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July 15, 2009

Use It (your body) or Lose It (your mind)!

Fit Body, Fit Mind? Your Workout Makes You Smarter

So you want to be smarter? Then exercise your body together with your brain for overall better results. A study released in Scientific American, reports of the powerful link between physical activity and mental acuity. If you find yourself struggling to break through a mental block, try exercising to break down that barrier and get your mind fit as well as your body. There are three key concepts explained below that should help spur you to add consistent, moderate exercise to your daily regime. On a personal note, I have found that when I am struggling to overcome a mental block, I take a long walk or a hike in the nearby mountains and let my subconscious mind go to work. on the issue. This has proven incredibly beneficial; the only real problem is that I can lose myself to thought so much I can find myself exercising into my work time! A healthy body and health mind can be achieved at the same time, try it for yourself and reap the benefits.

*Below are the key concepts from the article.


Key Concepts
  • We are used to thinking of intelligence as largely a matter of genetic inheritance, but that is not the whole picture. What you do affects your mental well-being: staying physically and mentally active helps us stay sharp as we age.
  • Nevertheless, our personal efforts to bolster cognitive enhancement cannot forestall all declines in our cognitive performance.
  • What is especially surprising is the powerful link between physical activity and mental acuity. Staying fit helps us keep cognition more robust as well.

    Sources:
    Scientific American magazine
    http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fit-body-fit-mind

    by Derek Burreson

Posted by Derek Burreson at 10:36 AM |

July 07, 2009

B.O......Uh Oh.

During summer when we tend to be active in the heat, we can face problems of being a sweaty mess.  That's one thing, but staving off B.O. is another.  Discovering what causes B.O. in the first place may give us answers as to how to control it.  Underarm odor in particular is not caused simply by perspiration.  Perspiration by itself is generally odorless.  Notice that the sweat on your face or other parts of the body doesn't really have a stench.  When sweat is in a confined, damp area it decomposes and causes odor-causing bacteria to form.  When this combines with the body's natural salt and uric acid, it can bring about odor.  So, keeping perspiration at bay, and using a deodorant to "mask" the potential odors is the most common way to say "no to B.O."

by Cindy Burreson 

Posted by Cindy Burreson at 09:44 AM |

July 06, 2009

It’s So Easy Being Green (Tea)

Green Tea Could Delay Prostate Cancer: U.S. study

Green tea, a great alternative to the cup of java to get our morning started but here is some helpful information to its other benefits as well. In the great reference book “Prescription for Nutritional Healing” by Phyllis A. Balch, green tea is said to have *antioxidant, antibacterial and antiviral health-enhancing properties.
According to a recent research article, it’s reported the active antioxidant compounds in green tea have shown to slow down the progression of prostate cancer. The testing is in its early stages but it looks promising. The article goes on to state that Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among American men. The American Cancer Society projects prostate cancer will be diagnosed in 192,280 men and will kill 27,360 in 2009. These are some scary statistics, but it’s important to remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Whether you enjoy drinking your green tea or through supplements, it can be a healthful addition as part of an overall nutrition plan that includes multiple-antioxidants that can work synergistically to support the body.

Source:
(Reporting by I-Ching Ng; Editing by Maggie Fox and Eric Walsh)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090619/hl_nm/us_cancer_tea_1

* Though green tea has shown to have antioxidant properties, the FDA currently does not recognize it as an “antioxidant” for marketing and label claims.
by Derek Burreson

 

Posted by Derek Burreson at 10:42 AM |

July 03, 2009

Do You Mean Drinking Red Wine Can Actually be Good for Me?

Red Wine Compound Resveratrol Demonstrates Significant Health Benefits

If this is music to your ears, hold on; there’s a little more you should know before throwing caution to the wind.
Drinking in moderation has been shown to yield some health benefits, while drinking too much can cause a multitude of health problems. How does red wine have health benefits? It contains polyphenols including one called resveratrol that researchers have identified as having potent antioxidant benefits that act as free radical scavengers in the body. This is the basis of the “French Paradox” which is the observation that the French suffer a relatively low incidence of coronary heart disease, despite having a diet rich in saturated fats, due to their higher consumption of red wine. There are many studies being conducted on the benefits of consuming moderate amounts of red wine, but confusion still remains with researchers on whether the health benefits extend to beer, white wine or distilled spirits. Resveratrol has shown to have antioxidant and free radical scavenging properties but only vitamin C, vitamin E and beta carotene are recognized “antioxidants” by the FDA.  In addition to red wine, resveratrol can be found in non-alcoholic beverages and in supplement form as well.

by Derek Burreson

Posted by Derek Burreson at 11:53 AM |