Sports Spine Specialist Chiropractic Team: Athletes strive to achieve their body’s maximum performance by participating in numerous training regimens consisting of strenuous exercises and physical activity and ensuring they meet all of their body’s nutritional requirements. Through proper fitness and nutrition, many individuals can condition themselves to excel in their specific sport. Our training programs are designed for athletes that look to gain a competitive edge in their sport.
We provide sport-specific services to help increase an athlete’s performance through mobility, strength, and endurance. Occasionally, however, the excess workouts can lead many to suffer injuries or develop underlying conditions. Dr. Alex Jimenez’s chronicle of articles for athletes displays in detail the many forms of complications affecting these professionals while focusing on the possible solutions and treatments to follow to achieve overall well-being.
Older adults who don’t have a history of cardiovascular problems don’t benefit from taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, says a new study of seniors with high blood pressure and moderately high cholesterol.
Researchers from New York University School of Medicine studied the data from 2,867 older adults and found that they had the same risk of dying as seniors who didn’t take statins, and also suffered the same amount of heart attacks and strokes. In fact, statins may have caused more harm than good since more deaths occurred in the group taking statins.
“This study doesn’t surprise me at all,” says Dr. David Brownstein, a board-certified physician and editor of the newsletter Dr. David Brownstein’s Natural Way to Health. “In fact, it should be expected.
“When you know the mechanisms of how statins work in the body, how anyone could predict that they will prolong a person’s life is beyond me, particularly in older people,” Brownstein tells Newsmax Health.
“Seniors depend on adequate cholesterol for a host of reactions in the body, including proper brain function and proper hormonal production,” he says.
“Some studies have shown that statins increase the risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, even if you take CoQ 10 to help cope with some of statins’ side effects, because statins lower cholesterol.
“The highest concentration of cholesterol in the body is in the brain,” Brownstein says. “The brain actually produces its own cholesterol, and it needs cholesterol to function properly.
“Since statins have been shown to fail in 97 to 99 percent of the people who take them, I can’t imagine — with those odds — why anyone would consider taking this drug when they know the side effects are severe and many.”
Still, statins continue to be prescribed and are one of the most commonly prescribed medicines in the world. “Big pharma has convinced doctors that statins are much more effective than they are by using questionable statistical methods,” Brownstein says. “Unfortunately, most doctors don’t understand how to read statistics and don’t know how to read the studies.
“This isn’t the first study to show that statins harm patients,” Brownstein says and points to a 2015 study, published in Critical Care Medicine, which found that the lower a patient’s cholesterol levels, the higher the risk of dying during the 30-day period following a heart attack.
“The increased risk the researchers found isn’t nominal,” he said. “Patients with low LDL (bad) cholesterol levels coupled with low triglyceride levels had an astounding 990 percent increased risk of dying!”
A 2016 study published in the British Medical Journal found that not only do high cholesterol levels not shorten the lifespan of senior citizens, they may live as long — or longer — than their peers with low levels.
The results, which came after analyzing more than 68,000 patients over the age of 60, questioned conventional medicine’s belief that seniors with high cholesterol, especially high levels of low-density lipoprotein or LDL, are more at risk of dying from heart attack and stroke, and need statin drugs to lower their cholesterol levels.
The study suggested that high cholesterol may, in fact, be protective against diseases which are common in the elderly, including neurological disorders like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
“If your cholesterol is elevated, the first thing you need to do is to look at your diet,” says Brownstein. “You should follow a healthy diet by eliminating refined foods and eating whole, organic foods. Your cholesterol levels will naturally drop to their optimal levels.
“But to chemically lower them with a drug that fails 97 to 99 percent of the time — I don’t understand it.”
If you’d like a food or supplement to help you lower your cholesterol naturally, consider the following:
Red yeast rice. According to the University of Maryland, red yeast rice has the same chemical composition as the prescription drug lovastatin. A five-year, double-blind study of patients who had suffered a heart attack found that an extract of Chinese red yeast rice, Xuezhikang (XZK), reduced the risk of repeat heart attacks by 45 percent. The extract also decreased heart bypass surgery, cardiovascular mortality, and total mortality by a third.
Bergamot. Several studies have found that bergamot, an extract made from the bergamot fruit and used to give Earl Grey tea its distinctive flavor, lowers cholesterol safely and naturally. Several studies have shown it reduces LDL (low density or “bad”) cholesterol and triglycerides, while raising levels of HDL (good) cholesterol.
