Yeshiva World News

Doctors and public health officials have been telling us for years that eating too much sodium can increase the risk of heart attack or stroke by raising blood pressure to unsafe levels. So how to explain a new study that suggests low salt intake actually increases the risk of dying from those causes?

The study, which followed 3,681 healthy European men and women age 60 or younger for about eight years, also found that above-average sodium intake did not appear to up the risk of developing high blood pressure (hypertension) or dying of a heart attack or stroke.

The findings, reported in the May 4 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, certainly seem counterintuitive, especially in light of the ongoing public-health campaign to lower sodium consumption across the U.S. by urging restaurants and food manufacturers to curtail their use of the ingredient.

In fact, says Jan A. Staessen, M.D., the senior author of the study and the head of the hypertension laboratory at the University of Leuven, in Belgium, the findings “do not support the current recommendations of a generalized and indiscriminate reduction of [sodium] intake at the population level.”

Salt lovers shouldn’t break out their shakers just yet, though. A closer look at the findings shows that they’re not as out of line with the low-sodium mantra as they might seem.

For starters, the participants’ sodium consumption was gauged by measuring the sodium content of their urine over just one 24-hour period at the beginning of the study. Although this method is considered the gold standard for estimating sodium intake, that lone urine test may not provide an accurate snapshot of the participants’ everyday intake over the full eight-year study, as the researchers themselves note.

Even more important, the participants had blood pressure in the normal range at the beginning of the study and were white, relatively young, and slimmer on average than the typical American. Past research has shown, however, that people with hypertension, blacks, older people, and heavier people tend to react more negatively to sodium.

“Maybe it would be better to pinpoint specific subgroups,” says Jerome Fleg, M.D., a medical officer in the division of cardiovascular sciences at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, in Bethesda, Maryland. “This is probably not the group that would get the biggest bang for the buck in terms of restricting sodium intake.”

Staessen and his colleagues divided the study participants into thirds according to their estimated sodium intake. Although higher salt intake was not linked to an increased risk of hypertension, it was associated with very small increases in systolic blood pressure (the top number).

Slightly more than 6 percent of the participants had a heart attack, stroke, or other cardiovascular emergency during the study, roughly one-third of which were fatal. Those who consumed the least salt had a 56 percent higher risk of death from a heart attack or stroke compared with those who had the highest consumption, even after controlling for obesity, cholesterol, smoking, diabetes, and other risk factors.

The researchers don’t have a firm explanation for this finding, but they speculate that sodium intake low enough to decrease blood pressure may also decrease sensitivity to insulin, encourage a stress response in the nervous system, and affect hormones that regulate blood pressure and sodium absorption. “Each of these effects might have unfavorable impact on cardiovascular mortality,” Staessen says.

He and his coauthors emphasize, however, that people with hypertension — who were not included in the study — will still benefit from a low-salt diet.

Most Americans consume more sodium per day than is considered healthy. Federal guidelines recommend limiting consumption to 2,300 milligrams per day, or 1,500 milligrams for blacks and people with hypertension. Some health organizations have been lobbying the federal government to drop the goal for everyone to 1,500 milligrams a day, Fleg says.

(Source: CNN)

Pesach! It is the holiday of freedom with not a moment to rest.  Preparations for Pesach begin a month or more before, purchases, matzo, cleaning, bedikas Chametz, the seder, Chol Hamoed.  It is non-stop, and it also turns into non-stop eating and almost no activity and exercise—a deadly combination. 

When the Almighty took us out of Egypt, he brought us from enslavement to freedom. But freedom doesn’t mean doing whatever we want, however we want, whenever we want and unfortunately, we generally become enslaved to our desires for food and overeating during the holidays.  But now, it is after the Yom Tov and our clothes don’t fit as they did just a few days ago.  But what can we do? And more importantly, how can we bring some permanence to our health and fitness and not go through this process every single year? 

In the non-Jewish world, every January 1^st, we hear about the secular New Years resolutions.  And taking care of our health is usually one of them.  Gym memberships soar at the beginning of the New Year, yet by March, the drop out rate at gyms is astonishing.  People who have purchased half-year and full-year memberships are no longer attending.  The initial excitement slowly evaporates and we are all back into our mundane rut.    So, how can we be different?  Now that the holidays are behind us, let us not fall into familiar traps.  Let’s learn how to make the right choices and foster real change.   

The first step in this process, is to concentrate on three main areas—exercise, proper eating, and stress reduction.  Exercise should consist of a balanced program of aerobics 4-5 times per week, resistance training 2-3 times per week and stretching on a daily basis.  A good nutritious food plan must include vegetables, fruits, whole grains and lean proteins and just as importantly, portion control.  Manage your stress levels with a combination of practical problem solving together with relaxation techniques.  Your exercise routine is another key ingredient in reducing stress.   

How can we make the necessary changes and keep our resolutions? 

1. Make health a priority—make time for getting healthy!
2. Get yourself a Chavrusah—a partner.  Sometimes these are called diet buddies or exercise buddies.  You need to be accountable to someone other than yourself.  Find a friend.  A spouse in not a good idea.
3. Work on your environment.  Don’t bring things into the home that aren’t good for you or that you tend to eat a lot of, like salty or sugary snacks. 
4. Keep your exercise gear handy.  Keep it in a place that you just can slip into your clothes and shoes easily.  Sometimes, it is just a matter of getting on the gear—and you are ready to go!
5. Set goals for yourself—not necessarily weight loss.  See how long you can walk and how fast.  Set weekly and monthly goals to increase your distance and your pace.  Set a goal of a smaller dress size or pants size. 
6. Reward yourself.  What are you going to do for yourself when you reach your goals?  Try to avoid food as a reward. 
7. Give yourself credit!  When you have done something that was difficult for you, when you are able to change a bad behavior, write it down and give yourself a much deserved pat on the back
8. WRITE IT ALL DOWN!  Make a Cheshbon HaNefesh, an accounting of your health.  Whether it is your food intake or your exercise, keep a log of everything.  Make a diary and also write down your feelings at the end of the day or after an exercise session.

Now that the holidays are behind us and we have beseeched the Almighty to watch over our health, we need to do our part and make an effort to succeed.  The best protection that we can give ourselves is to eat right, exercise, reduce stress and keep davening! 

Alan Freishtat is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a LIFESTYLE FITNESS COACH with over 10 years of professional experience. He is the co-director of the Jerusalem-based weight loss center Lose It! together with Linda Holtz M.S. and is available for private consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email at alan@loseit.co.il   See the Lose It! website at www.loseit.co.il

More than half of U.S. adults take dietary supplements, such as multivitamins and calcium, and their use jumped dramatically over a recent 20-year period, according to a new government report.

