I rolled out of bed at 7am on Monday ready for some exercise.  Although I had a pass for a local gym, I opted  for a good old fashioned run.  Suitably attired with my heart monitor and IPOD and carrying a large bottle of water, I planned to do my normal running routine, which is to walk, jog, sprint, repeat, gradually increasing my heart rate with each evolution until it hits close to my maximum heart rate while sprinting, which for me is around 170 beats per minute.  About 12 evolutions of this routine normally takes 45 minutes to an hour and covers around 4 miles.  I find that this routine works better for me than just straight jogging because it is more varied, easier on my joints, and provides the interval training I need.

Studying the map before leaving my hotel in Wellington, I charted a course for the local Botanical Gardens which overlook Wellington Harbor.  Wellington is the capital of New Zealand, located at the very southeastern tip of the North Island.  Mountains descend directly down to the sea giving the area natural beauty but making for a tough climb up.  As I started out running uphill on Terrace Street, I mulled the details of my trip to New Zealand over in my mind.

Leaving Houston Sunday, I overnighted in LA and then caught a Monday evening flight non-stop from LAX to Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city, which is located in the northern part of the North Island.  Auckland is 21 hours ahead of Los Angeles, so with a 13 hour flight, arrival was Wednesday morning.  Tuesday had disappeared into the ether.  Incidentally the comedian and actor Tim Meadows was on the same flight from LAX to Auckland.  He was a perfect gentleman, gracious to the fans that approached him but otherwise low key.  It seems he is in New Zealand to film a new picture.

After arrival in Auckland, I connected directly through to Queenstown in the southerly part of the South Island, an hour and a half flight from Auckland.  Lake Wakatipu and the Remarkable Mountain Range (featured in all three episodes of “Lord of the Rings”) circumscribe and define Queenstown.   It is the Queenstown area that personifies the raw natural beauty of New Zealand that tourists travel for days to experience.  Pristine, underdeveloped and unspoiled, the natural beauty of the mountains, alpine lakes, vast sheep and cattle farms are unparalleled.   The Milford Sound, one the most awesome fjords in the Southern Hemisphere is do-able as a long day trip from Queenstown.  Here one sees New Zealand as Captain James Cook must have seen it from the deck of the HM Bark Endeavor in the eighteenth century: rock cliffs vertically rising out of the South Pacific Ocean giving way to vast rain forests in the distance, with waterfalls cascading off the cliffs into the ocean and with seals sunning themselves on rocks near sea level.  The rare and awe-inspiring terrain is the product of glaciers receding thousands of years ago.

I’d left the sparsely populated beauty of Queenstown region for the large city of Wellington on Saturday and then my thoughts returned to the task at hand, finishing up my run.  As I threaded my way up Salamanca Road, I saw Kelburn Park below me and the entrance to Wellington Botanic Garden above me, so I was on target.  I paused to glance at the outdoor map at the entrance to the Garden and plotted a course through the various walking and running trails in the gardens to take me through the Australian Gardens, and the Threatened Species Garden, among others.  I found that the steep nature of the terrain in Wellington allowed me to reach targeted heart rate rapidly.  But I had to slow to a near crawl to descend safely, allowing an equally rapid heart rate decline. 

I circled up to the Wellington Cable Car terminus passing by the award winning Wellington Cable Car Museum, pausing for a second to enviously view the passengers enjoying a pleasant ride down mountain in the funicular before returning to my run.  I exited the Garden back on Salamanca Road, and then followed a steep pedestrian only stair case that cut under the motor way and brought me back close to the foot of Terrace Road.  It was only a few more evolutions of walk, jog sprint and I was back at the hotel.  I felt fortunate to enjoy a fun exercise routine in this beautiful and historic city.

Read Full Post No Comments

Here’s a good update on skiing conditioning from LAT writer Jay Blahnik.  He recommends three different types of squat type exercises, all of which will help you on the slopes. See details here. Another point that the article makes is to take it easy in your first couple of days back skiing this season, which is definitely good advice.

Actually, all core conditioning is good for skiing.  For examples of good core conditioning on a fitness ball, check out this U-tube video from getfitsource.com This video shows just one set of core conditioning.  There are many, many more on the getfitsource.com site.  If you follow a dedicated core conditioning workout on a regular basis you will definitely notice the benefits the next time you go skiing.

