Jul
26
2010
I was running on the treadmill last night and listening to a news story about a research study that showed the benefits from “light or moderate intensity physical activity.”* It made me think about all the times I have recommended to my friends and readers of this column, that all you need to start with is ten minutes of exercise a day (read “Take Ten”). The results are now proven scientifically: even a low level (low intensity) of exercise, over a small amount of time, can be helpful at improving your life* in quantity and quality. So then I started to think about whether we can correlate this to eating and did some preliminary research into the calorie restriction concept. From very early studies in mice and monkeys*, calorie restriction has led to longer life spans and has delayed the onset of many chronic diseases (e.g. cancer, heart disease and stroke).
In the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s most recent estimates, there are over 36 million people over the age of 65 and about 200,000 people over the age of 100. And according to the United Nations, by 2013, there will be over 3 million people in the world over the age of 100. So our population is growing and living ...
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Jul
23
2010
First, I want to thank tennis great John McEnroe for allowing me to use one of his famous lines when he was questioning a call from a judge at one of his professional tennis tournaments. I always wanted to use it in one of my articles, so thanks John. But in all seriousness, this issue of caffeine for kids is getting out of control. Yes I am aware that it is the young adults, teens and preteens that are becoming the “fastest growing group of coffee drinkers” according to the National Coffee Association. Even prime time television shows actors drinking caffeine drinks- the character “Abby Sciuto”, played by actress Pauley Perrette, is a forensic scientist in one of my favorite shows-NCIS (CBS), drinks a huge plastic cup called a “Caf-Pow” given to her as a reward for her amazing ability to come up with answers to puzzling clues using an array of technology and science. I do think she drinks way too much of it! Yes I am aware that in America alone, close to 500 million cups of coffee are consumed each and every day, with coffee drinkers drinking an average of 2.6 cups per day. The total caffeine intake per day for coffee drinkers is an astounding 363.5mg!!! In the United States, 80% of all adults consume caffeine on a daily basis-and the average daily consumption of caffeine ...
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Mar
02
2010
I am sure that by now most of you have seen the recent articles implicating soft drinks and juice and pancreatic cancer. We already know that our children are drinking more sodas and the rates of childhood obesity are sky rocketing-relationship-I think so!! Now, researchers are confirming prior studies demonstrating a relationship with soda and cancer. Actually, the most recent study was just published in the February 2010 issue of Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention: “Soft Drink and Juice Consumption and Risk of Pancreatic Cancer: The Singapore Chinese Health Study” with lead author Noel T. Mueller (Cancer Control Program, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, District of Columbia). 60,524 people in the Singapore Chinese Health Study were enrolled and followed for 14 years. Those participants that drank 2 or more drinks (sweetened soda) per week had a statistically significant greater risk of developing pancreatic cancer compared with those people in the study that did not drink the sodas. There was no association with those people in the study that drank juice. The conclusion by the authors was: “Regular consumption of soft drinks may play an independent role in the development of pancreatic cancer.”
SIDE BAR:
What is the pancreas: it is an organ in the body that hangs out behind the stomach and its job is to produce hormones (think of them as tiny messengers) like INSULIN that are released in response ...
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