Between 1994 and 2006, the proportion of Americans using at least one dietary supplement jumped from 42 percent of adults to 53 percent, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“The increase in supplement use may be due to increased awareness and education about dietary supplement use,” said lead report author Jaime Gahche, an associate service fellow in the CDC’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey/Planning Branch at the National Center for Health Statistics.

Media attention on vitamin D likely boosted intake of that supplement, she said, and massive advertising by the supplement industry may have influenced use of multivitamins. But some experts say multivitamins may not be necessary.

However, since 2006, the growth in supplement usage has leveled off, she said. “We have reason to believe it should stay relatively stable,” she added.

The data for the report were gathered from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and included three time periods: 1988 to 1994, 1999 to 2002 and 2003 to 2006.

Among the report’s other findings:

• More women (59 percent) than men (49 percent) use supplements.
• Use of multivitamins, the most commonly consumed supplement, rose from 30 percent in the earlier period to 39 percent by 2003-2006.
• Calcium use by women 60 and older increased from 28 percent to 61 percent across the three time periods, but varied by race and ethnicity. More than two-thirds of white women 60 and older (65.7 percent) were taking calcium-containing supplements in 2003-2006, up from 58.9 percent in 1999-2002. Among Mexican American women, 52.3 percent were using calcium supplements in 2003-2006, an increase from 39.5 percent. Increased use of calcium among black women was not statistically significant, the researchers noted.
• Consumption of folic acid supplements, recommended for women of childbearing age, also varied by race and ethnicity, but stayed at about 34 percent from 1988 to 2006, Gahche’s group found. White women aged 20 to 39 are twice as likely to take a supplement containing folic acid as blacks or Mexican Americans. Folic acid helps prevent neural tube defects in babies. Folate is found in green leafy vegetables and beans.
• Twenty-four percent of men and 30 percent of women took vitamin D in 1988-1994, a figure that stayed stable for younger adults but increased for men and women ages 40 to 59. Use of vitamin D, which is difficult to obtain in foods, also increased among women 60 and older, jumping from 49.7 percent to 56.3 percent from 1999-2002 to 2003-2006.

Samantha Heller, a dietitian, nutritionist, exercise physiologist and clinical nutrition coordinator at the Center for Cancer Care at Griffin Hospital in Derby, Conn., said supplement makers promote the idea that dietary supplements will provide people with all the nutrients they need.

While some studies suggest a benefit in taking multivitamins, the most commonly used dietary supplement, others do not, Heller said.

“The general recommendation from health professionals is that we get the bulk of our nutrients, vitamins and minerals from foods, and that if we are eating a healthy diet we may not need most supplements,” she said.

Both over- and under-supplementation can be a problem, she noted. “Supplement use is complicated in part because many of the foods we eat are fortified with some vitamins and minerals and not others,” she said.

Also, with up to 50 percent of Americans reportedly dieting at any given time, many miss out on essential vitamins and minerals, Heller said. “Combine this trend with the popularity of fast and junk food, which are nutrient-poor and calorie-rich, and it is difficult to make broad dietary supplement recommendations that apply to everyone,” she said.

“I generally advise my patients to take a multivitamin, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids and for women, calcium, in addition to a healthy diet and lifestyle,” Heller said.

“Growing children, athletes, the elderly and people with certain illnesses may need additional or different supplementation,” she added.

(Source: HealthDay News)

It may be time to add a long workday to the list of risk factors for heart disease.

A new study has found that office workers in England significantly increased their chances of having a heart attack by working more hours than their peers.

The study, conducted by researchers at University College London, found that employees who regularly worked 11-hour days or longer were 67 percent more likely to develop heart disease than those who worked seven- or eight-hour days.

One U.S. expert said many factors could account for the rise in risk among those tied too long to the office.

“Those working long hours may have less time for exercise, healthy eating and physicians visits,” said Dr. Gregg C. Fonarow, associate chief of cardiology at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine. “They may be exposed to more stress, get less sleep and engage in other behaviors which contribute to cardiovascular risk.”

The study, published in the April 5 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, followed a low-risk population of almost 7,100 British civil servants from 1991 until 2004, screening out those with signs of heart disease.

About 70 percent of the workers were men, and most (91 percent) were white. Roughly 2.7 percent developed coronary heart disease by the end of the study, the researchers found.

Participants reported how many hours they spent on the job, including work they took home with them. More than half (54 percent) put in between seven and eight hours a day, while 21 percent worked a nine-hour day, and 15 percent spent 10 hours on the job daily, the study found. Slightly more than 10 percent labored 11 hours or more.

Besides bumping up the risk for heart disease by 67 percent compared to people working an eight-hour day, working 11-plus hours a day also put some people into a whole other risk category, the team found.

“Adding working hours to the Framingham risk score improved identification of persons who later developed heart disease,” explained study co-author Mika Kivimaki. The Framingham risk score, aimed at gauging heart disease risk, is developed from data that includes age, sex, blood pressure level, cholesterol levels, and whether or not a patient smokes, said Kivimaki, a professor of social epidemiology at University College London.

Still, Kivimaki stressed that her team could not confirm a direct cause-and-effect relationship between putting in lots of overtime and getting heart disease.

Looking at “lifestyle factors,” such as time spent working, is an increasing part of heart disease research, noted Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, a preventive cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

“Incorporating long working hours into the [Framingham] model resulted in reclassifying low-risk patients about 4.7 percent of the time,” said Steinbaum, who is also director of Women and Heart Disease at the hospital’s Heart and Vascular Institute.

An example, said Steinbaum, would be a 55 year-old woman. She might be at low risk for a heart attack using the Framingham score alone, but then might be “bumped up into a higher risk category” if she worked especially long hours, Steinbaum said.

“This is important because patients in a higher-risk category would be treated more aggressively for prevention of coronary heart disease,” she said.

Longer working hours are becoming more common in developed countries, the study authors noted, and that could possibly increase workers’ odds for coronary heart disease. They added that prior research in Europe and Japan has shown similar links between long work hours and heart attacks, and Kivimaki said “the new information may improve decisions regarding lifestyle interventions and medication for heart disease.”

While no changes should be made to patient care at this time, Kivimaki said that if findings were supported by further research, adding questions about working hours to physical exams would be “simple and cost-free.”

The kind of work performed can also be important, said Steinbaum. Other research has shown that workers who have little decision-making power or sense of control over their work have a higher risk of getting heart disease, she said.

But this study is just the beginning of the story, said Steinbaum.

Considering new risk factors that are “adding stress to peoples’ lives may be well worth contemplating,” she said. In that sense, the study is “not the end of the conversation, it’s the beginning of one.”

(Source: HealthFinder.gov)

In the biggest such study to date, a group of research institutions including the University of Miami has identified four new genes implicated in causing Alzheimer’s disease.

