Health Tips for the month of April

Weekly Health Tips for the month of April
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April 1, 2007- All About YOU: Free Weights or Weight Machines?
Deciding between free weights and weight machines is like trying to decide between salmon and tilapia for dinner: They both have their strong points.

Both options build muscles. However, free weights (barbells and dumbbells) help you work on balance. Weight machines, on the other hand, can reduce the risk of injury from poor form. Here's why.

Lifting free weights can work your arms, chest, legs, and shoulders, but it also engages foundation muscles in your torso (the ones that give you good posture and balance) because your body has to work to steady the weights as well as lift them. Using static weight machines doesn't engage your stability muscles the same way. However, weight machines can help reduce your chances of overstretching a muscle or joint because they're built to guide your motions.

So weigh your risks (prone to injuries?) and goals (to build muscle, balance, or both?) before lifting weights.

Source: The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, ©2007

April 8, 2007- Your Worst Choice Ever?
Remember Superman's evil doppelganger Bizarro? Turns out you've got one, too. And he comes out when you're sleep deprived.

Research shows that when people attempt to resolve emotionally charged, dangerous situations on little sleep, they make the opposite choice from what they would have made when well rested. Here's why.

When you're tired, your brain has trouble integrating thoughts and feelings. The result? Not only will your sleepy brain likely reach a different conclusion when faced with distressing choices, but you'll also take longer to make that decision than you would if you were caught up on your sleep. Got tough choices to make in your day-to-day life? Then you'd better get your ZZZs.

Source: The Journal of the American Medical Association, ©2007

April 15, 2007- Who's in Your Network?

Good friends can help keep you from losing your mind sometimes. Literally.

Case in point: Some people don't have much memory loss from Alzheimer's disease, even though their brains show physical signs of it. And the more good friends and close family they have, the less affected their memory seems to be. Coincidence?

Sometimes, the human brain can function fairly normally even when physical signs of a disease -- such as the brain "tangles" associated with Alzheimer's -- are present. Researchers call this resilient power of the brain "neural reserve." Think of it as the brain's capacity to keep working even though it's physically injured. And it's not clear why, but having lots of close friends and family -- the kind you can call on for help or confide in about private matters -- appears to help shore up those neural reserves.

April 22, 2007- Tuning Out Is Healthy
Can't miss your favorite TV shows, even for a day? Hide the remote.

Less time clutching your clicker could mean less risk of type 2 diabetes. Here's how too much TV trashes your blood sugar levels.

Seems that watching television affects the glucose in your blood -- and not in a good way. More tube time may mean higher blood glucose levels, particularly for women. Over time, that could set the stage for type 2 diabetes, where chronically high blood sugar levels can damage your eyes, heart, kidneys, and other organs.

Got 20 Minutes?
An effective way to control blood sugar? Get yourself off the couch and into the gym.

Source: Diabetes Care, ©2007

April 29, 2007- All About YOU: Don't Confuse Hunger with Thirst

The reason people eat is because their satiety centers are begging for attention.

But sometimes, those appetite centers want things for quenching thirst, not filling the stomach. Here's how to figure out what your body is really asking for.
Thirst could be caused by hormones in the gut that produce feelings much like hunger cravings. To figure out what your body really needs when you feel hungry, drink a glass or two of water. If the craving goes away and you feel more satisfied, you have your answer.

Thirst could also be a chemical response to eating; eating food increases the thickness of your blood, and your body senses the need to dilute it. A great way to avoid confusing your hormonal reaction to food is to make sure that your response to thirst activation doesn't contain empty calories -- like the ones in soft drinks or alcohol. Your thirst center doesn't care whether it's getting zero-calorie water or a megacalorie frappé.

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