Moderate Exercise Yields Big Benefits

Moderate Exercise Yields Big Benefits - ScienceDaily
2008.01.04
"...The January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter lists some of the benefits of 30 minutes of exercise a day:

• Lower blood pressure: A reduction of 5 to 10 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) is possible. In some cases, that’s enough to prevent or reduce the need for blood pressure medications.
• Improve cholesterol: Exercise often increases the concentration of high-density lipoprotein (HDL or “good” cholesterol in the blood), especially when accompanied by weight loss. Exercise also helps reduce triglyceride levels.
• Prevent or manage type 2 diabetes: Exercise helps insulin work better, lowering blood sugar.
• Manage weight: Coupling exercise with a healthy diet is the best way to shed fat and maintain a healthier body composition.
• Prevent osteoporosis: Exercise may increase bone density and protect against bone mass decline, especially if weight-bearing activities are involved.
• Prevent cancer: Exercise has been shown to strengthen the immune system, improve circulation, reduce body fat and speed digestion. Each has a role in preventing cancer, particularly cancers of the colon, prostate, uterine lining and breast.
• Maintain mental well-being: Exercise may help reduce stress, improve mild-to-moderate depression and anxiety, improve sleep and boost moods.
• Increase energy and stamina: A lack of energy often results from inactivity, not age.""

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Depression, Aging, And Proteins Made By A Virus May All Play Role In Heart Disease

ScienceDaily: Depression, Aging, And Proteins Made By A Virus May All Play Role In Heart Disease
2007.10.04
"Researchers here have linked an increase in two immune system proteins essential for inflammation to a latent viral infection and proposed a chain of events that might accelerate cardiovascular disease...The findings also suggest that chronic depression may play a key role in starting the cascade that can lead to the buildup of plaques clogging coronary arteries...

Ronald Glaser, a professor of molecular virology, immunology and medical genetics at Ohio State University , said, “To me, this suggests a new way of thinking about how these diseases develop. We carry around these latent herpes viruses in our bodies virtually all our lives and periodically they can hurt us, inducing biological events that could lead to an increased risk of atherosclerosis.”

Glaser, head of Ohio State's Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research, has focused for years on Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), one of eight different herpesviruses that can remain dormant in the body for a lifetime...

As the immune system ages, the levels of IL-6 in the body increase in the blood. Some of that IL-6 is created by immune cells called macrophages that rush to the site of an infection or injury. Earlier work by the team also showed that increases in psychological stress and depression can substantially raise the levels of IL-6 and TNF-a in the body.

Increased stress and depression can also trigger the latent virus to reactivate and begin reproducing inside cells

The researchers also knew that as Epstein-Barr virus begins to multiply in cells in the body, it produces a protein called dUTpase that, in turn, can stimulate macrophages to make even more IL-6.

The more IL-6 levels rise in the body, the greater a person's risk is for disease,” Glaser said, adding that IL-6 increases, as well as depression, have been associated with cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and type-2 diabetes..."

Clearly a vicious cycle. One answer would be truly effective, broad brush antivirals. But they don't exist yet. So how would one ramp down IL-6? Omega 3's. Ring any bells? There has been recent speculation that some forms of unipolar depression are the result of immune dysfunction. Could it be that some of that immune dysfunction is caused by "latent" viruses like Epstein-Barr? And that for some people fish oil is somewhat effective for depression because it addresses elevated IL-6 levels? And of course fish oil has proven effective at combating heart disease, osteoporosis and type-2 diabetes. Connections...

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The miracle of vitamin D

I had been working on an entry showing how vitamin D seems to help prevent and sometimes fight a surprisingly large number of diseases. Well I can stop because at QualityCounts (excellent anti-aging/health blog) Bernard Hess has listed the current research on Vitamin D.

See if you don't read the list and want to get some safe sun time tomorrow, or at least pop some D3.

Here's a short list of health disorders vitamin d can either help prevent or fight:

Cancers (so many cancers - refer to the QualityCounts link above)
Diabetes
Heart Disease
Osteoporosis
Hypertension
Obesity
Shortened Telomeres
Macular Disease
Weak Immune System
Multiple Sclerosis MS
Chronic Fatigue
Fibromyalgia
Stress Fractures
Poor Physical Performance (weakened muscles)
Asthma
Tuberculosis
Gum Disease
Depression
Arthritis

Hey the list goes on and on. It's truly amazing and I hope the health care field wakes up to this. A short while ago my wife, who runs most mornings and gets tan without burning, was chastised by our GP for the tan. I just looked at him at amazement and knew it was time for another doctor. He's older and obviously does not keep up with research (in my experience most doctors shamefully do not - remember how long it took for most GP's to recognize the H. Pylori connection to ulcers?). The general chastising over a tan might have been justified two decades ago. A more educated GP would first ask how the tan was acquired and then if the tan was acquired through burns would express concern and offer advice - including D3 supplementation. It's about time to qualify tans and recognize that some tans can be an indicator of a healthy lifestyle.

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DHA linked to denser bones

Omega-3 fatty acids linked to denser bones in men Reuters/Scientific American.com 3/22/07 "men who had the highest levels of omega-3s in their blood as 22-year-olds showed the greatest bone mineral density, and also built the most bone between their late teens and their early 20s...The amount of bone mineral people accumulate as adolescents and young adults is considered a key factor in whether or not they will develop the brittle bone disease osteoporosis later on, Hogstrom and his team note the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition...Animal studies have suggested omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in fish and flaxseed as well as other food sources, may promote bone formation and density...Higher blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids, especially DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), were linked to greater bone mineral density in the body and the spine at age 22. Higher levels of omega-3s were also tied to greater accumulation of spinal bone mineral density between age 16 and age 22...Omega-3 fatty acids, the authors point out, might influence bone formation by affecting calcium metabolism or the formation of collagen..."

So another study that shows why omega-3's help fight osteoporosis and other bone disorders later in life. One question I have is did these young men have fewer fractures than average due to the greater bone mineral density? If so this would be another benefit of omega 3 fatty acids.

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The Benefits of Yogurt

What's tasty, easy, and has lots of health benefits? Yogurt! WebMD 3/5/07 "Benefit No. 1: Yogurt May Help Prevent Osteoporosis...''The combination of calcium and vitamin D has a clear skeletal benefit, provided the dose of vitamin D is sufficiently high,'' ...Benefit No. 2: Yogurt May Reduce the Risk of High Blood Pressure...''We observed a 50% reduction in the risk of developing high blood pressure among people eating 2-3 servings of low-fat dairy a day (or more), compared with those without any intake,'' ...Benefit No. 3: Yogurt With Active Cultures Helps the Gut...Yogurt with active cultures may help certain gastrointestinal conditions, including:Lactose intolerance - Constipation - Diarrhea -Colon cancer - Inflammatory bowel disease - H. pylori infection
That's what researchers from the Jean Mayer U.S. Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University concluded in a recent review article.The benefits are thought to be due to: Changes in the microflora of the gut -The time food takes to go through the bowel -Enhancement of the body's immune system... Benefit No. 4: Yogurt With Active Cultures May Discourage Vaginal Infections...the vaginal pH (measure of acidity or basicity) of the group eating yogurt with active cultures dropped from 6.0 to 4.0 (normal pH is 4.0-4.5)...Benefit No. 5: Yogurt May Help You Feel Fuller..."

The article on yogurt continues at WebMD.

What about probiotics for dogs? Here's one of the studies showing they benefit as well: Effects of probiotic bacteria in dogs with food responsive diarrhoea treated with an elimination diet. Of course what strains that are best for us, might not be best for them.

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