Is Sugar a Poison? Are Carbohydrates Drugs?

From the Pine-Richland Patch (PA). What do drugs, alcohol, and grains have in common? They're all made out of sugar.

"Last week, Dr. Oz equated carbohydrates with cocaine. Last month the New York Times ran a lengthy article by Gary Taubes exploring the possible toxicity of sugar.

Low-carb diets are now being recommended for people with Type 2 diabetes because they reverse the condition, thus allowing sufferers to stop medication. A study out just a few weeks ago reported on the findings that a high-fat, ketogenic diet can reverse diabetic kidney disease.

I've always been a health-news freak, but these recent developments have piqued my interest even more because of an article I wrote this week for a women's health magazine for which I also work.

It was about the science of longevity and the emerging research into living a longer, healthier life. When researchers mean live longer, they don't mean adding a year or two to the average American life expectancy of 78.7 years. They mean adding 40 years or so.

Of course, this type of research is in its infancy because it wasn't all that long ago that something as simple as an infected cut could kill us.

The reason I'm writing a column about this is because at this point all the success stories are in the research related to food, or the lack thereof.

The first is the extreme caloric-reduction diet, which is basically not doable for a normal person for any length of time because we are not equipped to deal with long-term starvation -- especially when food is so accessible. This is the reason no one has managed to stick with it long enough to see if they live and thrive to 140 or die hungry at 70.

The second was more intriguing because it, along with a lot of other emerging research into topics having nothing to do with life extension, indicates that sugar may be worse for us than we thought. It's a small study, being done on roundworms. They normally have no sugar in their diet, but when sugar was added their life spans shrank by 20 percent.

We're not roundworms, but there's definitely a message here. It boggles the mind how much sugar we eat in a day without even realizing it. Forget cookies -- I'm talking about foods we may perceive as healthy. If you buy something in a box, bag, can, bottle or carton, you can be sure sugar has been added.

For example, Kashi GoLean Crunch cereal has 13 grams of sugar per serving. By comparison, a Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tart has 12.7 per tart. And yet, we would serve the former without a second thought because, after all, it's Kashi. A health food, right?

Sugar is added to milk to make it palatable (11 grams in a cup of nonfat). A single-serve carton of orange juice has 22 grams. The breakfast of champions? I think not, because in a related bit of recent health news, the sports world is buzzing over the amazing turnaround in performance of tennis player Novak Djokovic, who credits his recent winning streak to his newly adopted gluten-free diet. Other athletes are following his lead.

Djokovic was gluten intolerant, but a lot of the emerging research that's being reported upon by Taubes and others and explored by researchers is how the body and brain work more efficiently when fueled by fats rather than carbs.

Not that I'm touting a low-carb, Atkins-type diet, or gluten-free or high-fat. None of these health experts or researchers are advocating mindless eating of an endless rasher of bacon (well, Taubes thinks it makes no difference, read his "Good Calories, Bad Calories" and decide for yourself).

Rather, it's the idea that some foods, such as vegetables, fruits, healthy oils and fats (including saturated), lean meats and fish, have anti-inflammatory properties and therefore do not tax the immune system, and some foods, such as non-vegetable/fruit carbohydrates, do have inflammatory properties and may not be optimal for health.

What the researchers into life extension do recommend is an anti-inflammatory diet with lots of vegetables and fruits (not juice), lean meats and fish, good fats, and some nuts and dairy. Lighten up even on the "good" non-vegetable/fruit carbs, like whole grains and brown rice. Don't give them up, just make them a smaller percentage of your diet.

Even if you think you have a healthy (read: low-fat) diet, if you lack energy or feel tired or run down, try this for a week. You may feel like you could live forever.

Recipe: Flank Steak

I have never even been tempted to give up meat, and it looks like the research is catching up with my love of lean, red meats. This is one of my family's favorite entrees, and it really could not be more quick and easy.

It does require a bit of planning. You need to put it in to marinade in the morning, but it takes only 7 or 8 minutes to cook. Serve with any vegetable -- or a vegetable and a fruit. When I'm in a hurry, I use Lawry's Sesame Ginger Marinade, which has an absolutely ridiculous 6 grams of sugar per tablespoon, but since I'm not really ingesting it, just using it to flavor and tenderize the meat, I don’t care. When I'm not in a hurry, I make my own marinade. Use what you like.

Ingredients:

1 flank steak, 1 to 2 pounds, depending on how many you're feeding
Marinade

Directions:

With a sharp knife, score flank steak with about 1/8 inch deep cuts in a diamond pattern (see accompanying photo). Place flank steak and marinade in a resealable plastic bag. Mush it all around to be sure the steak is covered with marinade, and then squeeze out as much air as possible. Refrigerate all day.

At dinnertime, preheat grill to medium high heat. Remove flank steak from bag and discard bag with remaining marinade. Pat flank steak with paper towels to absorb excess marinade and keep grill from flaring up. Place on grill and grill 3 to 4 minutes per side, until at desired doneness."

Did I see a small hint of advocacy for a high-protein, low-carb diet? You betcha! Let the worms tell the world what we've already known.

To this day, our government is subsidizing the corn industry, which pumps out the high-fructose corn syrup by the tanker-truckful, and pumps out inferior food for our livestock and pets. I don't know what the sugar beet industry gets paid for growing, but it sure seems like our tax dollars are being used to kill us off in an effort to spare Social Security and Medicare benefit payments.

Corn in ethanol? Sure--at least it'll kill CARS and not us. Corn in people and animals? No way! It would be nice if food politics didn't include ending lives before their time. Corn's just as bad as soy as far as biochemicals go, and both are heavily-subsidized.

Worried about death panels? They got put in place during WW1. They still advertise through the Food Guide Pyramid.

New Breed of Athletes Seeking Edge Through Food, Not Drugs

From AZ Central.

"Most athletes enjoy a special bond with food. They eat whatever they want and still look good in the mirror. It's easy to abuse the relationship.

Some Cardinals players make fast-food runs at lunch before dispersing into meetings. A prominent ex-Suns player wolfed down greasy breakfast sandwiches on his way to practice and never gained a pound. All this internal sabotage, and no one ever knew the difference.

Until now.

"The one thing that is not emphasized enough in the world of sports is diet," Suns forward Grant Hill said. "Maybe it's a bad analogy, but you don't want to put regular gas in a high-performance car. But for some reason, nutrition has never been a priority."

Slowly, that's beginning to change. For 30 years, athletes have benefitted from huge advancements in strength and conditioning programs, and many are seeking another edge. Steroids are out, HGH testing is on the horizon and performance-enhancing drugs are taboo, and those who get busted risk public condemnation.

To a new breed of athlete, nutrition is the final frontier. To them, food is the new drug of choice.

"There are three big benefits," said Dave Ellis, a renowned sports dietitian. "There's less down time. People don't get ill as often or as easily. Those missed man days are huge setbacks to teams.

"The next big thing is energy. Athletes who don't know what they're doing with their diets can come to work and put in a mediocre day. Physically and mentally, their coach-ability is down. Too many of those days, and you lose."

The last component is recovery, and Hill can attest to the recuperating powers of proper nutrition. The Suns star is currently mocking his age (38), having missed only three games in his past three years.

Hill and teammate Steve Nash pay careful attention to their diets and have sworn off sugar, making the Suns "the most health-conscious team in the NBA." Both are convinced that their diet is largely responsible for their youthful performances.

"I'm of the mind-set that food can heal," Hill said. "If we wanted, we could eat anything we want and still look in shape because we burn so many calories and because we're always running around. But this is about how you feel. And at the end of this past season, I felt great. I wasn't sore at all. I was ready to do things like climb Camelback."

Asked to summarize his own nutrition plan, Hill said simply:

"If it was around 50,000 years ago, I'll eat it."

The trend toward better nutrition can be seen on a grass-roots level. Last week, the Collegiate and Professional Sports Dietitians Conference was held in Scottsdale, and guest speakers were stunned by the amount of young people in attendance.

