Fitness and Health

Exercise Helps Prevent Age-Related Brain Changes

ruzik_tuzik — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 22:58:45 -0600

Older adults who exercise regularly show increased cerebral blood flow and a greater number of small blood vessels in the brain, according to findings presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

The study, conducted at the University of North Carolina (UNC) - Chapel Hill, is the first to compare brain scans of older adults who exercise to brain scans of those who do not.

Get A Fitness Boost With Exercise and Laughter

Kathleen Blanchard RN — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 10:20:22 -0600

Try giving your workout a fitness boost with a bit of laughter. Since laughter is gaining popularity for its known health benefits, we might as well incorporate a bit of laughter into our daily exercise routine.

Good Night's Sleep, Exercise Protect from Breast Cancer?

Kathleen Blanchard RN — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 22:26:47 -0600

Women who exercise regularly, and get at least seven hours of sleep each night, can significantly reduce their risk of breast cancer. The combination is important. Women, who exercise without needed slumber, put themselves at higher risk. The findings come from the American Association for Cancer Research, presented at the Seventh Annual International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research.

Finding the right prescription for fitness activity and health

hareyan — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 08:36:01 -0600

We all know physical activity and fitness is good for your health. But why exactly are exercising and fitness good for you? What effect does exercise have on the cells and tissues of the body? What do we need to know so that we can use physical activity more effectively to combat chronic diseases such as arthritis, diabetes and heart disease? And what social and psychological factors prevent people from exercising or playing sports?

Fitness and Exercise Prevent Fatty Liver Disease

hareyan — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 08:50:48 -0500

It’s easy to go to the gym and exercise on a regular basis right after a person buys the gym membership. It’s also easy to skip the gym one day, then the next day and the day after that. A new University of Missouri study indicates that the negative effects of skipping exercise can occur in a short period. The researchers found that a sudden transition to a sedentary lifestyle can quickly lead to symptoms of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (hepatic steatosis), which affects at least 75 percent of obese people.

Sluggish Adults Get New Exercise Recommendations

Toni Brayer MD — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 23:01:36 -0500

New guidelines from the Department of Health and Human Services recommend adults exercise a minimum of 2 1/2 hours a week for optimal health. That's right, two and a half hours a week of exercise and fitness. Raking leaves, walking around the block or doing resistance bands seem to count.

Learning and exercising at YMCA can prevent diabetes

hareyan — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 10:42:31 -0500

Community-based exercise organizations, such as the YMCA, are an effective tool in the fight against diabetes, according to a study by Indiana University School of Medicine researchers in the October 2008 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

More than 60 million Americans have pre-diabetes, and most of them are unaware. Adults with pre-diabetes are at more than 10 times the normal risk for developing diabetes and at twice the risk for heart attack or stroke. Reaching this growing population is a concern for diabetes educators and physicians.

Health Balance scale Makes In-Depth Analysis Of Your Fitness

hareyan — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 10:25:06 -0500

The Overall Balance scale from Japan’s National Electric takes fitness feedback much more seriously than any others. It gives you a combination of measurements including weight, BMI, the amount of fat under your skin, organ fat, how muscular you are, and your metabolic rate etc.

The fitness balance scale is not yet released, but it is dubbed kind of effective to help you avoid metabolic syndrome, which is the combination of syndromes that shows up as obesity, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, and even diabetes.

Train Like An Olympian

ruzik_tuzik — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 08:36:54 -0500

The 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics conjure up images of fantastically fit athletes from all over the world going for the gold. Although the United States is a sports-crazed nation, increasing obesity rates indicate that most Americans would rather be spectators than participants.

Exercise In Mid-Life Women Improves Well-Being

ruzik_tuzik — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 09:41:19 -0500

Mid-life working women are more committed and more likely to plan exercise into their daily lives if they know it will make them feel better immediately, a new study from the University of Michigan shows.

When the goal is to improve well-being and reduce stress--not necessarily to lose weight or prevent an illness—they tend to stick to their routines better, the study says.