Car Commuters Gain More Weight

Last Updated: 2013-01-25 15:59:08 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Kathryn Doyle

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People driving to work every day are packing on more pounds than their colleagues on trains, buses and bikes, according to a new study from Australia.

"Even if you are efficiently active during leisure time, if you use a car for commuting daily then that has an impact on weight gain," lead author Takemi Sugiyama of the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Melbourne told Reuters Health.

Exercise Tied to Better Colon Cancer Survival Odds

colorectal cancer (Photo credit: istolethetv)

Last Updated: 2013-01-24 14:25:26 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Genevra Pittman

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People with colon cancer who spend more time walking and fewer hours on the couch are less likely to die over the seven to eight years after being diagnosed, a new study suggests.

The findings don't prove exercise itself boosts a person's survival chances, researchers said. But the pattern held even after the study team took into account how advanced patients' cancers were, their age and other aspects of their diet, lifestyle and health.

Acupuncture May Ease Cancer-Related Fatigue

English: Acupuncture (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last Updated: 2012-10-29 16:00:28 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Genevra Pittman

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Acupuncture may help relieve fatigue in women who've had breast cancer, a new UK study suggests.

Researchers found that women who attended six weekly acupuncture sessions had greater improvements in fatigue as well as anxiety, depression and quality of life, compared to those who only received educational materials.

Kids With Down Syndrome Twice as Likely to be Heavy

Last Updated: 2012-11-14 15:10:14 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Kerry Grens

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - More than one in four children with Down syndrome in The Netherlands is overweight, a rate double that of Dutch youth without the developmental disability, according to a new study.

"We were alarmed by the high prevalence of overweight in children with Down syndrome," said Dr. Helma van Gameren-Oosterom, the lead author of the study from the Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research in Leiden.

Study Links Relaxation Method to Reduced Hot Flashes

A gray-haired old woman from the United Kingdom (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last Updated: 2012-11-30 14:35:14 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Kathleen Raven

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Although studies of the effects of relaxation techniques on menopause symptoms have yielded mixed results so far, a new report from Sweden comes down in favor of the approach as an alternative to hormone therapy.

Postmenopausal women trained to relax before and during the onset of hot flashes cut the frequency of those events in half during the three-month trial, researchers say. Women in a comparison group that got no treatments experienced little change in their symptoms. 

Diabetes Remission Possible With Diet, Exercise

English: Diagram shows insulin release from the Pancreas and how this lowers blood sugar leves. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last Updated: 2012-12-18 16:00:12 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Genevra Pittman

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - One in nine people with diabetes saw their blood sugar levels dip back to a normal or "pre-diabetes" level after a year on an intensive diet and exercise program, in a new study.

Complete remission of type 2 diabetes is still very rare, researchers said. But they added that the new study can give people with the disease hope that through lifestyle changes, they could end up getting off medication and likely lowering their risk of diabetes-related complications. 

Can Exercise Detoxify the Body? Experts Skeptical

A yoga class. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last Updated: 2012-12-17 10:55:31 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Dorene Internicola

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The word "detoxification" is flung around the fitness community as frequently as kettlebells are swung.

Yoga teachers regularly speak of detoxifying twists, aerobics instructors of detoxifying sweat, dieters of detoxifying fasts. But health professionals are skeptical.

Spending on Food Advertising to Kids Fell in '09

The Apex Building, headquarters of the Federal Trade Commission, on Constitution Avenue and 17th Streets in Washington, D.C.. The building was designed by Edward H. Bennett under the purview of Secretary of the Treasury Andrew W. Mellon, and was completed in 1938 at a cost of $125 million. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last Updated: 2012-12-21 15:25:13 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Diane Bartz

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Food companies spent considerably less to advertise to children in 2009 than they did in 2006 as they shifted to the Internet, and products pitched to kids got slightly healthier, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said in a report on Friday.

Cereal makers, fast food restaurants and other food companies spent $1.79 billion to advertise to children aged 2 to 17 in 2009, down almost 20 percent, on an inflation-adjusted basis, from $2.1 billion three years earlier, the FTC said.

Hairstyles May Keep Some Black Women From Exercise

Last Updated: 2012-12-17 16:27:32 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Andrew M. Seaman

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A number of obstacles may stand between a person and exercise, and hairstyles may be one of them for African-American women, according to a new study.

Researchers found about two of every five African-American women said they avoid exercise because of concerns about their hair, and researchers say that is concerning given the United States' obesity epidemic.