Read Full Post No Comments

This medpagetoday.com article recaps various studies that show conclusively that statins, one of the most widely prescribed anti cholesterol pharma, do not provide any benefit against Alzheimer’s disease.  Over a 12 year study period, those using statins were no more or less likely to develop Alzheimer’s than those who did not use the drug.

This Businessweek article recaps the same results and indicates that the proof of ineffectiveness of statins against Alzheimer’s contradicts a widely reported 2000 study that claimed statin users were 70% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s.  It is now clear that the earlier study failed due to selection bias:  those concerned with their health take statins at higher rates than the general population and are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s but not because they take statins.

While statins may not help to stave off Alzheimer’s, general exercise has been found to provide some protection against dementia.  See our 2006 post on the subject here.  Money quote:  “People who exercised more than three times a week developed dementia at a rate of 13 per 1,000 patient-years, compared with 19.7 per 1,000 patient-years for those who exercised less.”

Read Full Post No Comments

This new California law making it a crime to smoke in a car with kids  seems a logical extension of the growing bans on indoor smoking that may expose others to unwanted second hand smoke.  This LAT article details the new law and reasons advanced by the state government for the law.  The article recaps a live demo put on by state authorities.  Sensors were installed in a car’s front seat and in an empty baby seat in the rear with a man smoking in the driver’s seat.  The sensors measured particulate pollution from the smoking, fine particles that are particularly damaging to children.   The demo showed that the particulate pollution ensued immediately from smoking, reaching dangerous levels in less than a minute and then remaining for over an hour after the cigarette was extinguished.  The tests show that smoking will cause air in the car to reach 30 times the nominally hazardous level.

Under the California law, police will not have the authority to pull people over for this violation but can enforce the law as part as other violations which do allow them to pull motorists over.

No responsible adult should smoke in any confined space with children present.  Other adults can normally choose to leave the presence of an offending smoker, but kids often can’t and deserve legal protection from the state.  While some may decry this new law as “nanny-statism”, it’s important to draw the distinction between laws that protect  a citizen from his own actions (laws against imbibing trans fat, for example) and laws that protect other citizens including children from an individual’s actions.  My guess is that in 5 years this law banning smoking in cars with kids will have been enacted by all 50 states.

Read Full Post No Comments

Here’s another article on the saga of childhood obesity from the point of view of a pediatric expert and physician, Dr. Victoria McEvoy.  Her message is essentially that it is really beyond the scope of the pediatrician to solve the weight issues for kids.  It just isn’t possible for pediatricians to provide the kind of counseling and follow-up that would be necessary to make strides against childhood obesity.  The problem is too intractable and the source of the problem too widespread—sedentary lifestyle, supersized portions, lack of exercise, clueless and similarly obese parents, etc.

The author essentially accepts the fact that doctors need to identify issues of weight to parents but indicates that even that is extremely tricky in and of itself since parents don’t want to hear that their kids are chubby.

 The author clearly states the problem of childhood obesity:  “The problem is real and serious.  Future problems in overweight children include high blood pressure, increased cholesterol, insulin resistance leading to Type II diabetes, bone and joint problems, disordered sleep, depression, social alienation,  and early sexual maturation.”   

In my view childhood obesity can definitely impede our children’s chances  for achieving a healthy, productive and fulfilling life.  Given the stressful schedule and limited time available it is totally unrealistic to expect pediatricians to solve the growing childhood obesity epidemic, just as it is unrealistic for general practitioners to solve the adult obesity epidemic.   Parents need to play the key role and unfortunately that appears unlikely in the near future.  General education through school and other media can help and is likely the best shot we have at present to make some progress in fighting childhood obesity.

Read Dr. McEvoy’s article here in its entirety for new insights into the childhood obesity dilemma. 

Read Full Post No Comments

This WAPO article details a study that indicates that parents consistently failed to recognize obesity problems in their children.  2000 parents were surveyed in a Michigan study; 40% of the children were obese by standard measures whose parents felt these children’s weight was just about right.

