HEALTH: Prolonged Sitting Position Could Lead To Death - Study

For better health, try standing up more, a new study suggests. Those who spend 11 or more hours a day sitting are 40 percent more likely to die over the next three years regardless of how physically active they are otherwise, researchers say.

Analyzing self-reported data from more than 222,000 people aged 45 and older, Australian researchers found that mortality risks spike after 11 hours of total daily sitting but are still 15 percent higher for those sitting between 8 and 11 hours compared to those sitting fewer than 4 hours per day, reports HealthDay News.


“The evidence on the detrimental health effects of prolonged sitting has been building over the last few years,” said study author Hidde van der Ploeg, a senior research fellow at the University of Sydney.
“The study stands out because of its large number of participants and the fact that it was one of the first that was able to look at total sitting time. Most of the evidence to date had been on the health risks of prolonged television viewing.”

The study is published in the March 26 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Average adults spend 90 percent of their leisure time sitting down, van der Ploeg said, and fewer than half meet World Health Organization recommendations for 150 minutes of at least moderate-intensity physical activity each week.

The data was collected as part of Australia’s 45 and Up Study, a large, ongoing study of healthy aging. Strikingly, the elevated risks for dying from all causes remained even after taking into account participants’ physical activity, weight and health status.
Sixty-two percent of participants said they were overweight or obese (a similar proportion to Americans), while nearly 87 percent said they were in good to excellent health, and one-quarter said they spent at least 8 hours each day sitting.

Inactive participants who sat the most had double the risk of dying within three years compared to active people who sat least, van der Ploeg said, and among physically inactive adults, those who sat the most had nearly one-third higher odds of dying than those who sat least.
Because many people must sit for long hours at their jobs, they should make sure a greater portion of their leisure time is spent standing, walking or engaging in other movement, said Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, director of Women and Heart Disease at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City and a spokesperson for the American Heart Association.

“Yes, you have to work, but when you go home it’s so important you don’t go back to sitting in front of the computer or television,” Steinbaum said. “After the 8-hour mark, the risks go up exponentially. It’s really about what you’re doing in your leisure time and making the decision to move.”

Several workplaces in Australia are testing sit-stand work stations, van der Ploeg said — a generally well-received initiative that may be a future option for other offices. “Try ways to break up your sitting and add in more standing or walking where possible,” she suggested.

While the study uncovered an association between total sitting hours and death risk, it did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.

The study was limited by the relatively short follow-up period of less than three years, experts said, which may have obscured undiagnosed health problems among participants that could have led to earlier death. Dr. David Friedman, chief of heart failure services at North Shore Plainview Hospital in Plainview, N.Y., said those who sit longer “tend to be sicker, have obesity issues and cardiovascular problems. Perhaps they’re less ambulatory in the first place.”

Van der Ploeg acknowledged these limitations and said more studies will need to replicate the findings and focus more on sitting’s influence on developing conditions such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease.
“Studies that measure sitting time with activity monitors instead of questionnaires will also help build the evidence base,” she said.

“All these studies will further inform us of the exact relationship between sitting and health conditions, which ultimately will result in public health recommendations like we already have for physical activity.”

HEALTH: Sugar In All That we Consume As Food

SOURCE PMNEWSNIGERIA
We all know the dangers of too much salt, fat and calories in our diet, but health professionals warn that not many of us consider our sugar intake.

There are obvious sources of it — such as the Easter eggs consumed in large quantities at the weekend.
But the problem, experts say, is that our everyday diets are packed with ‘stealth’ sugar, sending our intake far above the recommended limits and placing us at risk of diseases, including diabetes and heart disease.

Sugar is also found in surprisingly large amounts in many savoury foods such as sauces and ready meals.
In fact, it’s highly likely to be a much bigger part of your diet than you realise, as investigation reveals. Ironically, ‘healthier’ reduced-fat foods can actually contain more sugar.


“Stripping out fat from processed foods makes them less appealing to our taste buds. The inevitable consequence is that manufacturers increase other ingredients, including sugar, to recreate taste and texture,” says Tam Fry of the National Obesity Forum.

Attempt to find out how much sugar is in our favourite foods and drinks — including those many consider healthy, gave a shocking revelation

UK guidelines recommend that ‘added’ sugars, those used to sweeten food, fizzy drinks, honeys, syrups and fruit juices, shouldn’t make up more than 10 per cent of the total energy we get from food.
This is around 50g of sugar a day, equivalent to 10 cubes of sugar for adults and older children, and nine for five to 10-year-olds.

