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You may be doing your body good by taking that morning run or working up a sweat at the gym. But when you also work up a thirst and take a swig from your trusty refillable water bottle you may actually taking a swig of harmful germs.
New research shows that an incredible amount of bacteria — including E. Coli and salmonella — may be lurking in and on your water bottle.
Laboratory tests by Treadmill Reviews, a Minneapolis-based firm, analyzed 12 water bottles used by athletes and not washed for a week and found they had such high levels of bacteria that drinking from them would be like “licking a toilet seat.”
They tested four types of reusable bottles: A slide-top, screw-top, squeeze-top and straw-top. The researchers evaluated the amount of contamination in terms of “colony forming units,” or CFUs, of bacteria per square centimeter. Here are their findings:
The bottles contained an average of 300,000 CFU of bacteria. That’s six times as much bacteria as you’d find on your pet’s food bowl. And much of the bacteria was the kind that makes you sick.
The slide-top bottles contained the highest amount of bacteria: A whopping 933,340 CFU. They also had the most gram-positive germs which have been linked to skin infections, pneumonia and blood poisoning.
Squeeze-top bottles were next with 162,000 CFU followed by screw-top vessels with 160,000 CFU. These also housed 99 percent of the harmful bacteria.
Straw-top bottles were the clear winners with only 25 CFU. But that’s only 2 CFU less than the average home toilet seat. It is thought that these are safer because water drips down to the bottom of the straw rather than hang out at the top attracting moisture-loving germs.
“Based on our test results, we suggest opting for a straw-top bottle, both for the prevalence of bacteria and the lack of harmful germs,” says the fitness Website. They suggested that stainless steel water bottles are a better choice than plastic which may also contain Bisphenol A, otherwise known as BPA, a chemical that can lead to cancer, diabetes, and other illnesses.
But by far the best option, says the website Aquasana.com, is to use glass water bottles and run them through the dishwasher or wash thoroughly by hand after every use.
By comparison, other household germy hot spots include:
Toothbrush holder, 331,848 CFU.
Pet bowl, 47,383 CFU.
Kitchen sink, 3,191 CFI.
Cutting board, 6.8 CFU.
“Harmful bacteria and viruses lurk in moist locations such as the kitchen and bathroom and can be easily transported into your mouth by using an old toothbrush, sponge or other common household item,” Dr. Donald Marks tells Newsmax Health.
The New Jersey-based infectious disease expert, who also holds a Ph.D. in microbiology and immunology, makes the following recommendations to avoid home contamination:
Sponges and wash clothes. You may think you are cleaning cups and saucers with these items but they can contain thousands of bacteria per square inch so you’re just spreading germs around. Put wash clothes in the washing machine and run the sponges through the dishwasher. Better still, replace sponges every two weeks,
Kitchen drain. Your kitchen drain contains more germs than your bathroom toilet. With the hot water running, pour a little baking soda down the drain daily.
Kitchen towels. A recent study showed that 7 percent of kitchen towels were contaminated with MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). Wash them in hot water twice weekly.
Refrigerator water filters. These filters collect bacteria and mold over time. The rule of thumb is to change them twice annually. If you have a large family of water drinkers, every three months is a better time frame.
Toothbrush. Your toothbrush is a magnet for bacteria that can come from toilet spray, splashes from the sink when you wash your hands, or from your own mouth. Replace it every three or four months and never share a toothbrush. You may consider soaking it in an antibacterial solution after every use.
People who run marathons go through intense training before enduring the physically grueling 26.2-mile event�so it�s little wonder their health can sometimes suffer. But on marathon days, the event can also create unexpected problems for non-runners who need urgent medical care.
In a new report published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that road closures and traffic disruptions on marathon days can lead to delays in emergency care that can cost people their lives.
Dr. Anupam Jena, from the department of health care policy at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, and his colleagues analyzed data from Medicare claims for hospitalizations for heart attack in 11 cities that hosted marathons from 2002 to 2012. They compared the death rates of these people on marathon days to those a few weeks before and after the marathon. People who had heart attacks on marathon days had a 13% higher rate of death than people on other days. Ambulances also took 4.4 minutes longer on days marathons were run.
