REPORTING POINT EXPRESS 07-01
AEROMEDICAL NEWS
“Live healthy...live well”
HEALTH NEWS
by Larry Kline
SWAPA Voice Mailbox 511/email: skyguy737@cox.net
CARBS FOR RECOVERY - for exercise recovery and performance, the body needs carbohydrates. A study published in Sports Medicine Digest compared the effects of 25 grams of liquid carbs to 25 grams of solid carbs on cyclists. No differences were found in insulin response or blood glucose to the carbs absorbed by liquid or solids. Men’s Fitness 9/99.
KNOW A STONER? - besides being illegal, someone who chooses to indulge in marijuana use runs a much greater increased risk of lung, head and neck cancers. Marijuana smoke contains 50 percent more carcinogens than tobacco smoke.
Lab studies have found that THC, the active ingredient in pot, binds to the part of the brain called the hippocampus, and scientists suspect that this is why marijuana impairs your short-term memory even several days after use. Men’s Health 12/99.
EXERCISE TO REMEMBER - older people may improve their memory by...exercising. This not only benefits the heart by making it pump blood more efficiently, but also has a positive effect on the brain. Four months of regular aerobic exercise sharpened memory and reduced depression in a group of men and women aged 50 to 77, researchers reported recently in the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 4/01.
Exercising may have prevented this!
THE “JUICEMAN” MAY BE FULL OF IT - beware of promoters who sell juicing machines as the key to good health or as a cure for disease. Juice is good food, but it isn’t medicine, and it certainly is not better for you than whole fruit. Ounce for ounce, orange juice has about the same vitamin C as an orange. But the juicing machines leave behind some of the nutrients of the fruit in the solids and pulp, especially fiber and phytochemicals. A cup of carrot juice does have more beta carotene than one carrot (simply because it takes more than one carrot to make a cup of juice), but much less fiber if the juice is strained. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 4/01.
BEWARE OF THE FAKE ONES! - according to a recent study, artificial fingernails harbor more bacteria than regular fingernails. Researchers studied 41 nurses and found that those wearing artificial nails were more than twice as likely to have bacteria on their hands after washing with antimicrobial cleaners as those without fake nails. Since this could increase the risk of infection, the study’s authors recommends that hospitals discourage the use of artificial nails. Men’s Health 1/00.
HOLD THE CHEESE, PLEASE - cheese is the leading source of artery-clogging saturated fat in the American diet, according to a report from the Center of Science in the Public Interest. The average American is eating three times as much cheese today as 30 years ago - on pizza, pasta, burgers, sandwiches and even salads. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 5/01.
SELENIUM - THE PROSTATE PROTECTOR? - while studying selenium’s effects on skin-cancer rates, University of Arizona researchers found that men who took 200 mcg of selenium had a 63 percent lower incidence of prostate cancer than those who did not consume the mineral.
Selenium may increase levels of the antioxidant glutathione peroxidase, which helps protect prostate cells. Selenium is found naturally in seafood, liver, meat, and grains. The current RDA is 70 mcg per day, but the recent research suggests that taking 200 mcg daily can reduce the risk of prostate cancer. A bottle of 200 pills (200 mcg) costs about $7. Men’s Health 1/00.
THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH? - human growth hormone and related products are being marketed as aiding in keeping you young. The level of this hormone tapers off as one ages, but there is no evidence that replacing it will slow down or reverse the aging process, boost muscle strength, renew energy, or keep you healthy in any way. Real growth hormone, a prescription drug that is injected, is very expensive. It can have severe side effects, including increased risk of certain cancers, and diabetes. Health-food stores and websites offer “growth hormone” products that are supposed to be precursors that are alleged to convert into the hormone, and “releasers” that are supposed to stimulate production of the hormone. You have no way of knowing what is in these supplements or what they will do in the body, since they are unregulated. (There are FDA-approved medical uses for growth hormone in children or adults with deficiencies that are caused by tumors, or damage to the pituitary gland). University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 2/01.
SADDLE SORE? - recent research from Israel has revealed that almost three-quarters of bicyclists with back pain found tipping their bike seats downward 10 to 15 degrees relieved their backaches. This study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, says that adjusting the saddle changes the angle between the pelvis and the spine, easing the strain on the ligaments in the lower back. Men’s Health 5/00.
HAIR ANALYSIS? - despite many claims being made on the internet or magazines, hair analysis cannot detect diseases or nutritional deficiencies. There are no vitamins in hair. Hair does contain minerals, but measuring them in this way is of no practical value, since the results vary so much depending on age, sex, hair length and color, air pollution and hair-care products. The labs doing the tests are not reliable, according to a recent study. The goal of this type of hair analysis is usually to induce you to buy nutritional supplements. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 5/01.