Tom Osborne, the former Nebraska football coach, is considered a pioneer in the field. While scouting Alabama's team some 30 years ago, he discovered the Crimson Tide had something called an "off-season program." He began to realize that little things such as nutrition made a big difference. Along with a dedicated training table, Osborne asks his players to abstain from alcohol.

"There are 1,700 alcohol-related deaths in college ever year," Osborne said. "So the idea of college students drinking responsibly is nonsense."

Osborne also said the growing focus on athlete nutrition is an idea "whose time is past due."

Currently, 25 Division I college programs employ 31 full-time sports dietitians. Like most schools, Arizona State does not have a nutritionist dedicated to the athletic department, citing prohibitive costs.

For now, funding is a major obstacle.

Yet Ellis expects the number to double in the next two years, spawning a new industry as sports franchises and athletic programs realize the rewards justify the cost.

"It's a growing field, and a lot of new research keeps coming out," said Chrissy Barth, founder of Live.Breathe.Nutrition. in Scottsdale, where 50 percent of her clients are athletes.

"People are realizing the importance of following a sport-specific nutrition program to prolong their playing time as well as preventing injury."

Bottom line: Athletes are always looking for an edge. That's universal. And as long as the trend doesn't involve a syringe or illegal drugs, that's progress.

Maybe even the start of a clean, new era in sports."

Since sports is their work, just think what a better diet can do for you at YOUR work--more productivity, more stamina, able to generate ideas beneficial to the company and the boss, more and better pay raises leading to more and better benefits because of what you do for the company, etc.

Eating right (and sleeping right) can make you bullet-proof in the job market if you go about it correctly.

Maybe this new breed of athletes will be our example of good nutrition and exercise? Certainly our government isn't, judging by the Food Guide Pyramid!

Fidget Your Way to Health

From International Business News.

"Do you find yourself twiddling your thumbs or tapping your feet and fingers out of boredom? You may be taking part in what some experts call "incidental physical activity." A study published last month took a look at physical movements people make that don't involve formal exercise and what kind of role they may play in people's health.

Some of the incidental activity they considered had more purpose than tapping toes, such as preparing dinner or pulling weeds in the yard.

What ultimately matters is, do these activities have an impact on our physical fitness? The key may be in something called VO2 max, which is a reference to the amount of oxygen a person can utilize during an intense exercise. While it is used to measure an athletes cardiovascular and endurance fitness level, it has also been seen as an important predictor of the risk for premature death.

It's a proven fact that exercise improves your VO2 max, but researchers at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario also wanted to see if incidental activity could be a factor as well. They recruited healthy, but sedentary and overweight, adult men and women and gave them devices (something called an accelerometer) to record the steps they took in a day. They also examined their other movements.

They wore the devices for four to seven days, with one being a weekend day. The researchers also determined their VO2 max. None of the volunteers did anything remotely close to what could be called exercise during this study. However, those who moved the most saw an increase in their VO2 max.

What to take from the study? Get moving! While the study isn't saying that incidental activity is a replacement for exercise, it is saying that even the least bit of movement is an improvement.

In a similar study from 2008, researchers examined the movements of thin and obese women. What they found was the leaner women "fidgeted" more, meaning they stood up, walked around, etc. The authors actually said that the difference for the obese group if they adopted the habits of the lean group would have been 300 more calories burned each day."

I'm waiting for someone to invent an exercise regime out of fidgeting. :)

Playing With Coconut Kefir

I recently read about people who bake with kefir and kombucha, using them in place of yeast to get breads to rise, so I went out and bought some.

Beware vanilla flavored coconut kefir--it's mighty sweet on it's own. Now that I know unsweetened is available, I will endeavor to get my hands on it and try again.

In the meantime, here's what I created during my play time:

Chocolate Chip Cherry Muffins (GF/grain-free)

2 c. almond flour
1 T. each baking soda, baking powder, and psyllium powder (in place of gums)
1/4 c. Sucanat (optional)
1 c. vanilla coconut kefir
1 egg
1 T. coconut oil
2 handfuls of mini chocolate chips--I just reached into the bag and grabbed twice
1 4-oz. pkg. of oven-dried cherries (low sugar content per serving)

Put all dry ingredients in a bowl and stir to blend. In a separate bowl, combine kefir, coconut oil, and egg, then add to dry ingredients. Batter will be quite thick and hard to stir--do the best you can. Let the batter rest about 10 mins., then stir in chocolate chips and cherries.

I used cherries right out of the bag---you may want to cut them up first, because they swell in baking. I plan on doing this next time.

Put 2 heaping T. of batter into each cup of a large greased 6-cup muffin pan, or more per cup for a regular size pan. Bake at 350 for 45 mins.

Next time I attempt this, I'm leaving out the Sucanat, because the cherries and vanilla kefir alone are sweet enough for me. Unsweetened kefir might do a better job, but all they had in my health food store was vanilla and strawberry.

Kefir can be used in place of milk, buttermilk, sour cream, and yogurt in baking--it has the same or more probiotic properties as yogurt, and unflavored is supposed to taste just like buttermilk. I'm also going to try kombucha in the batter to replace the milk next time I make bread--people are using it in place of yeast because the carbonization is supposed to help bread rise when there is no yeast present. Kefir is also supposed to have carbonization, but I guess coconut kefir does not--or at least I didn't witness any in my bottle.

Bette Hagman used club soda or sparkling water in her GF bread recipes---now I know why. This is next on my list after the kombucha trial.

I would resort to regular kefir, but I'm afraid of triggering my dairy allergy.

Mini Loaves, Maximum Nutrition

From the Winnipeg Free Press. Note: Not a GF or grain-free recipe, but Wenchypoo's gonna build one!

"A perfect breakfast on the go or a great addition to a lunch box, this nutrient-filled banana bread made with wholesome whole-wheat, high-fibre and folate-rich avocados and high-potassium bananas is a satisfying treat you can feel good about feeding the whole family.

Avocado Banana Bread

500 ml (2 cups) whole-wheat flour

15 ml (1 tbsp) baking powder

2 ml (1/2 tsp) sea salt

2 pureed avocados

2 mashed bananas

175 ml (3/4 cup) honey

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F).

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, combine avocados, bananas, honey and vanilla. Fold dry mixture into avocado-banana mixture. Once combined, spoon into 8 greased mini pans, spreading evenly.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into middle of loaf comes out clean. Let cool, then run a knife along the edges and invert onto wire racks. Will keep fresh covered in a container for up to 5 days.

Makes 8 mini loaves.

Nutritional information per serving (1 mini loaf): 308 calories; 6 g protein; 8 g total fat (1 g saturated fat); 59 g carbohydrates; 8 g fibre; 249 mg sodium."

Mine will be made from almond or coconut flour, and use nori flakes instead of salt for lower sodium. I'd also lower the honey amount since bananas are used. I may even toy with using kombucha or kefir in place of yeast.

Now I have a summer project.

Mark Zuckerberg Joins Caveman Trend

From the International Business Times. The face of Facebook even eats this way--he's probably trying to escape the marketing machine of his own creation. I'd go back to the cave too for that!

"In 2011, Mark Zuckerberg will only eat meat from animals he physically kills himself, according to a note he sent on Facebook and a subsequent email interview with Fortune.

Currently, he’s killing animals others have raised or captured. Next, he wants to do the hunting himself.

Zuckerberg isn’t trying to be macho or doing it for the thrills. Instead, he is trying to have a deeper appreciation of the fact that living animals must be killed each time he eats meat. In a way, he’s attempting to remove the distance commercialism has put between him and his food.

Although Zuckerberg arrived at his decision independently – after comments from his guests about a pig he roasted – he is a part of the larger trend in America to revert back to more natural ‘caveman’ ways.

Technology has removed modern human beings many steps from the basics of life. For example, the meats we eat is produced en mass in a commercial way, killed commercially, process commercially, and shipped commercially to grocery stores.