And while only five or six of up to 100 genes linked to Alzheimer’s are now known, the development signals a “monumental breakthrough” that could lead to identification of nearly all suspect genes in three to five years, said Dr. Margaret Pericak-Vance, who led analysis of the genes for UM’s medical school.

“As we learn more, we can get a better understanding of this complicated disease,” said Pericak-Vance, director of the John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics at UM. The breakthrough could lead to better-targeted medicines and lifestyle changes to fight Alzheimer’s, researchers believe.

Despite the progress, Pericak-Vance says doctors can’t predict when Alzheimer’s will be preventable or curable: “I know we’re closer today than we were.”

It’s been slow going. Pericak-Vance was instrumental in finding the first genetic evidence for Alzheimer’s in the 1990s. She discovered another gene last year and now is in on the discovery of four more.

But she says new methods of analysis and new technology — including UM’s $1-million-plus “Illumina Platform,” which uses computer chips to compare, contrast and analyze genetic-factor samples from thousands of test subjects — should speed the search exponentially in the future. In the latest study, such advances made it possible to process evidence from 11,000 people with Alzheimer’s and a nearly equal number of those without it.

The new methods also are enabling an even larger gene study now starting by UM’s new International Genomics of Alzheimer’s Project, along with other U.S. and French researchers.

The current study results appear in this month’s issue of Nature Genetics. It’s a collaboration of investigators from 44 universities and research institutions led by Gerard Schellenberg at University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Lindsay Farrer of the Boston University School of Medicine and UM’s Pericak-Vance.

One major value of identifying more genes implicated in Alzheimer’s is that it will help pharmaceutical companies create “designer drugs” aimed specifically at the faulty genes. It also will help with earlier predictions of who is at risk, so they can make lifestyle changes to try to slow its progress, she said Pericak-Vance.

Alzheimer’s today afflicts 3 to 5 million Americans and costs $24.6 billion a year for healthcare. As the population ages, experts say, Alzheimer’s will affect 8 to 16 million people by 2050.

(Source: Miami Herald)

Washing your hands in an automatic faucet seems so much cleaner than have to touch a handle on the old-fashioned model. But guess again.

A study revealed that automatic faucets are more likely to harbor nasty bacteria than manual ones.

Electronic faucets may conserve water, “but decreased water flow may increase the chance that bacteria grows, because you’re not flushing them through,” theorized Dr. Emily Snydor, who led the team of researchers, told MSNBC.

Snydor and her team tested electronic and manual faucets in patient care areas of The Johns Hopkins Hospital over a seven-week period from December 2008 to January 2009. They found Legionella – a bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease, a severe from of pneumonia – growing in half of cultured water samples from the 20 electronic faucets they tested. Only 15 cultured water samples from manual faucets, however, had the bacteria.

As a result, all 20 of the electronic faucets were removed from the hospital and replaced with manual ones. A hundred more will be replaced throughout the hospital.

Just don’t forget to turn the faucet off when you’re done.

(Source: NBC New York)

Last week’s column focused on the various types of surgery one can have to help achieve weight loss. We concluded that while some are definitely less invasive than others, all carry a fair to extremely high risk of serious side effects and post-surgical complications.   

Some of the side effects and complications include:

• Infection of the incisions or of the inside of the abdomen (peritonitis, abscess) due to release of bacteria from the bowel during the operation

• Hemorrhage of the many blood vessels that must be cut in order to divide the stomach and to move the bowel. Any of these may later begin bleeding, either into the abdomen (intra-abdominal hemorrhage), or into the bowel itself (gastrointestinal hemorrhage). 

• Hernia may result from surgery and re-arrangement of the bowel, and is mainly significant as a cause of bowel obstruction. An incisional hernia occurs when a surgical incision does not heal well; the muscles of the abdomen separate and allow protrusion of a sac-like membrane, which may contain bowel or other abdominal contents, and which can be painful and unsightly. The risk of abdominal wall hernia is markedly decreased in laparoscopic surgery.

• Bowel obstruction, which would require additional surgery to correct.

• Venous thromboembolism, as there is an increased probability of formation of clots in the veins of the legs, or sometimes the pelvis, particularly in the morbidly obese patient.

• Anastomotic leakage, Anastomotic stricture, and Anastomotic ulcer are also possible consequences. 

Sometimes, it is the unknown which is the most frightening.  Vitamins and minerals are all essential for basic health and bodily function.  These are generally absorbed in the lower digestive tact, especially in the intestines.  This absorption is now much less than a normal person’s.  And this indicates the possibility of long-term problems of malnutrition.  Supplementing will only go so far.  And there is no supplement that can totally take the place of the value obtained from consuming whole foods. 

In addition, most bariatric patients don’t reach their final weight loss goals.  Yes, it is true that many have substantial weight loss, but very few can possibly reach a true healthy weight as their inability to eat properly after the surgeries can slow their metabolism.  But what is truly interesting about this, is that once you have had the surgery, you must make lifestyle modification changes in order to be successful.  So, why not make those changes without the surgery and put in the hard work necessary to be healthy and fit without all of the risks involved?  No, don’t go on a diet – it will fail.  But a program combining good nutrition, exercise and behavior modification will do the trick.  Oh, and one more thing.  The average cost of bariatric surgery is $30,000. 

The bottom line? Doing Gastric Banding or doing a Bariatric Bypass procedure can help alleviate many medical problems and chronic health issues, but not without substantial risk and expense.  There are other – and better – ways.  Eating properly, exercising and most of all, working on modifying your behaviors will, G-d willing …“add hours to your day, days to your year and years to your life.” 

Alan Freishtat is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a LIFESTYLE FITNESS COACH with over 15 years of professional experience. He is the co-director of the Jerusalem-based weight loss and stress reduction center Lose It! along with Linda Holtz M.Sc. and is available for private consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email at alan@loseit.co.il 

Check out the Lose It! website at www.loseit.co.il. US Line: 516-568-5027

Seeing other people scratching can cause your brain to trigger your own itch, researchers suggest.

The team at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center investigated the causes of what’s known as “contagious itch.”

“It is conceivable that the neuronal networks or mechanisms underlying contagious itching may be similar to the ones involved in contagious yawning, a phenomenon that is still intensely studied, but not exactly clear,” dermatologist Dr. Gil Yosipovitch said in a medical center news release.

“The brain has such a powerful contribution to itch, and by understanding it, we may be able to develop future therapies that can target these areas and relieve the itch impulse,” he added.

Yosipovitsh and colleague Dr. Alexandru Papoiu monitored 14 healthy volunteers who had histamine or a placebo applied to their forearm, and 11 people with atopic dermatitis (a type of eczema) as they watched short video clips of people scratching or in a relaxed state.

The participants with eczema had a higher itch intensity and scratched more often while watching the videos of other people scratching, compared to the volunteers without eczema.

