October 31, 2009

Happy Halloween




thanks Chris

BOOMER HEALTH IMPROVES WITH FIBER



Dr, Mark Hyman writes in his blog post about ways to be more healthy. I strongly recommend checking out his blog weekly here


9 Tips for Increasing the Fiber in Your Diet.
    1. Get the flax. Get a coffee grinder just for flax seeds, grind 1/2 cup at a time, and keep it in a tightly sealed glass jar in the fridge or freezer. Eat 2 tablespoons of ground flax seeds a day. Sprinkle it on salads, grains, or vegetable dishes or mix it in a little unsweetened applesauce.2. Load up on legumes. Beans beat out everything else for fiber content! 3. Bulk up on vegetables. With low levels of calories and high levels of antioxidants and protectivephytochemicals, these excellent fiber sources should be heaped on your plate daily. 4. Go with the grain. Whole grains like brown rice or quinoa are rich in fiber, too. 5. Eat more fruit. Include a few servings of low-sugar fruits to your diet daily (berries are the highest in fiber and other protective phytochemicals). 6. Go nuts. Include a few handfuls of almonds, walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts to your diet every day. 7. Start slowly. Switching abruptly to a high-fiber diet can cause gas and bloating. Increase your fiber intake slowly till you get up to 50 grams a day. 8. Consider a good fiber supplement. If you're have trouble getting your fill of fiber, choose a supplement that contains both soluble and insoluble fiber and no sweeteners or additives. 9. Choose GM. By now, you know that my favorite kind is glucomannan (GM), or konjac. Many companies sell it in capsule form. Although I don't normally recommend specific brands, I like the one produced by Natural Factors called WellBetX. You can take 2 to 4 capsules with a glass of water, 30 to 60 minutes before eating. Don't take any medications within 1 hour before or 2 hours after taking it because the fiber may absorb the medication.
As you can see, fiber has big benefits for your health -- from encouraging weight loss to preventing chronic diseases. I hope you'll start adding more of this important compound into your diet today!

October 30, 2009

BABY BOOMERS

Calling all friends - I've been asked to speak to a group of financial consultants in a week and my topic is Baby Boomers: Life in the 4th Quarter. So, I need your help - what would you want to hear about? What kind of talk would be interesting to you?
What might be useful and memorable for my audience - I suppose that is the key.

Please email me with your insight and profundity.

CRANBERRIES AND HEALTH


Cranberries Provide Eight-Hour Health Protection----New Research Reveals Urinary Tract, Cardiovascular and Cancer Benefits of the Berry from the Bog-