That’s a far cry from killing a wild animal and roasting it over a fire. This is the type of alienation people in modern society are rebelling against.

An increasingly popular trend is the Paleo diet, which seeks to imitate the 'caveman' raw food diet of the Paleolithic era.

A hot trend in the hunting community has been eschewing high-tech weapons for primitive tools like hand-made spears.

Trader/philosopher Nassim Taleb, meanwhile, tries to imitate the entire hunter-gatherer lifestyle. He claims to imitate their feast and fasting eating habits and their physical routine of long periods of rest interspersed with short periods of extreme exertion."

Ted Nugent also went whole-hog into primitive living, so these people have good company.

Gardeners Should Go for the Goji Berries

From the Star Phoenix (Canada).

"Goji shrubs sound like rare plants that would only grow in exotic Shangri-la-like places. But while they do grow in the Himalayas, they're perfectly content to grow in the Prairie regions of Canada, too.

In fact, I've seen them growing like weeds in a back alley here in Edmonton. The goji berry - one of the latest fruits to hold the title of superfood - has a long history.

The goji berry (Lycium barbarum) is member of the heat-loving Solanacea family (which also includes tomatoes, eggplant and peppers), so you might think it's a poor candidate for overwintering in our climate. But surprisingly it's grown commercially in fields in Northern China where temperatures can plummet to -30 C.

And it's been growing there for some 2,500 years, proving it has pretty tough genetics for a member of such a tender family.

Chinese railroad workers, who settled in Edmonton after completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway, introduced the goji berry to this area, according to Thean Pheh, a retired fruit technologist with Alberta Agriculture. Unfortunately, the hillside of shrubs they planted was subsequently ripped up, but it proved that gojis could survive here. And the gojis I saw growing in an Edmonton alley were introduced in the 1940s, according to the gardener who showed them to us. Yet up until this year, goji plants haven't been available commercially. Fortunately, that's changed, and 2011 is poised to be the year of the goji berry.

So just what do goji plants look like? Well, they're a bit unruly with a rambling growth habit, although they can be pruned into an informal hedge, if desired. The arching branches bear thorns, although they're sparse and don't slow down berry picking. The shrubs grow 2.53 metres tall and wide. Gojis flower on the current season's shoots and are self-pollinating, although you'll get better pollination and more berries with two or more plants. In our region, they ripen by late July or early August.

Once mature, shrubs produce heavy yields of oblong (1.25 centimetres), bright-red fruit. Goji berries grow best in full sun. They'll tolerate some shade, although as the light diminishes, so too does the yield. ipe berries are juicy and sweet, but an have a somewhat astringent afertaste. Dried goji berries are often described as tasting similar to raisins or dried cranberries. The flavour is more reminiscent of figs or rose hips with a dry finish like black tea - a taste that isn't to everyone's liking.

The berry's rise to superfood has been relatively recent, even though they've have been used in traditional Chinese medicine for hundreds of years to enhance immune system function, improve eyesight, protect the liver and improve circulation.

The antioxidants in the berries purportedly contribute to longevity. They're also known as a good source of vitamin C. Gojis are found almost exclusively as dried berries, in juices or as supplements, unless you grow them yourself.

So if you have some space in your yard, consider giving the goji a try. It may not transform your yard into Shangri-la, but who knows . . . it might bring you one step closer to paradise."

Dried goji berries are low in sugar, and can be used just like other dried berries--in trail mix, pancakes, baking of any kind, drinks and smoothies, ice creams, pie fillings, or just eaten out of hand.

Seeds for these plants are available online, however, you must first read the customer comments before ordering--Amazon customers had bad luck with trying to get theirs to grow, the product came with no instructions, and the advertised 50 seeds actually came out to about 35 seeds per order.

Goodbye Food Pyramid, Hello Dinner Plate

From the NY Times. Does this mean the FDA/USDA has finally come to their senses, or is it just another marketing package for the same old information?

"Whatever you do, don’t call it a pie chart.

The Obama administration is about to ditch the food pyramid, that symbol of healthy eating for the last two decades. In its place officials are dishing up a simple, plate-shaped symbol, sliced into wedges for the basic food groups and half-filled with fruits and vegetables.

The circular plate, which will be unveiled Thursday, is meant to give consumers a fast, easily grasped reminder of the basics of a healthy diet. It consists of four colored sections, for fruits, vegetables, grains and protein, according to several people who have been briefed on the change. Beside the plate is a smaller circle for dairy, suggesting a glass of low-fat milk or perhaps a yogurt cup.

Few nutritionists will mourn the passing of the pyramid, which, while instantly recognized by millions of American school kids, parents and consumers, was derided by nutritionists as too confusing and deeply flawed because it did not distinguish clearly between healthy foods like whole grains and fish and less healthy choices like white bread and bacon. A version of the pyramid currently appearing on cereal boxes, frozen dinners and other foods has been so streamlined and stripped of information that many people have no idea what it represents.

“It’s going to be hard not to do better than the current pyramid, which basically conveys no useful information,” said Walter C. Willett, chairman of the nutrition department at the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Willett said he had not seen the new logo.

The new symbol was designed to underscore a central mantra of the federal government’s healthy eating push: make half your plate fruits and vegetables. And it is expected to be a crucial element of the administration’s crusade against obesity, which is being led by the first lady, Michelle Obama.

“We need to get consumers’ attention,” said Robert C. Post, deputy director of the Department of Agriculture’s Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. He would not discuss details of the icon in advance of the official unveiling. But he said it was meant to be a “visual cue” that would prompt “consumers to say, ‘I need to be a little more concerned about what I choose to build a healthy day’s diet.’ ”

Some who have seen the logo compared it with a pie chart, though dessert is hardly the association that the administration would like to conjure up. Others likened it to a pizza cut into slices (equally unpalatable for officials). One person said it called to mind a painting by the artist Mark Rothko, who was known for canvases with blocks of color. Those who had seen it would speak only on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized by the administration to discuss it.

Dr. David Kessler, a former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, who said he had heard descriptions of the new plate, suggested that if the symbol succeeded in getting people to eat significantly more fruits and vegetables, that alone would be an achievement.

“The reality is that very few of us eat like what has been suggested” in government guidelines for healthy eating, Dr. Kessler said. “There’s a world of difference between what’s being served and what’s on that plate.”

He called the plate a major improvement over the pyramid. “It conveys the message simply in a way that we all can understand,” he said.

The plate symbol is meant to help educate consumers about the government’s latest dietary guidelines, which were released in January.

Dr. Post said the U.S.D.A. had spent about $2 million to develop and promote the logo, including conducting research and focus groups and creating a Web site. Some of that money will also be used for the first year of a campaign to publicize the image. He said the agency would use the plate to get across several basic nutritional messages, including urging consumers to eat smaller portions, switch to low-fat or fat-free milk and drink water instead of sugary drinks.

The food pyramid has a long and tangled history. Its original version showed a hierarchy of foods, with those that made up the largest portions of a recommended diet, like grains, fruit and vegetables, closest to the wide base. Foods that were to be eaten in smaller quantities, like dairy and meat, were closer to the pyramid’s tapering top.

But the pyramid’s original release was held back over complaints from the meat and dairy industry that their products were being stigmatized. It was released with minor changes in 1992.

A revised pyramid was released in 2005. Called MyPyramid, it turned the old hierarchy on its side, with vertical brightly colored strips standing in for the different food groups. It also showed a stick figure running up the side to emphasize the need for exercise.

But the new pyramid was widely viewed as hard to understand. The Obama administration began talking about getting rid of it as early as last summer. At that time, a group of public health experts, nutritionists, food industry representatives and design professionals were invited to a meeting in Washington where they were asked to discuss possible alternative symbols. One option was a plate.

When several participants at that meeting said it would be better to create an improved version of the already familiar pyramid, an administration official rejected that idea, telling the group, “We can’t go back,” according to one person who attended the meeting. The person, who requested anonymity because the deliberations were intended to be confidential, said it was clear that the “marching orders were obviously to come up with something new.”