The researchers said it was especially interesting to find that the visually induced itch led to scattered, whole body distribution of scratching.

“This shows that the power of the brain is pretty extreme,” Papoiu said in the news release. “This speaks to the core of our being, to being particularly vulnerable to suggestions of itch, which can easily trigger a response from our central nervous system.”

The study, funded by the National Eczema Association, appears online in the British Journal of Dermatology.

(Source: HealthFinder.gov)

It is the nature of man to always look for the easy way out.  Saving time in today’s fast-paced society has become a goal in and of itself.  When it comes to our health, this is no exception.  If we could turn the clock back about 50 years or so, we all would have been naturally more active, would have consumed less food and would not have been inundated with a food and beverage industry that was trying to convince us to eat what they are selling in large amounts – when were weren’t even hungry.  So today, the overweight/obesity epidemic is upon us.  Logically, if a person realizes that this causes ill health in the form of diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, fatty liver disease and mental illness, he should want modify his lifestyle and make the changes necessary to achieve good health, quality of life and longer life.  But we still look for the easy way out, even though it doesn’t really exist.  The sudden popularity of bariatric procedures for rapid weight loss is frightening, and potential dangerous.  The paradox of someone trying to better their health, while at the same time possibly harming their health, is evident in these procedures.   

Let us first examine what these procedures are and how they work.  

Most invasive: Gastric Bypass  

What it is: In this procedure, a large section of the stomach is stapled off. A small pouch remains that is connected to a section of the small intestine.  

Why it works: Patients aren’t so hungry and therefore lose weight quickly. This is in part because the shrunken stomach can hold just a few ounces of food or liquid, and also because the bypass means that hormonal signals of fullness and satiety are sped up, since the undigested food enters the intestine so soon after it is eaten. 

Success rate: Just about all (more than 95%) patients lose at least half of their excess weight, making this one of the most effective types of bariatric surgery. However, an estimated 15% regain a significant amount of weight.  

Downside: Patients are less able to absorb nutrients from their foods, so those who’ve had this surgery must be vigilant about eating enough protein and will need to take vitamin and mineral supplements. Also, eating sweets or fatty foods can cause cramping, diarrhea, sweating, fatigue and light-headedness.  

Best for: Because the overeating impulse gets blocked, this can be a good solution for people who binge on junk food, people who have diabetes and those who have difficulty chewing and eating slowly. 
 
 
 
 

Least Invasive: Gastric Banding 

How it works: An adjustable plastic band is surgically inserted and then cinched around the upper part of the stomach, limiting how much you can eat and slowing the passage of food into the stomach. Patients feel full after eating less. Since neither the stomach nor the intestine is cut, this is the least invasive weight-loss surgery.  

Success rate: Two-thirds of patients meet their weight-loss goals, losing about half their excess weight on average, and sometimes much more.  

Best for: Since this procedure limits how much you can eat at one time, it can be a good solution for people who are big eaters. 

Downsides: Since the opening to the stomach is narrowed, it becomes very hard to digest fibrous foods, pasta, rice and red meat (all foods, and especially these, must be thoroughly chewed or patients suffer severe discomfort). Fluids are limited; patients cannot drink any liquids within an hour of eating. Also, in as many as half of patients, the band slips at some point afterward, which requires an additional procedure for adjustment.  
 

Permanent: Sleeve Gastrectomy 

How it works: Sixty percent of the stomach is surgically removed and the shape is changed to a tube (or “sleeve”), which results in a permanent restriction on how much food you can eat at one time. Also, the portion of the stomach that produces the hunger hormone ghrelin is removed, so hunger pangs are diminished.  

Success rate: Success rate is slightly less than with gastric bypass, mostly because the procedure leaves a larger portion of the stomach intact so patients can still eat more than they should.  

Best for: Sleeve gastrectomy doesn’t involve bypass, so patients maintain the ability to absorb vitamins and minerals at near-normal levels, making it a good option for most patients. Dr. Bessler, Director of the Center of Bariatric Surgeries at Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital in New York, predicts this operation will become more popular because it is more reliable for weight loss than the lap band and simpler than bypass. 

Downside: It’s permanent and cannot be undone. If patients overeat, it can stretch the stomach , resulting in the need for an additional procedure. 

Dr. Bessler explains, “Bariatric surgery is a big deal; all surgeries carry some risk, and these procedures are major, not minor. The likelihood of certain complications – cardiac problems and pneumonia, in particular, increases with patients’ obesity levels. Depending on the procedure, there is some risk for surgical complications (bleeding, leaks and bowel obstructions) as well.” 
 

Bariatric procedures are potentially life-threatening in some rare cases, but other complications can abound.  In experienced hands, the overall complication rate of this type of surgery ranges from 7% for laparoscopic procedures to 14.5% for operations through open incisions, during the 30 days following surgery. Mortality for this study was 0% in 401 laparoscopic cases, and 0.6% in 955 open procedures. Similar mortality rates – 30-day mortality of 0.11%, and 90-day mortality of 0.3% – have been recorded in the U.S. Centers of Excellence program, the results from 33,117 operations at 106 centers.  

Dr. Guilherme M. Campos, lead author of one of two papers appearing in the February issue of the Archives of Surgery, found in a study he conducted of both banding and bypass patients, that roughly equal numbers of patients in each group experienced complications after one year (12% in the gastric bypass group compared to 15% in the lap-banding group); these included infection, internal bleeding and blood clots, but no deaths. More people in the bypass group had complications right after the surgery. More of those undergoing lap-banding, however, needed repeat surgeries (13% vs. 2%).

Next week’s column will examine the side effects and complications of these procedures, and on the alternative methods we can employ to achieve healthy and sustained weight loss. 

Alan Freishtat is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a LIFESTYLE FITNESS COACH with over 15 years of professional experience. He is the co-director of the Jerusalem-based weight loss and stress reduction center Lose It! along with Linda Holtz M.Sc. and is available for private consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email at alan@loseit.co.il 

Check out the Lose It! website at www.loseit.co.il. US Line: 516-568-5027

Californians concerned that radiation from damaged Japanese nuclear power plants could reach the U.S. have rushed to protect themselves by stockpiling potassium iodide. LA Times reporter Molly Hennessy-Fiske talked to Dr. Glenn Braunstein, director of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s thyroid cancer center and chair of the department of medicine, about the potential risks and benefits of the drug.

Question: How does potassium iodide work?

A: The thyroid gland requires iodine to make thyroid hormone. If one is exposed to radiation, to radioactive iodine, it is taken up by the thyroid and can cause cancer. This is especially a problem in children and adolescents that are exposed, because their thyroids are still growing. The iodine in potassium iodide is what we call “cold,” because it’s not radioactive. The thyroid gland gets saturated with “cold” iodine and can’t absorb the radioactive iodine.