But further findings reveal that just one 500ml bottle of Coke will send you over this limit. Other examples include a McDonald’s milkshake, which contains an incredible 16 cubes of sugar. Even a ‘healthy’ salad contains two cubes. Remember, we’re talking about sugar added as a sweetener.

The sugars in milk, vegetables and pieces of fruit (as opposed to fruit juice), including dried fruit, do not wreak as much havoc. On average, adults eat around 18 per cent more added sugars than is healthy
So if you’re getting most of your sugar from these sources, you can eat up to 18 cubes or 90g daily. For five to 10-year-olds, the figure is 17 cubes or 85g.

The two most common forms of unhealthy added sugars are table sugar (sucrose) and high-fructose corn syrup, a liquid sweetener made from maize. Both are added to countless foods, turning up in everything from fizzy drinks to chicken korma.

Sugars in fruit juices and honeys are also the unhealthy ‘added’ type.‘Added sugars are more likely to do harm as they aren’t safely bound in the structure of a food, as they are in fruit,’ says Sasha Watkins, a spokesperson for the British Dietetic Association.

‘It means they are available to the body in higher concentrations.’ But how can you spot a high sugar food? To interpret labels that list sugar (which is labelled as ‘total sugars’ and will include natural and added sugar), the NHS Choices website suggests that a food with less than 5g per 100g is classified as low.
More than 15g per 100g is high. Though we all need some sugar — it is the essential fuel that powers all cells in our body — excess levels have been linked with raised levels of the hormone insulin, which increases the risk of diabetes.

Furthermore, the body turns excess sugar into fat, which is stored around the major organs, placing us at risk of liver and heart disease. There are also fears that high sugar diets may promote some cancers. The theory is that glucose, one of the main ingredients in added sugar, creates repeated spikes of insulin.

For reasons that are not clear, many tumours seem to have insulin receptors, hence a rise in this hormone fuels their growth. It is the sheer quantity of sugar that we consume that creates the problem, says Roy
Taylor, professor of medicine and metabolism at Newcastle University. “Sugar calories slip down so easily and lead to weight gain,” he said.

The sugar industry is quick to point to evidence that high sugar consumers are less likely to be overweight, which, paradoxically, can be true.They generally eat less fat, which has twice as many calories as sugar. But with sugary drinks, the link with obesity is far stronger. One study in 2007 found that youngsters consuming around 200 calories from sugary drinks (two glasses) increased their odds of being overweight by two-thirds.

HEALTH: Positive Outlook Keeps Heart Healthy, Scientists Say

A positive outlook on life helps keep your heart healthy, scientists say.
They found that the most optimistic people are up to 50 per cent less likely to suffer a coronary or a stroke.

Earlier medical studies have shown that negative states such as depression, anger, anxiety and hostility can be detrimental to cardiovascular health. 


But in the first and largest systematic review on the topic, researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health found that positive psychological wellbeing appears to help the heart.


Lead author Julia Boehm said: ‘The absence of the negative is not the same thing as the presence of the positive. We found that factors such as optimism, life satisfaction, and happiness are associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease regardless of such factors as a person’s age, socio-economic status, smoking status or body weight.

‘For example, the most optimistic individuals had an approximately 50 per cent reduced risk of experiencing an initial cardiovascular event compared to their less optimistic peers.’

In a review of more than 200 studies in two major scientific databases, Doctor Boehm and senior author Laura Kubzansky found that psychological assets such as optimism and positive emotion afford protection against cardiovascular disease.
These factors also seem to slow the progression of disease.

Doctor Boehm and Professor Kubzansky also investigated the association between psychological factors and the biological markers and actions that influence the health of the heart.

They found that individuals with a sense of wellbeing engaged in healthier behaviour such as exercising, eating a balanced diet and getting sufficient sleep.
And greater wellbeing was related to better biological function such as lower blood pressure, healthier blood fat profiles and normal body weight.

Experts say that if future research continues to indicate that higher levels of satisfaction, optimism and happiness help maintain health then it will have strong implications for national prevention and intervention strategies.

Professor Kuzbansky added: ‘These findings suggest that an emphasis on bolstering psychological strengths rather than simply mitigating psychological deficits may improve cardiovascular health.’

The study was published online by the journal Psychological Bulletin.