�We were expecting to see there would potentially be delays in care,� says Jena, �but not necessarily increases in mortality. It�s difficult to influence mortality; you would have to have substantive delays in care.�
Road closures, detours and other changes in traffic patterns were dramatic enough to cause delays that could affect a person�s chance of surviving a heart attack, the team found. Over a year, marathons could contribute to an additional four deaths, based on the 30-day mortality rate calculations. The effect remained strong even after they adjusted for the possibility that more people visit a city hosting a marathon, and therefore statistically there may simply be more heart events. The researchers also made sure that hospitals and emergency services were not short-staffed or overburdened with the added volume of requests. All of these factors were similar on marathon and non-marathon days.
The disruption in traffic during a marathon is the primary reason for delays in care, Jena says. That�s good news because it�s a fixable problem; marathon planners can ensure that access to hospitals is not congested and affected by the race route.
The other lesson from the study is useful for people in need of medical attention. A quarter of the people in the study chose not to call an ambulance and instead drove themselves to the hospital�perhaps because they thought that emergency services were tied up with the marathon�and these people seemed to account for most of the higher mortality on marathon days, says Jena. That may be because they were forced to take more circuitous routes to reach the hospital, he says. �They don�t experience the four-minute delays of ambulance transport; they�re experiencing much larger delays because they are trying to drive themselves.�
Even with the delays, ambulances were the best form of transportation to the emergency room. �Anybody thinking of driving to the hospital themselves on the day of a major public event should pick up the phone and call 911,� Jena says.
Yoga can be an effective way to prevent and ease aches and pains—but it can also cause them if you’re not careful. The key is proper alignment. Go from “ow” to “om” in seconds by making simple alignment tweaks to common poses. In this video, Yoga With Kirby founder Kirby Koo shows you quick fixes to take pressure off your knees, wrists, and neck. These basic principles can be applied throughout your practice to help prevent pain before it starts.
Warrior II
Once you’re set up in Warrior II, pay attention to the position of your front knee. Is it sticking out beyond your ankle? Is it collapsing inward? Pull your knee back into place, so it’s stacked directly above your ankle, and tracking in the same direction as the toes of your front foot. This protects the ligaments in your knee and prevents knee pain.
Plank is a great core stabilizing exercise if you have proper alignment. But if your belly and hips sag in this pose, then your wrists are probably taking on the brunt of your body weight. In plank, engage your core muscles by imagining a zipper running up from your pubic bone to your belly button. This should help raise your hips so your body forms a continuous line from the top of your head to your heels, a more stable position that will help distribute your body weight more evenly and ease the pressure in the wrists.
Cow Pose
Cow pose can feel super satisfying, but it’s easy to go overboard and strain your neck while you’re enjoying the gentle backbend. When you’re in cow pose, it’s important to remember not to tip your head too far back, shortening the back of the neck. You’ll get a lot more out of the pose (and avoid neck strain) if you imagine your neck as an extension of the gentle curve of the spine. Lift your gaze only as far as you can without compromising the curve in your spine and the length in the back of your neck. The same concept can apply for Upward-Facing Dog, too!
Maybe this will be the news that finally jolts you off the couch and into an exercise program. A new study suggests that being physically active increases the chances of survival after a heart attack.
Researchers compared exercise levels among 1,664 heart attack patients in Denmark, including 425 who died immediately. Those who had been physically active were less likely to die, and the risk of death decreased as exercise levels rose. Patients who had light or moderate/high physical activity levels were 32 percent and 47 percent less likely to die from their heart attack, respectively, than the sedentary patients.
The study was published April 12 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.
“We know that exercise protects people against having a heart attack,” said study co-author Eva Prescott, a professor of cardiovascular prevention and rehabilitation at the University of Copenhagen. “Animal studies suggest that myocardial infarctions [heart attacks] are smaller and less likely to be fatal in animals that exercise. We wanted to see if exercise was linked with less serious myocardial infarctions in people,” she added in a journal news release. “One possible explanation is that people who exercise may develop collateral blood vessels in the heart which ensure the heart continues to get enough blood after a blockage. Exercise may also increase levels of chemical substances that improve blood flow and reduce injury to the heart from a heart attack,” Prescott said.
She added this caveat: “This was an observational study so we cannot conclude that the associations are causal [cause and effect]. The results need to be confirmed before we can make strong recommendations.
