Wellness
Clinic Wellness Team. A key factor to spine or back pain conditions is staying healthy. Overall wellness involves a balanced diet, appropriate exercise, physical activity, restful sleep, and a healthy lifestyle. The term has been applied in many ways. But overall, the definition is as follows.
It is a conscious, self-directed, and evolving process of achieving full potential. It is multidimensional, bringing together lifestyles both mental/spiritual and the environment in which one lives. It is positive and affirms that what we do is, in fact, correct.
It is an active process where people become aware and make choices towards a more successful lifestyle. This includes how a person contributes to their environment/community. They aim to build healthier living spaces and social networks. It helps in creating a person’s belief systems, values, and a positive world perspective.
Along with this comes the benefits of regular exercise, a healthy diet, personal self-care, and knowing when to seek medical attention. Dr. Jimenez’s message is to work towards being fit, being healthy, and staying aware of our collection of articles, blogs, and videos.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Natural Health, Wellness
As long as it doesn’t take more than 30 minutes to an hour, a nap is good for our health in many ways. It’s perfectly natural for mammals and is even part of the work culture in China. Why not take advantage of the warm, relaxing weather to have a little snooze after lunch? Here’s a list of all the benefits of a short siesta.
– A healthier heart
A nap is beneficial for the heart because it lowers blood pressure and allows the cardiovascular system to recover. Two hormones, adrenalin and noradrenalin, which help to keep the body awake, stimulate the heart rate. A Greek scientific study in 2007 showed that a habitual 30-minute nap (three times a week) reduced the risk of death by heart failure by over 30%. Try it out this summer to improve your sports performance.
– Boosting creativity
By improving attention, memory and vigilance, a nap stimulates creativity and helps with solving difficult problems. It is virtually obligatory in Japan, and other countries are beginning to realize its benefits. Employees who rest at the beginning of the afternoon are more productive and come up with new ideas more easily. A summer nap is ideal for recharging your batteries and will pay dividends when you go back to work.
– Catching up on lost sleep
Chronic insomnia, drowsiness, and sleep debt are all part of modern life. There’s nothing like a power nap to catch up if you didn’t get enough sleep last night. And contrary to popular belief, a nap does not prevent you from sleeping the next night (as long as it doesn’t last longer than an hour). In fact it helps nocturnal sleep. It’s the perfect way to stay alert and in a good mood until the evening.
– Improving immunity
A lack of sleep affects antiviral proteins produced by the immune system. And sleep deprivation is associated with lower resistance to infections. Even a short nap restores the levels of hormones and proteins which help fight stress, thereby improving our immune system. Nap to your heart’s content this summer, so you’ll be able to drive out colds and viruses in the fall.
– A perfect non-drug treatment
The French National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance (InSV) considers sleep to be a non-drug treatment with analgesic effects. Migraines and muscular/joint pain can be improved by a short sleep. The InSV says that napping could reduce the need for medicines such as antihypertensives (a treatment for high blood pressure), stimulants and vitamins. Better to take 40 winks this summer instead of a cocktail of dietary supplements in the fall.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Anti Aging
Is your idea of a balanced diet chocolate in both hands? If so, you may be onto something — at least as far as your brain is concerned, according to a recent review published in Frontiers in Nutrition. Cocoa beans, it found, are a rich source of flavanols, a class of compounds that has neuroprotective effects.
Italian researchers studied available literature on the effects of cocoa flavanols on the brain — what happens to your brain in the hours immediately following eating cocoa, and what happens when you eat a cocoa flavanol enriched diet for a prolonged period of time.
They discovered that most randomized controlled trials found that cocoa flavanols had a beneficial effect on cognitive performance. Participants showed enhancements in working memory performance and improved visual information processing after having had cocoa flavanols.
For women, eating cocoa after a night of total sleep deprivation actually counteracted the cognitive impairment that such a night brings about. The results are promising for people who suffer from chronic sleep deprivation or work shifts.
The effects of relatively long-term ingestion of cocoa flavanols, ranging from five days to three months, has generally been investigated in elderly individuals. For them, cognitive performance was improved by a daily intake of cocoa flavanols.
In the elderly, factors such as attention, processing speed, working memory, and verbal fluency were greatly affected, and were most pronounced in older adults with mild cognitive impairments.
“This result suggests the potential of cocoa flavanols to protect cognition in vulnerable populations over time by improving cognitive performance,” said authors Valentina Socci and Michele Ferrara from the University of L’Aquila in Italy.
“If you look at the underlying mechanism, the cocoa flavanols have beneficial effects for cardiovascular health and can increase cerebral blood volume in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus,” they said. “This structure is particularly affected by aging and therefore the potential source of age-related memory decline in humans.”