SOURCE: DAILYMAIL

Doctors Remove Four Extra Limbs From Baby Who Was Born With SIX Legs

If you can recall my post here 3 days ago, about a baby born with Six legs, information we are getting shows that the baby has been operated on and the extra legs removed . Follow this LINK to see the baby with Six legs.

SOURCE

SCIENCE: Cure For Baldness Revealed By Japanese Researchers

Japanese researchers have successfully grown hair on hairless mice by implanting follicles created from stem cells, they announced Wednesday, sparking new hopes of a cure for baldness.

Led by professor Takashi Tsuji from Tokyo University of Science, the team bioengineered hair follicles and transplanted them into the skin of hairless mice.


The creatures eventually grew hair, which continued regenerating in normal growth cycles after old hairs fell out.

When stem cells are grown into tissues or organs, they usually need to be extracted from embryos, but Tsuji and his researchers found hair follicles can be grown with adult stem cells, the study said.

"Our current study thus demonstrates the potential for not only hair regeneration therapy but also the realisation of bioengineered organ replacement using adult somatic stem cells," it said.

The combination of the new and existing technologies is expected to improve treatment for baldness, possibly allowing people to use their own cells for implants that wil mve them their hair rqck.br />
"We would like to start clinical research within three to five years, so that an actual treatment to general patients can start within a decade," said researcher Koh-ei Toyoshima.

The study is published in the online science magazine Nature Communications.

HEALTH: Now Women Can Delay Motherhood By Freezing Their Ovaries And Having Them Re-Implanted Years Later

Since having her ovarian tissue stored and re-implanted Stinne Holm Bergholdt has had three children

British women are to be  given the chance of delaying motherhood by freezing parts of their ovaries.

They will be able to ‘bank’ their ovarian tissue in their twenties  and early thirties, when it is most fertile, and have it re-implanted years later.


Fertility specialists are planning to open the first clinic in the country to offer the procedure, which could cost as much as £16,000, within the next six months.

At present it is only available in a few countries, including the United States, Denmark and Belgium, and so far just 19 babies have been born as a result.

But experts claim the controversial treatment will soon become commonplace as it has been shown to be more effective than egg  freezing and even IVF.

It involves extracting about a third of the tissue of one of the two ovaries which usually contains around 60,000 eggs.

 It is stored in liquid nitrogen in temperatures of minus 190c until the woman decides she is ready for children, when it is thawed and re-inserted into the ovary. Within a few months it should begin producing eggs.

So far most of the women who have had the treatment have been cancer patients hoping to preserve their ovarian tissue in case it is damaged through chemotherapy.

But British doctors are planning to offer the procedure to other women who may want to put off having children for other ‘social’ reasons.

Costs are likely to range from £5,000 to £10,000 to remove and store the tissue with another £6,000 to re-implant it. This compares with £4,000 for a cycle of IVF and £5,000 for egg freezing plus £100 for every year eggs are stored.

Experts say the ovarian tissue method is far more successful as it can potentially yield thousands of eggs against a maximum of 12 normally produced through egg freezing.
Some world-renowned fertility specialists in America claim the success rates are higher than  for IVF.

Dr Gedis Grudzinskas, a leading consultant in infertility and  gynaecology, is planning to open a clinic in central London offering the treatment within the next  six months.

He said: ‘This technology is so much more efficient than we thought it would be.

‘If a woman is having cancer treatment there are few options. She can freeze her eggs but the quality of this technology varies.

‘Women in their late 20s might consider freezing their eggs until they meet Mr Right.’
Once Dr Grudzinskas’s licence is approved by the Human Fertility and Embryology 

Authority and the Human Tissue Authority, British doctors will carry out the first operations under the supervision of an experienced team from Denmark. Some doctors believe that having the tissue removed early in life could impair a woman’s chance of having a baby.

Dr Gillian Lockwood of Midland Fertility Services, near Walsall, said: ‘In the case of cancer patients who’ve got nothing to lose it has great potential.
‘But for social reasons I don’t believe it should be recommended. It could cause scarring or damage to the pelvis that could make it difficult to conceive naturally.’

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2130269/Now-women-delay-motherhood-freezing-ovaries-having-implanted-years-later.html 

HEALTH: Benefits Of Honey To The Body

HONEY

 Nature's Energy Booster

The benefits of honey go beyond its great taste. A great natural source of carbohydrates which provide strength and energy to our bodies, honey is known for its effectiveness in instantly boosting the performance, endurance and reduce muscle fatigue of athletes. Its natural sugars play an important role in preventing fatigue during exercise.

