that mice who drank pomegranate juice experienced 50 percent less brain degeneration than animals that consumed only sugar water. The pomegranate drinkers also did better in mazes and tests as they aged.
Guard your arteries
A group of diabetics who drank about 2 ounces of pomegranate juice a day for three months kept their bodies from absorbing bad cholesterol into their immune system cells (a major contributing factor to hardened arteries), discovered Israeli researchers.
By Denise Foley, Prevention magazine
2. Kiwifruit
Don't judge this fruit by its cover: Under that bristly brown peel you'll find a bright green star bursting with antioxidants and full of fiber. Kiwifruit works to:
Protect against free radical damage
A study from Rutgers University compared the 27 most popular fruits and determined that kiwifruit was the most nutritionally dense. Plus, it makes the short list of fruits with substantial amounts of vitamin E, and contains more vision-saving lutein than any other fruit or vegetable, except for corn.
Lower blood-clot risk
In a 2004 study from the University of Oslo in Norway, participants who ate two or three kiwis for 28 days significantly reduced their potential to form a clot. They also got a bonus benefit: Their triglycerides, a blood fat linked to heart attack, dropped by 15 percent.
3. Barley
When some whole grains, such as wheat and oats, are processed, they lose their fiber content. Not so with barley, which is full of soluble beta-glucan fiber in its whole kernel or refined flour form. Studies show this particular fiber may:
Knock down bad cholesterol by as much as 17.4 percent, according to USDA research
A 2004 study found that adults with moderately high cholesterol levels who went on a low-fat American Heart Association diet began to see an improvement only when barley was added to the menu.
Decrease blood sugar and insulin levels
That makes barley a better choice for people with type 2 diabetes, says a 2005 Agricultural Research Services study.
4. Cranberries
This born-and-bred American berry is among the top 10 antioxidant-rich foods, making it a potent cancer protector. You know it helps treat urinary tract infection, and perhaps you heard it prevents gum disease, too, but did you know that these beneficial berries may:
Eradicate E. coli
Compounds in the juice can actually alter antibiotic-resistant strains, making it impossible for the harmful bacteria to trigger an infection. A small pilot study from Harvard Medical School and Rutgers University found that eating about 1/3 cup of dried cranberries yielded the same effect.
Help prevent strokes
Research on pigs with a genetic predisposition to atherosclerosis—narrow, hardened arteries that may lead to heart attack and stroke—found that those fed dried cranberries or juice every day had healthier, more flexible blood vessels.
5. Broccoli sprouts
Yes, we've been through this: broccoli, good. The news: Broccoli sprouts are even better. At a mere 3 days old, they contain at least 20 times as much of disease-fighting sulforaphane glucosinolate (SGS) as their elders; SGS has been shown to:
Kill tumors
The chemical triggers enzymes in the body that either kill cancer cells or keep them from growing. Just 1 ounce of sprouts has as much SGS as 1 1/4 pounds of broccoli. That'll save you lots of chewing.
Protect your heart
People who ate about a half cup a day of sprouts lowered their total cholesterol by an average of 15 points, and women in the study raised their good cholesterol by 8 points—in just 1 week, found a Japanese pilot study.
Save your sight
Exposure to UV sunlight over time may lead to an eye condition called macular degeneration, which is the number one cause of blindness in US seniors. Researchers at Johns Hopkins determined that broccoli sprouts can protect retinal cells from ultraviolet light damage.
6. Kefir
This cultured milk drink stacks up in calcium—one 8-ounce serving contains 30 percent of the recommended daily intake—and contains more beneficial bacteria than yogurt. It may also:
Reduce food allergies
Baby mice fed kefir had a threefold reduction in the amount of an antibody linked to food allergies, say researchers at an agricultural university.
Battle breast cancer
Women age 50 and older who consumed fermented milk products had a lower risk than those who ate little or none.
Avoid triggering lactose intolerance
Kefir contains lactase, the enzyme that people with lactose intolerance are missing, say researchers at Ohio State University. And the taste? Like plain yogurt, just a little thinner.
See complete article here.
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Wednesday, February 4, 2009
breathing exercise helps kids
Here is the art of livings mission statement:
Our Mission
To strengthen the individual and society by offering programs inspired by His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar that eliminate stress, create a sense of belonging, restore human values, develop life to its full potential, and encourage people from all backgrounds to come together in celebration, wisdom, and service.
Monday, February 2, 2009
February is National Cancer Prevention Month!
February: National Cancer Prevention Month
By: Lara Endreszl Published: Monday, 2 February 2009
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One of the most dreaded words in the English language. No one ever wants to be sitting in a gown in his or her doctor’s office and hear the “C” word. A cancer diagnosis is made scarier by the fact that it is not often heard in the same breath as another "C" word: cure. Cancer sneaks up on you, and leaves doctors, researchers, surgeons, and patients wanting to know more: the how, the why, the when. With February being National Cancer Prevention Month, we can finally see cure and cancer next to each other by putting our efforts into finding cures for those cancers previously thought to be incurable and increasing survival rates for all cancers.Cancer is a very confusing disease because it cannot be defined as one specific symptom. When you have shingles or strep throat, chicken pox or the flu, there are specific symptoms and specific ways to cure them. The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center describes cancer as, “a large and complex family of malignancies that can affect virtually every organ in the body.” Cancer is the second largest killer in the United States after heart disease, with over 1 million new cases diagnosed each year, and is predicted to overtake the #1 spot by 2010. Cancer isn’t specific to any age, race, or gender and can strike at any time. Cancer is most often characterized by tumors. Benign tumors are not cancerous and are not fatal but can cause problems with health relating to their size and location inside the body. Tumors are essentially just a growth of cells that multiply and divide to replace old ones. When the cells divide too much they form excess tissue that becomes a tumor and malignant—or cancerous—they tend to grow rapidly and impede other tissues, organs, and can sometimes travel through the bloodstream. When the cancerous tumor or tumors spread to different parts of the body from their origin point it is called metastasis.