That “something new” will be plated up on Thursday."

Once again, the graphics change, but that's about it. I suppose there's too much politics involved with an actual revamp that reflects modern-day nutrition knowledge and disease prevention--after all, it is a re-election season for a certain someone, and he can't very well afford to piss off grain and soy farmers! He also can't afford to piss off people heavily invested in the Health Care Reform Act, like doctors, drug companies, and insurance companies.

Think of this as the Third Rail of health care and nutrition. Just like the "hands off my Medicare" routine, this is "hands off my food politics" routine.

Two guesses as to which one most resembls the new campaign:

1. Half Your Plate--from the CDC, which abandoned the 5-a-day fruit and veggie campaign in favor of this one.

2. Balance Your Plate--from Duke University's cafeteria

Without complete abandonment of grains and sugar (not fat!), we will never become a healthier nation that isn't going to drive it's own country into bankruptcy over health care costs. Maybe that's the point--population control in action.

Boxer Goes Off Year-Long Vegan Diet Experiment in Favor of Paleo Diet to Enhance Performance

From MMA Fighting.

"A reasonably healthy diet is part and parcel to the lifestyles of most fighters. It's something that just comes with the territory. Even Roy Nelson, as much as he jokes about cheeseburgers, likely has to concern himself with it from time to time.

But very few fighters fall into the vegetarian class, and even fewer heavyweights go that route. But that's what Frank Mir did for a year before deciding it wasn't working for him. Now on a Paleolithic, or "caveman," diet, Mir said he's bigger than he's been in several fights – but more importantly, he's leaner.

"I got on the scale on Monday at 272 – muscle weighs a lot," said Mir, who fights fellow Las Vegan and sometimes training partner Nelson on Saturday at UFC 130. "Going off the vegan diet, I think, helped. There were some good approaches to it that I actually tried to do. ... The dieting thing, I think you have to approach as intelligently as you can. First I started as a vegetarian. And for a whole year, I gave it a shot. And it kept my weight down. But honestly, my body fat wasn't as low – I got a little bit softer. I was getting injured a lot more. I felt a lack of 'umph.' But I was very determined to try and be a healthier person."

After researching the Paleo diet, which focuses on hunter-gatherer foods like lean meats and fish, fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, and cuts out the processed foods common in the Western diet, Mir decided it might be more in line with his nutritional needs as a fighter.

And then his wife, whom Mir joked at Wednesday's press conference was the real boss, chimed in.

"My wife looked at (the Paleo diet) and said, 'This is the Mediterranean Diet,' Mir said prior to the press conference. "I'm like, 'Yeah, pretty much.' She said, 'This is how we've been eating for like the last 10 years.' Sometimes you've got to come full circle to appreciate where you are now."

After Mir stopped with the vegan principle, he said the weight gain came quickly.

"I was four pounds shy of 300 pounds – I completely shot up," the former UFC heavyweight champ told MMA Fighting. "But my strength felt incredible, and my wind actually didn't feel that bad. The only thing I probably lost a little was footwork – ask a 300-pound guy to dance left and right ... so I worked in the pocket a little for those couple months."

But the weight gain hurt him in training, and it forced him to tighten up his core once again.

"I didn't realize that now that I've thinned out my waistline again, my guard has returned to be pretty manacing again," Mir said. "With the half-guard and guard, if you have a belly it's hard to pull your knees up. I have very flexible legs, so I'm trying to put hooks in and work the omoplata and go off on the side, and all of a sudden I've got this belly that my thigh keeps hitting against. It hurt my style.

"But being a professional you realize if something's in the way of you being a better fighter, it has to go – be it friend, family member, eating habits, sleeping regimen, if it doesn't work to make me a better fighter then it has to go."

Mir has combined the new diet with a new confidence in his wrestling game, as well.

"Six months ago, I couldn't take my wife off her feet unless I threw some jewelry on the bed," Mir joked, his wife Jennifer sitting at his side. "Other than that, my takedowns were horrible. When people are pushing me against the cage, in the past I was more susceptible to allowing it to happen because I had that jiu-jitsu mentality that I'm not going to grind back. Now I'm learning about head position and I like to grind back. If you're going to push into me, you're not pushing me backward. We're going to go down right here."

And the strength he believes he gave up when he went vegan has returned now that lean meats and other proteins are back in the mix – and now that he's developing other skills in the gym at the same time.

"People are saying to me, 'Oh, you're so much stronger,' " Mir said. "But I think it's that I'm finally using my strength. In the past, I would try to use as little strength as possible because strength will get you tired if you explode too many times. Well, get in shape."

And that's just what Mir believes he had to do. And he said if things go as planned against Nelson on Saturday night, people shouldn't be too hard on his opponent.

"If anybody's going to be on his case and feels that he has a bad performance on Saturday, they've just got to realize that he's facing the best version of me that ever existed, that I ever thought could exist," Mir said."

Mike Tyson is a vegan fighter--see the difference? I think soy contributed to his feminization. Notice he and Michael Jackson shared the same vocal qualities.

Even Tiny Bouts of Exercise Associated With Increased Fitness

From Obesity Panacea (a PloS blog).

"I am sure that most people have heard that some physical activity is better than none and that any increase in physical activity is associated with health benefits. However, when considering a change in physical activity habits to improve health, many people still think that longer bouts of structured exercise (i.e., 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity on a treadmill) are the only way to gain meaningful improvements.

Unfortunately, this is an overwhelming amount of daily physical activity for someone who typically accumulates none outside of their activities of daily living and as a consequence, this person either a) attempts to engage in a structured physical activity program 5 days per week for a short period before giving up because it is too difficult or b) decides to continue living an inactive lifestyle without attempting to change.

This is a very disheartening and unfortunately common situation.

Thus, I was interested in exploring the association of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) with incidental physical activity – non-purposeful physical activity that is accumulated through activities of daily living and is generally low intensity (it is easy) and/or sporadic (it lasts less than 10 minutes in duration). CRF was chosen as the health outcome of choice for 2 main reasons: 1) moderate to high levels of CRF are associated with a significant reduction in morbidity and mortality, and 2) current recommendations suggest that to improve CRF physical activity must be at least moderate intensity and must be accumulated in sustained bouts of at least 10 consecutive minutes.

To examine this issue we investigated a sample of 135 abdominally obese, inactive men and women who had completed a maximal treadmill test to exhaustion to determine CRF and had worn an accelerometer (which objectively measures physical activity) for one week. First, incidental physical activity was quantified in average minutes per day using the accelerometer data. Then, to determine whether the intensity of incidental physical activity was important, it was further broken down into average minutes of light physical activity (e.g., preparing food, strolling through a park) and sporadic moderate physical activity (e.g., higher intensity activities that last less than 10 minutes in duration such as a quick sprint to stop your baby from ingesting a non-edible item or running a block to catch the bus).

What did we find?

Incidental physical activity was a significant predictor of CRF however it only explained a very small amount of variance in the regression model. This suggested that the total volume of incidental physical activity doesn’t have a huge role in determining CRF. However, when incidental physical activity was broken down into light and sporadic moderate physical activity, we found that light physical activity was not associated with CRF, whereas sporadic moderate physical activity was a significant predictor (explaining 20% of the variance in the regression model) and remained so after consideration for gender and body mass index. This suggests that, contrary to current recommendations, physical activity does not need to be accrued in sustained bouts to improve CRF.

What does this mean in terms of risk reduction? To determine this, we split participants into tertiles based on amount of sporadic moderate physical activity and compared CRF values. Between tertiles 1 (average accumulation of 6 minutes of moderate physical activity per day) and 3 (average accumulation of 34 minutes of moderate physical activity per day) there was a 1 MET (3.5 ml/kg/min) difference in CRF. While this number sounds small and insignificant, it was recently demonstrated (Kodama, 2009) that every 1 MET increase in CRF was associated with a 13% and 15% reduction in risk for all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease, respectively. Thus, in our sample, a difference of approximately 30 minutes of sporadically obtained moderate physical activity may be associated with a significant reduction in morbidity and mortality.

