Health News

REPORTING POINT 12/10

HEALTH NEWS

“Live healthy...Live well”

Dedicated to providing pertinent information on health, fitness, and nutrition to foster a culture of wellness among Southwest Airlines flight crews and their families.

by Larry Kline

email: livehealthy-livewell@cox.net

STAY HYDRATED TO PREVENT DENTAL DECAY - water is an essential part of nutrition. The body is made of 60 to 75 percent water. Every cell in our body requires water to function. Water is essential not only for the body but for the mouth and teeth. The mouth has approximately a milliliter of saliva when the body is well hydrated. The saliva acts as a buffer by neutralizing the pH level in the mouth as we consume foods and drinks. It also prevents plaque from easily attaching to teeth, thus aiding in prevention of decay. An individual's mouth requires saliva to help chew to digest food and to help wash away food from the teeth while eating.

Saliva plays a very important role in the process of fighting tooth decay. Some of the benefits saliva provides are:

Saliva contains buffering agents that can neutralize the acids (created by the bacteria that inhabit dental plaque) that cause tooth demineralization (tooth decay).

Saliva contains the minerals that must be present for the tooth remineralization process to occur.

Saliva contains antibacterial agents that can inhibit the growth of oral bacteria.

When the body is dehydrated, a condition called xerostomia, or dry mouth, may occur. When experiencing xerostomia, one may experience constant sore throat, burning sensation, hoarseness and speech difficulty, difficulty swallowing, and dry nasal passages. Lack of saliva may also cause multiple dental problems, including enamel erosion, plaque build-up and increased dental decay. When the saliva amount decreases in the mouth, the saliva functions decrease.

There are many ways to treat dry mouth. The American Dental Association (ADA) recommends drinking lots of water, chewing sugarless gum and sucking on sugar-free hard candies to stimulate salivary flow. Some dentists suggest drinking milk with meals to promote moisture.

In addition to stimulating salivary flow, avoiding a few items can help prevent dry mouth. Avoiding acidic drinks and foods such as lemon candies, cough drops, soda, sports drinks, and caffeine will help prevent xerostomia. Avoiding alcohol and alcohol-based mouthwashes will also help prevent dry mouth because they have a tendency to dry the mouth.

There is no substitute for saliva; however, there are mouthwashes, chewing gums, toothpastes, and prescription medications to help lubricate the mouth in severe cases of dry mouth. A dentist can evaluate whether or not any of these products could benefit in mouth lubrication. Dr. Rashmi Bhatnagar, Animated-Teeth.com

DIETARY SUGAR LOWERS HDL “GOOD” CHOLESTEROL – people who consume lots of added sugar are more likely to have low HDL “good” cholesterol and high triglycerides, both risk factors for heart disease. Researchers from Emory University studied 6,000 Americans. Test subjects averaged 360 calories a day from added sugar accounting for 16 percent of their total calories. Added sugar supplied 11 percent of calories in the late 1970s. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 8/10.

GINGER REDUCES MUSCLE PAIN CAUSED BY EXERCISE - ginger has been used throughout history as both a culinary herb and a medicinal agent. Ginger has gained attention in the United States because of its effect on motion sickness, nausea, as an aid in digestion, and its anti-rheumatic and anti-inflammatory effects.

When pain presents itself, one’s first instinct is to find relief from the pain. And while pain is the number one reason why people seek medical advice, it is interesting to note that everyone is an individual in regard to their own personal relationship to pain. Regardless of how one measures pain, it has a tremendous impact on society as a whole and is the reason for millions of lost work hours and, most importantly, a poor quality of life. Pain is usually divided into two categories - acute and chronic. Acute pain is the type that comes on suddenly when a tissue has been injured. Chronic pain can be, among other things, chronic lower-back pain, chronic headaches, cancer pain, or phantom limb pain. Chronic pain is generally associated with a chronic disease and lacks a clear cause. This is pain that exists past the normal expected healing time.

Exercise is physical activity that is planned or structured. It involves repetitive bodily movement done to improve or maintain physical fitness and overall health. Frequent and regular physical exercise boosts the immune system and helps prevent diseases such as heart disease, cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and obesity. It also improves mental health and helps prevent depression. Categories of physical exercise would be aerobic exercise, anaerobic exercise, strength training and agility training. More and more research is suggesting that exercise is extremely important for your overall health and well-being.

Researchers at the University of Georgia performed two studies to examine the effects of daily ginger (raw and heated) consumption on muscle pain. The studies were identical double-blind, placebo controlled, randomized experiments conducted for eleven consecutive days involving 34 and 40 participants. The subjects in study 1 consumed 2 grams of raw ginger or placebo while subjects in study 2 consumed 2 grams of heated ginger or placebo. The participants performed 18 extensions of the elbow flexors with a heavy weight to induce moderate muscle injury to the arm. Both studies showed a 25 percent reduction in exercise induced pain by daily supplementation of ginger in comparison to placebo. In conclusion the researchers stated that these results agree with other studies demonstrating ginger is effective in reducing pain.¹

¹ Black CD, Herring MP, Hurley DJ, et al. Ginger (Zingiber officinale) Reduces Muscle Pain Caused by Eccentric Exercise. J Pain. 2010. Journal of Pain submitted by Patti Milligan, MS, RD, CNS

FRUIT AND COLON CANCER – eating fruit may prevent colorectal polyps, growths that often precede cancer.

The National Cancer Institute found that people who consumed five servings of fruit daily were 38 percent less likely to have polyps.

Fruit contains pectin, a gel-like fiber that slows digestion in the gastrointestinal tract. The result is lower blood sugar – elevated levels may promote the growth of cancerous cells in the colon. Men’s Health 4/08.

FLAXSEED TO LOWER RISK OF BREAST CANCER – flaxseed and other foods that contain lignans may help lower the risk of breast cancer, according to research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that combined data from previous research. Higher lignan intake was linked to a reduced risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal – but not younger – women. Whole flaxseeds simply pass through the body, so if you use them, grind them yourself or buy them already ground. Other lignan sources include sesame seeds, sprouts, berries, whole grains, and tea. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 8/10.

BLAST RADIUS – with a flush of the toilet, fecal pathogens can splash out of the bowl and settle on nearby surfaces, including you.

Ingesting as few as ten particles of various viruses or bacteria can cause such symptoms as diarrhea, fever, and vomiting.

Best defense…always close the lid before you flush and, of course, wash your hands. Men’s Health 4/08.