Q: Has potassium iodide proved effective in protecting people from radiation during past disasters?

A: After Chernobyl, with the winds carrying a lot of radioactive iodine downwind, Belarus and Ukraine got a big dose of it and they didn’t have any protection. They saw a hundred-fold increase in thyroid cancer. Poland also got exposed to the cloud but handed out potassium iodide, and there wasn’t an increase in thyroid cancer. So it is effective, but one has to have a substantial danger, which there isn’t here.

Q: Should people in California take potassium iodide now to protect against nuclear radiation from Japan?

A: Absolutely not. The likelihood of having a problem from the Japanese nuclear power plant is very low.

Yes, there is a release of radioactive iodine, but the amount that is being released is substantially lower than after Chernobyl. Even if there was a total meltdown with a large release of radioactive materials, the distance between Japan and California is so great that the radioactivity would be dispersed.

Q: What are the risks associated with taking potassium iodide?

A: If you take it too early, it’s less likely to be effective. You really want to take it 12 hours before the exposure and you want to take a tablet a few days in a row. It does have potential side effects. About 8% of the population have auto-immune thyroid disease — these individuals are very susceptible to getting large iodine loads. It could lead to an imbalance in their thyroid. About 1% of people get rashes; a number of people get nausea and vomiting, primarily from the taste — it’s got very bitter taste. Rarely, there will be allergic reactions. It’s not innocuous. The risk far outweighs the benefit.

Q. What about keeping potassium iodide on hand as a precaution?

A: If they have it on hand and an air raid siren goes off, then they can take it and they don’t have to go to a distribution center. Last year the residents around San Onofre [nuclear power plant] were offered two free pills of potassium iodide, and then there are big stores of potassium iodide around San Onofre in case there’s a problem. There’s nothing wrong with having it — it’s just that there’s no reason they have to panic and run out to get it now. It really galls me to see the profiteers on the Internet taking advantage of people’s fears.

(Source: NY Times)

The two most common excuses people give for not exercising and taking care of their general health are lack of time, and finances. In previous articles, I have addressed the time issue, but I would like to add the following: If you don’t make the time to exercise, you won’t have much time to do anything. Eventually, as we age and don’t make the time to compensate for its effects, we end up with one or more debilitating condition. But what is just as shocking is how much it actually costs us to be out of shape and in an unhealthy state. Many people say they just can’t afford to go to an exercise specialist, or they can’t afford the health club and gym fees. But let’s look at the alternative.

We all have heard about the cost of obesity in and of itself.  Medical bills are quite a bit higher.  But researchers at George Washington University took the expense equation a step higher.  They added in things such as employee sick days, lost productivity, even the need for extra gasoline – and calculated that the annual cost of being obese is $4,879 for a woman and $2,646 for a man.  Now, if you are only overweight, the cost is less — $524 for women and $432 for men.  And why the difference between the genders? Studies suggest larger women earn less than skinnier women, while wages don’t differ when men pack on the pounds – a big surprise, said study co-author and health policy professor Christine Ferguson.

Obesity is linked to earlier death. While that’s not something people usually consider a pocketbook issue, the report did factor in the economic value of lost life. That brought women’s annual obesity costs up to $8,365, and men’s to $6,518.

In addition to the direct costs of being overweight and obese, let’s look at a person with heart disease. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death, and multiple medications are often needed to control symptoms and risk factors. In a recent study following 104 people with ischemic heart disease, average monthly costs were $104.77 for cardiac medications and $115.54 for non-cardiac medications, for a total of $220.31. In addition, the cost of heart disease and stroke in the United States was $368 billion in 2004, including health care expenditures and lost productivity from disability and death.

If you are an employer, you may want to insist that your employees exercise. In 1995, Nicolaas Pronk, director of HealthPartners’ Center for Health Promotion, surveyed nearly 6,000 HealthPartners members over age 40 about their lifestyle and health status, and then looked at 18 months’ worth of their medical claims. In a report based on that data, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), he compared people with poor habits to those with healthy ones and found that:

Those who engaged in some kind of physical activity at least once a week cost the company 4.7% less than those who are sedentary.
Smokers cost the company 18% more than nonsmokers.
Each unit increase in body mass index (a measure of body fat) raised costs by 1.9%.
Those who suffered from the chronic illnesses that are often the result of unhealthy lifestyles – particularly diabetes and heart disease – were the costliest of all. Diabetics cost 137% more than non-diabetics, and those with heart disease cost 150% more than those without, the study found. 

Obesity and sedentary lifestyle are escalating global epidemics that warrant increased attention by physicians and other health care professionals. These intricately-linked conditions are responsible for an enormous burden of chronic disease, impaired physical function and quality of life, at least 300,000 premature deaths, and at least $90 billion in direct health care costs annually in the United States alone. Couple all this with the rising premiums for solid, comprehensive health insurance and it becomes obvious that it pays to work out and be healthy.

Now, back to obesity.  At a time when we are all trying to figure out how to lower our transportation costs, higher now because of the high cost of oil and gasoline, a different study calculated that nearly 1 billion additional gallons of gasoline are used every year because of increases in car passengers’ weight since 1960.  You can do the math of 1,000,000,000 times the price per gallon or liter of gas. 

Yes – it CAN be costly to take on a trainer, join a health club or enroll in the Lose It! program, but it’s definitely money well spent. Investing in staying in shape and improving your overall lifestyle habits may, in the long run, be less costly to your health AND to your wallet. 

EXERCISE, EAT RIGHT and LOWER YOUR STRESS! It will “add hours to your day, days to your year and years to your life.”  
Alan Freishtat is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a LIFESTYLE FITNESS COACH with over 15 years of professional experience. He is the co-director of the Jerusalem-based weight loss and stress reduction center Lose It! along with Linda Holtz M.Sc. and is available for private consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email at alan@loseit.co.il Check out the Lose It! website at www.loseit.co.il. US Line: 516-568-5027

(YWN Desk – NYC)

The government is taking over three Tylenol plants following a blizzard of drug recalls and a Food and Drug Administration criminal investigation into safety issues at the factories.

The FDA and the Justice Department on Thursday took action against McNeil PPC and two of its executives — its vice president of quality and its vice president of operations for over-the-counter products — for failing to comply with federally-mandated manufacturing practice.

McNeil, a division of Johnson & Johnson, said it had agreed to put its plants — one in Las Piedras, Puerto Rico, one in Fort Washington, Pa. and one in Lancaster, Pa., under FDA supervision.

The agreement, known as a “consent decree,” is subject to approval by a federal judge in Pennsylvania.

The decree requires McNeil to adhere to a strict timetable to bring those facilities into compliance.