Green tea. Green tea lowers bad cholesterol and raises good cholesterol. Several studies have found that green tea blocks the absorption of up to 89 percent of cholesterol from foods. Black tea has also been found to be protective.
Research carried out by the universities of Glasgow and Mauritius found that drinking three cups of tea daily reduced LDL cholesterol by more than 16 percent when compared with a control group who drank the same amount of hot water. Scientists believe the health benefits are due to antioxidants in the tea called polyphenols, which were boosted by 400 percent in the tea-drinking group.
Oatmeal. Numerous studies conducted over the past 50 years have shown that oatmeal reduces bad cholesterol. The Mayo Clinic recommends eating one-and-a-half cups of cooked oatmeal each day. Oatmeal contains soluble fiber, a cholesterol-lowering component of foods which is also found in beans, apples, and many other whole foods. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that oats lowered cholesterol levels almost as well as prescription cholesterol-lowering drugs.
In the United States, 13 percent of children and young adults are obese, the most of any other country, CNN reported.
Worldwide, 2.2 billion people were obese or overweight in 2015.
“People who shrug off weight gain do so at their own risk — risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and other life-threatening conditions,” said Dr. Christopher Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, who worked on the study, according to CNN.
“Those half-serious New Year’s resolutions to lose weight should become year-round commitments to lose weight and prevent future weight gain,” he added.
In 2015, about 4 million people died of health problems linked to excess weight, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported, noting that death rates related to being overweight rose 28 percent since 1990.
Poor diets and sedentary lifestyles brought on by urbanization and economic development have spread the obesity epidemic worldwide.
“People are consuming more and more processed foods that are high in sugar and fat and exercising less,” said Boitshepo Bibi Giyose, senior nutrition officer at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, according to CBC.
The study was completed by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington and funded by the Gates Foundation, The New York Times noted.
Nearly 604 million adults and 108 million children worldwide are obese, meaning they have a body mass index of 30 or higher.
“This study shows what we know: No country in the globe has reduced overweight or obesity levels,” said Barry Popkin, a professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina, according to the Times. “This is astounding given the huge health and economic costs linked with overweight and obesity.”
Adam Drewnowsk, director of the Center for Public Health Nutrition at the University of Washington, said solutions aren’t easy.
“It is all very nice to talk about the need to eat less unhealthy foods and more healthy foods,” he said, according to the Times. But “unhealthy foods cost less; healthier foods often cost more. People eat what they can afford.”
Exercise Physiologist and PUSH-as-Rx � fitness facility owner Daniel Alvarado takes a look at common mistakes that people make in their workout routines.
Time is precious. That’s why making the most of every sweat session and avoiding common workout mistakes is key. I’m a huge fan of sneaking in mini-workouts whenever I could. That’??s one of the benefits of high-intensity interval training: You only need several minutes.
But there are so many other ways you can shift your own exercise routine to more efficient workouts. Tiny tweaks may make a huge different when it comes to losing body fat increasing lean muscle mass and reducing stress.
12 Common Workout Mistakes
Here are some of the most common workout mistakes you need to avoid:
1. You Only Use Machines.
There??s no doubt about it. Resistance training is medicine.
In fact, a 2012 study found just 10 weeks of resistance training can increase lean muscle mass by nearly 4 pounds and reduce 4 pounds of fat while increasing your metabolic rate by 7 percent. Translation, you’ll burn more fat when you’re out of the gym, too. But that does not so much more than strength training . It’s a key factor in the natural management of type 2 diabetes, thanks to its ability to help create normal blood sugar levels. Resistance training increases bone mineral density by 1 to 3 percent, helps shed that dangerous belly fat and also lowers your resting blood pressure.
Its pain-relieving properties can help ease fibromyalgia symptoms in women. Clearly, we all need to be make sure strength training is in our lives.
But you’re short-changing yourself if you’??re only using machines. (In fact, this is one of the classic workout mistakes.) Strength training machines lock your movement into a pre-determined plane of motion, meaning you’re working those large, primer mover muscles without a lot of assistance from stabilizing muscles. Keeping these muscles out of the mix fails to strengthen them and also largely eliminates the use of balance in each lift.
