Build more bone

Skeleton key- so you think osteoporosis was an old woman’s disease. Wrong! Instead, science has shown that bone loss starts insidiously in young adulthood.
During childhood, your bones grow rapidly, doubling in mass at least twice until puberty. During adolescence, bone mass doubles again. You now have almost all of the bone you will need to carry you into your adult years. In your mid-20s, bone mass peaks.
The pendulum swings the other way in your 30s, when you lose more bone than you build. Women lose bone faster, of course, due to declining estrogen, but men catch up after age60. Reason: Less physical activity, low calcium as they get older. Also, new research shows that chronic stress can decrease bone mass.
  To stop bone loss try these strategies:
• Increase calcium intake. Enjoy fat-free milk, yoghurt, beans, leafy green vegetables, & calcium – enriched juices, cereals soy foods, and cottage cheese.
• Stay aerobically active. Walk, jog or bike at least 30 minutes a day. This helps lower excess body fat and strengthens the leg bones and muscles.
• Lift weights at least twice a week. This increases muscles mass and strength, stimulates bone building, and increases your calorie burn.
• Try something new. Want the best exercise for preventing osteoporosis?  Simply jump-straight up and down –for 2 minutes. (Don’t lock your knees when you land, and wear athletic shoes.) The jolt your hipbones get “instructs” them to make more bone.
Yoga, Tai chi, qigong, martial arts, and Pilates also help build and maintain strong bones.
• Keep stress levels under control. Learn how to turn it off with simple meditation done throughout the day.

Plastic Menace

Phthalates, a chemical used in the manufacture of toys, polyesters, PVC pipes and cosmetics, may be linked to the development of lupus, according to recent research using mice.

Researchers from Indiana State’s life sciences department injected mice with phthalates and found the injections triggered lupus, caused development of lupus-related kidney complications and considerably shortened the lifespan of mice with a genetic predisposition to the disease. The injections did not have negative effects in mice that are not predisposed to the illness. In lupus which is a form of arthritis, the immune system engages in friendly fire against the skin, joints, blood and kidneys. Scientists believe there is a genetic predisposition to the disease; it is known that environmental factors – possibly including exposure to phthalates – may also play a critical role in causing this autoimmune disease.

Given the widespread use of phthalates more extensive research is warranted, researchers report. Other experts question the finding and suggest that data from rats cannot be extrapolated to humans.

6 ways to Conquer Temptation

Tame The Urges: Recognizing the environmental factors that can encourage overeating may help you rein this problem. Here are some practical suggestions:
Play hard to get: Put the most tempting foods high up in the cupboard, at the very back of the fridge, or in other inconvenient spots. Replace the cookie jar and candy bowl with a fruit bowl.
Downsize: Many small containers are better than a few large one’s because they provide convenient stopping points. Never eat directly out of a large package.
Plan ahead: Decide how much you’re going to eat before an event and do your best to stick with that plan. Set some limits before you go the movies or watch the cricket match. It’s so easy to mindlessly munch when you’re in front of a screen of any kind.
Be a copycat: Look around. Who’s eating the least? Who has the healthiest food on their plate? Model your eating habits on that person’s.
Keep it the same: Don’t put out too many different varieties of the same kind of food. Prime eg: Chocolate in different flavors. You’ll be tempted to sample from each one and eat a lot more than if you were faced with fewer choices.

Weight Gain Speeds Aging

Extra pounds can literally age your DNA. That’s the latest from the Bogalusa Heart Study – an ongoing 32-year research project at the Tulane School of Public Health. Scientists analyzed blood samples from 49 adults in 1988 and again in 2001, recording weight, height and blood sugar, as well as the length of their white blood cell telomeres, strands of DNA on the tip of each chromosome that typically shorten with age.
They found that as people gained weight and became more insulin resistant (a common side effect of being overweight), their telomeres shrank more than those of people who didn’t add pounds and develop greater insulin resistance, a clear sign that the aging process was accelerating in the overweight volunteers.
Researchers believe that the stress caused by weight and insulin resistance generates inflammation and free radicals that damage cells. “Losing weight can slow telomere erosion, “says study coauthor Abraham Aviv, MD. Preliminary research shows that exercise and a healthy life style can help keep your DNA younger, too.

Dieting Tips for you
When to eat what?
Check out our Quiz for diet and health 

Walk a mile or Run a mile

Whether you walk a mile or run a mile, you burn exactly the same number of calories.

This belief is widespread. The theory: Since you are transporting the same amount of weight over the same distance. It’s a law of physics. If you run, you just burn the calories faster. But it is not true. It’s not just that it takes more energy to move at a higher speed, but running also requires more strenuous arm, leg, and upper-body movement, all of which burn extra calories. And to achieve the longer stride of running, you have to repeatedly lift your body weight off the ground so that both feet are in the air at the same time. When you walk, at least one foot is always on the ground. A standard reference guide to energy expenditures shows that for a 60-kg person, walking 3 miles per hour burns 70 calories per mile (in 20 minutes), but running 6 miles per hour burns 100 calories per mile (in 10 minutes). Race-walking, with its hip-swiveling, arm-pumping motion, also burns more calories per mile than regular walking.
Brisk walking is still a great way to burn calories and many people prefer it to running. But if you want to burn as many calories as you would running, you just have to walk a bit farther.