So should we eat chocolate every day to improve our brains? “Regular intake of cocoa and chocolate could indeed provide beneficial effects on cognitive functioning over time,” said the authors.
“There are, however, potential side effects of eating cocoa and chocolate,” they warned. “Those are generally linked to the caloric value of chocolate, some inherent chemical compounds of the cocoa plant such as caffeine and theobromine, and a variety of additives we add to chocolate such as sugar or milk.”
Nonetheless, the scientists practice their results: “Dark chocolate is a rich source of flavanols. So we always eat some dark chocolate. Every day.”
Recent studies have found that chocolate has additional benefits. British researchers found that magnesium, an essential nutrient found in dark chocolate, helps cells keep track of the natural cycles of day and night.
Need an energy boost? Dark chocolate containing at least 60 percent cacao beans can enhance your energy levels in the afternoon. Volunteers at the University of Northern Arizona University ate dark chocolate or a placebo product, then did thinking and memory activities while undergoing EKGs of their brains. Those who ate the chocolate were more alert.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness, Physical Rehabilitation
It’s high season for grilling and backyard barbecues, with July 4 celebrations planned across the country. But experts say it’s important to be aware that the popular summer pastime is riddled with minefields when it comes to health and food safety.
“Grilling is generally a healthy way to cook food if you take certain precautions,” says registered dietitian Joan Salge Blake, an associate professor at Boston University’s Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences.
Here are some tips from Blake and other experts:
Avoid food contamination: Mixing cooked food with juices from raw meat is a big no-no. “When it comes to food safety, we have to be careful about cross-contamination,” Blake tells Newsmax Health. “People bring the raw meat out on a platter, grill it and then put it back on the same platter without washing it. That’s how you can transfer pathogens that can cause a range of food-borne illnesses.”
Use a thermometer: You can’t trust your eyes to tell you whether or not meat is cooked enough. “One in four hamburgers turn brown prematurely, before they are at a safe internal temperature to be consumed,” says Blake. “Rather than trust our vision to determine if food is safe to eat, use a meat thermometer and make sure the internal heat is at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Keep the flame down: Cooking with high heat from an open fire creates carcinogenic compounds in beef, pork, poultry, and seafood. So while that flame-licked steak or salmon may have a great grilled flavor, it also contains heterocyclic amines (HCAs) from the charred part and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from the fire’s smoke. Lab studies suggest that they can cause mutations in DNA that may boost the risk of cancer.
Pre-cook meat: One way to reduce HCAs and PAHs is to partially cook meat — by boiling or microwave — before grilling it. That will reduce the time it is exposed to the high heat and smoke that creates these dangerous compounds.
Flip frequently: “You want to keep turning the meat to keep it from getting charred, because that’s where the [biggest] problem is,” says Blake. “If it does get charred, don’t eat that part.” Aim to flip grilled foods at least once a minute.
Foil flare-ups: One thing that can make the flame flare up is when fat from the meat drips down to the heating source. Blake suggests putting some foil down on the grill, which will keep the melted fat from hitting the flame.
Use marinade: Studies show that marinades can significantly reduce the HCAs and PAHs in grilled meat. Researchers believe it works by helping to keep the meat moist, and it can also improve flavor. One study showed that using the herb rosemary lowered HCA levels by 90 percent. Other things that can cut down on the bad compounds are garlic, onion and honey.
Watch your sauce: Blake warns not to use the leftover marinade for a sauce on the grilled meat, unless you cook it as well, because it could contain bacteria and other pathogens from the raw meat.
Grill veggies: “One of the best things you can do for overall health is to grill more vegetables than protein sources,” says Blake. “They don’t produce HCAs and PAHs, and they have a wide range of health benefits.”
Be fire smart: The most obvious health threat of grilling is the fire itself. According to the National Fire Prevention Association, about 9,000 blazes are sparked by grills every year, causing an average of 10 deaths, 160 injuries and more than $100 million in property damage.
Using common sense can reduce fire risks. The NFPA cites the main fire causes as placing the grill too close to anything that can burn, not cleaning it regularly, and leaving it unattended. If you’re using a propane grill, don’t turn the gas on for too long before lighting it. You should also check lines and connections for leaks.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Anti Aging
Popular hormone-based drugs for treating an enlarged prostate could increase men’s risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease or stroke, a new study suggests.
A group of German men taking the drug Avodart (dutasteride) for three years wound up with higher blood sugar and cholesterol levels than men taking another class of prostate medication that does not affect male hormones, the researchers reported.
“Our small study suggests there are really adverse effects on metabolic function from these drugs that has not been reported previously,” said lead researcher Abdulmaged Traish. He is a professor of urology with the Boston University School of Medicine.
