REPORTING POINT EXPRESS 12-02
AEROMEDICAL NEWS
“Live healthy...live well”
HEALTH NEWS
by Larry Kline
SWAPA Voice Mailbox 511/email: skyguy737@cox.net
(Past issues published since 1992 of “Aeromedical News” are available on my son’s website, which includes a word-search engine: http://home.earthlink.net/~candace_ball/healtharticles/frameset.htm)-LK
DIDJAKNOW - a yam is a big tuber grown in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean, and you have probably never eaten one. Much more common in this country is the sweet potato, a smaller, sweeter, orange-colored native American root - high in beta-carotene and vitamin C. Men's Health 1/02.
PEANUTS FOR YOUR PROSTATE - prostate cancer kills 31,500 American men every year - only lung cancer strikes more often. In contrast, Asian men are less likely to contract the disease. One reason may be that they eat more phytosterols, plant-based fats found in unrefined vegetable oils, such as virgin olive, peanut and canola, as well as in nuts and legumes, whereas Westerners eat diets high in cholesterol, and animal-based fat.
A study by State University of New York at Buffalo found that prostate-cancer tumors in mice given a phytosterol-heavy diet were 40-43 percent smaller than those in mice eating a diet rich in cholesterol. Also, B-sitosterol, a plant fat, inhibited prostate-cancer cell growth by 70 percent in test-tube prostate-cancer cells.
Although there are no established doses of phytosterols, researchers recommend enriching a diet daily with 50 milligrams of phytosterols via 1.2 ounces of dry-roasted peanuts (wonder where you’d get those??? - about 34 peanuts), 1.3 ounces of peanut butter (a little more than two table-spoons), or one ounce of peanut oil (about two tablespoons). Since these are fats (9 calories/gram), it is a good idea to make a corresponding reduction in saturated fats. Men’s Fitness 4/02.
THE EFFECTS OF A HIGH-FAT DIET - saturated fats and trans-fats are linked to many diseases and conditions. Besides detracting from your appearance in a Speedo, these fats affect many organs quite negatively.
BRAIN - research conducted at the University of Toronto has shown that eating too much saturated fat slows the mental process. It inhibits the supply of glucose - needed for cognitive function and memory - to the brain, causing the brain to age prematurely. People whose diets are high in saturated fats are also at high risk for stroke and Alzheimer's disease.
EYES - a study published in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine links saturated fat to hypertension - high blood pressure. Over time, this condition can result in a host a secondary problems, such as retina damage, vision loss, even TIAs (transient ischemic attacks, mini-strokes that precede a large stroke).
HEART - more than a million Americans a year suffer heart attacks, the vast majority occurring in people with coronary artery disease, in which fat and cholesterol deposits block arteries that supply blood to the heart.
PANCREAS - another indirect effect of eating too much bad fat is adult onset diabetes. Carrying large amounts of body fat has been linked to insulin resistance, a forerunner of diabetes in those who have a genetic predisposition toward the disease. Research conducted at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health showed that substituting unsaturated vegetable fats for saturated fats significantly decreases the risk for diabetes.
BELLY - eating too many calories of any kind will lead to weight gain in the form of stored fat, but nothing turns into body fat as quickly as saturated and trans fats. Due largely to an overabundance of these fats in the average American diet, more than half of U.S. adults are overweight.
ARTERIES - atherosclerosis, a major risk factor for heart attack, is characterized by hardening and thickening of the arteries. It develops when saturated fats accumulate on the arteries' inner walls. This leads not only to heart disease, but also to peripheral vascular disease, most notably in the lower extremities.
GENITALS - any bodily function that depends on normal blood flow can be disrupted by restricted bloodflow that results from buildup in the arteries. One such function is penile erection. The arteries supplying blood to the penis are some of the smallest in the body. These may be the first vessels that clog up, and may be indicative of future severe problems. Men's Fitness 3/02.
PREVENTING COLON CANCER - after lung cancer, colon cancer is the biggest cancer killer of Americans and Canadians. Here are steps that may lower colon cancer risk:
1. Avoid a high-fat diet, especially one rich in red and processed meats.
2. Eat lots of vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. These are rich in fiber and help prevent chronic constipation, which has been linked to colon cancer. Other substances in them may also be protective.