Certainly, if your only goal is increase muscle mass in one area, or if you’re focusing on one muscle group for rehab purposes, machines have their place. But a lot of us want training that is more functional so we could move around with more ease, and in much less pain, every day. Free weights strengthens total-body movements and increases coordination between muscle groups that are different. Free weights may improve performance better than a machine-only approach, too. For instance, squats are more effective at increasing vertical jumping compared to machine leg presses.
Be sure to make free weights part of your lifting routine. And don’t forget to incorporate bodyweight exercises, too. Remember, even the ancient Greeks understood the insane fitness value of calisthenics.
2. You Wait To Work Out.
Studies show you’ll be able to optimize your workouts by targeting a specific time of day, depending on your goals, although working out at night is not working out at all. (Of course, pushing your workout to nights also means more excuses can pop up through the day, derailing your PM workout efforts, too.)
But the best time to sneak in a sweat session largely depends on your own main fitness goal. This great Medical Daily article sheds some light on optimal workout times:
Walking to lose weight? Getting your steps in can transform your diet in a way that better leads to weight loss, based on an 2011 study published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness. Walking later in the day prompted exercisers to eat during breakfast, an important factor to reduce late-night cravings, lower the risk of obesity and improve weight-loss success. you are able to also optimize fat-burn should you workout in a fasted state before breakfast. Doing this helps improve insulin sensitivity even in case you eat a high-fat diet, researchers say. The good news for walkers? You’ve got options.
If you’re looking to construct muscle fast and increase strength, evening workouts are optimal.
To beat work-day brain fog and increase focus and performance, aim for afternoon sweat sessions between noon and 6 p.m.
Exercise is one of the most potent stress relievers on the planet. To help prime your blood pressure for optimal levels for sleep, opt for morning exercise. A 2010 study by Appalachian State University researchers found morning resistance training helped drop blood pressure levels on average by 20 percent. That’s as good or even better than common hypertension-fighting drugs. �A 2011 study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research discovered moderate 7 a.m. morning walking resulted in a 10 percent blood pressure drop throughout the day; at night, it sank 25 percent. It helped exercises reach deeper sleep compared to working out at other times of the day. The AM exercises spent up to 75 percent more time in deep sleep compared to afternoon and evening exercisers.
3. You Forget The “?Little Muscles.”
Sure, biceps and pecs and quads usually get all of the glory, but there’s more to movement than those big prime mover showoff muscles. There’s a whole other cast of characters you need to nurture. Stabilizers are muscles that support the body while the prime movers do their thing. Synergists help assist those prime movers to create movement patterns that are functional. Should you ignore these little guys, you might be setting yourself up for posture problems that may manifest into pain and injuries down the line. Workout mistakes such as these will only snowball and lead to inflammation, pain, altered movements and eventually injury.
Using resistance band exercises and exercises that involve multiple planes of motion that mimic more real-life movements (not just the up-and-down of a bicep curl) can help target those important, albeit less famous, muscles.
Targeting the dynamic stabilizers of the rotator cuff, erector spinae (deep core muscles that keep your body upright), gluteus medius and minimum, tibialis anterior and obliques.
Men’s Health shares some ideas on how best to strengthen a few of these important muscles:
Back extensions
Bicycle crunches
Side steps using an exercise band around both feet
4. Your Recovery Is All Wrong.
In case your post-workout recovery consists of 2 minutes of stretching and a shower, it’s time to get real. Workout mistakes such as these may not seem just like a huge deal now, but as you age you’ll start feeling it. Chances are it’ll catch up with your joints and muscles as you age, making injury and pain inevitable. Here, I want to cover foam rolling exercises.
But let’s back up a sec. The organs, muscles, nerves, bones and arteries and veins of your body are all enveloped in a densely woven webbing called fascia. Much like the yard of a sweater, your fascia connects you entire inner body, highlighting the fact that trouble in one spot could impact a totally different part of the body.
When you work your muscles hard, microspasms occur, triggering the formation of knots?� or adhesions in the soft tissue. This, subsequently, starts leading to abnormal movement that can, over time, result in chronic pain and injury. Luckily, self-myofascial release, including foam rolling, can help �??break up those knots to help get your muscle length and functioning back to normal.
And here’s the big takeaway: foam rolling short, tight muscles riddled with knots in combination with proper stretching can help return your body to some more normal selection of motion. This could improve not only performance, but just the manner in which you feel in general, too. A Texas Woman’s University study found this combo can serve as one of the remedies for fast back pain relief.