PR Newswire
10-29-09
SAVANNAH, Ga., Oct 28, 2009 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- For those who think cranberries are nothing more than a turkey side dish, new research revealed this week confirms that the crimson berry may be small, but its health benefits are large. Leading scientists from throughout the country and abroad convened today in Savannah, GA, for the Fourth Cranberry Institute Health Research Conference to review the latest findings on the potential health benefits of cranberries, including studies that reveal an eight-hour protection against certain harmful bacteria and significant improvements in biomarkers for many chronic diseases.
More than 30 nutrition scientists from leading research institutions, including the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and a variety of prestigious universities, presented new findings about the cranberry's antibacterial and anti-adhesion properties, as well as promising new areas of research in anti-aging, anti-cancer and protection against cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome and type II diabetes.
"New studies are continually finding how unique cranberries are, and that their potential health benefits are impressive," said Jere Downing, executive director, Cranberry Institute, the nonprofit organization dedicated to cranberry health research. There seems to be no denying that cranberries are antioxidant-rich and deliver unique proanthocyanidins (PACs) that are responsible for cranberries' beneficial anti-adhesion properties.
Cranberry Juice Cocktail Offers Eight-Hour Urinary Tract Protection
Cranberries may offer help to more than 11 million American women each year who contract urinary tract infections (UTIs). UTIs cost some $1.6 billion in healthcare and the only known treatment is antibiotic therapy, which increasingly contributes to creating bacterial resistant strains of pathogens.
Cranberry PACs have been shown to protect against P-fimbriated Escherichia coli (E. coli), which is thought to be responsible for as much as 95% of urinary tract infections, and other strains of E. coli bacteria through anti-adhesion properties, so that pathogenic bacteria are unable to adhere to our cells, multiply and cause an infection. New research presented by Amy Howell, Ph.D., associate research scientist at Rutgers University, Marucci Center for Blueberry and Cranberry Research and Extension, examined the anti-adhesion effects of 16 oz. of cranberry juice cocktail (CJC) versus water on subject urine samples exposed to E. coli bacteria. The researchers, including lead researcher Terri A. Camesano, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, reported that CJC provided protection against the pathogen for up to eight-hours.
"The potential for cranberry juice cocktail to help prevent urinary tract infections is significant, especially since we know that the berry's unique proanthocyanidins offer at least an eight-hour anti-adhesion benefit," said Howell. "Based on this and other studies, we recommend that drinking cranberry juice twice daily can help maintain a healthy urinary tract," she added.
Pathogen Protector
The same anti-adhesion benefits studied in urinary tract health are now being identified in other areas of the body, such as the oral cavity, stomach and small intestine. Studies at the conference identified that cranberry PACs help prevent oral bacteria from adhering to tooth and denture surfaces, thereby helping to protect against gum disease and cavities. In addition, researchers from the University of Maine conducted trials to determine if cranberry PACs can help protect against E. coli 0157:H7, the strain responsible for serious--and even life-threatening--cases of foodborne illnesses.
While more studies are needed, the preliminary studies suggest that cranberry PACs may play a role in oral health, gastrointestinal health and protection against bacterial, fungal and even viral illnesses.
Heart Health
Emerging research suggests that cranberries may also play a role in cardiovascular health. A University of Scranton study presented one way in which the cranberry provides cardioprotection. In the study, animals fed a high-fat diet with two doses of cranberry juice cocktail (CJC) daily had significantly decreased atherosclerotic development, compared to animals fed a high-fat diet without CJC. The mechanism of the effect of CJC on atherosclerosis is currently under examination, but is thought to be from the potent antioxidant capacity of the berries.
Anti-Cancer
Numerous ongoing and recently completed studies are evaluating the role cranberries may have in preventing certain cancers. Preliminary in vitro studies conducted at the University of Massachusetts found that compounds in cranberries limit the proliferation of human breast, colon and prostate tumor cell lines in a dose-dependent manner. Researchers at the University of Western Ontario presented research showing that cranberry extracts impaired the growth of eight different human cancer cell lines.
The Cranberry Institute
The Cranberry Institute is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1951 to further the success of cranberry growers and the industry in the Americas through health, agricultural and environmental stewardship research, as well as cranberry promotion and education.

CONTACT: Tasia Hurt/Emily Blasi
Pollock Communications
212-941-1414
thurt@pollock-pr.com/eblasi@pollock-pr.com
SOURCE The Cranberry Institute
www.prnewswire.com

October 28, 2009

H1N1 FLU

I wish that I could figure out which side of the fence I'm sitting on regarding flu shots. I've never had a flu shot in my life and I almost never (touch wood) get the flu. On those few occasions over the years when I had the flu - well, I had the flu...and got over it. Color me skeptical about a vaccination that has been created in record time, approved in record time and is now being marketed by everyone from newspapers to Presidents, from doctors to Prime Ministers. What a wonderful service the pharmaceutical industry is providing to mankind - saving us all so that we can continue to buy our prescriptions, I presume. I am amazed that we have spent decades and billions of dollars trying to find a cure for cancer, AIDS and heart disease without success but in a few short months, this H1N1 vaccination has been foisted upon us as the Saviour of mankind. I have not fallen prey to the previous pandemics like the bird flu, West Nile virus, Mad Cow disease, Hantavirus, ebola and the black plague so perhaps I live some sort of charmed life.
Maybe this one is different.  All the media certainly are saying that it is, not that I think there are that many qualified journalists who also have doctorates in infectious diseases but they are parroting what other so called experts are saying. I am not suggesting that there is some sort of conspiracy about, but the speed with which this has been proclaimed and the magic bullet concocted, approved and delivered is somewhat suspect in my little corner of the world. Perhaps you think that I am just an old, curmudgeonly skeptic but what happens when people start having all sorts of unexpected reactions to the vaccinations? Is this like most other products created in the labs of big pharma and has a laundry list of side effects that are scarier than what it is supposed to cure? If you are going in for the needle - do you know the potential hazards of taking it in the arm?
Perhaps I will wait and let you and a few million others pretend to be lab rats and see what the results are. In the meantime, I will wash my hands frequently and cover my face when you cough.
I guess I'm off the fence for the time-being - is red wine good for the flu too?

