Stressing Fitness

London’s original pledge evolved into a plan to get one million more people around England playing sports three or more times a week for at least 30 minutes at a time, known as the 3x30 plan. Even that target is proving elusive. Figures issued in December by Sport England, the governing body for community sports, indicated that participation at the 3x30 level had increased by 123,000 since 2007-8, when the one million baseline was established. But that number increased by only 8,000 in the last year. At the current rate, the goal of one million new participants would not be reached in 2012-13 as hoped but more than a decade later in 2023-24.

the number of adults doing zero moderate sports activity rose by nearly 300,000 from 2005, when London was awarded the Olympics, to the fall of 2010.

London is hardly the first host city to struggle with its Olympic legacy. In truth, international events like the Olympics and soccer’s World Cup leave a greater discernible impact on infrastructure than on sports. Roads, airports and rail systems are improved while a number of stadiums become white elephants and lingering sporting benefits remain indistinct. Six years after Albertville, France, hosted the 1992 Winter Olympics, the figure-skating arena and speed-skating oval there were fenced off and abandoned. The magnificent Olympic stadium showcased during the 2008 Beijing Games, known as the Bird’s Nest, was seldom being used a year and a half later.

Middle-age men and women who have cardiovascular issues, such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure, may not only be at risk for heart disease, but for an increased risk of developing early cognitive and memory problems as well. That's according to a study released Feb. 21 that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 63rd Annual Meeting in Honolulu April 9 to April 16, 2011.

For the study, 3,486 men and 1,341 women with an average age of 55 underwent cognitive tests three times over 10 years. The tests measured reasoning, memory, fluency and vocabulary. Participants received a Framingham risk score that is used to predict 10-year risk of a cardiovascular event. It is based on age, sex, HDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, systolic blood pressure and whether they smoked or had diabetes. The study found people who had higher cardiovascular risk were more likely to have lower cognitive function and a faster rate of overall cognitive decline compared to those with the lowest risk of heart disease. A 10-percent higher cardiovascular risk was associated with poorer cognitive test scores in all areas except reasoning for men and fluency for women. For example, a 10 percent higher cardiovascular risk was associated with a 2.8 percent lower score in the test of memory for men and a 7.1 percent lower score in the memory test for women. Higher cardiovascular risk was also associated with a 10-year faster rate of overall cognitive decline in both men and women compared to those with lower cardiovascular risk.

Canada’s guidelines on sedentary activity (an oxymoron to be sure) released last week say children should spend no more than two hours a day in front of a TV, videogame or computer screen.

Only 7 per cent of children meet Canada’s physical activity guidelines. (Adults don’t fare much better at 15 per cent.)

"Renewed interest in personal training" is the number-one fitness trend for 2011 by the American Council on Exercise (ACE) and this is driven by baby boomers' interest in health and an anticipated economic upswing, he said.

How personal training will change:   1. Client  expectations. Many clients will want to improve function to stay independent as long as possible, but a subgroup will seek new activities or assistance in training for sports-specific competitions. Trainers will need to guide both types of clients.

2. Demand for knowledgeable trainers. Personal trainers will need to become more knowledgeable in two key areas: the motivations and aspirations of older adults, and the health conditions that can affect a client’s ability to work out, Milner said. They also need to learn how to collaborate with other healthcare providers.   3. More comprehensive continuing education courses. Trainers will need to know learn not just about chronic health conditions and rehabilitation, but also learn about social and psychological perspectives, emotional issues, and lifestyle choices that affect their older-adult clients. They will need to be coaches as well as flexible program designers who can work with their clients in multiple settings besides the gym.   

Drinking yogurt with extra vitamin D may help people with diabetes regulate their blood sugar, a study from Iran finds. In the trial, 90 adults with diabetes were divided into three groups, all given daily yogurt drinks: one group received plain yogurt, one got yogurt with extra vitamin D, and one was given yogurt with extra vitamin D and calcium.At the end of 12 weeks, "we found a relatively remarkable improvement" in blood sugar levels in the groups that got extra vitamin D, compared to the plain yogurt group, co-author Tirang Neyestani, associate professor at National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute in Iran, told Reuters Health in an e-mail.

Going back to the 1980s, numerous studies have linked vitamin D to a lowered risk of diabetes, however others have found no benefit. A recent report showed no link between women's blood levels of vitamin D and their risk of developing type 2 diabetes, for example. (See Reuters Health story of February 22, 2011.)Few studies have directly tested the theory by giving people vitamin D and then seeing how they compare over time in diabetes-related measurements with similar subjects who did not consume the vitamin.