And this is something I’m really excited about. Foam rolling effects your brain and stress hormones, too, not just your muscles. Emerging science suggests foam rolling impacts the nervous system and can lower cortisol levels, reducing not just physical stress, but emotional stress, too. After exercise, foam rolling can improve cortisol levels in fact better than rest. Exciting stuff!
To get a full-spectrum foam rolling and corrective exercise program, your best bet is to have other posture and movement assessments and an overhead squat by way of a qualified personal trainer with high-level certifications and also a college degree to do so. The National Academy of Sports Medicine focuses heavily on these assessments and corrective exercise programs.
Several key points:
Common muscles include the calves, peroneals, IT- band, TFL, piriformis, adductors, hamstrings, quadriceps, latissimus dorsi and thoracic spine.
It’s possible for you to foam roll holding tender spots for 30 to 90 seconds, 1 set daily.
DON’T make the classic foam rolling of quickly rolling over a muscle back and forth mistakes. So the neural, skeletal and muscular systems can work together to more effectively break up the adhesion, you need to hold tender spots.
To improve flexibility, follow foam rolling with static stretches of the same muscles, holding the static stretches for at least 30 seconds. Do this before and following a workout.
Keep proper posture as you’re rolling.
If you want more pressure, you are able to use your own body to create it. For instance, if you’re rolling your calves and need more pressure, it is possible to cross your one leg within the other that’s being rolled.
If�you have a health condition or are pregnant, talk with your doctor before foam rolling. Foam rolling is not suitable for people with cancer, congestive heart failure or alternative organ failure, skin lesions, goiters, uncontrolled high blood pressure, blood clots, bleeding disorders and certain other health issues.
5. You Force Yourself To Run.
If you’ve gone over the best running tips for beginners and still dread lacing up your sneaks for a jog, it might be time to find another form of cardio. The key is to do something so you stick with it, you like, not torture yourself.
If you do stick with running, remember, it’s not about speed. In fact tend to live longer. Fast marathon runners gain no increase in lifespan compared to people who avoid exercise.
Cycling, mountain biking, spinning (I love the Peloton bike) are just a few of the other ways to work cardio into your life. I recently did an article to try. Just make it fun and find a workout buddy. We know working out using a buddy increases your odds of sticking to an exercise routine. But did you know a virtual buddy works? That may be one huge factor in Pelot’??s success, where people from throughout the world indoor cycle as they’re connected virtually to other riders.
6. You’re Jarring Your Joints (And Maybe Your Lungs).
Love basketball? Opt for indoor instead of a game on asphalt to save your valuable knees. Runner? Get your job on along the side of the road for more give. And consider trail running to get a more natural, less jarring surface. Runner’s World’s annual sneaker guide features an annual featuring many options with better shock absorption, too, but shoes can only go so far.
And beware of other workouts that were popular linked to joint injuries. They dynamic, twisting movements of Zumba make it a fun class. In one study, nearly 30 percent of Zumba participants experienced an injury; 42 percent of those involved the knee. The people most likely to suffer injury took class nearly 4 times a week, so if your joints are feeling it, maybe dial back a bit and fill in a class or two with something more forgiving, like gentle yoga. (Maybe sure you’ve a qualified instructor.)
Flooring matters. For indoor gyms, I prefer flooring made from natural cork or real linoleum (NOT vinyl knockoffs). And this brings up an important side point: Natural floorings like solid or certified formaldehyde-free manufactured cork don’t off-gas toxic fumes common to popular gym flooring and mats. In 2014, the University of Lisbon in Portugal and the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands released first-of-its-kind data showing the horrific state of indoor air in gyms. We know vinyl-based products off-gas carcinogenic formaldehyde, as well as plasticizing phthalate chemicals.
Popular gym flooring made from recycled tires labeled as rubber?� are often laden with compounds on the verge of being classified as hazardous waste. Tire crumb used in several gym floors contains distillate aromatic extract, oils that can make up to 30 percent of a tires mass. Unfortunately, these are among the world’??s most harmful chemicals, rich in polyaromatic hydrocarbons and other carcinogens, in accordance with the Healthy Building Network.
Urge your gym to use more healthy flooring materials and invest in a air exchange system. If you’re setting up a part of your home for working out, looking into cork or real linoleum flooring with good shock absorption qualities. Green Building Supply is a good place to look for safer building materials.