What’s the take-home message?

These results are encouraging and suggest that random, short duration physical activity, which may be more feasible and enjoyable for inactive individuals attempting to engage in physical activity for health benefit, is indeed beneficial.

This study was cross-sectional therefore we unfortunately cannot state that the physical activity caused the improvement in CRF. Also, our study sample was homogenous with respect to phenotype and physical activity levels. Thus, further studies (preferably prospective) are required in a more heterogeneous population.

Nonetheless, I encourage everyone to attempt to increase both the duration and intensity of their incidental physical activity (as Travis and Peter have previously) throughout the day by taking more frequent trips to the water fountain and washroom, paying colleagues personal visits instead of sending emails, and parking further from the building entrance. Every little bit does indeed count!"

Just like a penny saved is a penny (or more) earned, depending on where you chose to save that penny. These days, Wall St. is paying better than the banks.

I'd say that if you used the stairs, parked far away from the front doors, and did more manual tasks than you used to, then get to go home and run around after kids, cook from scratch, and mow the lawn (standing up) on the weekends, you're okay with skipping the gym after work.

Gardening Doesn't Always Have to Be in the Sun

From the Daily Journal(CA). Fruits and veggies need full or mostly sun. The only shade-loving edible that comes to mind is mushrooms.

"Strolling through my woodland garden recently, in all its mid-spring glory, a guest asked how I managed to get so many different kinds of plants to grow in the shade. When I explained that these plants all preferred the shade — and that in fact they needed shade to thrive — she looked at me in amazement. “I thought I couldn’t grow anything in the shade!” she exclaimed.

Unfortunately, many people make the same mistake. They believe it is futile to garden anywhere but in full sun. Some of the nicest gardens I have ever seen were shade gardens. You’ll find lots of interesting options among shade-loving plants if you take the time to find them.

There are some tricks to cultivating a beautiful shade garden, and the first is to maximize the light you have. My woodland garden is near my house. It is surrounded by mature trees that I had no interest in removing since they provided privacy for the house, as well as respite from the summer sun and a sound barrier from road noise. To maximize the light for plantings underneath without sacrificing the trees, I simply limbed the trees up a bit. Removing lower limbs allows a tremendous amount of light to reach the ground. “High shade” is the term used for this scenario, and experienced shade gardeners will tell you it is the best kind of light for growing a variety of plants.

Next you need to look at what type of trees you have creating the shade. Trees such as Norway maples have a large network of surface roots that compete with smaller plants for water and nutrients. Maples can cause dense shade, and the combination of dry soil and the lack of light keeps most plants from thriving under them.

After limbing up maples to solve the light problem, try adding areas of mounded soil above the tree’s roots and planting in the fresh soil. This gives shade plants time to establish themselves without competing with the tree.

Most shade-loving plants enjoy good humus-rich soil and adequate moisture. Mulching shade gardens helps retain moisture and will help plants get through the hot, dry summer.

Some shade plants, however, such as epimediums (which can be found in an amazing number of varieties) are very tolerant of dry shade, even under maples.

When choosing plants for the shade garden, I often look for plants that will colonize, or form large clumps. I prefer this more “ natural” look in a shade garden, and plants that spread into colonies reduce areas of open space for weeds to take hold. (I find weeds are much less of a problem in shade gardens, but there are still a few that seem to grow just about anywhere.)

While most gardeners know that hosta will grow in the shade, there are a lot of other plants to try that will have visitors asking, “What is that?” Here are a few of my favorites.

Epimediums: These incredibly tough plants come in a myriad of sizes, leaf shapes and flower colors. Some are evergreen, and most will spread slowly to form nice clumps. They are well worth seeking out. Many can tolerate dry shade.

Ferns: As with epimediums, ferns can be found in a startling array of shapes and colors. Some, such as the Japanese painted fern, have beautiful silver and red fronds, while others, such as the maidenhair, are tall and delicate. Some ferns are even evergreen, providing interest when everything else is dormant.

Tiarella: Sometimes called foamflower, this woodland perennial spreads out low across the ground to form mats of attractive heart-shaped leaves of chartreuse green. In mid-spring, the clump sends up multitudes of frothy white flowers with a hint of pink. After it finishes blooming, the seedpods remain on upright stems and are attractive in their own right.

Rodgersia: These tough perennials have palmate leaves that extend to 2 feet wide. Bold and dramatic, they are often the first plants noticed in the shade garden. If you can, track down the bronze-leaved variety. It has copper colored leaves, and is a real showstopper in any shade garden.

If shade is a problem in your yard, don’t throw in the towel. With a little prep work you may soon be walking guests through your garden pointing out some spectacular shade plants."

10 Dumb Things You Do At Your Doctor's Office

From CNN Health.

"As much as she would like to, Dr. Lissa Rankin, a gynecologist, will never forget the woman who planned her wedding while lying naked on her examining table.

"Every 15 seconds, her cell phone was going off, and she was answering it!" Rankin recalls. "It was like, 'That's not the cake I ordered,' and, 'No, it's the other gown,' and I said to her, 'Is this a bad time? Should I come back later?' "

The bride may have been doing great things for her wedding, but she was sabotaging her own care -- and it was a really important visit, as she was newly pregnant.

Talking on your cell phone in the examining room, forgetting what medicines you take and lying to your doctor about your personal health habits are all ways of compromising your health.

"The doctor-patient relationship is like a business partnership," Rankin says. "We need to work together. Trust me to guide you but be willing to do your part."

From interviews with a gynecologist, a cardiologist, a rehabilitative medicine specialist, a fertility doctor and an internist, here are the Top 10 things patients do to mess up their own care.

1. You talk on your cell phone.

This is your health we're talking about. Other calls can wait. Turn the thing off.

2. You lie.

"I need to treat you the best way I can, so if you're gay, tell me. If you drink a bottle of tequila every night, I need to know. If you're having an affair and not using condoms, let me know," says Rankin, who blogs at "Owning Pink." "I promise I won't judge you."

3. You do a sloppy job describing your pain.

Is it stabbing or burning? Sudden or constant? Tingling or hot? The answers will help your doctor make the right diagnosis.

"You should describe the exact location, how intense the pain was, what provoked it and how long it lasted," says Dr. Nieca Goldberg, director of the New York University Women's Heart Program.

The week before your appointment, keep a diary of your pain and your other symptoms, too, advises Dr. Loren Fishman, a clinical professor of rehabilitative medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He suggests using this time to also think about the questions you want to ask your doctor and what you hope to get out of your appointment.

4. You don't state up front all the reasons for your visit.

If your ear hurts, your knee pops out when you run and you have a sty in your eye, state all three concerns at the beginning of the appointment so your doctor can plan your visit efficiently, advises Dr. Howard Beckman, an internist and clinical professor of medicine at the University of Rochester.

5. You don't state up front your expectations for your visit.

If you have certain hopes or expectations -- the doctor will pop that sty in your eye or prescribe antibiotics for your sore ear -- say so. The doctor can then explain if your expectations are realistic, and you'll be happier in the end.

"Sometimes patients are out of proportion to what the reality is, like the 44-year-old woman who hopes to get pregnant in one IVF cycle," says Dr. Jamie Grifo, program director of the New York University Fertility Center. "If they don't communicate their expectations, then I can't address them."

6. You don't know what medications you're taking.

"Patients should bring a list of medications they're actually taking, not what they believe they are supposed to be taking, or what they think I want them to take," Beckman advises.

If you take supplements, Rankin suggests you bring them in, since supplements aren't standardized like prescription drugs, and your doctor will want to see all the ingredients.

7. You leave with unspoken questions and concerns.

If a question's in your head, ask it, even if you think the doctor is rushed. If you're worried your headache might be a brain tumor, say it even if you think you sound like a hypochondriac.