McNeil also must retain an independent expert to inspect the three plants to determine whether the violations have been corrected, and to ensure that adequate manufacturing processes are in place. After expert certification, the FDA will determine if the facilities are in compliance.

“This is a strong, but necessary, step to ensure that the products manufactured by this company meet federal standards for quality, safety and purity,” said Deborah Autor, director of the Office of Compliance with the FDA.

If McNeil and the executives violate the decree, the FDA may order McNeil to cease manufacturing, recall products and take other corrective action, including levying fines of $15,000 for each day and an additional $15,000 for each violation of the law.

The fines can total up to $10 million annually.

The agreement also requires McNeil to destroy all drugs under its control that have been recalled from the three facilities since December 2009.

McNeil’s drugmaking plants have come under intense scrutiny over the past year after successive recalls in 2010 of over-the-counter pain and cold medicines such as Tylenol, Benadryl and Motrin produced at those facilities.

The company shut its Fort Washington plant following a scathing FDA inspection report of the factory last May that cited 20 manufacturing violations.

That facility makes all of McNeil pediatric over-the-counter Tylenol, Benadryl and Motrin medicines. The other two facilities make adult medicines, including Tylenol.

READ MORE: CNN

A simple blood test may one day offer a safe way to detect Down syndrome during pregnancy, researchers say.

In a small study, an experimental blood test identified a gene mutation associated with Down syndrome with 100 percent accuracy, according to the Cyprus scientists.

“Down syndrome is a common birth defect, with one Down syndrome birth in every 600 births in all populations,” said lead researcher Philippos Patsalis, chief executive medical director of the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics in Nicosia. “This is due to an extra chromosome 21, and that leads to physical and mental impairment.”

“With our method we identify all normal and all Down syndrome [pregnancies],” Patsalis said.

Currently, Down syndrome is diagnosed using one of two invasive procedures, amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling. Because these tests, while 80 percent accurate, carry a 1 percent to 2 percent risk of miscarriage, only about one in 10 pregnant women opts for them, he said.

The new test eliminates the risk of miscarriage, Patsalis said.

It also can identify Down syndrome in the 11th week of pregnancy, Patsalis said.

Although Down syndrome varies in severity, it usually causes some intellectual impairment and distinguishing facial features. Heart defects and other health problems are also common, according to the March of Dimes. Older mothers are more likely to give birth to Down syndrome babies.

People with Down syndrome, also known as Trisomy 21, carry three copies of chromosome 21, instead of two.

For the study, published online March 6 in Nature Medicine, Patsalis and his colleagues took blood samples from pregnant women and mothers of Down syndrome and healthy babies. In each case, the test quickly pinpointed the chromosomal variation, identifying 14 Down syndrome cases and 26 normal fetuses, the study authors said.

If larger clinical trials confirm the results, the test could become standard practice, Patsalis said. “The cost is much lower than the invasive procedures,” he said. “We estimate we can introduce this to clinical practice in a couple of years.”

Dr. Brian Skotko, clinical fellow in genetics at Children’s Hospital Boston and a spokesman for the National Down Syndrome Society, said this study has widespread implications for the incidence of Down syndrome.

With this new test, women will know if their baby has Down syndrome even before they look pregnant, Skotko said.

Noting that most of his Down syndrome patients say they lead fulfilling lives, Skotko said, “The overwhelming majority of family members say they can’t imagine their life without their family member with Down syndrome.”

(Source: HealthFinder.gov)

Part 3:  Move it!
 
The Benefits

The previous articles in this series have focused on the benefits of adopting a healthier lifestyle and the changes we can easily make in our daily lives to do so. But getting started can be quite challenging, particularly if you are generally sedentary. You will find this lifestyle change difficult and perhaps even somewhat uncomfortable at the beginning. However, rest assured that you will begin to feel better overall very quickly. Let’s say you decide that at the beginning, you will walk up three flights of stairs per day in your office or apartment building. You have just prevented three to four pounds (1.5 kilograms) of weight gain for the coming year. If five days a week, you begin parking your car five minutes away from your home, park it five minutes away from work and add a ten-minute brisk walk during lunch, you will lose about a pound per month. That is twelve pounds per year. Not only will you lose some weight, but your cardiovascular health will also improve greatly.

According to research done by the American College of Sports Medicine, even moderate-intensity exercise – that is, activity that raises your pulse rate to only the very bottom or even slightly under the aerobic range – has enormous benefits for your heart and lungs. According to one study, moderate-intensity exercise and activity can be as effective as vigorous exercise. In other words, the desk-bound executive who regularly jogs may not be much better off than a person who does moderate intensity exercise throughout the day.

There have been several studies confirming the vast benefits of increased activity. At the Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research, a study followed 13,000 men and women over an eight-year period of time. The mortality rate from all causes was significantly lower in those with moderate levels of fitness than the low-level fitness group. A University of Michigan study yielded almost identical results from a study that followed 12,000 middle-aged men. The active group engaged in gardening, yard work, home repairs, dancing, swimming, and home exercise programs. A third study completed at Stanford University concluded that people who engaged in moderate-level activity for eight weeks at thirty minutes per day, whether consecutive or in three ten-minute sessions, experienced significant cardiovascular improvement.

In Conclusion

A few years ago, I took on a client whose goal was to improve her overall health and shed a few pounds. She had a very busy schedule and therefore, committing to my full program was not doable. Since she generally ate healthfully, her diet needed only some slight adjustments. Additionally, we worked in a longer route to the bus and had her using the stairs in her building instead of the elevator when she didn’t have heavy packages. In three months’ time, she dropped eight pounds – without a formal exercise program.

So, remember that Utopian world we mentioned a few weeks back? The ideal model is for people to set aside time on a daily basis for high-intensity exercise. But when taking people’s busy lifestyles into account, we need to be practical, and to understand that this isn’t always realistic. As we can clearly see, though, the small changes you can make in your daily habits and overall lifestyle can make the biggest difference in your health. Increasing your activity levels is just one more way to “add hours to your days, days to your years and years to your life.”

Alan Freishtat is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a LIFESTYLE FITNESS COACH with over 10 years of professional experience. He is the co-director of the Jerusalem-based weight loss center Lose It! and is available for private consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email atafitness@015.net.il. www.loseit.co.il

A new Australian study finds that babies who sleep on their stomachs — a position thought to pose a risk for SIDS — have lower levels of oxygen in their brains than those who sleep on their backs.

The discovery suggests that a lack of oxygen could explain why babies in such a position are at a higher risk of sudden infant death syndrome while sleeping: Their brains may be less able to wake them up when they’re in danger from not breathing.