Athletic Tips
7. Your Workout Rest Periods Are Wrong.
The amount of time you rest between exercise sets matters, depending on your own fitness goals.
Here’s a nice breakdown in the National Academy of Sports Medicine:
Muscle endurance & stabilization: This is great if you’re just getting started or back on the wagon with exercise. It’ll help strength key muscles for joint stability in order to build a strong foundation and progress in a safer way as you become more fit. In this stage, you’ll focus on lifting lighter and taking a rest period anywhere from zero to 90 seconds long between sets. The short rest period keeps the heart rate elevated, optimizing weight loss and fat burn.
When hypertrophy is the goal, we’re focusing on increased muscle size. Short rest periods increases testosterone levels and human growth hormone in men. It’??s is best achieved with relatively short rests periods often ranging from 0 to 60 seconds. Longer rest periods may be appropriate depending on condition of the lifter and the amount of weight lifted.
Maximal strength & power: When you’re focusing on lifting your max weight and when you’re training for maximum power, you’re going to focus on taking much longer rest periods. Three to five minutes are necessary.
8. You Forget To Rest.
Overtraining is a problem. Not giving your body and hormones the time to adjust to exercise or not resting adequately between workouts �?? can cause injuries, mood problems, negative changes in your metabolism and burnout within a couple of months time. While too much exercise mightn’t be the sole reason for negative symptoms in some people, overtraining combined with stress from other factors like imbalanced hormones, a diet that is poor, and a lack of sleep or rest can accumulate to serious bodily damage.
And get this: Overtraining can actually cause weight gain. Excessive exercise can lead to high cortisol levels, which could switch your body into fat-storage mode.
Signs of overtraining include:
Changes in your heart rate
Trouble sleeping
Increased soreness
Joint pain
Moodiness, depression or anxiety
Chronic fatigue or exhaustion
Changes in your appetite
Feeling more thirsty
Digestion issues
Irregular periods or changes to your menstrual cycle, such as with all the severe overtraining phenomenon called female athlete triad
Running is definitely an exercise that helps you live longer, but you’ll want to mix it up to include the benefits of yoga and HIIT training, too.
9. You Arrive Undernourished.
Working out on an empty stomach does burn fat. But showing up having an empty tank doesn’t work for everybody. And in some, having the right pre-workout snack enhances fat burn in fact. In The Event you end up burning out halfway during your workout, you could possibly want to try many of these pre-workout snacks before you hit the gym.
A study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition found no difference in weight loss between women who ate a meal-replacement shake before exercising without eating and those who got straight into their workouts. So the moral of the story? Do what’s right for you personally, but probably get some sort of natural, pre-workout drink or snack in your routine.
10. You’re Stretching Dangerously.
This is really a biggie when it comes to workout mistakes. If you played sports growing up, chances are you did one of these dangerous stretches that place torque and unnecessary strain on your joints.
Common Exercise Mistake: You Endanger Your Knee with This Hurdler’s Stretch
The above stretch hurdler’s stretch is intended to stretch the hamstring, but it’s one of the major workout mistakes. But the problem lies for the reason that left knee. See how it’s rotated and stressing the knee? This could stretch the joint capsule, damaging cartilage and ligaments, according to a lot of studies. The U.S. Navy IDs this as a stretch to avoid.
To get a hamstring stretch with no unneeded stress, put the foot of the leg opposite the one being stretched to the inner thigh of the leg that is stretched.
Common Exercise Mistake: You Do This Quadriceps Stretch with Both Knees Flexed
Here’s another one that stresses your knees. You can get an effective quad stretch minus the damaging effects of the one above. The Navy trainers recommend then reaching around with one arm, lying on your own stomach and grasping the same-side foot. Before you feel a stretch in the very front of the leg, pull the foot toward the buttocks. To protect your neck, turn your head toward the same side that you’re reaching.
Exercise Mistake: You Do This Overhead Bicycle, Yoga Plow Stretch
This may be the most dangerous stretch on the list. And there’s no safe alternative. It places your neck into extreme positions that are forward, putting pressure on the cervical discs.
11. You’re Too Predictable.
We do anything with no variation, we can get bored and our fitness goals can plateau. The nervous system and muscle can adapt to your own routine, sometimes as early as 6 to 8 weeks. Now it’s time to shake things up!
Here are a few tricks for climbing your way from a plateau so you don�??t get stuck in this workout mistake:
If you’re a runner, try the Swedish training trick called fartlek.
