Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Social Networking & Medical Advice

Social networking is everywhere these days, but is it a good source of medical information?

Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace are everywhere these days. These sites allow us to keep in touch with the world all day long. For the most part that can be fun and informative. However, when it comes to your own health, you might want to take a step back. Relying on information you get from a social network site might not be the best step.

As a matter of fact, a new study in the American Journal of Infection Control shows that over a 4-month period in 2009, hundreds of Twitter users posted casual misinformation about antibiotics -- which, in turn, reached more than a million people who followed them.

The problem is when experts looked at this information, they found some of the advice was wrong and could potentially lead to more health problems.

Not all the advice is wrong, but since it's hard to tell the good from the bad, experts have tips on what to do with the information you get from any web site.
1. (& most important) Verify the site with a reputable Website and talk to your doctor. You wouldn't take a pill someone off the street offered you, yet that's essentially what's happening with a tweet.
2. Know the source. If they are trying to sell something, be extra cautious.

Again, not all the information is wrong, but you need to do a little homework to figure out which ones are OK.

Monday, March 29, 2010

Older Women & Exercise

There is new information out about how much women need to exercise as they get older in order to fight the flab... and it's probably more than you think.

This new study shows, that for women, as they get up into their late 40s and early 50s, one-hour per day is what's needed to keep the weight off.

In the past, we've talked about a whole bunch of studies showing exercising 30-minutes a day, five or more times a week, can help keep you fit. However, no one really took into consideration what happens as we get older.

Although our metabolism slows down, the truth of the matter is we also get more sedentary, yet keep eating the same as we age, and that helps add those creeping pounds you notice every year.

The researchers of this new study looked at over 34,000 women whose average age was 54, and followed them for 13 years. Those that gained little or no weight in those 13 years also ended up being the ones who consistently exercised one-hour per day.

These researchers acknowledge that not everyone can do that and say that less exercise will help keep you healthy, although it may not help you shed the unwanted weight.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Tips To Fight Spring Allergies

If you suffer from asthma or allergies, Spring in Colorado can be rough. So, here are some tips that could help keep the sneezing and itching to a minimum.

It’s definitely that time of the year. Although the temperature is all over the place right now, pollen is starting to float around. That means it’s probably starting to be a bad time for your allergies.

But itchy eyes, runny nose and constant sneezing can be helped out by making your house an allergy friendly one.

One recommendation for allergy suffers is to stay indoors during the morning, especially before 10 am. And to head inside if the pollen count is going to be high on a particular day. But the problem is, our indoor environment might not be too allergy friendly either.

But by taking a few simple steps, you can fix that, and make your home---your allergy sanctuary.

By some estimates, a house can have 2 to 5 times the pollution as the outside air. And some of the problems can be found right in your bedroom. Dust mites, those microscopic, alien looking bugs that wreck havoc on your allergies, love soft furnishings---like you bedding material. You can help by covering your mattresses and box springs with a zippered mite-proof case. Do the same for pillows, even those that are hypo-allergenic, or at least wash them in hot water once a week. Before you go to bed, wash your hair, otherwise all the day’s pollen that got in it will be spread to your pillow.

And never allow pets in your bedroom, or for that matter stuffed animals---unless they are the kind that can be washed.

These steps should help keep your house your allergy free zone.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Pine Mouth Syndrome

If you get a funny taste in your mouth after eating a salad, it could be the pine nuts.

Americans are using more pine nuts than ever before. Whether cooking, using them as part of a salad or to make a pesto sauce, pine nuts have become more popular. But with this popularity more people are also noticing what doctors call the “pine mouth syndrome”.

Although it's still considered a rare syndrome, last year 51 people reported to the FDA complaints of “taste disturbances” related to pine nuts. Basically, something in these nuts causes a metallic taste in the mouth that can last up to two weeks. Usually the taste change comes about a day or two after eating the nuts or something made with them.

Doctors haven't studied this affect yet. But according to a report just published in the journal of Medical Toxicology by Dr Marc-David Munk, from the University of New Mexico Department of Emergency Medicine, more examples of it are cropping up every year. And although the exact cause isn't known, Dr Munk thinks something in the pine nut affects the signal between taste buds and the brain.