"--fish oil (The omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), appear to be most effective at lowering triglycerides, an artery-clogging fat in the blood. ... Fish-oil supplements are probably safe for most people when taken in doses of 3 grams or less per day

--plant stanols and sterols (Those substances—which occur naturally in nuts, seeds, and whole grains—appear to reduce the amount of cholesterol the body absorbs from food.

--fiber (It's generally best to get fiber—which appears to lower LDL cholesterol, possibly by absorbing fat in the gut—from foods, such as beans, oats, produce, and whole grains.

As if the recent prediction that half of all Americans will have diabetes or pre-diabetes by the year 2020 isn't alarming enough, a new genetic discovery published online in the FASEB Journal provides a disturbing explanation as to why: we took an evolutionary "wrong turn." In the research report, scientists show that human evolution leading to the loss of function in a gene called "CMAH" may make humans more prone to obesity and diabetes than other mammals.

"Our study for the first time links human-specific sialic acid changes to insulin and glucose metabolism and therefore opens up a new perspective in understanding the causes of diabetes." In this study, which is the first to examine the effect of a human-specific CMAH genetic mutation in obesity-related metabolism and diabetes, Kim and colleagues show that the loss of CMAH's function contributes to the failure of the insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells in overweight humans, which is known to be a key factor in the development of type 2 diabetes. This gene encodes for an enzyme present in all mammalian species except for humans and adds a single oxygen atom to sialic acids, which are sugars that coat the cell surface

"Our findings suggest that daytime sleep may offer cardiovascular benefit by accelerating cardiovascular recovery following mental stressors," wrote the researchers, Ryan Brindle and Sarah Conklin of Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa.

Blood pressure and pulse rates increased in both groups of students when they took the stress test, but the average blood pressure of those who slept for at least 45 minutes was significantly lower after the stress test than it was for those who did not sleep.

A daytime nap of at least 45 minutes may help stressed-out people lower their blood pressure and protect their heart, a new study suggests.The finding comes from a study that involved 85 healthy university students, divided into two groups. One group had an hour-long period during the day to sleep, and the others had no time to sleep.

More than a third of Americans regularly sleep less than seven hours a night, affecting their ability to concentrate, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Short sleep duration was found among 35 percent of adults surveyed, and 48 percent reported snoring, an unhealthy behavior, according to a study in the journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report today. About 39 percent of respondents aged 25 to 54 reported sleeping less than 7 hours in a day. The most common side effect of sleep-related difficulties was loss of concentration, followed by trouble remembering, another report found. Most adults need seven to nine hours of slumber to avoid higher likelihood of illness and death, the Washington-based National Sleep Foundation said.

Proprioceptive cues are images and other sensory cues that enable you to modify your running stride for the better as you think about them while running.

Using proprioceptive cues effectively requires concentration and discipline. Our natural tendency is to let our thoughts wander aimlessly while running. If you're serious about improving your stride, you must fight this tendency by forcing yourself to concentrate on and execute a particular proprioceptive cue for hundreds of consecutive strides.

You'll get the best results from proprioceptive cues if you use one at a time throughout the entire length of a run and you use them generally at least three times a week every week. Because proprioceptive cues require you to use your muscles differently than they are accustomed to being used, certain muscles may fatigue more quickly, so it's best to begin using each specific proprioceptive cue only during short recovery runs.

proprioceptors are the sensors in your muscles that help to govern your balance. All of your muscles and tendons have these sensors. When you’re injured, the proprioceptors become damaged and don’t function properly. This can lead to becoming more easily injured, such as when you are running on uneven terrain. In those circumstances, when you’re about to roll your ankle, it’s your proprioceptors that inform your tendons and muscles to fire to stop that process.

Nerve cell communication gets better with use. A neuron’s electrical activity triggers other cells to come and slather on a protective coating that makes messages travel faster, a study published online August 4 in Science shows.Like rubber insulation around electrical wires, myelin wraps around message-sending axons, protecting and speeding electrical impulses. Specialized brain cells called oligodendrocytes wrap up to 150 layers of this insulation around a single axon.