Trade in a few longer, moderate cardio workouts for BurstFit ideas you can do at home.
Eliminate, or drastically cut back on, alcohol. I’ve seen so many people fall off of the fitness wagon, sometimes with as little as one or two drinks. If you’re drinking and hitting a plateau, it’s time for mocktails instead.
Eat more fat. That’s right, your body may be craving more healthy fats. Experiment by means of your calorie intake and find out if adding more avocados and other healthy fats into your diet stokes your fat burn.
12. You Forget Corrective Exercise.
We touched on foam rolling earlier, but that’s just one important component of corrective exercise. To workout without this component that is critical is making one of the workouts mistakes that are most common. To get a personalized read on what you need to work on, it’s best to consult using a certified personal trainer (I recommend ones through National Academy of Sports Medicine, the American College of Sports Medicine or the National Sports and Conditioning Association.) Physical therapists and chiropractors can help.
The idea is getting a postural and movement assessment will help show:
Muscles that need stretching and rolling
Muscles that need strengthening
Running issues like supination or pronation
Broken body mechanics, including postural distortions like forward- head posture, upper – and lower-crossed syndrome
Final Thoughts On Common Workout Mistakes
The best time of day depends on your specific fitness and health goals.
To avoid injury and pain, it’s imperative to work corrective exercise into your routine.
Foam rolling can improve both your physical and mental stress levels, but be sure to hold tender spots for at least 30 and you have to roll the proper muscles to be effective.
If you’re starting to notice joint pain, pay attention to the classes you take, your shoes and the surfaces you exercise on. Workout mistakes are the culprit, and adjustments may be necessary.
The rest period you take in between exercise sets varies depending on your fitness level and goals.
Women who drink diet drinks while pregnant almost double the risk that their child will be overweight or obese at 7 years of age, says a study lead by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. Childhood obesity is known to increase the risk for health problems later in life, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.
Researchers found that as the volume of amniotic fluid increases, pregnant women tend to increase their consumption of fluids. To avoid extra calories, many women replace sugar-sweetened soft drinks and juices with beverages containing artificial sweeteners.
Previous studies of adults have found that artificially sweetened beverages encouraged weight gain, and the study authors sought to discover if drinking diet beverages during pregnancy had an effect on the weight of children.
“Our findings suggest that artificially sweetened beverages during pregnancy are not likely to be any better at reducing the risk for later childhood obesity than sugar-sweetened beverages,” said the study’s senior author, Cuilin Zhang, Ph.D.
“Not surprisingly, we also observed that children born to women who drank water instead of sweetened beverages were less likely to be obese by age 7.”
The researchers limited their analysis to data from more than 900 pregnancies that were complicated by gestational diabetes, a type of diabetes that occurs only during pregnancy.
Approximately 9 percent of these women reported consuming at least one artificially sweetened beverage each day. Their children were 60 percent more likely to have a high birth weight, compared to children born to women who never drank sweetened beverages.
At age 7, children born to mothers who drank an artificially sweetened beverage daily were nearly twice as likely to be overweight or obese.
Drinking a daily artificially sweetened beverage appeared to offer no advantages over consuming one sweetened by sugar. At age 7, children born to both groups were equally likely to be overweight or obese.
Women who substituted water for sweetened beverages, however, reduced their children’s obesity risk at age 7 by 17 percent.
Scientists aren’t sure why drinking artificially sweetened beverages compared to drinking water may increase obesity risk. The authors cited an animal study that associated weight gain with changes in the types of bacteria and other microbes in the digestive tract.
Another animal study suggested that artificial sweeteners may increase the ability of the intestines to absorb the blood sugar glucose. Other researchers found evidence in rodents that, by stimulating taste receptors, artificial sweeteners desensitized the animals’ digestive tracts, so that they felt less full after they ate and were more likely to overeat.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage of obese children has more than tripled since the 1970s. Today, 1 in 5 children between the ages of 6 and 19 are obese.
In addition to increased health risks as adults, obese children also have an increased risk of chronic health problems, such as asthma and Type 2 diabetes. They are also more likely to be bullied, and to suffer from depression and lower self-esteem.
For years, you probably have been told that wheat bread is far better for you than its white counterpart, but a small, new study suggests that maxim may not hold true for everyone.
Researchers looked at how quickly blood sugar levels rose after eating (a process called the glycemic response) either white bread or sourdough-leavened wheat bread. The researchers found that the response seemed to vary by person, and that some people didn’t have a bad glycemic response to white bread.