October 27, 2009

PREVENTATIVE HEALTH MEASURES FOR ALL OF US


Chicago Tribune
10-26-09

Oct. 25--Eating a Mediterranean diet rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, olive oil, fish and cereals is associated with a slower rate of cognitive decline in adults 65 years and older.
Journal of the American Medical Association, August

People who live in neighborhoods with access to parks, safe walkways and public transportation and fresh fruits and vegetables are 38 percent less likely to develop diabetes than people who live in more unhealthy neighborhoods.
Archives of Internal Medicine, October

A daily supplement of 700 to 1,000 international units of vitamin D reduces older people's risk of falling by 19 percent.
British Medical Journal, October

For women past menopause, at least seven hours of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity a week during the previous 10 years is associated with a 16 percent reduction in the risk of breast cancer.
BMC Cancer, October

Men who engage in moderate exercise are significantly less likely to receive a diagnosis of prostate cancer. If they do receive a diagnosis, they are less likely to have aggressive disease.
Journal of Urology, September

Women who are obese in middle age are 80 percent less likely to be healthy and free of chronic disease at age 70.
British Medical Journal, September

Mortality rates for people with the lowest fitness scores are double those who are moderately fit and four times that of people with the highest scores.
Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, July

October 26, 2009

MORE THAN BOOK PUBLISHING

WOW That's the best I can come up with at 5AM. As my previous post mentioned, I spent the last 3 days at a seminar called Book Publishing 2.0 and my head is ready to explode. The sheer volume of freely shared information is mind blowing. If you ever see this program offered - take it! It doesn't matter if you are writing a book or not. If you have a business in today's world, the information and introduction to what is possible in terms of growing your company is worth 10X the cost of admission. I think they are planning another presentation in Utah in January. Beginning with the use of personality profiling to hyper focus your writing or marketing efforts and on to the incredible cyber world of today, this program is revolutionary. Revolutionary? Yes, the presenters spend no time selling their wares and all of their time (30+ hours) giving information, providing serious learning and practical application opportunities.
I must give a big "shout out" to the best personal coach in the land, Dawnie, for signing me up - thanks - the best weekend of info ever!
Who knew that geeks could be so much fun?
If you were at the event, post a comment.

October 25, 2009

OLD LAWN MOWER

I am spending this weekend at a seminar called Book Publishing 2.0 and it is an incredible presentation full of outstanding content from some very successful and knowledgeable people. The main speaker, Mike Drew and his team have helped 60 authors put their books on the best sellers lists - amazing! I am learning about the promotion and marketing skills required to accomplish this feat.
In addition to the course content, I met a young man who has a very unique, Calgary based business, recycling lawnmowers. some of you may know that I got tired of pulling the chord over and over, filling with gas and all that other stuff and bought a push mower this summer. I'm not kidding, it's easier to push than the power mower. The starter spring broke on the old one and the young fellow that I met will take it, fix it and sell it, thus keeping it out of the landfill where I was going to take it this week. In case you interested in contacting him, here's his website, Jack S. Nice young kid getting a great education in free enterprise and business management - be nice to him, we may be working for him some day.