|
Each month we feature one full
article from the current issue of the WELLNESS LETTER, plus our
Ask the Experts column, in addition to brief summaries of the
other articles, listed below.
Your Cholesterol Is Low—Do you Still Need a Statin?
Good news, bad news: At your doctor’s visit, your routine blood test shows that your total cholesterol is in the desirable range, as is your LDL, or "bad," cholesterol. Yet your doctor recommends that you take a statin drug, or at least strongly consider it. You’re over 60 and overweight, but that was true at your last checkup, too, and you’ve never had heart disease. What’s changed, the doctor says, is that your blood test found elevated C-reactive protein, or CRP. In coming months this scenario will be playing out in more and more doctors’ offices. That’s because the FDA recently approved expanded use of one particular statin drug to include an estimated 6.5 million Americans who have desirable levels of LDL cholesterol but high CRP. Full
Story
Can This Herb Help for Arthritis?
It’s hard to find relief for the pain of osteoarthritis. Over-the-counter pain relievers don’t work well for some people and can have serious adverse effects. It’s no secret that most people with arthritis who follow standard treatments try dietary supplements. Doctors sometimes agree that almost anything is worth a try. One herbal supplement touted to improve joint function and relieve pain is boswellia, which comes from a tree that grows in North Africa, the Middle East, and India. Here’s our take on it.
D-lightful Mushrooms
Few foods contain vitamin D, so it’s difficult to consume enough of it without taking a supplement. Vitamin D is essential for bone health and may also help protect against certain cancers, diabetes, and other chronic conditions. The main dietary sources are milk, which is fortified with D, and fatty fish, such as sardines and salmon. Lately, though, there’s been a lot of buzz about mushrooms being a good source, too. Mushrooms contain the precursor to vitamin D, which is activated by ultraviolet light—similar to how our skin makes vitamin D in response to sun. No other plant food is known to do this. But since mushrooms are typically grown indoors in the dark, most cultivated mushrooms contain little if any vitamin D. Over the past decade researchers have been developing ways to boost the vitamin D in mushrooms by exposing them to ultraviolet light. And now these treated mushrooms are showing up in markets.
A Nutty Test
How nut savvy are you? Take our quiz to find out. What substances in nuts may explain their health benefits? Which nuts are highest in fat and calories? True or false: Nut eaters tend to weigh more. Which nuts are the best source of omega-3 fats? How many Brazil nuts does it take to reach the daily recommended intake for selenium? To get the heart-health benefits of nuts, how much do you need to eat? It’s a multiple-choice quiz, so it’s not all that hard.
Standing up to Heel Pain
Long-distance runners and professional athletes get it, and so do sedentary people. The young are usually exempt, but the older you are, the more likely you are to have it. We're talking about heel pain, which almost everyone experiences eventually. About two million Americans suffer from heel pain at any given time, and it remains the most common disorder seen in foot clinics. Heel pain is most often caused by plantar fasciitis, an inflammation of the thick fibrous band of tissue (plantar fascia) on the bottom of the foot that connects your heel bone to the base of your toes. The pain tends to be particularly severe when you put weight on your heels first thing in the morning or get up after a long period of sitting.
A Nap to Remember
As if we needed another reason to enjoy a midday snooze, a growing body of research suggests that napping helps improve memory. Think of a nap as a quick "reboot" for your brain, triggering a neurochemical process that helps us remember things and learn new tasks.
Several recent studies, here and abroad, have linked midday naps to improvements in cognitive function.
Wellness Guide to Sunscreens
Sunscreens have come a long way since the 1940s, when a young pharmacist developed an early version for U.S. troops fighting on the sun-baked beaches of the Pacific. The stuff had the look and consistency of petroleum jelly, and barely worked against the sun’s harmful rays. These days, sunscreens come in various formulations, from creams to light sprays, with a seemingly endless array of ingredients. Despite their proven benefits, sunscreens remain misunderstood and underused. Many people believe that sunscreens are just for the beach or for those who burn easily. Some avoid sunscreens out of fear they can cause cancer and other health problems. Many use too little sunscreen to be truly protective. Here’s what you need to know.
Score One for Canada
The U.S. and Canada have similar standards of living and share many things besides a border—but not when it comes to health and longevity. Canadians live about 2.5 years longer than Americans, on average. Depending on which list you consult, Canada ranks either 8th or 11th among countries by life expectancy, while the U.S. ranks 38th or 50th. And yet, per-capita health-care spending in the U.S. is nearly double that in Canada and far higher than in any other country. Canadians also tend to be healthier and stay healthier longer (2.7 more years of "perfect health," on average) than Americans, according to a recent study.
ASK
THE EXPERTS
Our readers ask: Is poultry fat healthier than fat from red meat? Or is poultry better merely because it’s easy to remove the fat, which is concentrated in the skin? Is it okay to eat used coffee grounds? What about chocolate-covered espresso beans? Why does my stomach growl? Is it true that milk sold in plastic bottles loses much more vitamins than milk in cardboard cartons? Full
Story
WELL & INFORMED
Tips, Short Takes, and Other News You Can Use
Pro-activity attitude adjustment . . . nose-blowing advice.
WELLNESS TIPS
• If you use denture cream, follow the directions carefully. Zinc is added to some of these products to help with adhesion, but if too much of the mineral is absorbed, it can cause copper deficiency, which, in turn, can lead to irreversible neuropathy (nerve damage).
• Unless you’re exercising strenuously for more than an hour, you don’t need a sports drink. You certainly don’t need the sodium. A 20-ounce bottle of Gatorade, for instance, has 275 milligrams of sodium, which makes a big dent in the 1,500-milligram daily limit for people over 40.
• Test your home for radon, the government advises. Radon kills about 20,000 Americans annually. An invisible, odorless, radioactive gas found in soil and water, radon seeps into a house through cracks in the foundation as well as joints. It is especially risky for smokers, and is the biggest cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers. About one in every 15 homes has elevated levels. All you need is a simple, inexpensive do-it-yourself test kit, available at hardware stores.
• If you’re trying to lose weight, keep a daily food and activity diary. Just the act of writing down what you generally eat and how much you exercise can motivate you. Many online programs can help you do this, including the USDA’s MyPyramid Tracker. There are also cell phone applications (free or nearly free) such as Lose It! that keep track of food and calorie intake.
• Don’t blame tinnitus on coffee or assume that giving up caffeine will help relieve the problem. A recent English study tested the caffeine hypothesis and found that phasing out caffeinated coffee and tea did not reduce the phantom ringing, buzzing, or clanging noise that tinnitus sufferers hear.
• Check your file at the Medical Information Bureau (MIB) so you can correct any errors it may contain. MIB pools the data when people apply for health, life, or disability insurance. Your file determines your eligibility and rates for medical or life insurance. You can request a free copy by calling 866-692-6901 (in Canada, 416-597-0590). You’ll have a file only if you applied for individual insurance during the last seven years.
|