Early Scheduling Gets More Patients to Cardiac Rehab

English: Front of the Mayo Clinic Methodist Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last Updated: 2012-12-28 14:10:20 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Andrew M. Seaman

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Scheduling heart patients' first cardiac rehabilitation session within 10 days of hospital discharge gets more of them to show up, according to a new study.

Researchers found the earlier scheduling led to an 18 percent increase in attendance at that first cardiac rehab orientation session, compared to appointments that were scheduled a month or more after discharge.

Warm-up and Cool Down

Chang-Hwa Bank Team make their warming up at 2006 Taipei 101 Run Up to prevent damage and accident. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

An important practice to follow in an exercise program is to gradually start the exercise session and gradually taper off at the end. The warm-up allows various body systems to adjust to increased metabolic demands. The heart rate increases, blood flow increases, and muscle temperatures rise. 

Warming up is certainly a more comfortable way to begin an exercise session and is probably safer. Progressively more vigorous exercises or a gradual increase in walking speed are good ways to warm up. It is equally important to cool down—that is, to gradually reduce exercise intensity—at the end of each session. 

The abrupt cessation of vigorous exercise may cause blood to pool in the legs, which can cause fainting or, more seriously, can sometimes precipitate cardiac complications. Slow walking and stretching for five minutes at the end of an exercise session is therefore a good practice. The heart rate should gradually decline during the cool down, and by the end of the five minutes it should be less than 120 beats per minute for individuals under 50 years of age and less than 100 beats per minute for those over 50.

Source:
exercise. (2013). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/197976/exercise

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Treadmill Numbers

 

English: m320 anti gravity treadmill (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Treadmill Numbers and What they really Mean

Author: Dale Miller

When it comes to working out and burning fat few things match up to the calorie busting and cardiovascular workout of the mighty treadmill. However, at times the numbers you are faced with can be more of a source of confusion than reliable information. When it comes to reading treadmill stats, many people wonder not only how accurate the information is, but just what exactly those shifting numbers mean.

Exercise for Your Bone Health

Working Out (Photo credit: Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums)

Vital at every age for healthy bones, exercise is important for treating and preventing osteoporosis. Not only does exercise improve your bone health, it also increases muscle strength, coordination, and balance, and it leads to better overall health.

Olympic Medalists May Also Claim 'Survival Advantage'

Olympic medal winners live longer than people in the general population, but athletes who do high- or moderate-intensity sports have no survival advantage over those who do low-intensity activities such as golf, according to two new studies.

More Parks Don't Mean More Walking: Study

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People who live within a half-mile of lots of parks and fields go on fewer walks than those who don't have much parkland nearby, a new study from Australia suggests.

The findings run contrary to the notion that people get more exercise and are healthier when they have access to outdoor recreation, researchers said.

It's possible, they added, that urban neighborhoods with few parks may instead have lots of cafes, schools and community centers that facilitate walking for transportation.

Read the full story.

Health Tip: Warm Up Before You Work Out

Warming up before a workout helps prepare your body for exercise, making you less vulnerable to injury.

Read more.

Exercise Programs for Kids Seem to Have Little Impact: Study

Formal physical exercise programs for children have only a small impact on overall activity and thus on weight loss, British researchers report.

Their study raises questions about the best ways to help children attain or maintain a healthy weight.

"Physical activity interventions are not increasing physical activity sufficiently to impact on the body mass or body fat of children," said lead researcher Brad Metcalf, of the department of endocrinology and metabolism at Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry in Plymouth, England.

"It is in everyone's interest to find something that works effectively," he added.

But other experts said instead of dismissing organized interventions as ineffective, policymakers should conclude that still more is needed to stem childhood obesity. In the United States, about 17 percent of children aged 2 years and older are obese.

Read the full story.

Walkable Neighborhoods Tied to Lower Diabetes Risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People living in communities that lend themselves to walking had a significantly lower risk of developing diabetes than those living in the least walkable neighborhoods in a large new study from Canada.

"If you have fewer opportunities for physical activity in your daily life, then you may gain more weight...and you're also more likely to develop diabetes," said Dr. Gillian Booth, the lead author and a researcher at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto.

Read the full story.

Exercise May Prevent Stress and Anxiety, Study Suggests

(HealthDay News) -- Feeling anxious? Hit the gym, experts say.
A new study from researchers at the University of Maryland School of Public Health found that moderate exercise can help people manage future stress and anxiety, and the emotional and mental health benefits of exercise may last long after a workout ends...

Read more.