But Dr. Ashutosh Tewari, chair of urology for the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, said the new findings run counter to prior clinical trials of the drug, and do not warrant any change in use at this time.
Still, Traish believes urologists should talk about these new results with patients before prescribing either Avodart or another hormone-based prostate drug called Proscar (finasteride). Both are in the class of drugs known as 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors.
“They should have a clear, open and honest discussion with their patients,” Traish said. “This drug might cause some of these problems.”
However, according to Tewari, “This is an interesting finding which is a little different than the large ‘controlled’ studies. It needs to be studied in a larger pool of patients in a prospective manner.”
The association seen in the study doesn’t prove a cause-and-effect relationship.
The prostate is a walnut-sized gland surrounding the urethra where it connects to the bladder. The prostate produces fluid that goes into semen, and is essential for male fertility. But as men age, their prostates tend to enlarge, pinching the urethra and making urination more difficult.
Avodart reduces production of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a hormone linked to enlargement of the prostate gland. Treatment with Avodart can cause a man’s prostate to shrink by roughly 18 percent to 20 percent, Traish noted.
“The men urinate a little bit better,” Traish said. “They don’t have to stand an hour and a half in the bathroom at the airport.”
However, DHT also plays an important role in the function of other organs, particularly the liver, Traish said. He and his colleagues are concerned that reducing DHT could have other unknown health effects.
To examine the issue, Traish’s team reviewed records of 460 men treated at a single urologist’s office in Germany for enlarged prostate.
Half of the men had been prescribed Avodart to treat their problem, and the other half had been prescribed Flomax (tamsulosin). Flomax, in the class of drugs known as alpha-blockers, does not affect hormones, but works by causing the smooth muscle tissue of the prostate to relax, Traish said.
The researchers tracked all of the men for 36 to 42 months, performing blood tests and assessing prostate size and function.
Avodart was linked to an ongoing rise in blood sugar levels among men who received the drug, while men taking Flomax did not experience any such increase, the study authors said.
Further, long-term Avodart treatment was linked to increased “bad” LDL cholesterol levels in men, the investigators found. Men on Flomax experienced a smaller but yet significant increase in their LDL cholesterol levels, but also had an increase in their “good” HDL cholesterol levels, the findings showed.
Based on his findings, Traish said he would lean toward prescribing Flomax first rather than a hormone-based prostate drug.
“I would rather have my patient try something safer, and if it works for him, keep him on that,” Traish said.
Tewari noted that the clinical trials that found Avodart effective in treating enlarged prostate did not show any of these other metabolic problems.
Those clinical trials relied on men being randomly assigned Avodart, Tewari said. The men in this new study were not assigned medication randomly, but were allowed to choose their treatment following discussion with a doctor.
The new study also did not compare men taking Avodart to a control group taking a placebo, and relied on past data rather than an entirely new experiment, Tewari continued.
“This is interesting, yet needs to be verified in a controlled setting with a larger pool of patients,” Tewari explained. “At this time, I’m not too impressed with any clinical significance of this study.”
The study was published online recently in the journal Hormone Molecular Biology and Clinical Investigation.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Anti Aging
You may be familiar with osteoporosis, the so-called “brittle bone” disease, but there is another condition – sarcopenia – that can lead to disability as we age, a top expert says.
“Sarcopenia is an age-related condition that can make walking and daily functioning difficult. It can also set the stage for bone fractures but, unlike osteoporosis, few people are aware of it,” Dr. Neerav Padilya, Ph.D., tells Newsmax Health.
Sarcopenia is defined as condition resulting in age-related loss of muscle mass, strength, and function, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) says.
The condition was first described in 1997, and experts – including the NIH – say it is an independent risk factor for physical disability, unrelated to age or other health problems.
Our bones get larger and stronger until the age of 30, when muscle mass begins to diminish, and sarcopenia can begin to set in, says Padilya, vice president of research at Qurr, a New Jersey based company which makes a supplement that targets the condition.
“We rely upon our muscle mass for our mobility, as well as to maintain balance, so if you start to lose it due to sarcopenia, by time you’re in your late 60s or 70s, this will have a direct impact on your life,” adds Padilya, a researcher and patent-holding inventor.
“The condition also causes a lack of hand grip strength, so if this becomes weak, imagine trying to open a jar of pickles,” he adds.
In addition, a loss of muscle mass may increase the risk of diabetes, he says.
Research studies note that increased muscle mass can help the body handle glucose, reducing the risk of the disease, Padilya notes.
But the biggest danger that sarcopenia poses, says Padilya, is that it predisposes people to falling, and suffering a potentially life-threatening fracture.