The research also backs current recommendations on the prevention of SIDS that suggest infants be put on their backs to sleep. “For a lot of parents, it’s important for them to know why something works before they do it. If we can make this link, if we can say that if your baby is on his stomach, he’s not getting enough oxygen to his brain, it’ll help parents see why this might be true,” said Dr. Rachel Moon, a pediatrician at Children’s National Medical Center who studies SIDS.

The disorder has been documented since Biblical times, when it was called overlaying, explained study co-author Rosemary S.C. Horne, of the Ritchie Centre for Baby Health Research at the Monash Institute of Medical Research at Monash University in Melbourne. From the 1960s to the 1980s, the number of SIDs cases rose because parents were encouraged to put their babies to sleep on their stomachs, Horne said.

“This was advocated, as sick preterm infants were shown to breath better in this position,” she said. “It was a case of changing infant care practices without proper scientific evidence to do this. Around the world, most babies sleep on their backs and are even kept there in devices such as cradle boards.”

In the new study, the Australian researchers sought to better understand what happens when babies sleep on their stomachs and why they face a greater risk of not being able to rouse themselves when something goes wrong, such as when they stop breathing for a time.

The researchers tested 17 babies at different times during the first six months of life when they slept either on their backs or their stomachs. For safety, the babies were studied in a hospital “and were fully monitored throughout the study with heart rate, breathing and oxygen saturation recorded continuously,” Horne said.

The researchers found that the oxygen levels in the brain dipped when they slept on their stomachs. This may explain why babies who sleep on their stomachs are three times harder to arouse from sleep as other babies, Horne said. Previous research has shown that these babies also have lower blood pressure, although specialists have differed about whether that’s important.

“What still remains a mystery is why are some infants more vulnerable than others,” Horne said. “When in a life-threatening situation, most babies do not die. We are striving to understand all the processes involved so we can identify which infants are most vulnerable.”

The findings appear online Feb. 28 in the journal Pediatrics.

(Source: HealthFinder.gov)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday that it plans to remove about 500 unapproved prescription cough, cold, and allergy medicines from pharmacy shelves.

These drugs have not been evaluated by the FDA for safety and effectiveness, and they may be riskier to take than approved over-the-counter (OTC) drugs that treat these same conditions, agency officials explained.

“This action is necessary to protect consumers from the potential risks posed by unapproved drugs, because we don’t know what’s in them, whether they work properly or how they are made,” Deborah M. Autor, director of the agency’s Office of Compliance at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said during a morning news conference.

Of particular concern are drugs that have time-release formulations, Autor said. “We know from experience that these type of products are complicated to manufacture,” she explained, and the agency’s concern is that these products may not release medication consistently or safely.

Another big concern involves unapproved cough, cold and allergy medications labeled for use by children under the age of 2. In 2008, the FDA released a warning against the use of OTC cough and cold products for infants and children under age 2 because of serious, potentially life-threatening side effects.

Officials are also worried about serious side effects with some of these unapproved drugs such as sedation and drowsiness, and name confusion that can lead to prescribing errors, she said.

Despite the requirement that prescription drugs be evaluated by the FDA before they can be sold, many of these medications were never approved, Autor explained.

“Some of these products have been marketed for many years, and have remained on the market illegally,” she said. “Some entered the market illegally simply because they [manufacturers] saw a business opportunity.”

According to the FDA, many doctors prescribe these drugs because they aren’t aware they have not been approved. Most of these drugs are listed in the Physicians’ Desk Reference (PDR), which is a guide doctors can use when prescribing drugs, Autor noted.

FDA officials expect companies that have listed products with the agency to stop making them within 90 days, and to stop shipping them within 180 days. The agency pointed out that this action will not affect patients since there are many approved prescription and OTC cough, cold, and allergy medications already on the market.

One group representing cold and allergy experts sought to clarify the move for consumers.

“In light of the FDA announcement, it is important to make a distinction between these unapproved drugs and the individual components within the drugs,” Dr. Thomas B. Casale, executive vice president of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, said in a statement released Wednesday.

“Many of the components can be obtained over-the-counter or by prescription and are approved by the FDA,” Casale said. “However, the listed drugs for removal have not proven safe and effective by adequately approved FDA studies. Furthermore, some combination of the components contained in these drugs could result in adverse effects.”

And one doctor warned of the dangers of drug combinations.

“I am amazed at the number of prescription products on this list, and 95 percent of them Ive never seen before,” said Dr. E. Neil Schachter, a professor of medicine at The Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. “My approach to treating colds and flu is to give specific ingredients for symptom relief separately and not in a combination form. Too often people will buy multiple cold products and don’t realize they are taking the same ingredients more than once and are risking an overdose.”

There’s a long list of the drugs in question at the FDA’s Web site. A few of the unapproved medicines to be withdrawn include: A Tan 12X Suspension; Accuhist DM, Accuhist drops cherry flavor, Lodrane 12 D tablets and Aerohist caplets extended release.

More information

For a complete list of unapproved cough cold and allergy drugs, visit the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

(Source: HealthFinder.gov)

Practical Solutions

Last week, we focused on the documented benefits of adopting a healthier lifestyle. At the same time, we acknowledged the many obstacles which prevent people from making that switch. Today’s column will offer a host of practical solutions we can apply to our daily lives, to help us get fit and stay fit.

The two key words to always keep in mind are: prioritize and organize. Use your time efficiently and you will be surprised at what you can accomplish before the end of the day. The most important thing to remember is that doing something is much better than doing nothing. With this in mind, let’s see how, given your busy schedule, you can still include the proper type of exercise in your day. 

Wake up just five minutes earlier in the morning. After you drink a few glasses of water, do a two-minute simple calisthenics routine. Then, spend another four to five minutes doing some easy stretching. Now, whether you are going to shul, taking the kids to school or on the way to work, walk two bus stops away and get off two bus stops before your destination. If you drive, park far enough away so that you get an eight-to-ten-minute walk to work. Try not to use the elevator to get to your office; use the stairs (this applies to everyone all the time). At your lunch break, take fifteen minutes to eat, then go outside with friends and walk for fifteen to twenty minutes. You’ll feel refreshed when you come back and find you can work more efficiently. 

Later in your working day, take a five-minute break. After drinking a glass of water, do fifteen push-ups against the wall of your office. Then try squatting and standing up again, eight to twelve times. While sitting at your desk, you can do seated crunches, as follows: sit up tall, with one hand behind your head and the other one holding on to the edge of your chair’s seat. Pull your abdominal muscles inward. Slowly curl down and forward just a few inches. As you do so, pull your abs in even tighter. Hold a moment and then slowly uncurl to a very tall position. This move strengthens your abdominal muscles. Try ten or so. 
During the course of the day, you can work in some of these basic desk stretches.

* Stretch your shoulders and neck by gently rolling your shoulders clockwise and counter-clockwise ten times in each direction. 
* Stretch your lower back by draping forward over your lap. 
* To stretch the back of your leg, extend your leg, lean over in your chair, and reach your arms toward your feet. You can increase the effectiveness of this stretch by lifting your toe up in the air. Repeat on both sides.