When the team activated normal axons, boosting their glutamate production, oligodendrocytes produced more of the fatty proteins that make up the myelin coating.The results suggest one way that the brain quickly adapts and improves when a person practices new tasks such as playing the violin or juggling.

Mitochondria, the cellular power plants that generate virtually all the energy your body requires, play a vital role in keeping organs youthful and healthy, too. So what can you do to keep those mitochondria powered up? Try reaching for the green -- like green pepper, green kiwifruit, and green parsley. Green-pigmented foods like these are rich in pyrroloquinoline quinone -- or PQQ for short -- a powerful antioxidant that shields mitochondria from oxidative damage in such vital organs as the brain and heart.

Dietary PQQ may not only shield these precious mitochondria from damage but also promote the formation of new mitochondria. Studies also suggest that PQQ may protect against neurological damage caused by the common environmental toxin methylmercury, which has been linked to Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease

In addition to certain greens, a number of items in the native Japanese diet contain PQQ as well, including miso, tofu, and natto (soybean paste). Coldwater fish like salmon, sardines, and tuna also contain appreciable amounts of PQQ. Just choose wild rather than farmed fish -- and canned chunk-light tuna over albacore -- to avoid high levels of methylmercury.

A new study published on Thursday in the journal Health Affairs calculates that it would cost the average American an extra $380 in fruits and vegetables per year to meet the government's recommendation for potassium intake alone. Healthy foods are expensive. Conversely, the unhealthier your diet gets, the less it costs. The study found that for each 1% increase in calories from saturated fat, food costs decline by 28¢; for each 1% increase in calories from added sugar, the savings equal 7¢.

Not only are fresh, whole foods costly, but there isn't enough of them to go around. Regarding the U.S. food supply, the researchers wrote: The current system has proved to be remarkably effective in the provision of calories, but not as good at supplying nutrients. More fundamentally, the system currently falls short of producing enough vegetables and fruit to supply Americans with even the minimum recommended number of daily servings of these foods.

Potassium was, calorie for calorie, the most expensive nutrient. U.S. guidelines recommend that Americans get 4,700 mg of potassium each day, but study participants got just 2,800 mg per day on average. In order to make up the difference, a person would have to spend an additional $1.04 per day

More Americans say they are aware of the health benefits of functional foods, but there has been no increase over the past five years in the number of people who are eating them on a regular basis, according to a new survey from the International Food Information Council (IFIC). Functional foods are foods that may provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. Examples include fish such as salmon, which are rich in heart-protective omega-3 fatty acids, and whole grains, which help maintain digestive health while potentially lowering the risk of colorectal cancer. Berries, dark green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale, and other colorful fruits and vegetables also are considered functional foods.

Ninety-five percent of the respondents believe that they have control over their own health. Nearly half said that heart disease was their most important health concern, followed by weight and cancer. And three-quarters of those who took the survey said that food plays the most important role in both maintaining and improving one’s overall health. “Nine out of 10 people can name at least one food and its associated health benefits,” Elizabeth Rahavi, RD, associate director of health and wellness at the IFIC, told reporters. That’s up from just under eight out of 10 in 1998. “That’s a really exciting trend.”

For example, 85% of the people surveyed recognized that omega-3 fatty acids offer cardiovascular benefits. But of those who are aware of those benefits, less than half report that they get omega-3s. There were similar findings for food components associated with overall health and well-being. While most of the respondents knew the value of protein and B vitamins, the survey reveals, only about half of those people make them a regular fixture at mealtimes.

The normal resting heart rate for an adult ranges from 60 to 100 beats per minute. But some researchers believe it may be time to re-examine what’s considered normal.Researchers have found that a resting pulse at the upper end of “normal” may indicate a higher risk of stroke and heart disease. Some have linked it to a greater risk of diabetes and obesity. Instead of drawing the line at 100 beats per minute, some say, anything above 90 — and perhaps even 80 — may be considered cause for concern.

In one study published in The Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, scientists followed 50,000 healthy men and women over two decades, looking at whether a resting heart rate at the upper end of normal increased the risk of dying of a heart attack. Just more than 4,000 of the subjects died of heart disease, and the authors found that resting heart rate was a good predictor: For each rising increment of 10 heart beats per minute, the risk of dying of a heart attack increased 18 percent among women and about 10 percent in men.Another study, published in The American Journal of Hypertension, found that a large group of adults who started out with resting heart rates above 80 beats a minute were more likely to become obese and develop diabetes after two decades.To lower the heart rate, try stepping up your cardio exercise, particularly with interval training, which is known to increase the amount of blood the heart pumps with each beat.

