gastric bipass articles

This LAT article is representative of many articles this week that reports on a study issued by Trust for America's Health regarding how America is losing the battle against obesity, state by state.  The actual study can be found here on Trust for America’s website.  The site also has an interactive feature that shows state by state results and information.

The results show that Mississippi is the number 1 state in obesity with a whopping 30% of its residents classified as obese.  The District of Columbia holds the dubious position of number 1 for childhood obesity with 22.8 % of its children obese.

The LAT article quotes Jim Marks, a senior vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a healthcare philanthropy group that sponsored the study as follows:

“The report is a devastating indictment and the nation is in the middle of a public health crisis that is deteriorating rapidly, and we are treating it like an inconvenience.”

“These children could be the first generation to live sicker and die younger than their parents,"

“Obesity costs $117 billion a year in preventable healthcare expenditures and "is pushing the healthcare system to the breaking point.”

The LAT article also makes clear that the data is based on self reporting, hence the results are probably much worse and people do tend to understate their weight.

This report is no surprise.  America seems content to ignore the obesity epidemic.  But by ignoring it, we will pay as individuals and collectively as a society in higher health costs and a lower quality of life.

Cranberries, eaten fresh or dried or consumed through cranberry juice, are one of the best fruits to eat that promote good health.  The number of positive health impacts from cranberries is truly amazing.

Here is information extracted directly from the Cranberry Institute Web page.

“The majority of physicians and other health professionals believe there is a clear association between a diet high in fruits and vegetables and a low risk of chronic disease. Phytonutrients (naturally derived plant compounds), particularly antioxidants, are increasingly being shown to help optimize human health.

Cranberries contain proanthocyanidins (PACs) that can prevent the adhesion of certain of bacteria, including E. coli, associated with urinary tract infections to the urinary tract wall. The anti-adhesion properties of cranberry may also inhibit the bacteria associated with gum disease and stomach ulcers.

Recent scientific research shows that cranberries and cranberry products contain significant amounts of antioxidants and other phytonutrients that may help protect against heart disease, cancer and other diseases.

Rats fed diets supplemented with cranberries are put through a series of tests to evaluate their neural function compared to a control group. Preliminary results indicate that there will be compelling evidence that cranberry can help protect the brain from neurological damage.

Atherosclerosis, in the simplest terms, is the accumulation of low density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad cholesterol", in arteries resulting in restricted blood flow. In the advance stages of the disease blood flow may be decrease severely or cease completely resulting in angina (chest pain), a thrombosis (blood clot) and/or myocardial infarction (heart attack). Atherosclerosis is a primary cause of cardiovascular disease. Ongoing research continues to suggest that cranberries may offer a natural defense against atherosclerosis.

Researchers at the University of Western Ontario demonstrated, using an animal model, that human breast cancer cells showed significantly lower incidence of tumor development when the experimental group's diet was supplemented with cranberries. Although these results are very preliminary, compounds in cranberries may prove to be a potent cancer fighter.”

Here is more on the health benefits of Cranberries from WebMD.

“A plant compound, called proanthocyanidin A-1 is found in cranberries.  Herpes simplex-2 is one of the most common viral infections in humans. It causes genital sores or ulcers, as well as inflammation of the brain and infection of newborns and people with weakened immune systems.

Scientists' lab tests showed that proanthocyanidin A-1 helped combat herpes simplex-2: it interfered with the virus when it tried to latch onto and penetrate cells -- a necessary step for infection by the herpes virus."

 Buy a bag of Sweetened Dried Cranberries and keep it handy for snacks.  It’s one of the most healthful snacks you can consume.

Dear Heather, I enjoyed reading your Dear Heathers when you published them, but it seems like it's been a while since you posted one. Also, I have been doing my own workout at home for a few years now, I alternate strength training and cardio and it seems to be a good system. But I do sit-ups every morning before I shower (I know they are strength training, but I have a phobia about my middle) and even though I can do 50 at a time and it's easy, I still do them. Is there a way I can make it harder so I can improve the results from doing them? - Thanks, Arizona Fan

Dear Arizona Fan.

Thank you for the kind words. I appreciate it. Yes, Dear Heather has sat idle for a time now, life seemed to be unexpectedly busy, specifically with my dental issues. I thought they would be resolved by now, but my insurance wouldn't pay for the procedure (or to be more precise they offered to pay $77 of the $1200 - what a bargain, eh?) I have an appointment with a local dental college that will do the work for cost, but they were pretty packed on the appointments, so I can't see them until the middle of August.