Walk a mile or Run a mile

Whether you walk a mile or run a mile, you burn exactly the same number of calories.

This belief is widespread. The theory: Since you are transporting the same amount of weight over the same distance. It’s a law of physics. If you run, you just burn the calories faster. But it is not true. It’s not just that it takes more energy to move at a higher speed, but running also requires more strenuous arm, leg, and upper-body movement, all of which burn extra calories. And to achieve the longer stride of running, you have to repeatedly lift your body weight off the ground so that both feet are in the air at the same time. When you walk, at least one foot is always on the ground. A standard reference guide to energy expenditures shows that for a 60-kg person, walking 3 miles per hour burns 70 calories per mile (in 20 minutes), but running 6 miles per hour burns 100 calories per mile (in 10 minutes). Race-walking, with its hip-swiveling, arm-pumping motion, also burns more calories per mile than regular walking.
Brisk walking is still a great way to burn calories and many people prefer it to running. But if you want to burn as many calories as you would running, you just have to walk a bit farther.

Healthy Popcorn

Parmesan cheese (yes, the same that goes on pizzas) is a great popcorn topper and it’s better for you than butter. Pop the cron without fat (airpop them in the microwave, a covered pan or pressure cooker), then add the cheese when they are nice and hot, so it will stick! A tablespoon of grated Parmesan adds 40 mg of calcium for only 23 calories and 1.5 g of fat. A tablespoon of butter has almost zero calcium and adds 108 calories and 12 g of fat

Less insulin keeps you younger

Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston made a remarkable discovery about a particular gene that can slow the cellular ageing process in human beings. Guess what? The gene is switched on and off by insulin. Cells obtain energy by combining glucose with oxygen, a process called metabolic oxidation, which inevitably creates highly reactive atoms called free radicals. Free radicals can damage DNA and disrupt healthy cells. When cells become damaged, the body quickly replaces them. Free radical damage is one of the things that causes premature ageing. One only needs to look at smokers to see the premature ageing that is a result of free radical damage. The chemical in cigarette smoke produces an enormous number of free radicals and as we all know free radicals damage DNA and can lead to diseases like cancer.
Experiments with mice on low carbohydrate diets have demonstrated that when insulin is not being released, this newly-discovered gene switches on and causes the cells in the body to begin to burn glucose at a highly efficient rate. There is a correlation to human counterparts. Many patients have also reported a remarkable lift in their energy levels accompanied with the weight loss.
Because the cells are now operating more efficiently, there is less oxidation occurring, and as a result, less damaging free radicals are being formed. Not only did the mice have more energy, they also lived longer, up to 40 percent longer than their litter mates on an unrestricted diet. It has been observed that people who live for an extraordinarily long time and typically survive on a low GI diet are often thin. They avoid the peaks in their blood sugar level, unlike people on an unrestricted diet. Credible evidence from research on native peoples, like the herdsmen of Pakistan’s Hunza valley and the Indians of Mexico’s Sierra Madre mountains, who live on simple and Spartan diets shows that they do live longer and that a few can reach a remarkable age.

Ways to live longer

Immortality cannot be achieved through work, it can be only achieved through not dying. Stop seeking immortality, start seeking a healthy lifestyle. Here’s how… 

Don’t Oversleep – Sleeping too much can reduce life expectancy according to study in the archives of general psychiatry. The study found that the people who sleep more that 8 hours have a significantly higher death rates. Be optimistic – researchers have found that optimistic people have 50% decreased risk of early death compared with those who leaned towards pessimism. Those with a positive outlook on life are probably less stressed, better equiped to deal with adversity and consequently healthier. 

Get a VAP – It’s estimated that about half of the people with heart disease have normal cholestrol levels which raises doubt as to the ability of traditional cholestrol tests to detect risk. But advanced tests, like the VAP, may remedy that. The VAP test measures important metrics, which other test miss completely. 

Use of Fruits and Vegetables

People with poor digestion should dilute fruit and vegetable juices with water. Diluted juices are easy to digest. Taking them on an empty stomach is highly beneficial.
Fruit and vegetable juices should be taken raw and fresh. The treatment with juices is slow and complete cure takes a long time. Other things can also be taken as supplementary treatment. Juices should be taken in the morning and in the afternoon. 16 ounces of juice can be taken at a time. Seasonal fruits and vegetables should be used. As far as possible, sugar should be consumed in small quantities. Human body is capable of synthesizing sugar from the foods we eat.

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