If you are trying to eat as healthy as the government wants you to, it’s going to cost you: at least $7.28  a week extra, that is. A recent update of U.S. nutritional guidelines -- what used to be known as the food pyramid and is now called "My Plate" -- calls on Americans to eat more fresh foods containing potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin D and calcium.

With potassium, for instance, the participants consumed an average of 2,800 milligrams a day — 700 milligrams below the recommended amount. To get up to par, they’d have to spend an extra $1.04 a day, or $380 a year. For a family of four, that's $1,520 annually. To boost levels of dietary fiber and vitamin D, they’d have to spend about 35 cents extra a day for each of the two nutrients. Most participants came so close to meeting calcium guidelines, they wouldn’t have to spend more on dairy products.

Boosting potassium doesn't have to come with such a high price tag, though. “If you were to guide people toward the most affordable sources of potassium, you could do it more cheaply,” Monsivais said. Potatoes and beans, for instance, are inexpensive sources of potassium and dietary fiber, For a mere 95 cents, you could buy five bananas at Trader Joe’s, and they’d provide 450 to 500 milligrams of potassium each. So why would the participants in Monsivais’ study have to spend so much? King County includes Seattle, one of the most affluent and highly educated cities in the country. When those folks consume potassium, Monsivais says, it tends to come in the form of more expensive fruits and vegetables such as nectarines and dark leafy greens. Sure, they could eat more economically, but they'd have to know how to do so, Monsivais said. The guidelines may be based on solid scientific evidence, he says, but they won’t do much good if Americans don’t know what foods provide the best nutritional bang for their buck.

Public bicycle sharing schemes such as Barcelona's "Bicing" program or London's "Boris Bikes" save lives and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a study on Friday.

Researchers at the Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology in Barcelona found in a study, however, that around 9,000 tons of carbon dioxide pollution are averted and some 12 lives saved each year by Barcelona's scheme, which was introduced in March 2007.

From this they estimated the number of deaths associated with traveling by bike compared with driving for three main factors -- physical activity, road traffic incidents and exposure to air pollution. They also estimated the reduction in carbon dioxide emissions.Looking at the Barcelona "Bicing" scheme, they calculated an annual increase of 0.13 deaths from air pollution and 0.03 deaths from traffic accidents among cyclists compared with car users.But as a result of high levels of physical activity, 12.46 deaths were avoided, making a total of 12.28 deaths avoided among cyclists every year, the researchers said. They also estimated a reduction in carbon emissions of over 9 million kg or 9,000 tons per year, the equivalent to flying 1,800 people to Sydney and back from london.The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends adults should do at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week and says this could be done by walking for 30 minutes five times per week or by cycling to work every day.

A big new article in the Journal Of The American Heart Association seems to have a little good news for everyone, and maybe the most for women who are heavy exercisers. Distance running reduces heart-attack risks. The article, a meta-analysis of past studies, is the first paper to quantify the dose-response relationship between leisure time physical activity (i.e., exercise as opposed to walking around on the job) and heart disease.

men and women who perform 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week have, on average, a 14 percent lower risk of heart disease than similar groups who perform virtually no exercise. If you exercise 300 minutes a week, your risk reduction increases to 20 percent. At 750 minutes, the risk reduction is about 25 percent.

Exercise helped women prevent heart disease more than it did men, particularly at high exercise levels. The researchers admitted they could not explain this differential. They also, thank goodness, converted their findings from minutes of exercise per week to calories burned during exercise per week. Since many runners burn about 100 calories per mile covered, it's easy to turn your weekly mileage into weekly calories burned. For example, if you run about 20 miles a week, that's about 2000 calories burned.

Regular exercise could help prevent brain damage associated with neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, according to research published this month in Elsevier's journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. "Exercise allows the brain to rapidly produce chemicals that prevent damaging inflammation", said Professor Jean Harry, who led the study at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in the United States. "This could help us develop a therapeutic approach for early intervention in preventing damage to the brain."

exercise before the onset of damage modifies the brain environment in such a way that the neurons are protected from severe insults.

exercise could be used to affect the path of many human conditions, such as neurodevelopmental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. In addition, as a chemical model of neuronal damage was used, it also raises the possibility that exercise could offer protection against the potentially harmful effects of environmental toxins.