“About 50 percent of the people over the age of 65 that die have suffered a fracture, so it is a very serious problem,” he adds.
Since muscle mass begins to diminish in your 30s, it’s never too early – or too late – to take steps to prevent sarcopenia, says Padilya.
Here are his recommendations:
- Make sure you are eating enough protein. Eat foods with protein uniformly at meals throughout the day, not only at dinner. Consume 60 grams of protein daily, or 20 grams at each meal.
- Get up and move. Even a small amount of activity on a daily basis really helps you reduce body fat and maintain muscle.
- Introduce weight lifting and resistance training into your exercise program.
- Make sure you’re getting enough vitamin D. Take a multi-vitamin with vitamin D in it, and also make sure you are getting calcium from milk or eggs. Bone health and muscle health are closely connected.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
UK research has revealed that many middle-aged office workers are as sedentary as elderly pensioners.
Carried out by the University of Edinburgh’s Physical Activity for Health Research Centre, the team gathered data on 14,367 people in Scotland taken from the 2012-14 Scottish Health Survey, to look at how age and sex affected weekday and weekend sedentary time.
Defined as time spent in any waking activity done while sitting or reclined, sedentary time includes working, eating, reading, watching TV, or spending time on a computer.
Many recent studies have looked at the effects of sedentary time on health, with some experts warning that more than seven hours of inactivity a day can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, and an early death, even if people are physically active at other times of the day.
The results of the new research found that men aged 45 to 54 spend on average 7.8 hours per weekday sitting down, compared with 7.4 hours for the over-75s.
Time spent sitting at work is the main reason for their sedentary time.
The team also found that only the youngest group of men — 16 to 24-year-olds — are significantly less sedentary than the over-75s on weekdays.
Most of the time spent sedentary in this age group is spent in front of a TV or screen.
At the weekend, those aged 25 to 54 were the least sedentary, sitting for between 5.2 and 5.7 hours a day, and in contrast the over 75s were the most sedentary, at 7.3 to 7.4 hours a day.
In addition, the researchers also found that men spend less time in front of a screen as they get older, with women peaking in middle-age.
The results now replace previous findings that older adults are the most sedentary age group in the UK and highlights the potential health risks of excessive sitting at work.
“Large parts of the population are dangerously sedentary, something we have underestimated. We need to tackle high levels of sedentary time in early and middle age, when patterns may develop. Our findings suggest that changing habits in the workplace could be an appropriate place to start, given how much time we spend sitting there every day,” commented one of the study’s authors Tessa Strain.
The findings were published in the Journal of Sports Sciences.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
Obesity is not only an epidemic for the human race. One third of dogs and cats also suffer from it, according to a new American study. A lack of exercise, overfeeding and genetics are all contributory factors.
According to this American study published recently by Banfield Pet Hospital, the number of overweight and obese cats rose by 169% in the US over the past 10 years. For dogs, the increase was 158%. And the numbers are still trending upwards.
The survey analyzed data gathered on 2,521,832 dogs and 505,389 cats based on visits and checks made at veterinary clinics across the country. Almost 30% of the dogs and 33% of the cats seen during these visits were overweight or obese.
The main causes are a lack of exercise and too much food. A genetic predisposition can also be a factor, as some breeds of dogs and cats are more likely to become obese. Pets that have been sterilized also have an increased risk of gaining weight, as hormonal changes can boost their appetite and make them less inclined to play and take a walk.
Obesity has consequences for animal health. It raises the risk of type 2 diabetes, arthritis and heart disease.
Banfield Pet Hospital says that up to the age of 4 months, a kitten should be fed 4 times a day, and then 3 times daily when it is aged between 4 and 6 months. After that, feeding should be no more than twice a day. For dogs, it varies according to the animal’s size, age, physical condition and how active it is.
The study warns against the common attitude of giving treats to a dog or filling its bowl out of love or guilt for leaving it home alone. Portion size is also a problem, as it is often too generous.
Banfield Pet Hospital advises that the ideal weight for a dog or cat is when you can feel the animal’s ribs without being able to see them. If the animal is 10% above its correct weight, its ribs are no longer visible and cannot be felt, and if it is 20% above, no waist can be seen. Anywhere above the 20% mark is considered to be obese.
Only sport and a diet should be used to lower a pet’s weight.
Obesity also affects other types of pets. A British study in 2014 undertaken by the Pet Food Manufacturing Association revealed that 28% of pet rodents were obese and 15% of indoor birds.
And awareness can be an issue. In France, a 2010 survey by BVA/Gamm Vert revealed that only 13% of pet owners thought that their dog had a weight problem.
