Health News

CROSSFEED 3-94

AEROMEDICAL NEWS

HEALTH NEWS

by L. Kline

TOP FOODS FOR HEALTHY TEETH - enroute snacks make brushing after eating very difficult on long duty days, but there are foods that can help prevent tooth decay and gum disease. A crisp juicy apple or other raw crunchy fruit or vegetable contains fiber that helps scrape away bacteria and plaque. Carrots are especially beneficial as studies suggest that diets that are high in beta-carotene, found abundantly in carrots, cantaloupe and other fruits and vegetables, have a lower risk of oral cancer than people who have a lower intake of the nutrient.

HEALTHY ETHNIC FOODS - recent publicity has assailed chinese, italian, and mexican foods as generally being high in saturated fats and calories. But there are healthy choices available:

Chinese - order wonton soup, steamed vegetables, rice, and fish. Avoid deep-fried eggrolls, barbecued pork ribs, fried rice, sweet-and-sour dishes, and fried noodles.

Italian - order pastas with tomato sauces and garlic while avoiding heavy creamy sauces.

Mexican - try the soft corn tortillas, which have one-seventh the saturated fat of the flour tortillas. Grilled fish, chicken, and beef are preferable. Avoid refried beans (contains lard!), cheese and sour cream. Men's Health 7/94

A NEW HEALTH DRINK - silicon is an essential element required for healthy bone metabolism and stimulating growth. Trace amounts of silicon are found in unrefined cereals and drinking water, but a more reliable source of silicon is...beer. According to the British medical journal The Lancet, blood levels of silicon rose significantly one hour after six male volunteers downed 2 pints. Now if we could just find a medical benefit for "Wild Turkey!"

ACQUIRING A TASTE FOR A HEALTHY DIET - western pallets have a taste for fatty and sugary foods. Children are given foods such as sweeten cereals and hamburgers from an early age, thusly conditioning the young to require a certain "taste" that can be quenched only by foods high in fat and sugar. Yet it only takes 90 days of an altered diet low in fats to change cravings for fatty foods. According to a study at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, people who were put on reduced-fat diets for three months actually acquired a taste for lower fat foods and lost their cravings for fatty foods such as butter and mayonnaise. The same was true for sugary foods.


DON'T BE A "DEADHEAD" - getting a lot of mental exercise on the job may protect you from Alzheimer's disease. Research at Columbia University, testing the mental capacities of 593 volunteers aged 60 and older, found that people who spent their lives in more intellectually demanding occupations had half the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease as those employed in less stimulating positions. Researchers speculate that an active mind may develop a reserve of brain cells that resists the disease. Self 7/94

RED WINE FOR YOUR HEART - red wine not only lowers cholesterol levels, but new research from the University of Wisconsin indicates that consuming three or four glasses a week also reduces the blood's tendency to clot.

BURNING FAT TWICE - an old saying about cutting firewood is that it warms you twice; once when cutting it and again in the fireplace. Research at Colorado State University now indicates that weight training keeps the body's metabolism running at a higher level long after the workout. Two hours after a test group exercised for 90 minutes, their metabolic rate was still 11% higher than it was before exercise. Even 15 hours later, their metabolism was between 5% and 10% higher than before exercising. This could add up to a 114 calorie afterburn, beyond the benefits of the exercise itself. The calories burned by the body after exercising tend to come from fats rather than carbohydrates.

CRAVING BEEF? - if your taste for beef is still not abated after all the articles you've read in this publication, there may be a viable substitute - if you can find it. Central Washington University research indicates that hamburger made from "beefalo", a low-fat meat from a bison-cattle crossbreed, will not raise total or LDL (bad) cholesterol levels, whereas eating the same amount of beef significantly raises LDL levels.

STOPPING STONES - kidney stones afflict nearly one million Americans every year. The stones - hardened mineral deposits that grow inside the kidneys and slowly, and painfully, pass into the bladder, may be prevented by:

Drink lots of water - at least eight glasses a day.

Drink skim milk - the calcium in milk binds in the intestines with the minerals that form kidney stones and helps them pass harmlessly out the body.

Cut the beef - diets rich in animal protein increases the risk of stones forming by boosting the amount of uric acid in urine.

Hold the salt - sodium causes the kidneys to retain calcium crystals, which can become kidney stones.

Add potassium - diets high in potassium are at low risk for kidney stones to form. Best sources of potassium are bananas, potatoes, nectarines, and oranges. Men's Health 7/94

THE IMPORTANCE OF EXERCISE - young Americans between the ages of 25 and 30 are weighing, on average, 10 pounds more than they did seven years ago, according to The National Institutes of Health. While subjects in this group are eating less cholesterol and fat, they are also consuming more calories and not exercising.


From the Flight Surgeon:

"YO! BARTENDER!"

by Joe Battersby, D.O.

FAA Medical Examiner

[insert Battersby article here]

(I will fax Battersby's article to you this week-LK)