“Our study suggests that, in terms of glycemic responses, different people respond differently to even the same meal,” explained study author Eran Segal, from the Weitzman Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel.
“In the context of white bread, this means that some people respond badly to white bread and should probably avoid it, while others have a healthy response to it, given what we measured,” Segal said.
“In a broader sense, what this means is that the ‘one-size-fits-all’ diets that are given to the population as a whole, without personalization, are probably not optimal for everyone,” added study co-author Dr. Eran Elinav, who’s also from the Weitzman Institute.
The researchers theorized that differences in the gut microbiome (the natural bacteria living in a person’s intestine) may explain why people respond differently to different breads. The researchers added that they were able to predict what a person’s glycemic response would be to a particular bread based on the makeup of their microbiome.
Both Segal and Elinav did report they are paid consultants for a company that offers personalized dietary advice based on an individual’s gut microbiome.
At least one nutritionist wasn’t convinced that people should give up on whole grains.
“This small, short-term study does not offer a free pass to eating tons of highly processed white bread,” said Samantha Heller, a senior clinical nutritionist from New York University Langone Medical Center.
“Epidemiological research has shown that people who eat more whole grains, such as whole grain breads, crackers, cereals, brown rice and quinoa, have a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, inflammation, obesity and certain cancers,” Heller noted.
In addition, she said, whole grains have a balance of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that white bread doesn’t. Plus, Heller said, fiber is the “preferred meal for gut microbiota.”
The study included 20 people from Israel. They were between 27 and 66 years old. Eleven were female, the researchers said.
Each volunteer spent a week eating white bread and a separate week eating artisanal sourdough-leavened whole wheat bread.
They ate bread first thing in the morning. Half the time, they were allowed butter on their bread. They couldn’t eat anything else beginning the night before, and then for two hours after eating the bread. They also weren’t allowed to exercise for two hours after eating, because all of these things can alter the glycemic response.
Across the groups, the researchers found a similar response to the breads when averaged together. There were no significant overall differences based solely on the bread and glycemic response. The researchers also said there didn’t seem to be a difference in the gut microbiota based on which bread was eaten.
“Our study challenges the common belief that types of food that are considered healthy are indeed healthy. We know that people are different in their genetic makeup and lifestyle, and here we show that people have rather stable and person-specific microbiomes,” said Avraham Levy, one of the study’s researchers. He’s also from the Weitzman Institute.
“These differences between people affect how they respond to even the same meals, which means that foods which are considered healthy may not be as healthy for everyone, and vice versa,” Levy said.
The scientists noted that more research needs to be done. Funding for the study came from the Israeli Ministry of Science, Technology and Space, as well as from private foundations and donors.
In the meantime, a number of groups recommend eating whole grain foods instead of processed white foods. These groups include the U.S. federal government, the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
The study was published June 6 in the journal Cell Metabolism.
Mobility is more than moving from one place to another. It�s freedom and independence.
Whether you have a back or other condition that impacts how you walk, or your body doesn�t move as effortlessly as it once did, decreased mobility impacts a lot of people. But, if you notice changes early on, you and your doctor may be able to work on a plan to keep you moving comfortably for longer.
To see some red flags that may signal a decline in healthy mobility. Do any sound familiar?
Short Walks Become Long Walks
How do you feel after walking a quarter of a mile? Is it painful or taxing on your body?
Unless you have a spine condition or other disease that limits your ability to walk, you should be able to walk your entire life. If it�s challenging to complete short walks, that�s a red flag your mobility is at risk.
Changes In Gait
It�s not just walking distance that foreshadows a decline in mobility�how you walk is just as revealing.
Gait is the medical term for how you walk. While gait changes are a typical part of aging, some gait characteristics aren�t normal. For example: If you walk in a shuffling, unsteady, or cautious manner, you should see your doctor. He or she will help assess your gait and hopefully find the reason for it and ways to improve your movement.
Your �Get Up & Go� Is A Bit Slow
Another way to test your mobility is by doing the �get up and go� test.
You�ll need a friend to time you during this task. First, start by sitting in a chair. When your friend says �go,� get up and walk 10 feet in a straight line, then turn around and walk back to the chair and sit down. Most people who have healthy mobility can complete the exercise in 10 seconds or less.
