|
January 2, 2012
Exercise to slow down mental decline. Starting out this new year with a recent study emphasizing the benefits of exercise may be a little cliche but, nonetheless, very important. This study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine measured the rate of cognitive decline in a group ranging from 70-79 years of age with little physical activity to those in the same age range with more physical activity. Instead of relying on self reporting questionnaires the researchers measured their physical activity expenditure by doubly labeled water, which is considered to be the gold standard measure of total physical activity. What was found was that those that did more physical activity through exercise and other daily activities showed the slowest rate of cognitive decline when compared to those with little physical activity. Other studies have shown that exercise increases neural plasticity, which is the ability of nerve tissue to change and respond to outside stimuli. This was once thought to only occur in the young but recent studies have shown that neural plasticity occurs throughout our life allowing us to continually adapt to different situations in life. When we begin to lose neural plasticity we begin neural degeneration which can eventually lead to neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. Exercise can play a very important role in helping prevent these degenerative processes from occurring. So the obvious question is what kind of exercise and how much? First of all there is no one exercise method that works all the time. The reason is that our bodies will eventually adapt to whatever stressor we place on it. The key is to vary your workouts. I am a strong proponent of resistance training such as weights, kettlebells, or resistance bands. There are so many kinds of exercises you can do that it is quite easy to keep your workouts fresh. I am also a proponent of high intensity cardio training. This type of training involves short bursts - 10 to 45 seconds - of exercise such as sprinting or biking followed by a period of rest of 1-2 minutes. This is repeated for a set time such as 10 or 20 minutes. This type of high intensity exercise has been shown to burn fat and lower insulin resistance compared to traditional jogging.
References:
Activity energy expenditure and incident of cognitive impairment in older adults. Arch Intern Med. 2011 Jul 25;171(14):1251-7. Exercise builds brain health: key roles of growth factor cascades and inflammation. Trends Neurosci. 2007;30(9):464-472.
The effects of high-intensity intermittent exercise training on fat loss and fasting insulin levels of young women. Int J Obes (Lond). 2008 Apr;32(4):684-91
January 5, 2012 Is salt really a killer? Salt causes high blood pressure! That's what we've heard countless times. And while there may be some truth to that, it is not the whole story. According to a recent meta-analysis published in the American Journal of Hypertension there was no clear link between salt intake and cardiovascular disease. In fact, those who already had heart disease had an increase risk of death from eating a low salt diet! Another recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found similar results. Researchers looked at the urinary sodium and potassium excretion and its relationship to heart disease. At baseline, average sodium output was between 4 to 5.99 grams per day. After 56 weeks the group was measured again. Those with a sodium output of less than 2.99 grams per day and greater than 7-8 grams per day had an increased risk of death and cardiovascular incidents. Even according to NHANES I, II, and III conducted between the 1970s through the 1990s found no link between salt intake and cardiovascular disease. According to the conclusions of NHANES III, "... Clearly there is no definitive relationship between salt and heart disease. Eating too little salt can be just as dangerous as eating too much. I prefer to eat a non-refined salt. How do you know if your salt has been refined in some way? If it is pure white it has been refined. Some types salt you may consider using would be Celtic grey salt, Himalayan salt, or my favorite Redmond's Real Salt. All of these have color variations within the salt much like how it would be found in nature. I would not recommend getting most of your salt intake from processed foods such as chips, french fries, and canned foods. There are other problems associated with these foods. As everyone knows salt is critical for life and has been valued for thousands of years. Sodium is critical for regulating blood pressure, blood volume, blood sugar, acid-alkaline balance (pH), and nerve function just to name a few. Certainly if you are one that is sensitive to salt or have a kidney disease controlling your salt intake is vital. But if you do not have a medical condition that requires reducing your salt intake, using salt in proper amounts will not be harmful to your health. References: Reduced Dietary Restriction for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials (Cochrane Review). Amer J Hypertens 24, 843-853 (August 2011) Urinary Sodium and Potassium Excretion and Risk of Cardiovascular Events. JAMA. 2011;306 (20):2229-2238. Dietary sodium intake and mortality: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES I) Lancet. 