“But,” Prescott added, “I think it’s safe to say that we already knew exercise was good for health and this might indicate that continuing to exercise even after developing atherosclerosis [hardening of the arteries] may reduce the seriousness of a heart attack if it does occur.”
News stories are written and provided by HealthDay and do not reflect federal policy, the views of MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine, the National Institutes of Health, or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The scope of our information is limited to chiropractic and spinal injuries and conditions. To discuss options on the subject matter, please feel free to ask Dr. Jimenez or contact us at 915-850-0900 .
Additional Topics: What is Chiropractic?
Chiropractic care is an well-known, alternative treatment option utilized to prevent, diagnose and treat a variety of injuries and conditions associated with the spine, primarily subluxations or spinal misalignments. Chiropractic focuses on restoring and maintaining the overall health and wellness of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems. Through the use of spinal adjustments and manual manipulations, a chiropractor, or doctor of chiropractic, can carefully re-align the spine, improving a patient�s strength, mobility and flexibility.
Local bans on artery-clogging trans fats in restaurant foods led to fewer heart attacks and strokes in several New York counties, a new study suggests.
The study hints at the potential for widespread health benefits from an upcoming nationwide ban, the authors and other experts say. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2015 gave the food industry until next year to eliminate artificial trans fats from American products.
New York City enacted a restaurant ban on the fats in 2007 and several counties in the state did the same. Hospital admissions for heart attacks and strokes in those areas declined 6 percent starting three years after the bans, compared with counties without bans. The results translate to 43 fewer heart attacks and strokes per 100,000 people, said lead author Dr. Eric Brandt, a Yale University cardiology fellow.
His study was published Wednesday in JAMA Cardiology.
Trans fats, also called partially hydrogenated oils, enhance food texture and structure. They were once commonly used to make restaurant fried chicken, French fries, doughnuts and other foods and found in grocery items including cookies, crackers and margarine.
These fats can boost blood levels of unhealthy cholesterol, increasing risks for heart problems. The FDA in 2006 required them to be listed on food labels and the food industry has been switching to healthier oils.
The researchers examined hospital admissions data from 2002 to 2013 in 11 New York counties that adopted bans and in 25 counties that did not. Admissions for heart attacks and strokes declined in all counties, going from more than 800 to less than 700 per 100,000 people, but the drop was steeper in counties that enacted bans.
Alice Lichtenstein, a heart and nutrition specialist at Tufts University’s Boston campus, said the results are encouraging but that other changes could have contributed, such as smoking bans and mandatory calories on menus.
Dr. Mark Creager, former American Heart Association president, said the results echo previous studies “and are consistent with the thinking of most scientists” on potential benefits of these bans.
“Policies such as these when adapted on a nationwide level will be good for our entire population,” said Creager, director of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center’s heart center in Lebanon, New Hampshire.
(HealthDay News) — Healthy aging of the brain relies on the health of your heart and blood vessels when you’re younger, a new study reports.
People with risk factors for heart disease and stroke in middle age are more likely to have elevated levels of amyloid, a sticky protein known to clump together and form plaques in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease, the researchers said.
Amyloid In The Brain
MRI scans revealed larger deposits of amyloid in the brains of seniors who smoked, had high blood pressure, were obese, diabetic or had elevated cholesterol levels when they were middle-aged, said lead researcher Dr. Rebecca Gottesman. She’s an assistant professor of neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore.
All of these risk factors can affect the health of a person’s blood vessels, otherwise known as vascular health, leading to hardening of the arteries and other disorders.
“Amyloid is what we think, by leading hypotheses, accumulates to cause Alzheimer’s disease. So this suggests that vascular risk in middle age may play a direct role in the development of Alzheimer’s disease,” Gottesman said.
Two or more risk factors nearly tripled a person’s risk of large amyloid deposits. One risk factor alone increased the likelihood of amyloid deposits by 88 percent, the study found.
Obesity
Obesity in particular stood out as a strong risk factor, on its own doubling a person’s risk of elevated amyloid later in life, said Steven Austad, chair of biology of aging and the evolution of life histories at the University of Alabama, Birmingham.
