Archive for the 'Health & Fitness' Category
As I get up there in age, I’ve noticed that living healthy becomes a bigger priority in my life. I recall being able to eat anything I wanted and still maintained my weight with little effort. My metabolism was high and I was very active with all sorts of sports. Now I find little time to exercise and need to focus more on looking for ways to live a healthy life. I came across a website forum with a wealth of healthy tidbits and information. There are all sorts of topics from comparing fruit to fruit juice (which is healthier & why), how metabolism works, the wonders of garlic, protein shakes, explaining Carbohydrates, Fiber, etc. The forum also includes some recipes and what I enjoyed the most are the inspirational messages. These quotes and such are so true and hit home, at least for me. If anyone is trying to live a healthier life, I recommend this website forum.
Ever since I got divorced and have custody of my children on the weekends, I cook a lot more often. Although I consider myself a fairly decent cook, being that I worked as a cook at a restaurant for several years while going through college. But never knew how took cook healthy dishes. Until I found this great website full of heathly recipes and tips. It is called EatingWell.com. It has recipes in several categories such as “Serves Two”, “Cooking for Kids” and “Healthy in a Hurry”, just to name a few. There are videos titled “Healthy in a Minute”, giving you healthy tips. Other sections are titled “Diet”, “Eat & Drink”, “News & Views” and even a shopping area to purchase cookbooks and other products, as well as coupons to help while your shopping at the market. There is a wealth of information that anyone can use. My favorite dish is the Blackened Salmon Sandwich.
Here is a picture, boy am I getting hungry just looking at it: 
According to an article I just read, people with heart disease do not know the signs/symptoms of a heart attack. But they are about 5-7 times more likely to suffer a heart attack then someone without any heart issues or history. This seems odd to me. I mean if someone had heart issues, wouldn’t you want to know the symptoms of a heart attack, so you can be better prepared. But the symptoms can be anything from nausea to pain in the chest, jaw & left arm. I knew about the pain in chest and left arm, but jaw or even nausea? I had no idea. According to the research team in this article, they claim that the shorter hospital stays and move to outpatient treatment may have reduced the education on the subject to the patients. I guess because it is easier to tend to these heart attacks now, little education is provided. But the education will help these patients get to the hospital sooner. Apparently, patients are taking between 2 1/2-3 hours to get to the hospital, because they do not recognize the symptoms soon enough. But only education will help patients get to the hospital sooner, which will increase the patient’s chances of surviving the heart attack.
Ever since my Mother was diagnosed with bile duct cancer in 2003, I have since spoken to others that know victims of this deadly disease. I guess I am more aware of it now and also read articles about them more and more. I just read an article about “Stand Up to Cancer” and believe it is a great thing. They are trying to create more awareness of the different types of cancer, plus involving more experts in public discussions. Research is key in trying to find a way to prevent and eventually eliminate the cancer completely. But research is expensive and they can use all the help they can get. If anyone is interested in donating to the cause, you can do it by clicking here.
I recently read an article regarding child obesity. It mentioned that childhood obesity rates have hit a plateau, after twenty years of rising rates. I think this is great news, but most doctors are holding back their optimism. They are not sure exactly what the stall in rates represents. I guess I am just an optimist. After watching a few episodes of “Shaq’s Big Challenge” , I was convinced that there needed something to be done about childhood obesity. I mean these kids lost so much weight, there character changed as well. They gained confidence and appeared very happy at the conclusion of the show. I also started watching “The Biggest Loser” reality show and thought it was proof, that childhood obesity has been a problem for a while in the US. I recall the last show that one of the participants had lost so much weight, he didn’t recall ever being that light. So that means he had been obese as a child. I hope Americans are now aware that childhood obesity is a major problem and hopefully this report regarding the rates of childhood obesity is a sign that all the efforts are working.
The summer is approaching fast and living in San Diego, CA, sandals are the norm for footwear. With that said, we all need to be aware that foot fungus is all over looking for somewhere to breed and grow. It loves mositure, so it is there at the beach, while we play sports and especially in public showers and restrooms. We have seen the symptoms of thicken, brittle or discolored toenails, plus itchy, scratchy or blistering skin. It can start in either place, the toenail or skin, but there are ways to try and prevent them. Avoiding walking barefoot in the public restrooms or showers is a MUST. Also, if you get pedicures, you must make sure the tubs are thouroughly cleaned with bleach, and the tools disinfected. There are also some creams that help prevent skin irritations, but the best way is to avoid the areas listed above. If you do get infected, although there are many over-the-counter options, I’d suggest the oral medication prescribed by a doctor. It worked on me and quickly. I haven’t had it since either. Keep in mind that the oral medication requires blood test to monitor the liver enzymes and not drinking alcohol is strongly suggested during this medication, which can be a hassle, but well worth it in my opinion.
I recall the old Nintendo games such as Mario Bro’s, Donkey Kong & Zelda, which I really enjoyed. But this Wii has actually changed the gaming industry. You are no longer using joy sticks or controllers, but more a device that that allows you to create an avatar (called Mii) for yourself and it’s movements are controlled with a wireless controller called the Wii remote. This allows Nintendo to target a broader demographic, which include females and adults, who normally do not play video games. It also forces users to get off the couch to play games such as tennis and bowling, which is very different from the gaming world of sitting on the couch or chair for hours.
Ever since the release of Nintendo Wii about 1-1/2 years ago, it seems to have become more and more popular. The latest is this Wii Fit system. It comes with a Wii Balance board (10-lbs) that users stand on. By shifting their weight on this console, they control the in-game characters. This Balance Board can determine your Body Mass Index (BMI) with reasonable accuracy. It also labels your health as “underweight”, “ideal” and “fat”, although not sure how kids/women will react being labeled “fat”. The main point is that Nintendo is trying to put daily activity into their games. The next game I hear will be Wii Music. Which will try to allow the users to create their music, unlike the Guitar Hero game that allows users to copy a list of games that are already in the system. Boy has the gaming world changed since I was playing them. Now I will have to relearn them while playing with my kids.
I read this article which I found very cool regarding Google Health. It allows patients to manage their personal medical records on-line. The patient actually has control of these medical records as well. I thought this was extremely convenient. I have moved several times in the past ten years, and I always had to find a new general doctor and start all over. I am in good medical health, so I do not carry my medical records with me when I move, although I should. But having the ability to access them on-line and allow my doctor to have access to them as well, can be very important in the future. I recall a friend of mine many years ago having a fishing accident that caused a lot of facial damage. He had to have several plastic surgeries, not to mention dental work. But after several years, the medication they gave him, had an adverse interaction with the medication he was already on prior to the accident. Man did that mess him up. Having his medical records on-line and accessible to all his doctors could have avoided this bad interactions with his medication. I will definitely look into subscribing to this Google Health.
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