While speed is an important part of this exercise, think about how you feel afterward. Do you feel any pain in your back muscles or in your legs or joints? If so, you should talk to your doctor to find ways to ease these movements� impact on your quality of life.
Golf & Chiropractic Care
Daily Tasks Aren�t So Routine
Is cooking a meal or taking a shower an ordeal when it used to be just a typical part of your day? Do you have work-arounds for tasks that were once easy?
One can overlook how a once simple part of your daily routine has slowly morphed into a challenging task. You may adjust your lifestyle to accommodate a decline in mobility (like putting a seat in the shower), but that�s a sign it�s time to see your doctor.
Your doctor can get to the bottom of your movement problems and suggest ways to help, such as using an assistive device, like a cane or walker, so you can move easier.
You Don�t Travel Far From Home
This isn�t about getting on a plane�you don�t travel to the other side of town. Avoiding going away from home, even if it�s a grocery store a few miles from your house, could be a sign your ability to move is declining.
Think about it: Running errands across town for an hour or two takes physical endurance. If you feel mentally and physically exhausted over the thought of completing a few errands, that�s a red flag your mobility health is at risk.
The Best Way To Improve Mobility
Want to keep walking well into your later years? The answer is simple: Stay active.
Physical activity is excellent for your heart, lungs, muscles, and spine, and helps preserve your independence. It�s never too late to start exercising.
Caring for your mobility is essential�not just for spine health but for your total health.
Packaged foods and store-bought drinks are blamed for adding a lot of salt to U.S. diets, but a new study suggests those foods and beverages don’t contain as much sodium as they once did.
The amount of salt brought into U.S. households through packaged food and store-bought beverages fell by about 18 percent from 2000 through 2014, researchers found.
Still, they say, the vast majority of U.S. children and adults consume well over the recommended amount of sodium every day.
“Households are getting less sodium form the grocery store, but I think it’s important to know sodium in packaged foods is still way too high,” said lead author Jennifer Poti, of the Department of Nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “So we have a long way to go.”
Experts and dietary guidelines have urged people in the U.S. to cut back on sodium. The current recommendation is to consume less than 2,300 milligrams (mg) per day, or the amount in about 1 teaspoon of salt.
Too much sodium increases blood pressure by drawing water from the body into the blood vessels, according to the American Heart Association. High blood pressure can damage the blood vessels and lead to serious problems like heart attacks and strokes.
Writing in JAMA Internal Medicine, Poti and colleagues cite a 2010 report form the Institute of Medicine calling for reduced sodium in packaged foods, to bring down the amount in U.S. diets.
For the new study, the researchers analyzed data on packaged food purchased from 2000 through 2014 by 30,000 to 60,000 U.S. households each year. Overall, they had data on about 1.5 million products.
Over the study period, sodium from packaged foods and beverages fell from 2,363 mg per day per person to 1,967 mg per day.
When they examined the nutritional content of the purchased foods, the researchers found that the salt content in the products had fallen about 12 percent over the study period.
In seven of the 10 biggest sources of salt among packaged foods and beverages, sodium content declined at least 10 percent. Those included items like condiments, sauces and dips.
The new study can’t say why the amount of salt from packaged foods and beverages declined. Poti said people didn’t seem to drastically change their purchases during the study.
“Potentially some of these changes are due to the removal of sodium from products by manufacturers,” she told Reuters Health.
Despite the progress in reducing sodium, less than 2 percent of households were buying foods and beverages considered to contain an acceptable amount of salt, the study found.
Still, the results are encouraging, said Lisa Harnack, who was not involved with the new study but recently published research on salt in food.
“It suggests that Americans are decreasing sodium intake form packaged food, which is important,” said Harnack, of the University of Minnesota School of Public Health in Minneapolis.
She also told Reuters Health that U.S. diets have a long way to go.
“People should read labels and aim for lower sodium products to support their own health and increase demand for lower sodium options,” she said.
Poti said the results suggest the U.S. needs more concerted efforts to reduce the amount of salt in diets.
“We really need to have more environmental-level efforts to remove sodium from the products so consumers have more choices and that there are lower sodium options in the marketplace,” she said.
SOURCE: bit.ly/2s9ZHsx JAMA Internal Medicine, online June 5, 2017.
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How do you feel after walking a quarter of a mile? Is it painful or taxing on your body?
It�s not just walking distance that foreshadows a decline in mobility�how you walk is just as revealing.