The best way for cancer prevention to be spread is by having regular cancer screenings. Men over the age of 50 should have a prostate cancer screening once a year and women after a certain age are also recommended to have breast cancer screenings and continue to have pap smears to rule out cervical cancer once every twelve months. Due to the persistence of health care providers and the widespread media coverage of cancer prevention techniques, including screenings and adopting a healthier lifestyle, the death rates of cancer in the past few years has decreased especially among men.
Cancer comes in many different forms but is characterized into four categories: Carcinomas, Sarcomas, Leukemias, and Lymphomas. Carcinomas are tumors originating in the tissues of the organs, which makes up about 80 percent of all cases. Sarcomas are found in the bone, fat, muscle, or cartilage. Leukemias are found in the blood-forming organs or generally inside the blood, and Lymphomas account for 20 types of cancers that affect the filters of the body.
If cancer is detected in an early stage, surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation are options for shrinking tumors and/or making them disappear altogether. When tumors disappear the final stage is called remission, following up with the patient to make sure the tumors don’t grow back in the same (or different) spots.
With 80 percent of cancers having no known cause, the time for prevention is now. By enjoying a diverse and healthy diet and keeping an active physical routine can help ward off stresses and possibly other environmental factors that can lead to the development of cancer. Besides being over 50 years old and indulging in a high-cholesterol and fat diet, among the rest of the factors are: obesity, cigarettes, long-term chemical exposure, unprotected sun risk, certain viruses and immune disorders, and radiation. The other 20 percent are hereditary. Take advantage of free advice and try to adjust your lifestyle accordingly—and not just during February—so you or your loved ones don’t hear the “C” word at the next doctor’s visit.
For more information, visit the American Cancer Society website.
By: Lara Endreszl Published: Monday, 2 February 2009
Related articles
Childhood Leukemia: Genetics Play a Role in Treatment Response
Incontinence: A Weighty Issue
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Con-GENE-iality May Be Inherited
One of the most dreaded words in the English language. No one ever wants to be sitting in a gown in his or her doctor’s office and hear the “C” word. A cancer diagnosis is made scarier by the fact that it is not often heard in the same breath as another "C" word: cure. Cancer sneaks up on you, and leaves doctors, researchers, surgeons, and patients wanting to know more: the how, the why, the when. With February being National Cancer Prevention Month, we can finally see cure and cancer next to each other by putting our efforts into finding cures for those cancers previously thought to be incurable and increasing survival rates for all cancers.Cancer is a very confusing disease because it cannot be defined as one specific symptom. When you have shingles or strep throat, chicken pox or the flu, there are specific symptoms and specific ways to cure them. The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center describes cancer as, “a large and complex family of malignancies that can affect virtually every organ in the body.” Cancer is the second largest killer in the United States after heart disease, with over 1 million new cases diagnosed each year, and is predicted to overtake the #1 spot by 2010. Cancer isn’t specific to any age, race, or gender and can strike at any time. Cancer is most often characterized by tumors. Benign tumors are not cancerous and are not fatal but can cause problems with health relating to their size and location inside the body. Tumors are essentially just a growth of cells that multiply and divide to replace old ones. When the cells divide too much they form excess tissue that becomes a tumor and malignant—or cancerous—they tend to grow rapidly and impede other tissues, organs, and can sometimes travel through the bloodstream. When the cancerous tumor or tumors spread to different parts of the body from their origin point it is called metastasis.
The best way for cancer prevention to be spread is by having regular cancer screenings. Men over the age of 50 should have a prostate cancer screening once a year and women after a certain age are also recommended to have breast cancer screenings and continue to have pap smears to rule out cervical cancer once every twelve months. Due to the persistence of health care providers and the widespread media coverage of cancer prevention techniques, including screenings and adopting a healthier lifestyle, the death rates of cancer in the past few years has decreased especially among men.
Cancer comes in many different forms but is characterized into four categories: Carcinomas, Sarcomas, Leukemias, and Lymphomas. Carcinomas are tumors originating in the tissues of the organs, which makes up about 80 percent of all cases. Sarcomas are found in the bone, fat, muscle, or cartilage. Leukemias are found in the blood-forming organs or generally inside the blood, and Lymphomas account for 20 types of cancers that affect the filters of the body.
If cancer is detected in an early stage, surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation are options for shrinking tumors and/or making them disappear altogether. When tumors disappear the final stage is called remission, following up with the patient to make sure the tumors don’t grow back in the same (or different) spots.
With 80 percent of cancers having no known cause, the time for prevention is now. By enjoying a diverse and healthy diet and keeping an active physical routine can help ward off stresses and possibly other environmental factors that can lead to the development of cancer. Besides being over 50 years old and indulging in a high-cholesterol and fat diet, among the rest of the factors are: obesity, cigarettes, long-term chemical exposure, unprotected sun risk, certain viruses and immune disorders, and radiation. The other 20 percent are hereditary. Take advantage of free advice and try to adjust your lifestyle accordingly—and not just during February—so you or your loved ones don’t hear the “C” word at the next doctor’s visit.
For more information, visit the American Cancer Society website.
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