 The glucose in honey is absorbed by the body quickly and gives an immediate energy boost, while the fructose is absorbed more slowly providing sustained energy.

 It is known that honey has also been found to keep levels of blood sugar fairly constant compared to other types of sugar. So, to experience these health benefits of honey, here are a few tips for you:


1. Next time before you go for a workout, take a spoon of honey to enable you to go for the extra mile.

2. If you are feeling low and lethargic in the morning, instead of reaching out for a can of carbonated energy drink, try honey. Spread it on hot toast or replace the sugar in your tea with it for a refreshing surge of energy.


3. If your kids are finding hard to cope with the physical strain from the buzzing activities at school, prepare them some sandwiches with honey, butter and ham to make sure they have enough energy to sustain through the day.honey.

Immunity System Builder

Amongst the many health benefits of honey, what is most impressive to me is that honey can be a powerful immune system booster. It's antioxidant and anti-bacterial properties can help improve digestive system and help you stay healthy and fight disease. Start every brand new day with this cleansing tonic if you want to see this health benefit of honey: before breakfast, mix a spoonful of honey and lemon juice from half a lemon into a cup of warm water and drink it.

Honey is Anti-Cancer!

Honey does not cure cancer but what many people don't think enough of or have overlooked is - honey possesses carcinogen-preventing and anti-tumour properties!

Honey Remedy for Ailments

FOR CUTS AND BURNS: For thousands of years, honey has been recognized as one of the most natural home remedies to treat a wide range of ailments and complaints including yeast infection , athlete foot, and arthritis pains. Its antiseptic properties inhibits the growth of certain bacteria and helps keep external wounds clean and free from infection. Honey has been used as a natural cure in first aid treatment for wounds, burns and cuts as it is able to absorb moisture from the air and promote healing. Its antibacterial properties prevent infection and functions as an anti-inflammatory agent, reducing both swelling and pain, and even scarring. It is widely believed that Unique Manuka Factor (UMF) which is the most treasured honey in New Zealand and Australia that has miraculous healing effects, is the preferred honey for wound dressing due to its strong antibacterial property.

FOR HANGOVERS:
When you get a hangover from drinking too much alcohol, combat its effects by applying honey remedy. Honey is gentle on the stomach and contains a mix of natural sugars such fructose which is known to speed up the oxidation of alcohol by the liver, acting as a 'sobering' agent. Follow this recipe: 15ml of liquid honey with 80ml of orange juice and 70ml of natural yogurt. Blend them together until smooth.

FOR SORE THROATS:
One of the better known health benefits of honey is that it is able to help treat sore throats. Thanks to its antibacterial properties, honey not only soothes throats but can also kill certain bacteria that causes the infection. Professional singers commonly use honey to soothe their throats before performances. The Chinese believe that excess heat in the body causes sore throat and taking honey drink can be helpful. Direction: Take a spoonful of honey to soothe the inflammation or gargle with a mixture of two tablespoons of honey, four tablespoons of lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Manuka UMF honey  which is well-known for its anti-bacterial healing properties, is good for sore throat and cough

For Sleeplessness:

Unable to sleep? Use the famous Milk and Honey Remedy. Take a glass of hot milk with a teaspoon of honey to calm the soul and induce sleep. Or, add 1 or 2 teaspoons of honey to a cup of chamomile tea and sip.

HEALTH: Tips On How to Lose Weight

I know some of you reading this now have been looking for a way to shade some weight, i have come up with some tips for you to help yourself out.

If you are a lady out there and you are getting bigger and bigger day by day, i want to tell you to do something about it, because men don't like fat ladies, so don't go complaining that your guy left you because you are the architect of your own misfortune.

So by reading this tips, it will help you a lot to even make you look more attracting for your man .


1. Drink plenty of water. First how to lose weight fast tip is that our body needs a lot of water so give in to water. Water is not just way to flush out toxin but if you have more water in your body you will generally feel healthier and fitter. This it self will discourage any tendency to gorge. The best thing about water is that is has no calories at all.

2. Start your day with a glass of water. As soon as you wake up in the morning, gulp down a glass of water. It’s a wonderful way to start you day and you only need a lesser quantity of your breakfast drink after that. A glass of water lets out all your digestive juices and sort of lubricates the insides of your body. You may have your morning cup of tea but have it after a glass of water. It is good for you.