This condition isn't dangerous, and again usually only lasts a week or two. One solution might be as simple as switching to a different bag of pine nuts. Meanwhile, doctors continue to study the issue and hopefully can find the exact cause soon.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Going Bald & Prostate Cancer

Going bald early on might not be all bad news, especially when it comes to prostate cancer.

It looks like men that go bald early are also less likely to get prostate cancer.

Now, going bald early isn't something most guys look forward to. It's usually a result of genes and based on your family history it can mean a shiny dome earlier than most other guys.

But researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine have found a silver lining to this. They studied over two thousand men, aged 40 to 46, and looked at their baldness, testosterone levels and how many ended up developing prostate cancer.

It turns out those whose hair started thinning before they turned 30 had up to a 45% reduction in their risk of getting prostate cancer. More importantly, these researchers think they might have found a big clue as to why this was happening, something that could help in the fight against this type of cancer.

The clue came about because men who have higher levels of testosterone also end up losing more hair follicles early on. So now researchers are looking to see if high testosterone levels, and the early baldness--lower the chance of prostate cancer which can combine into a more effective treatment for this type of cancer. A great silver lining to any cloud.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Pearly Whites

A nice white smile is one reason for a visit to the dentist. But you might also want to visit one before you become pregnant.

It's because that visit might keep you from having a premature baby.

Gum disease has been linked to an increase risk of heart problems and other diseases. But now it looks like that same issue might also increase a pregnant woman's chances of having an early birth.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania looked at women who were between 6 and 20 weeks pregnant and focused in on the health of their teeth and gums. All of the women had some amount of gum disease and were treated. One third of the treatments were successful. Those whose treatment weren't successful also ended up being significantly more likely to give birth before 35 weeks. And since having a preemie can also mean more health problems for the baby, this study, according to the researchers involved, highlights a connection between mom's gum disease and an unborn babies health.

Other experts say the connection between the two hasn't been firmly established yet and that further research is needed. In the meanwhile, getting a dental checkup early in the pregnancy still might be one key to having a healthy child.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Calcium

We're talking about getting more calcium, one trick that may add years to your life.

Calcium is essential for our health but most people simply recognize it as something we need to keep bones strong, especially for women. And for men, the government recommends 1,000 milligrams a day if your 19 to 49 and 1,200 milligrams if your older.

But Swedish researchers wanted to find out if calcium might be more important for men than just to keep their bones strong. So they looked at over twenty thousand between the ages of 45 and 79 to see if calcium might actually help keep them living longer. After following them for ten years they found the ones consuming the most calcium in their diets also ended up having a lower chance of dying by the end of the study. Those same men ended up getting upwards of 2,000 milligrams of calcium a day, nearly double of the recommended daily allowance.

The men in this study got calcium from their diet so it's hard to tell if supplements will work the same way. And like all medications, herbs or supplements, there are side effects to taking too much calcium, and it can interfere with other medications so check with your doctor before adding more to your daily routine.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Sunburned While Skiing

This might seem like a strange winter topic, but if you've ever gotten sunburned skiing, you know what we're talking about.

The common mantra for years has been to use a sunscreen of spf 15 or higher to prevent that burn. And preventing the burn is important to avoiding skin cancer. But as just about anyone around here can tell you, even if you lather on the spf 15 sunscreen, you still might end up a bit red. Here's why---our altitude is too high for just an spf 15 sunscreen---it looks like you might even need something as strong as 70+ to get good protection.

Researchers were trying to find out if our high altitude and sun exposure also meant that some sunscreens might not work as well as we thought they would. They took golfers at Vail and ski instructors at Aspen and applied different levels of sunscreen to different halves of their face. A low spf was placed on one side and a higher spf on the other. It turns out the low SPF side wasn't protected enough to prevent a sunburn.

The low spf sunscreens that didn't do enough to protect from a burn included those sunscreens with an SPF 50 level or lower. According to these researchers, since we get a more intense sun exposure because of our high altitude, you might want to make sure you put on the higher level sunscreens---those with an spf of at least 70---to get the best protection.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Is Coffee Good or Bad for your Health?