3. Exercise regularly and avoid excess calories. Obesity increases colon cancer risk.
4. It adequate calcium from food and/or supplements. A recent Harvard study found that this may help.
5. Vitamin D may also be a protective. The body makes this vitamin when exposed to sunlight (all you need is a brief exposure on your face and arms). Fortified milk and multivitamins also contain vitamin D.
6. Get enough folic acid (a B vitamin)-at least 400 micrograms a day, from a multivitamin and/or fortified foods.
7. Avoid charbroiled or fried foods. Cancer causing compounds are produced when meats-especially fatty meats-are cooked at very high temperatures.
8. Do not smoke. Smoking may promote precancerous polyps.
9. Consider low dose aspirin. There is some evidence it may help, but consult with your doctor first.
10. Get screened-it can save your life. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 6/02.
SUGAR'S AFFECT ON HDL - the first step towards lowering your blood cholesterol is to switch to a low-fat diet. However, levels of high-density lipoproteins (HDL-the good cholesterol) tend to drop right along with the levels of low density lipoproteins.
A new report blames simple sugars. According to researchers at the University of Maryland in Baltimore, many people trade of fat in their diets for a higher intake of simple sugars from baked goods and processed foods.
The lead author of the study states that the American food supply offers an abundance of low-fat and fat-free foods that depend on simple carbohydrates or added sugars to improve their flavor. Those who achieve a low-fat diet by substitution of simple sugar for dietary fat may be it risk of lowering their HDL. Slower burning carbs, such as beans and fruit, do not have the same effect. Men's Fitness 4/02.
DIABETICS REJOICE - in a 12 week study of diabetics who take insulin, researchers found that a new insulin inhaler was as effective as a course of daily injections for controlling blood sugar levels. The research showed that dry powdered insulin in an inhaler is both easier to use and just as effective clinically as liquid insulin. FDA test of a new dry insulin inhalers are expected to begin early next year. Men's Health 6/1.
COLD-WEATHER ATHLETES AT RISK - two recent European studies found that exercising in cold weather may lead to lung damage - including a 25 percent greater chance of developing bronchitis and three times the risk of developing asthma. The researchers feel that these illnesses are especially common in endurance athletes who train in harsh environments. To reduce “environmental stress” during cold-air workouts, warm up indoors and wear a mask which will collect heat and warms air naturally before inhaling. Men’s Health 1/01.
From the Flight Surgeon:
"TURF STRUGGLES ABOUND"
( Joe)
by Joe Battersby, D.O.
FAA Medical Examiner
(edited for this publication from America’s Flyways, 4/02 - LK)
They do, of course, in terms of specific area control in various legal and illegal enterprises i.e. from Microsoft to Dave the bookie’s joint in South Chicago at the corner of Broadway and Melrose streets. That analogy popped into my mind when I first read about the recently established Transportation Security Agency (read “hierocracy”). According to the Federal Air Surgeon here are some of the key ideas:
1. About 28,000 screeners will be hired to the TSA. Their job will be to screen passengers and property at all airports. Formerly contract screeners to a completely federalized force by November 2002. After this federalization is complete all airports will be given the option to allow private contractors to work under contract with the Feds. Does this mean an opportunity will arise to do it all over again? Oh, I know the spin on this is designed to suggest that the Feds will not involve itself in areas of private enterprise. Anybody out there ever heard of that happening in real life? Tell me.
2. The F.A.A. is also hiring 600 “temporary and permanent” agents apparently to oversee the efforts of the 28,000 screeners previously noted. Does that work out to 46+ for each overseer? Or what?
3. Who pays for all of this? Passenger’s fee charges are said to be from $2.50 to $5 dollars. Airlines will be assessed a fee equivalent to what they spent on screening services prior to 9/11. In 2005 the TSA will assess the fee on air carriers based on “market share” and “other measures” whatever these phrases mean. Translated I guess that means passenger fees will be increased. That’s OK.
4. Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening (CAPPS) systems will be used to screen all passengers. This system will select certain passengers who will receive “appropriate” screening. I suppose this implies “profiling”.
There’s more and I’ll continue next monthly. I may b e the only guy confused by some of this, but we all know we’ve got to do better under the circumstances. Nothing for it but to hope for the best and give our support. To return to thoughts of another older time “it looks like it’s going to be a long war.”
Best,
Joe