3. Drink a glass of water before you start the meal.Water naturally needs some space so that you feel fuller without actually having to stuff yourself.

4. Have another glass of water while you are having the meal. Again this is another great how to lose weight fast super tip and a way of making yourself full, another great weight loss tips, so that you can actually rise from the table eating less but feeling full just the same. Instead of drinking it one gulp, take sips after each morsel. It will help the food to settle faster so that you get that feeling that you are full faster.

SIDE NOTE: Water is such a remarkable thing, but seldom do we give it the credit that it deserves. Did you know that over 66% of your body weight is nothing but water’ It’s amazing! Water also plays a vital role in weight control, which is why I donated so much space to it, above.

5. Stay away from sweetened bottle drinks, especially soda, Hey all those colas and fizzy drinks are sweetened with sugar and sugar means calories. The more you can cut out on these sweetened bottle drinks, the better for you. So if you must drink sodas, then stick to diet sodas.

6. Include in your diet things that contain more water like tomatoes and watermelons.These things contain 90 to 95 % water so that there is nothing that you have to lose by feasting on them. They fill you up without adding to the pounds.

7. Eat fresh fruit instead of drinking fruit juice. Juice is often sweetened but fresh fruits have natural sugars. When you eat fruit, you are taking in a lot of fiber, which is needed by the body, and fruits of course are an excellent source of vitamins


8. If you do have a craving for fruit juice then go for fresh fruit juice instead of these that contain artificial flavors and colors. Or even better, try making your own fruit juice taking care not to sweeten it with too many calories.

9. Choose fresh fruit to processed fruits. Processed and canned fruits do not have as much fiber as fresh fruit and processed and canned fruits are nearly always sweetened.

10. Increase your fiber intake. Like I mentioned, the body needs a lot of fiber. So try to include in your diet as many fruits and vegetables as you can.

11. Go crazy on vegetables. Vegetables are your best bet when it comes to how to lose weight fast. Nature has a terrific spread when it comes to choosing vegetables. And the leafy green vegetables are your best bet. Try to include a salad in you diet always.

12. Eat intelligently. The difference between man and beast is that we are driven by intelligence while beasts are driven by instinct. Don’t just eat something because you feel like eating it. Ask yourself whether your body really needs it.

13. Watch what you eat. Keep a watchful eye on every thing that goes in. Sometimes the garnishes can richer than the food itself. Accompaniments too can be very rich. Remember that it is the easiest thing in the world to eat something without realizing that it was something that you should not have eaten. Selective memory you know’

14. Control that sweet tooth. Remember that sweet things generally mean more calories. It is natural that we have cravings for sweet things especially chocolates and other confectionery. Take this weight loss tips seriously and go easy on theses things and each time you consume something sweet understand that it is going to add on somewhere.

15. Fix times to have meals and stick to it. Try to have food at a fixed time of the day. You can stretch these times by half an hour, but anything more than that is going to affect your eating pattern, the result will either be a loss of appetite or that famished feeling which will make you stuff yourself with more than what is required the next time you eat.
 

HEALTH: Ten Reasons Why Pregnant Women Should Quit Smoking

One: Women who smoke run a higher risk of miscarriage.

Two: Smokers are more likely to develop complications in pregnancy and labour, including bleeding, premature detachment of the placenta and premature rupture of the membranes.

Three: Some studies suggest there may be a link between smoking and ectopic pregnancy - a life threatening condition where an egg is fertilised outside the womb. This can reduce the chance of becoming pregnant again.


Four: Smoking increases the risk of birth defects.

Five: Smokers are three times more likely to have smaller babies. On average, babies born to smokers are around 200g lighter than those born to non-smokers. Low birthweight babies run a higher risk of death and
disease in infancy and early childhood.

Six: Babies are a third more likely to be still born or die within the first week if born to smokers.

Seven: Smoking trebles the risk of cot death.

Eight: Babies and children whose parents smoke are twice as likely to develop respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitis. Every year, some 17,000 children under five are admitted to hospital suffering from the effects of passive smoking.

Nine: Research has shown that smoking may contribute to inadequate breast milk production. In one study, fat concentrations were found to be lower in the milk from mothers who smoked and milk volumes were lower.

10: The good news is that stopping smoking will benefit your baby immediately. When your lungs become smoke free, the carbon monoxide and chemicals clear from your body and your oxygen levels return to normal.