8. You don't bring your medical records or images with you.

Yes, even in this day and age, many doctors rely on the fax machine to send medical records to and fro. Faxes goof up, so unless you absolutely, positively know your doctor has your records and images from another office, bring them with you, doctors advise.

9. You're too scared to disagree with your doctor.

If your doctor suggests you need an antidepressant and you don't want to take it, say so instead of nodding your head, taking the prescription and throwing it away the minute you're out the door. Or if she suggests a medication you can't afford, just say so.

"I know many of you are programmed not to question your doctor, but we can't read your mind, so we need you to communicate," Rankin says. "If the treatment plan I suggest doesn't resonate with the intuitive wisdom of your Inner Healer, please tell me, instead of ignoring what I suggest."

10. You don't comply with the treatment plan.

For doctors, this is the granddaddy of them all. If you've followed all the advice above, you should have a treatment plan that makes sense to you and one you're able to execute.

"Please follow through and do what you've agreed to do," Rankin says. "And if you don't, please tell me so I don't mistakenly assume the treatment failed. I won't jump all over you. I just need to know.""

Now that we know doctors are human too, I guess the playing field is now level. I'd like to suggest 10 dumb things your doctor does while YOU'RE at the doctor's office:

1. Frequently sneaks out back to have a smoke.

2. Tells you to eat more fruits and veggies, but then doesn't have a clue as to what they are by name.

3. Spends time on the phone with personal calls rather than the consult she called you into her office for.

4. Talks about other patients while in the hall between examining patients.

5. Schedules small, screaming children in with older or hypertensive people, so they're all in the waiting room together...then they want to take your blood pressure.

6. Soda cans on their desks, or in the receptionist's work area.

7. Spend all working day preaching the gospel to patients about good health, but then don't bother to take care of their own.

8. Have tons of drug literature as the only thing to read in the waiting room.

9. See drug reps before patients.

10. Offer drugs before food or other lifestyle changes to cure health issues.

Finding Your Dinner the Old-Fashioned Way

From the Kawartha Lakes News(Canada).

"Here’s a little something that may sound a tad offbeat: I like to forage for food. And I’m not talking about the odd raspberry here and there. I’m talking about fruits, veggies, and even mushrooms. Some of them fairly strange-sounding.

I don’t do it often – and I’m not exactly an expert – but every once in awhile I do try to sneak off to harvest some wild-growing delicacies. And I’m not alone.

Foraging, you see, has become somewhat trendy in “foodie” circles. With wild vegetables such as ramps (wild leeks) and fiddleheads (unfurled ostrich fern) becoming more mainstream as a farming crop, more and more people are now experimenting with what have traditionally been “gathered” plants.

And while these delicacies are available at farmers’ markets and grocery stories, some food enthusiasts will insist on foraging their own. Wild foods grown in their natural state just taste better. More authentic.

Of course, the foodie-come-latelies are just the most recent of a long line of folks to forage for sustenance. And our foraging is minor in comparison to those who came before us. In fact, for tens of thousands of years, all human beings were full-time foraging creatures. Back in the day, you know, there weren’t supermarkets, big box stores or fast food restaurants. Heck, for most of human history, there weren’t even farms.

No, for most of our existence we were a hunting and gathering peoples. We ate what we found. Sure, we eventually learned how to farm, but the period since we mastered agriculture is only a brief moment in the development of humanity. Heck, in some parts of the world, hunting and gathering still make up large parts of the diet.

In North America, we’ve kept the hunting/gathering tradition for a long time, despite our long held reliance on farms. First Nations people traditionally survived on what they could pick seasonally – even those cultures that had domesticated and cultivated crops depended on gathered fruits and plants. Early settlers couldn’t possibly have survived without foraging for food. And there are no shortage of modern-day farmers and rural communities today that continue to augment their daily diet with found foods.

Really, it's not all that strange a concept. It just seems so for us modern urban town and city dwellers.

I’m not going to offer a full list of things that you can forage here in Peterborough, nor am I going to tell you where to find them. There’s a couple reasons for this: first, the lists would be too long; and second, I (like most foragers) am not willing to share my limited hiding/growing spots of treasure.

I will, however, bring up seasonal foraging ideas from time to time. I’ll let you find you own way after that.

We’re just at the tail end of both wild leek and fiddlehead season. Those foragers who have regular areas to harvest have probably already done so. Both of these “wild” plants should still be available in their cultivated form at farmers’ markets for another week or two.

Another spring foraging find is the morel – a medium sized edible mushroom that I think looks surprisingly like a little tiny human brain. And while it may look like a brain, it tastes divine.

Morels grow plentifully in the wild around Peterborough. Their natural habitat is forest floor, particularly in deciduous stands. Look particularly close around dead and decaying trees.

They also grow, apparently, in my back yard. And I was lucky to notice them. I found them, not by careful search, but by running them over with my lawn mower. Thankfully, I keep my mower blades set high, so they were knocked over but otherwise intact. Next year, I’ll be more careful. Who knows how many I mowed to smithereens?

After washing them off, I made a little feast. Actually, because I only had a few morels, it was a tiny feast. I’ve increased the yield of the recipe in order to make it a hearty main dish or solid side.

If you have any questions about foraging for food, please leave them in the comment section. I promise to get back to each and every one of you.

Unless, of course, you're looking for my foraging spots. I'm taking that to my mushroom covered grave.

Pasta with Morels and Wild Leeks

4-6 ounces morels (the more the better, but they’re like gold)
8 ounces dried pasta (I like something fairly hardy, such as fusilli or penne
1 ½ tablespoons butter
4-5 wild leeks
½ cup vegetable stock
½ cup white wine

fresh-cracked black pepper
Freshly grated Parmesan, Romano, or Manchego cheese (investigate the Cheese Shop on Water Street).

Procedure:
1. Cook pasta using directions on the package.

2. Cut morels in half lengthwise. Chop wild leeks, somewhat finely for the bulb, roughly for the leaves.

3. Melt butter on medium-high heat and add leeks. Sauté until fragrant (roughly 2 minutes).

4. Add morels. Cook until they just begin to soften and become fragrant (again, roughly 2 minutes).

5. Pour in stock and wine. Bring to a gentle boil for 2-3 minutes

6. Add pasta, and toss.

7. Plate pasta and sprinkle liberally with grated cheese. Add pepper to taste."

Focus on Prevention to Improve Health, Lower Costs

From the Buffalo News (NY).

"Today, approximately 80 percent of all primary care visits focus on disease treatment. What needs to happen is a shift from disease treatment to prevention. Unfortunately, the current health care payment system does not reward prevention and risk-reduction programs.

There is a possible solution. Through utilization of public health principles, the health care system can guide us toward better health. The true power of public health has been evidenced many times throughout history, including the development of vaccinations and sanitation. So, how can a widespread commitment to public health decrease costs, yet improve health?

With the costs of health care out of control, the Health Care Reform Act was developed to transform the system, in part, by using the public health principles of prevention, early detection and treatment. The current system is primarily focused on treatment of disease onset (secondary care) and management of the chronic conditions associated with disease (tertiary care).

While the current system offers remarkable diagnosis and treatment of chronic disease, 30-40 percent of those patients with chronic disease are not meeting their treatment goals. By utilizing the aforementioned public health principles of primary prevention, disease can be potentially prevented by way of limiting or eliminating the risk factors that give rise to disease. In shifting the primary focus of health care to prevention, not only will the population achieve better health, a bending of the cost curve will also ease the financial strain on the current system.

This transition can be done in a number of ways. One of the best ways is through promotion of yearly physical screenings to prevent or detect early onset of disease, and potentially reduce further disease onset and possible co-morbidities. In addition, healthy lifestyle choices must be better promoted. Reducing the risk factors of chronic diseases, such as tobacco use and alcohol consumption, and increasing diet and exercise can have a great impact on systemic health and chronic disease. For example, workplace health promotion, through a smoking cessation intervention, can potentially reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease, periodontal disease and even lung cancer.