1998 Mar 14;351(9105):781-5. Sodium intake and mortality in the NHANES II follow-up study. Am J Med. 2006 Mar;119(3):275.e7-14. January 8, 2012 Are you getting enough vitamin D? Vitamin D has been a very popular subject over the last several years with many studies showing just how important it is. Low vitamin D levels have been linked with an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer, depression, infection, diabetes, osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, and a shortened life span. Wow! Are you motivated to get your levels checked yet? It is becoming a routine blood test in many doctors offices. The normal range for vitamin D is quite wide, typically running from 30-100 ng/mL. According to the Council on vitamin D, the optimal range should be from 50-80 ng/mL. My standard blood panel always includes a vitamin D level and what I find is that if you are not supplementing with vitamin D you will not be in the 50-80 ng/mL range. So why is it common for most people not to have optimal levels? First, we are not getting out in the sun enough. Getting out in the sun 15-20 minutes every day with our arms and legs exposed when possible would help increase vitamin D considerably. This is a very healthy amount of sunlight and will not increase your risk for skin cancer. Second, we are not consuming foods that are high in vitamin D. Fatty fish such as salmon, sardines, and mackerel are good sources. Keep in mind these need to be wild caught and not farm raised. Another good source are dairy products from grass fed cows and goats. Grass fed animals are in the sun all day long and have more vitamin D in their milk than animals raised the conventional way. I recommend getting your vitamin D levels checked every year to make sure you are getting an optimal amount of this crucial element. If you are low, re-check your levels every 6-8 weeks until you are within the optimal range. We each require different amounts of vitamin D because of our genetic differences. Testing your levels is the only way to know how much you need. References:
Role of vitamin D in cardiovascular health. Am J Cardiol.2010 Sep 15;106(6):798-805. Vitamin D and diabets. Diabetologia. 2005 Jul;48(7):1247-57. Vitamin D and risk of cognitive decline in elderly persons. Arch Intern Med. 2010;170(13):1135-1141 Association between low serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and depression in a large sample of healthy adults: The Cooper Center Longitudinal Study. Mayo Clin Proc. Nov 2011;86(11):1050-1055 Reducing fracture risk with calcium and vitamin D. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2010 Sep;73(3):277-85. The role of vitamin D in cancer prevention. Am J Public Health. 2006 Feb;96(2):252-61. January 11, 2012 Take vitamin D to reduce your risk of infection. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2010 showed that giving just 1200 i.u. of vitamin D to school age children resulted in a 42% reduction in the flu compared to those children not receiving vitamin D. Also the children not receiving vitamin D had a six-fold increase in asthma attacks. Other studies have shown that vitamin D decreases the risk of upper respiratory infections, asthma, and tuberculosis. Additionally, there are small studies that suggest vitamin D may play a beneficial role in HIV patients by increasing certain white blood cell counts and decreasing premature death. Vitamin D apparently activates an antimicrobial peptide called cathelicidin which has a direct regulatory mechanism on the immune system by activating T-cells to produce substances that kill bacteria. References: Randomized trial of vitamin D supplementation to prevent seasonal influenza A in schoolchildren. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 May;91(5):1255-60. Vitamin D as an inducer of cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide expression: past, present and future. Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol.2009 Jun;9(3):202-7. Vitamin D, innate immunity and upper respiratory tract infection. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2010 Jul;121(1-2):234-8. A potential role for vitamin D on HIV infection? Nutr Rev. 2006 May;64(5 Pt 1):226-33.