In the meanwhile, let's talk about your sit-ups. If you are doing standard sit-ups (50 are impressive) and they're easy, consider varying the types of abdominal exercises you do. For example:

• Monday - Bicycle Crunches - this requires that you pump your legs and twist your torso as you crunch and reach left elbow to right knee and right elbow to left knee
• Tuesday - Do 7-7-7s - this is a form of crunch that requires that you do 7 crunches towards the left, 7 towards the center and 7 towards the right
• Wednesday - Reverse crunches - instead of lifting your torso, let your legs do the work. Lay on your back, toes pointed towards the ceiling and knees slightly bent, control the gravity and bring them down to you and the push up again - you'll be engaging your core to hold this position
• Thursday - Standard Sit-ups if you want or return to bicycle crunches, you can also add a five pound medicine ball that you hold to your chest while doing the sit-ups to increase the resistance
• Friday - Day Off

Now you may change this around so you are doing an alternative method of abdominal exercise every other day while your body gets used to it. This is important to keep from tearing or causing injury to an abdominal muscle. I spoke with a mom just a week ago that lunged across the room to scoop up a toddler who'd fallen and she tore two muscles in her abdomen, so it can happen. Be careful.

Good luck with your workout.

It was a quiet and simple week here in the Fitness blog. Look for some serious ramp up next week as we get ready for the Back to School rush and tackle things like what you can do for your local P.E. programs and how to manage your fitness schedule around work, school and much more. In the meanwhile, let's take a look at our week in review:

Monday, July 30th

U is for Uniforms and we all have our own specific fitness uniforms. They serve a dual purpose: making you comfortable while you work out and putting you in the right mind set to work out.

Tuesday, July 31st

In V is for VO2 Max we take a look at the measurement of oxygen consumption necessary to perform at a maximum effort. It's a measurement of fitness and you can improve the VO2 Max if you lose a few pounds too.

Wednesday, August 1st

W is for Walking takes a look at walking, one of my favorite forms of fitness. Walking is a great sport and anyone can do it and there are any number of ways you can jazz up your walking routine and make the best of it.

Thursday, August 2nd

X is for eXtreme Fitness takes a look at what happens when you go to far with your fitness plans. In the case of fitness, moderation is your best course of action. If you do too much or you go to far, you are more likely to injure yourself or set yourself back.

Friday, August 3rd

Finally, we rounded off our week with Y is for Yoga and yes, it was the simple way out for the letter Y, but there are a lot of reasons to do yoga and a lot of benefits you reap from performing it.

What was your favorite article this week?

For more great fitness articles be sure to check out our previous weeks in review. Also, be sure to check back in next week as Dear Heather makes a return to answer your fitness questions.

You had to know that I was going for the obvious when I got to Y - X was harder to deliver on, but in fitness, Y almost always stands for yoga. You don't have to be in perfect shape or uber flexible to do yoga. In fact, yoga is not only a great way to get in shape, it's also a great way to calm your mind and increase your sense of personal focus.

As a workout form, yoga is more than 5,000 years old. You use a series of positions, poses and postures to stretch, shape and tone your body. You can perform mantras or not at your own discretion. Many modern yoga classes have abandoned any religious aspect and simply focused on the physical.

Core Strengthening

Yoga is more than a flexibility exercise. It also builds core strength. There are poses that require you to hold a certain body position, one foot firm on the floor, one leg extended behind you and slightly elevated with your arms raised upwards on a diagonal palms facing each other. It's difficult and holding this pose for longer than a minute can actually make me ache, but you are using your entire core to create stability so that you can hold this pose.

The deep stretches associated with yoga also utilize all the major and minor muscle groups - engaging and releasing them. There are multiple styles and levels of yoga to provide for you whether you are a beginner, intermediate or advanced yoga enthusiast. Many fitness clubs offer yoga classes to their members and you can buy a standard, beginning yoga DVD for less than $12 at Wal-mart, Target or other super center.

The primary gear you need for yoga is loose clothing and maybe a yoga mat if you work out at a club where they have hard wood floors. At home, I don't use the mat at all.

Check out more great articles on yoga.