A new Study, showed a corrolation between Sleep and Obesity in Children.  Those kids that slept more, had lower BMI’s.

“Literature suggests that with restricted sleep comes changes in certain hormones that could alter intake of food,” said Dr. Robert Vorona, a sleep specialist and an associate professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Va. “Leptin (which decreases food intake) and ghrelin (which increases food intake) are respectively reduced and increased by lack of sleep.”

“I expect as Philadelphia’s food-service establishments replace artificial trans fat with currently available heart-healthy alternatives, the result could be as much as a 6 percent reduction in coronary heart disease events in our community,” Councilman Juan Ramos, who sponsored the ban, said in the Philadelphia Inquirer.–From Science Daily

I can’t tell you how many people I know who use the excuse, “I’m drinking this wine for my heart,” to justify their excessive alcohol consumption.

Not only is this a strange devils bargain they’re making, but there is little reason to believe that the effects are warranted.

Here is more fodder for the fire, from a recent French study:

“Grape juice can have a similar effect (against heart disease) as red wine but without the alcohol. That is a very important message,” said Dr Valerie Schini-Kerth, lead author of the study published in the journal Cardiovascular Research.

“Both excessive and deficient exercise ruins physical strength.”–Aristotle

RealAge.com put these up a while ago. Not bad, and the addition of watercress is interesting.

The top 10:

1. 1. Green leafy vegetables. Eat them raw, throw them into a broth, add them to juices. Their chlorophyll helps swab out environmental toxins (heavy metals, pesticides) and is an all-round liver protector.
   2. Lemons. You need to keep the fluids flowing to wash out the body and fresh lemonade is ideal. Its vitamin C – considered the detox vitamin – helps convert toxins into a water – soluble form that?s easily flushed away.
   3. Watercress. Put a handful into salads, soups, and sandwiches. The peppery little green leaves have a diuretic effect that helps move things through your system. And cress is rich in minerals too.
   4. Garlic. Add it to everything – salads, sauces, spreads. In addition to the bulb’s cardio benefits, it activates liver enzymes that help filter out junk.
   5. Green tea. This antioxidant-rich brew is one of the healthiest ways to get more fluids into your system. Bonus: It contains catechins, which speed up liver activity.
   6. Broccoli sprouts. Get ‘em at your health-food store. They pack 20 to 50 times more cancer-fighting, enzyme-stimulating activity into each bite than the grown-up vegetable.
   7. Sesame seeds. They’re credited with protecting liver cells from the damaging effects of alcohol and other chemicals. For a concentrated form, try tahini, the yummy sesame seed paste that?s a staple of Asian cooking.
   8. Cabbage. There are two main types of detoxifying enzymes in the liver; this potent veggie helps activate both of them. Coleslaw, anyone?(and I’d add Kimchee)
      
   9. Psyllium. A plant that’s rich in soluble fiber, like oat bran, but more versatile. It mops up toxins (cholesterol too) and helps clear them out. Stir powdered psyllium into juice to help cleanse your colon, or have psyllium-fortified Bran Buds for breakfast.
   10. Fruits, fruits, fruits. They’re full of almost all the good things above – vitamin C, fiber, nutritious fluids, and all kinds of antioxidants. Besides, nothing tastes better than a ripe mango, fresh berries, or a perfect pear.

From Realage.com

This comes from Keith Scott’s Blog:

1. Diet– Change it. Eat six small meals a day. Eat your carbs early in the day, and keep them to a minimum as the day progresses. Eat protein for each meal if you can. Eat good fats throughout the day too (i.e. fish oil, olive oil.) Decrease calories slowly, not all at once and get some help figuring out how many you should have. (Many people UNDER eat and cannot lose fat because they shut their own metabolism down)
2. Resistance Training – Get on a good, consistent resistance-training program, at least three times a week. Adding muscle is a great way to ramp up your metabolism and lose fat. In addition, resistance training will help melt fat off quicker than most forms of exercise.
3. High Intensity Cardio– Start doing some high intensity cardio exercise at least three times a week.  Try HIIT training (you can read more about it in my blog…scroll down.) Remember, high intensity is relative depending on your fitness level. You do not have to have a “set” intensity; the intensity is relative to your own fitness levels. This means that almost anyone can do high intensity cardio training. It is the best way to burn fat long term, throughout the day.

One expert says to eat like a Neanderthal and another says eat like a Visigoth, or perhaps a Viking. But while searching for nutritional Valhalla, most people just get lost and eat like a Modern American—and end up looking more Sumo than Samurai.–Dr. John Berardi

According to a report by Reuters

Offering seniors with diabetes the opportunity to participate in a subsidized community-based exercise program may help lower health care costs, if the seniors attend the fitness classes regularly, preliminary study findings suggest.

Duh! It drives me insane that the “Health” industry is so blatantly out of touch with reality. Of course exercise will lower health care costs, because people will be … gasp … healthier!

Don’t wait for a government grant to exercise. Make like Nike, and Just do it.

“Tackling the problem of the uninsured is not only about expanding coverage, it’s about addressing this hidden tax on health-care that Californians can no longer afford,” stated Gov. Schwarzenegger. “I know if we work together, we can make health care more affordable, accessible and equitable.”

And Here’s Video of the Event.

It is Ridiculous to talk about Health and what it means to be healthy, without bringing up the dismal state of the Health Care System in this country.

I applaud my Buff Brother for taking this on in the key language of Conservatives … Financial.

From Dr. John Berardi’s Gourmet Nutrition book

1) Eat every 2-3 hours
2) Eat lean, complete protein with each meal
3) Eat veggies with each meal
4) Eat “other” carbs only during and after exercise
5) Eat a balanced fat profile containing 1/3 of each type of fat
6) Ditch the calorie-containing drinks
7) Use whole foods as your primary source of nutrition Have 10% foods
9) Develop food preparation strategies
10) Balance daily food choices with healthy variety