January 16, 2012 Kids who exercise perform better in school. Is is a well known fact that our population is getting fatter and kids are no exception. Childhood obesity has risen dramatically over the last decade. As most of us know the rise in video games and junk food are probably the two most important components to this epidemic. Kids do not play outside like they used to. The Center for Disease Control says that adults and children should engage in 60 minutes of physical activity every day. How many Americans are doing that? According to many studies there is a direct correlation between the amount of exercise a child does and his/her cognitive performance which translates into higher grades in school. There is also a link between improved cognition and vitamin D levels. Although these studies have been done on adults it is not a far stretch to extend the same results to children. So the more children (and adults) are outside playing the more vitamin D they will make. When I tell my kids to go outside to play they may fuss at first but within minutes they have made up their own game to play and are laughing and running around having a blast. References: http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/guidelines/children.html Exercise improves executive function and achievement and alters brain activation in overweight children: a randomized, controlled trial. Health Psychol. 2011 Jan;30(1):91-8. Exercise and Children's Intelligence, Cognition, and Academic Achievement. Educ Psychol Rev. 2008 Jun 1;20(2):111-131. Effects of aerobic exercise on overweight children's cognitive functioning: a randomized controlled trial. Res Q Exerc Sport. 2007 Dec;78(5):510-9. January 26, 2012
Chiropractic benefits
The pratice of spinal adjusting has been around for thousands of years dating back to ancient China. Chiropractic was first officially started in 1895 by D.D. Palmer with the first chiropractic college opening in Davenport, Iowa. Since that time there have been millions of people (and animals) treated with spinal adjusting techniques with amazing success. Although the anecdotal success stories are millions strong, there have been few clinical studies measuring its effect.
Only over the past few decades have there been studies showing the benefit of chiropractic care over medical care in the treatment of low back pain. These studies have shown chiropractic is a safer alternative and has a higher satisfaction rate over medical treatments.
A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine in 2004 showed multiple benefits of chiropractic care. The authors of the study reviewed 1.7 million health insurance claims, 700,000 claims of those with chiropractic coverage and 1,000,000 claims of those without chiropractic coverage over a four year period.
The outcome showed that when chiropractic was utilized there was a 28% reduction in medical costs (which was conservatively estimated to $16,000,000 in annual savings!), a 41% reduction in hospitalizations, a 32% reduction in back surgery, and a 37% reduction in medical imaging including x-ray and MRI. Wow!
One would think it would be a no brainer to include chiropractic coverage with equal benefits as standard medical care. However, the authors of this study state, "...there is growing evidence for the low risks associated with chiropractic spinal manipulation in most cases and favorable evidence for its effectiveness in treating low back pain. In addition, patients treated for back pain by DCs tend to be more satisfied than patients treated by MDs. However, despite this evidence for safety, effectiveness, and growing public demand, health insurance coverage for chiropractic care continues to remain restricted, relative to other health services, particularly in the managed care sector."
References: Comparative Analysis of Individuals With and Without Chiropractic Coverage: Patient Characteristics, Utilization, and Costs. Arch Intern Med. 2004;164:1985-1992.
February 10, 2012 Vitamin C can lower blood pressure There have been several studies on animals and humans showing an indirect relationship between vitamin C and high blood pressure. In other words, the higher amount of vitamin C that was measured in plasma the lower the blood pressure. And conversely, the lower the amount of vitamin C measured in plasma the higher the blood pressure. In 1999 the Lancet published a study that looked 45 patients from differing backgrounds but all with high blood pressure. All of these patients stopped taking their high blood pressure medications as to not interfere with the study results. The study group was given 500 milligrams of vitamin C. After one month of supplementation blood pressure measurements were taken again. In general, systolic pressure dropped from 155 to 142 and diastolic pressure dropped from 87 to 79! Other studies have shown that increased fruit and vegetable consumption (which are high in vitamin C) can lower blood pressure. Unfortunately, many Americans do not consume enough fruits and vegetables to have an adequate supply of vitamin C. Additionally, the high stress lifestyle that all Americans adopt and the large amounts of junk food consumed further depletes vitamin C and other nutrients critically important to maintaining proper blood pressure.
References: Treatment of hypertension with ascorbic acid. The Lancet. 1999 Dec;354:2048-9.
Association between plasma vitamin C concentrations and blood pressure in the European prospective investigation into cancer-Norfolk population-based study. Hypertension. 2011 Sep;58(3):372-9.
Ascorbic acid, blood pressure, and the American diet. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2002 Apr;959:180-7. |
|
|
Blog |