By understanding and utilizing the principles of public health — prevention, early detection and treatment — high-performing health care organizations can work with the patient population and with the community to educate and intervene on lifestyle factors that give rise to disease, and ultimately decrease the unnecessary costs of care, increase patient experience and increase population health.

It certainly goes without saying, while the U. S. health care system’s technology is awe-inspiring, let us not forget that technology is not the only pathway to better health. The way to better heath lies in the hands of prevention."

Instead of writing prescriptions, doctors should be handing out appropriate recipe copies, and discount coupons for gym memberships, exercise equipment, and cooking classes.

Some Updates on Longevity Testing

From Next.

"A company in Spain, provocatively named Life Length, has begun selling a test for 500 euros ($712), that says that it can tell people their biological age, which may not correspond to their chronologic age. Another company, Telome Health of Menlo Park, Calif., plans to begin offering a test later this year for about $200. It was co-founded by Elizabeth H. Blackburn of the University of California, San Francisco, who shared a Nobel Prize in 2009 for discoveries related to telomeres."

...

"...among the critics of such tests is Carol Greider, a molecular biologist at Johns Hopkins University, who was a co-winner of the Nobel Prize with Blackburn.

Greider acknowledged that solid evidence showed that the 1 percent of people with the shortest telomeres were at an increased risk of certain diseases, particularly bone marrow failure and pulmonary fibrosis, a fatal scarring of the lungs. But outside of that 1 percent, she said, "The science really isn't there to tell us what the consequences are of your telomere length."

Greider said that there was great variability in telomere length. "A given telomere length can be from a 20-year-old or a 70-year-old," she said. "You could send me a DNA sample and I couldn't tell you how old that person is." Peter Lansdorp, a telomere expert at the British Columbia Cancer Agency, also had doubts. "If telomeres are short for you or me, what does it mean?" he said. Lansdorp started a company, Repeat Diagnostics, which conducts telomere testing for medical researchers only."

...

"Recent media reports speculated on the tests and their possible implications, including ethical problems.

"You could imagine insurance companies wanting this knowledge to set rates or deny coverage," said Dr Jerry W. Shay, a professor of cell biology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, who is an adviser to Life Length."

...

"Some say that the telomere test might not tell people much that cannot be learned in other ways.

"You can pretty much look at people and determine their biological age," said Michael West, who founded Geron, the biotechnology company that sponsored and conducted some important research on telomeres. He now runs BioTime, another biotechnology company.

It is also unclear what to do about short telomeres. At the moment, there is no drug that can lengthen telomeres, though researchers are working on drugs and stem cell therapies."

And speaking of stem cell therapies, this comes from The Schmooze: Askenazi Stem Cells--Key to Longevity?

"We personally think it’s the power of complaining.

But to learn why some Ashkenazim live so long, researchers at Cornell University are about to start studying the stem cells of about a dozen older Jews.

According to the New York Post — in a story headlined “Bouncing Bubbes of New York” — many Ashkenazi Jews “live to 100 without disease despite smoking, drinking and eating fatty foods.”

Ashkenazim are “a heavily persecuted population that descends from Imperial Russia and, through years of intermarriage, shares distinctive genetic traits,” the Post reports. One such characteristic is a “longevity gene,” which “appears to protect them from heart attacks, cancer and other life-threatening maladies.”

The Cornell researchers are “using the stem cells of centenarians and their children and comparing them with people who are unlikely to get to the age of 100,” said Dr. Nir Barzilai, an aging expert at Albert Einstein Medical School in The Bronx who has tracked hundreds of Ashkenazi Jews for his own Longevity Genes Project.

One of the Cornell participants, Lilly Port of Scarsdale, “turned 98 last Thursday and has never been sick,” the Post said. “She’s too busy traveling — to Italy, Hungary and St. Tropez in the last year alone — to worry about illness.”

And though she doesn’t smoke, Port doesn’t exactly hold back, the Post reported. “This Austrian native enjoys bratwurst, eats chocolate every day and drinks white wine ‘when I want to relax,’” she said."

Experts Issue Top 5 List for Better Primary Care

From HealthDay News.

"Cutting back on unnecessary antibiotics, delaying wasteful imaging for lower back pain and foregoing annual ECG screenings for healthy, low-risk patients are among the actions that could help streamline primary care, experts say.

Perhaps taking a page from David Letterman's Top 10 list, the authors of a new report came up with a "Top 5" list of action items for each of the primary care disciplines -- family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics -- to help save money and conserve health resources.

Many physicians are already behind the suggestions, according to the report, which appears online May 23 in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

"I have seen many instances where I thought clinicians were not making the right and wisest decisions in ways that were not good for patients' health and not good for prudent use of finite resources," said Dr. Stephen Smith, one of the report's authors and professor emeritus of family medicine at the Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University in Providence, RI.

Smith is also a member of the National Physicians' Alliance (NPA), a group of 22,000 doctors promoting affordable and quality healthcare, which put together the lists.

None of the suggestions are particularly new, having been validated by scores of studies, yet few clinicians seem to be implementing them, Smith said.

Here are the Top Five recommendations for each discipline:

For family medicine:

Avoid imaging for lower back pain for six weeks unless red flags are present.
Cut back on prescribing antibiotics for sinus infections, since most are viral.
Avoid cardiac screening in patients who are low risk and have no symptoms.
Do not do Pap tests for cervical cancer in women under 21 or those who have had a hysterectomy for benign disease.
Confine bone density scans known as dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) for osteoporosis to women aged 65 and over and for men 70 and older who also have risk factors, such as those who have already had fractures .

For internal medicine:

Defer imaging for lower back pain.
Do not order blood chemistry panels (a set of 8 blood tests to assess kidney function, blood sugar and other health indicators) or urinalysis in healthy adults with no symptoms, since blood lipids (fats) tests alone yield most positive results.
Forego cardiac screening in healthy patients.
Prescribe generic statins (cholesterol-lowering drugs) before brand-name ones
Limit bone-density screening to older, at-risk patients .

In pediatrics:

Avoid giving antibiotics for sore throats unless a test definitely turns up the bacteria Streptococcus (strep throat)
Avoid imaging for minor head injuries without risk factors such as loss of consciousness.
Take a wait-and-see attitude towards middle-ear infections before referring the patient to a specialist.
Recommend that parents not give their children over-the-counter cough-and-cold medicines.
Make sure patients with asthma are using corticosteroid medicines properly, as this will cut down on episodes.

The report was funded by a grant from the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation.

Several of the items -- those involving cardiac screening, overuse of antibiotics, bone-density scans and lower-back imaging -- appeared in more than one category.

But one item -- not doing blood chemistry panels and urinalysis among healthy adults without symptoms -- enjoyed only weak support from the practicing physicians who field-tested the suggestions.

The Top 5 lists will now be distributed to all NPA members. The researchers are also hoping to get funding to set up demonstration sites, creating training videos to help physicians hone their communication skills and finding ways to get patients on board, Smith said.

"These are certainly important issues," said Dr. Lawrence C. Kleinman, a primary care physician and associate professor of pediatrics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.

But he also pointed out that "the lists were done with some nuance, which [is] valuable and important to incorporate in the understanding of this."

As the report authors point out, Kleinman noted, it's not that all antibiotic use is bad, just that, in the case of sore throats, there should be a verification that the infection is really strep throat before prescribing them. Similarly, imaging for head injuries would need to be done for children with loss of consciousness or other risk factors."

Why Are Unhealthy People So Reluctant to Change Lifestyles?

From the L.A. Times. Probably because they're a slave to their tongue and taste buds. I'm a slave to rheumatism, which has me sitting more than I should.

"Nobody's perfect. We all have bad habits we just can't seem to shake. Cigarettes have a hold on some people; others can't say no to alcohol, sweets or a life on the couch in front of the television.