“In terms of one risk factor by itself, that turned out to be the most important one, which is interesting,” Austad said. “Twenty years ago obesity was not the problem that it is now, suggesting that 20 years from now things might be considerably worse.”
Gottesman and her colleagues examined data from nearly 350 people whose heart health has been tracked since 1987 as part of an ongoing study. The average age of the study participants was 52 at the start of the study. Sixty percent were women, and 43 percent were black. The average follow-up time was almost 24 years.
When the participants entered the study, none of them had dementia. About two decades later, they were asked to come back and undergo brain scans to check for signs of amyloid.
The researchers discovered a link between heart risk factors and brain amyloid. The relationship did not vary based either on race or known genetic risk factors for Alzheimer’s.
Poor Blood Vessel Upkeep
Heart risk factors that cropped up late in life were not associated with brain amyloid deposits. What a person does in their middle age is what apparently contributes to their later risk of elevated amyloid, not what happens later, Gottesman said.
The study did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship, but there are several theories why the health of a person’s blood vessels might be linked to Alzheimer’s.
Blood and spinal fluid contain amyloid, and some think that unhealthy blood vessels might allow amyloid to leak out of the bloodstream and into brain tissue, said Austad, a spokesman for the American Federation for Aging Research.
“The idea that the first injury to the brain is really an injury to the blood vessels of the brain has been around for a while, and this would support that, generally,” Austad said. “The amyloid plaques, you’re not seeing them inside the vessels. You’re seeing them outside the vessels, in the brain.”
Blood vessels also play a role in flushing out broken-down amyloid particles that naturally occur in a person’s brain, said Keith Fargo, director of scientific programs and outreach for the Alzheimer’s Association.
“You can imagine if there’s something wrong with your brain’s circulation, it could affect the clearance of this amyloid in some way,” Fargo said.
Hardened arteries also can lead to strokes or mini-strokes that affect the ability to think and remember in some people as they age, which contributes to dementia and Alzheimer’s, Gottesman said.
Based on these findings, people who want to protect their brain health should protect their heart health, and the sooner the better, Fargo said.
“You don’t want to wait until your 60s to start taking care of yourself. It has to be a lifetime commitment,” Fargo said.
The findings were published April 11 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
SOURCES: Rebecca Gottesman, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore; Steven Austad, Ph.D., chair of biology of aging and the evolution of life histories, University of Alabama, Birmingham, and scientific director, American Federation for Aging Research; Keith Fargo, Ph.D., director of scientific programs and outreach, Alzheimer’s Association; April 11, 2017, Journal of the American Medical Association
News stories are written and provided by HealthDay and do not reflect federal policy, the views of MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine, the National Institutes of Health, or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Parkinson’s disease can cause tremors, stiffness and trouble with walking. But a new study suggests that regular exercise can slow the progression of the disease.
Even those with advanced Parkinson’s can benefit from activity, the study authors said.
The research included more than 3,400 patients in North America, the Netherlands and Israel who were followed for more than two years. During that time, Parkinson’s-related changes in mobility were assessed by timing how long it took patients to rise from a chair, walk about 10 feet, turn and return to a sitting position.
The results were published online recently in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease.
“We found that people with Parkinson’s disease who maintained exercise 150 minutes per week had a smaller decline in quality of life and mobility over two years compared to people who did not exercise or exercised less,” said lead investigator Miriam Rafferty, of Northwestern University and Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.
“The smaller decline was significant for people who started the study as regular exercisers, as well as for people who started to exercise 150 minutes per week after their first study-related visit,” she said in a journal news release.
The study didn’t look at what specific types of exercise might be best for people with Parkinson’s disease. But the findings suggest that at least 150 minutes a week of any type of exercise offers benefits.
“People with Parkinson’s disease should feel empowered to find the type of exercise they enjoy, even those with more advanced symptoms,” Rafferty added.
The study also found that people with more advanced Parkinson’s disease saw the greatest benefit from 30-minute-per-week increases in exercise. This finding could prove important in making exercise more accessible to these people. Currently, their increased disability may limit their independent participation in community and group exercise programs, according to the researchers.
“The most important part of the study is that it suggests that people who are not currently achieving recommended levels of exercise could start to exercise today to lessen the declines in quality of life and mobility that can occur with this progressive disease,” Rafferty said.
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