On the way home, make sure you getting another five to ten minutes of brisk walking. Between all those staircases and walking, you’ve probably accumulated about thirty minutes of aerobic exercise for the day. As you can see, every little bit helps. And beyond these tips, it helps to approach every day and every situation as a workout waiting to happen. If you have the time, or can try hard to make the time, there are certainly better and more beneficial ways to work out. But on the days that you just can’t, make every effort to fit it in wherever you can. 

Next week, we will conclude with some impressive research results as well as a little chizuk to accompany you on your workouts. Stay tuned!

Alan Freishtat is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a LIFESTYLE FITNESS COACH with over 10 years of professional experience. He is the co-director of the Jerusalem-based weight loss center Lose It! and is available for private consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email at afitness@015.net.il. www.loseit.co.il

The radiation emitted after just 50 minutes on a mobile phone increases the activity in brain cells, according to a new government-funded study.

The effects of that brain activity are not known, said the researchers, who called for more study.

Phones that were turned off did not create the same brain activity.

The small study, published in the Journal of American Medical Association, is the first to look specifically at how electromagnetic radiation from cell phones affects glucose metabolism, a normal function, in the brain.

“When glucose metabolism goes up, it activates cells. The findings are an indication that exposure to cell phones activate the brain much more easily than we previously thought,” said Dr. Nora Volkow, National Institutes of Health neuroscientist and lead study author.

Brain activity means that the cells are using glucose to create energy. The brain normally produces the amount of glucose it needs to function properly. But these new findings don’t tell us whether activating the cells artificially, in this case by cell phone radiation, will have a negative effect on health. Volkow says she simply doesn’t know and calls for further investigation.

The CITA, the wireless industry trade group, noted that no research has found cell phones to be a danger to health.

“The peer-reviewed scientific evidence has overwhelmingly indicated that wireless devices, within the limits established by the FCC, do not pose a public health risk or cause any adverse health effects,” said a statement from John Walls, the group’s vice president for public affairs. “In May 2010, the Interphone project, coordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which was the largest study of cell phone use and brain tumors ever undertaken and included substantial numbers of subjects using cell phones for ten years or longer, found that ‘overall, no increase in risk was observed with the use of mobile phones.’ ”

The study was praised as offering “an important insight into potential effects of cell phone radiation on the human brain” by Renee Sharp, director of the Environmental Working Group California office. “It joins the growing list of studies that have raised concerns about cell phone use and the brain.”

Researchers measured brain activity of 47 healthy adults — a small but scientifically valid size group for this type of study — while using a mobile device.

The levels were tested when the phone was in use (transmitting radiation) against the head and when against the head but in the off position. Compared with subjects whose phones were turned off, the group whose phones were on had “significantly higher” brain activity in the area closest to the telephone antenna.

The findings of the study, which examined the subjects during just one 50-minute exposure, raise a key question, the researchers said: What, if any, are the long-term consequences of repeated increased brain activity due to exposure to cell phone radiation?

“We need to rule out that there is a not long-lasting effect in healthy people,” Volkow said. “We don’t know what repeated exposure and artificial activation of the glucose will have on the brain.”

With nearly 300 million cell phones in use in the United States, some experts say the concern lies with not only with the long-term impact on healthy individuals but in consumers with unhealthy cells as well.

READ MORE: CNN

In the Utopian world about which we fitness professionals dream, everyone sets aside an hour or more a day for a complete workout, including aerobic, resistance and flexibility training. But in today’s society, we all know that’s not likely to happen. So, just how do we make it easier to get fit — and stay fit? 

No Excuses! 

Finding all the reasons in the world to not exercise is easy. “I don’t have time.” “I look ridiculous.” “It’s raining.” “It’s too hot.” “It’s too cold.” “I’m too tired.” “I hate exercise.” Couch potatoes have hundreds of excuses which prevent them from exercising. Even those of us who understand the importance of exercise occasionally have difficulty motivating ourselves to do what we know we need to do. And people who belong to a gym or health club may notice the months slipping by (as well as their money) without finding the time to work out. How, then, can we overcome these roadblocks so that we can do what we need to for the sake of our health and well-being?  

The single most common barrier to exercise is a perceived lack of time. It’s very easy to convince yourself that your morning session can wait until after lunch, then after dinner, then until tomorrow. In today’s fast-paced world, the failure to prioritize and schedule our exercise into our busy day almost guarantees that it will not happen. However, “no time” is a pretty lame excuse. Research has shown that exercise not only improves your health, but that it can increase productivity, so you actually can accomplish more! Another roadblock…. Many people claim that they just don’t like to exercise. The first step, then, is to find an exercise that you do like to do, or can LEARN to like. Try hiking or walking with a friend. Or put on headphones when you are exercising and listen to your favorite music or Torah tape.  

We are often discouraged from maintaining an exercise routine when we don’t see immediate results from our workouts. The first rule is: stay off the scale! Instead, focus on the progress you have made even if the weight isn’t coming off as quickly as you would like. Can you walk further or faster than when you started? Are you less winded? Can you lift heavier weights or do more repetitions? Do you feel healthier and more energized? Many people have unrealistic expectations, and when those expectations don’t pan out, they are ready to give up. Be keenly aware that exercise is progressive. Have patience and set realistic, short-term goals for yourself. You don’t have to run a marathon to reap the health benefits of exercise. 

Exercise “Lite” 

But what if you are one of those people who really don’t have much time? There are several ways to work exercise and activity into your daily routine, and the benefits of doing even the minimum are immense. In 1993, the Centers for Disease Control, in conjunction with the American College of Sports Medicine, released their “Exercise Lite” recommendations. Based on scientific evidence, these recommendations clearly demonstrated substantial health benefits from moderate-intensity exercise. The basis of “Exercise Lite” is that each adult should accumulate thirty minutes of aerobic activity on most or all days of the week. A two-mile brisk walk will do the trick. Try this on the way to work and back, or on the way to shopping and back. Use the stairs instead of the elevator. Two days a week, include some resistance training and come up with a basic five-minute stretching routine for each day. In particular, people who lead sedentary lives must adopt a more active lifestyle for their health and well-being. This requires only small changes that increase daily physical activity and enable individuals to reduce their risk of chronic illness, give them more energy and endurance, and enhance their quality of life.  

Next week we will look at the practical solutions we can apply to our daily lives, to help us get fit and stay fit. Stay tuned! 
 
Alan Freishtat is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a LIFESTYLE FITNESS COACH with over 10 years of professional experience. He is the co-director of the Jerusalem-based weight loss center Lose It! and is available for private consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email at afitness@015.net.il.