If you’re grabbing that morning cup of coffee right now but wondering if it’s good for your health or not, you now have less to worry about.

I think the big finding is that it’s not bad for your health, especially
the heart, but needs to be used in moderation.

And not being bad for your health, you have to remember, isn’t necessarily the same thing as being good for your health.

Studies just presented at the American Heart Association annual conference showed both some good and not so good points about coffee drinking. On the good side, researchers found that those who drank four cups a day also had a smaller chance of being hospitalized for a heart arrhythmia. And female coffee drinkers even cut their chances of getting type 2 diabetes by over 50 percent, mainly because of the caffeine in the coffee.

But again, not all the news was good. Researchers did find a potential link between coffee and high blood pressure. So I think the bottom line is that coffee isn’t something you want to treat like a medicine but at the same time it appears that drinking it in moderation, even when it has caffeine, won’t hurt your health.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Strokes on the Rise in the Young

Strokes are on the rise in one segment of the population, young people.

For years strokes have been thought of as a problem that gets worse as we get older. But even though we didn't use to think they affected younger adults, that's the one group were the number of strokes are actually going up. And that's raising alarms in the medical community.

Recently a lot of effort has been placed on preventing strokes. The message has gotten out—controlling high blood pressure and cholesterol, exercising regularly, and stopping smoking are your best bets to keeping your risk of having a stroke as low as possible But this message has been mainly targeted at us as we get older. And it's worked! The rates of strokes in the elderly have improved over the last few years.

But a new group, surprising some experts, is actually showing an increase in strokes! Since 1993, there's been a rise in stroke victims younger than 45. Experts think it's because prevention messages haven't been targeted to this age group, but are hoping that will change soon. And they say the message is the same, whether you're 40 or 80. Exercise, eat well and quit smoking. Hopefully this message for all groups will cut everyone's chances of a stoke over the next few years.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Snacks and Childhood Obesity

When it comes to fighting childhood obesity, it might not be the meals they eat we need to worry about, but the snacks.

Because as much as kids as snacking these days, it's almost like they are constantly eating , and that's the problem. Just about everyone's heard it by now, childhood obesity is a continuing problem and experts point to plenty of reasons why it's happening and how to fix it. But this new group of researchers has found the amount of snacking kids do during the day can be part of it. After looking at the eating habits of over thirty thousand children they found a large amount of snacking---meaning foods eaten outside of regular meals. On the average, the kids in the study ended up snacking around three times per day and this snacking totaled over one fourth of the calories they eat in a given day. And the main choice?---salty snacks and sweets.

Although this might only add around 100 calories a day to their diet, if you think about that's over 35,000 extra calories a year. That can pile on the pounds. So you best bet is to get rid of the tempting snacks in your pantry and think twice about what you put in their lunch. An occasional snack every now and then isn't necessarily bad, you just want to make sure they aren't eating something all day long.

Monday, March 1, 2010

A Secret the Athletes Have Been Using for Years

Want to work out but never seem to have the time?

It's a secret the elite athletes have been using for years but researchers weren't sure the average person would be able to do, until now. We're talking about intense interval training, and they say you can get a weeks
worth of workouts in just one hour.

We've all been there, you want to work out but got home to late from the office, or had too much to do that day. So the workout suffered and you never ended up exercising.

Well, for years researchers have known that interval training can help elite athletes compete but were afraid that it would be too hard for most of us---that we simply wouldn't be able to stand how intense those workouts really are. But recent studies suggest that older people and even those with some health problems can do it. And this type of training not only saves them time, but works well to get them in shape.

Interval training is intense and consists of working very hard for a few minutes, but having rest periods between sets. Those rest periods are as important as the high intensity work periods, allowing you to recover so you can max out the intervals. Most people tested in these studies were running or cycling, but this also applies to other sports like swimming.

There are a different ways you can do these workouts, but some experts recommend 4 intense four minute workouts with a three minute rest in between. Of course, check with you doctor before you start this intense of a workout regime, but interval training might be the answer to the ever present dilemma of not enough time to work out.