As much as we may want to make more healthful choices, change is difficult. Even the awareness that our behaviors can harm us often isn't enough to make us mend our ways.

Amazingly, people who have already suffered heart trouble, diabetes or other lifestyle-related illnesses —people who intimately know the consequences of their behaviors — often have an especially hard time turning things around. It seems it takes more than a wake-up call, even a life-threatening one, to get people to give up their unhealthful ways.

At least 40% of smokers who survive a heart attack are still puffing away a year later.

And you might think that an overweight person would slim down after a heart attack. But often, not so. Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis followed a group of more than 1,200 overweight men and women for a year following a heart attack. Their study, published in the American Heart Journal in 2007, found that individuals lost an average of just 0.2% of their body weight. For a 220-pound man, that would translate to less than 1 pound of weight loss.

If a heart attack isn't enough to get a person's attention, what about cancer? You can probably guess by now. In a 2008 study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Canadian investigators examined the lifestyles of more than 9,000 cancer survivors and found that only a few had made the switch to a healthful lifestyle. Although most had given up smoking, fewer than 20% were consuming five servings of fruits and vegetables a day and less than half were engaging in regular physical activity. Only 1 out of every 20 survivors was following all three principles of healthful living.

After a serious illness, lifestyle changes often have the potential to dramatically improve a person's overall health and quality of life. In fact, lifestyle factors such as smoking, diet and physical activity strongly influence how rapidly many diseases will progress.

Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston examined the effect of smoking cessation on the risk of dying after a heart attack. Their work, published last year in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, found that smoking significantly decreases life expectancy after a heart attack and that smokers' prospects improve dramatically if they give up the habit. Individuals who quit after their first heart attack were 37% less likely to die of another attack compared with those who continued to smoke.

Other studies have found that heart attack patients who go through exercise-based rehabilitation reduce their risk of dying by about 30%.

The power of lifestyle changes isn't unique to heart trouble. Quitting smoking improves the outcome of diseases such as diabetes and emphysema, while weight loss improves asthma, sleep apnea and many other conditions. The benefits of physical activity extend well beyond the heart too. Exercise can be helpful in combating depression and controlling high blood pressure. There's also some evidence that it has a protective effect against some types of cancer. Several studies have demonstrated that women with breast cancer who participate in regular physical activity reduce their risk of breast cancer deaths by 50% or more compared with those who remain physically inactive.

But not all patients get this message, partly because doctors often fail to provide sufficient counseling and guidance. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked more than 1,600 cancer survivors if their physicians had discussed lifestyle issues with them following their diagnosis. Only 30% had received guidance about diet, just 1 in 4 had been given exercise recommendations and less than half had been asked about their smoking habits.

Even patients who know they should adopt more healthful habits and are determined to do so have trouble, however. "A lot of people don't change because they don't know how to change," says Janice Prochaska, president of Pro-Change Behavior Systems, a behavior change firm. Getting people to alter their habits is extraordinarily difficult, and, for most people, it isn't something that happens overnight, she says.

Change is hard, but it's not impossible. People first have to recognize that the benefits of changing their lifestyle will outweigh the investment of time and energy (not to mention the hassle) it's going to take to make it happen.

After that, there's a period of preparation most people go through. Rather than jumping straight into action, they begin by making small adjustments in their lifestyle. Someone committed to increase his or her activity level, for example, may go for a few short walks; someone attempting to lose weight might start to scale back on desserts.

Only then are people typically ready to take action and make a full-fledged attempt to change. And that's still just the beginning. Change needs to be maintained. After all, it doesn't make sense to quit smoking only to light up again months later or lose weight just to gain it all back.

Even a serious health scare may not be enough. "You may get a wake-up call and get pushed into action by your family," says Prochaska. "But you may not be sufficiently well prepared to stay in action."

Trying to rush through the steps of change too quickly can be a setup for failure. "Some people who jump too quickly into action regress and then feel demoralized," Prochaska says.

It's hard to think of illness as an opportunity but, in fact, for many people it is. It's an opportunity to stop pretending that our bad habits don't hurt us and to take the initiative to make healthful change.

Or at least it should be."

Anybody got a cure for someone who feels like she's slogging through wet concrete when she just walks? As the Borg say, resistance is futile--I seem to have come with built-in resistance.

I guess I should be lucky I can still walk.

Surprising Retro Trend in Hunting, Fishing

From Yahoo Sports. They probably find it surprising that people are going back to hunting and fishing!

"Forget those heat-seeking, laser-guided, GPS-enhanced rifles. Using high-tech gear like that can make just about anybody a successful hunter. But it also strips away the fun and challenge that hunters are craving in the first place.

That's why, according to a Wall Street Journal report, there is a retro-chic movement among hunters to shift from space age to stone age in their approach. A growing number of hunters have started crafting their own weapons, such as spears and arrows with tips made from stones, and they have been effective enough to bag deer, coyotes, elk, wild boar and alligators.

As evidence of the increasing popularity for old-school hunting, the chief executive of Primitive Archer tells the Journal that his magazine's circulation is up 25 percent in the past five years, to roughly 30,000, at a time when many print publications have struggled to retain readership.

Although the low-tech approach gives the animals more of a sporting chance, it hasn't escaped criticism. The Humane Society is concerned that animals can be injured but do not die when struck with a primitive weapon. State governments are also not on board, with many banning the use of stone-tipped projectiles. Even in Montana, a state known for its rugged spirit, a state bill to legalize spear hunting died in committee. Massachusetts restricts spear hunting for eels, carp and sucker fish.

In Texas, there is a campaign to legalize hand fishing, which would allow you to reach into the water and wrestle the fish out with your hands. This technique, known as noodling, grabbing or hogging, is currently illegal and classified as a class C misdemeanor, with fines of up to $500.

Noodlers wade into the water, then reach into holes, hollow tree trunks and other underwater nooks to find the fish. The Journal spotlighted a 30-year-old outdoor enthusiast named Brady Knowlton, who raved about his experience of catching a 60-pound catfish by hand: Nothing beats "the heebie-jeebies you get underwater, in the dark, with this little sea monster biting you."

The opposition to the proposed noodling legislation comes from traditional rod-and-reel fishermen. They cite unfairness to the fish, which doesn't have a chance to swim away because it is being ambushed in their burrows. They are also concerned that widespread noodling could deplete the fish population in smaller lakes and rivers.

If the bill becomes law in Texas, it would still only be the 18th state to sanction hand fishing. Louisiana, Georgia and Oklahoma are among the states that allow it.

Hand fishing enthusiasts say that their technique, which Native Americans developed and passed along to settlers, is the purest form of fishing because of direct contact between man and fish.

There are subtle differences among hand fishers -- the glove vs. no-glove debate -- but one noodler tells the Journal that the key is getting a handle on the tail: "If you don't get that tail immobilized, I don't care how big or strong you are, you're not going to whip that fish."

I'm all for flipping the switch on some technologies. Do we really need lazer-mounted, heat-seeking, rapid-fire weaponry just to get dinner? Maybe in Afghanistan!

I can think of several reasons to go retro for hunting and fishing:

1. No certification or license required. You'd still need permits, though.

2. No expense of guns/ammo/rod & reel/tackle/boat $ trailer, etc. You could actually make your own weapons like the cavemen did.

3. You wouldn't have to get up at 0-dark-30 to do it.

4. Low noise level.

5. More sporting.

6. "Green" for you tree-huggers.

7. No fancy dedicated clothing items.

Mainly, the benefits are privacy and cost. The state and/or federal government can tell you WHEN to hunt, but not HOW to hunt, so why do it in the most costly and convenient way known to man? Hunting and fishing take skill, and not many of us have that skill, or want to take the time to acquire it. Think of the return on investment--you learn to throw a spear accurately, and you get to eat for days or weeks (depending on what it is you're throwing your spear at)!

There's kill, then there's overkill. I think weaponry has reached the overkill stage.