Portrait on the Mantel

Drinking cold fluids lowers core body temperature by some 70%. Liquid calories that you consume are converted to energy and lost as heat. So if your exercise is intense you produce more heat, the heat you produce actually slows your performance because your heart has to work harder to pump extra blood from your hot muscles to the skin to dissipate the heat. Several studies have shown that consuming cold fluids while you exercise lowers your body temperature and improve your performance on average by 10% (International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, April 2010).

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Researchers at Rutgers and Columbia Universities released their study prior to publication, poor kids are more likely to be given antipsychotic drugs than middle class kids and for less serious conditions.

Previous research showed rates of illness was 2 times higher in families with poor kids, but it doesn’t explain why these kids are prescribed drugs 4 times higher than kids from middle class families. However 1 explanation may be due to doctors prescribe more drugs to Medicaid patients because the public insurer pays less for non drug treatments like counseling than private insurance companies.

The doctors believe this method is easier for patients and doctors, but what’s not clear is what they’re prescribing and for what. The study found that kids on Medicaid were significantly more likely to be prescribed antipsychotic drugs for conduct disorders, hyperactivity, aggression or defiance than middle class kids, who were more likely to be prescribed the drugs for severe mental conditions.

Medicare spends more on antipsychotics than any other drug class, $7.9 billion per year

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According to a study conducted by researchers from the Medical University of Graz, Austria and published in the journal Clinical Endocrinology, sunbathing and vitamin D may help increase men’s testosterone level. They found that vitamin D and testosterone levels peak during the summer and dropped in the winter. They also found that men who had at least 30 nanograms of vitamin D in every mililiter of blood had the highest levels of circulating testosterone.

Vitamin D is known to not only help the body develop and maintain a healthy skeleton. It also regulate the immune system and prevent against chronic health conditions such as heart disease, dementia and cancer.

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Researcher from University of California Berkeley found that people who take naps during the day are improving their overall brain function. Scientist have long been trying to figure out whether or not mid day naps are beneficial. This study seems to suggest that naps help a person to process short term memories into long term ones, clearing the temp storage portion of the brain so that new information can take its place.

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Boosting your metabolism is within your reach but 1st understanding how the metabolism works might be helpful. The basic process of metabolism is the breakdown and delivery of nutrients from the food that we eat into every cell in our bodies. There are many methods for increasing and improving your metabolism. A few changes can boost your metabolism;

• Drinking water helps every cell in the digestive system metabolize food properly. Drink 1/2 oz of water for every pound of body weight (so that a 170 lbs individual should consume 85 oz or roughly 5 bottles of water)
• Consistently burn calories through activity to balance the use of carbs and fats consumed in the diet. This will help the metabolism work more efficiently.
• Eating smaller portions as meals and eating more meals throughout the day helps the metabolism work efficient. Eating large meals tend to cause large portions of those meals to be stored as fat.
• Consuming more soluble fiber will burn carbs for a longer time period. This also increase metabolic efficiency because the body doesn’t have to work as hard to digest food.

When you try these don’t expect an over night miracle, rather be consistent and watch the changes occur.

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Teen girls eat substantially worse than teen boys and older women, according to preliminary results of a UK Nutrition survey. Girls consumed about 13% of their daily calories from saturated fat which is higher than the recommended daily max on 11%.

Teen girls unhealthy habits do not stop at junk food; 29% reported smoking cigarettes oppose to 16% of boys, 11% of girls between 13 – 15 drank alcohol weekly compared with 1% of boys.  The girls calorie consumption as a whole was lacking in fruits and veggies with 2.8% reporting they ate any per day, the girls also didn’t eat enough iron rich foods placing them at risk of becoming anemic.

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Researchers from Columbia University has found that people who consume nuts, poultry, fish, veggies, fruits and olive oil lower their risk of developing Alzheimer disease by 40%.  Researchers commented that Diet is probably the easiest way to modify disease risk.

Other studies focused on food groups that are commonly associated with lowering Alzheimer disease risk. These foods have omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, B vitamins, folate and vitamin E.  In this study people who ate less red meat and dairy products, consumed more fruits, veggies, nuts and fish.

A heart healthy diet protects the brain from strokes, which in turn protect people from developing Alzheimer disease. The researchers did make clear that diet only works preventatively and that there is no cure for Alzheimer however other studies do seem to indicate that high doses of certain nutrients and foods may actually reverse the serious form of dementia that afflicts more than 26 million people around world.

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Research out of Georgia State University is demonstrating that drinks which contain both glucose and fructose burn more carbs than those containing only glucose and allow athletes to perform at a faster pace over the duration of their events (published International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism April 2010).

Most soft drinks are sweeten with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and table sugars. The HFCS has 55% fructose, 42% glucose and sucrose is mixed 50/50. The fructose in sucrose is bound to glucose and must first be separated from it, so it is absorbed more slowly into the bloodstream. Typically, HFCS is absorbed more rapidly into the bloodstream, which could cause a rise in blood sugar and provide more sugar for muscles during exercise.

Studies have confirmed that caffeine increases endurance by increasing absorption of sugar by muscle. Those who drink sugar drinks with caffeine were able to absorb and use 26%  more of the sugar they ingested than those who drank non caffeine drinks.

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According to the Nutrition Journal July’s issue eating eggs do not constrict arteries in people with high cholesterol. Researchers used a test to predict which foods are likely to increase risk for arteriosclerosis. Having arteriosclerosis increase your risk of developing heart attacks and diabetes.

This research showed that people who ate an egg substitute daily for 6 weeks received an even greater reduction in artery constricting substances that those who ate whole eggs. To date multiple studies are showing eating eggs does not increase risk of heart disease.

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Research published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute demonstrated that over diagnosis of cancer is a problem in the U. S.  The authors of the study concluded that this development needs to be guided based on clinical and research strategies to quantify, recognize and deal with cancer ’s over diagnosis.

The finding revealed that about 25% of breast cancer detected on mammograms, 60% of prostate cancer detected with a PSA test could represent an over diagnosis. Lung cancer diagnosed with chest x-ray and sputum test estimates are that about 50% are over diagnosed. CT colonography also detects abnormalities outside the colon that can lead to miss diagnosis.

The researchers mentioned several ways to address the problem of over diagnosis, educating patients about the risks and benefits involved with early detection. Or raising the threshold at which screening test results are labeled abnormal and treatment is needed.

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