According to the article, parental concern about a child’s obesity also was surprisingly low, particularly in some parts of the country.  In the Midwest only 13 % of the parents with an obese child were concerned about the child’s health.  “Experts say the study underscores the disconnect between public awareness of childhood obesity as a public health problem and the ability to recognize it in one’s children.”

The role of parents in childhood obesity is clearly important.  The quality and quantity of the food we present to our children has a large impact on whether our kids will be obese.  Kids, like adults, tend to eat everything that is served to them.  It’s crucial to be aware of the total caloric content that you are making available to your children at meals.

Read Full Post No Comments

According to this lengthy report in the WSJ, alcoholism is the third leading cause of preventable death after smoking and obesity.

The article differentiates between “abuse” and “dependence.”   A person can abuse alcohol without being dependent, for example, by driving while intoxicated or making a fool of yourself at a company party, but still not drinking on a regular basis. 

The article defines dependence as doing three of these seven:  drunk more or longer than you intended; been unable to cut down or stop; needed more alcohol to get the same effect; had withdrawal symptoms without it; spent more time drinking or recovering; neglected other activities or continued to drink despite psychological or physical problems.

The article suggests a simple test:  “Try to go 30 or 60 days without drinking…if it doesn’t bother you, you’re OK. But if you’re desperate for that 30 days to end, or you can’t make it, then get help.”  And I think the intent of the quote is being okay from a “dependence” point of view, not necessarily an “abuse” point of view.

Surprisingly, the article reports that only 15% of those who develop alcohol dependence in their lifetime have the severe, relapsing form.  Over 72% can cut down or quit on their own without outside help.  In my opinion, that news is nothing to relax about.  If you feel you may have a problem, don’t assume that your drinking issues are just a phase or that they will heal on their own.    In fact, if you are even somewhat concerned about whether you have a problem with alcohol, and particularly if any of your friends, family or business colleagues have mentioned their concerns to you, take the advice from the article and stop drinking for 30 days.  If you can’t or won’t do that, chances certainly increase that you have a dependence.

Although it wasn’t mentioned in the WSJ article, one of my favorite books on alcoholism is “Drinking, A Love Story,” by the talented writer, Caroline Knapp.  This book chronicles her life long struggle with alcohol and her ultimate decision to go through rehab and join Alcoholics Anonymous.  It’s a must-read if you have issues with alcohol.

Read Full Post No Comments

One essential part of any diet is the need to control calories consumed through what we drink.  Liquids can have a huge amount of calories, but unlike solid foods they tend to lack the satiety factor.  It’s very easy to ruin your chances of losing weight by not controlling what you drink. 

Whenever you possibly can, stick with water.  Avoid soda pop to the maximum extent possible.  If you are still regularly drinking soda pop, then you are not serious about losing weight.  If you must have fruit juices, think dilution.  You can easily adjust your palette to become satisfied with orange juice diluted three to one with water, particularly if it is ice cold.  For milk, it obvious you have to stick to low fat or ½ percent.  If ½ percent is not available, mix your own. 

Adjusting and controlling your liquid intake is the first step to take when you get ready to lose weight.  Liquid calories are often the easiest calories to cut.

Here is a recap of calories in common beverages, courtesy of WebMD.  WebMD is a great site to visit for all kinds of health and fitness information.

SOURCES: USDA National Nutrient Database. Starbucks Nutritional Fact Sheet.

© 2006 WebMD Inc. All rights reserved.

Read Full Post No Comments

This January 8, 2008 article from wired.com recaps a report from Sirtris Pharmaceutical concerning a recent study that shows that a component normally found in red wine can mitigate human aging. Previous studies had been performed with mice, but this is the first human study. The chemical of interest is called Resveratol.

“We believe that this is the first time that a drug candidate has shown efficacy in a disease of aging by targeting the genes that control aging, said the CEO of Sirtris.” It’s widely known that a severely calorie restricted diet can also limit the effects of aging apparently by stimulating the human gene SIRT1. It seems that Resveratol may stimulate the same SIRT1 gene, but without the need for severe restrictions on caloric intake.

The drug containing Resveratol, SRT 501 is undergoing clinical trials. The article did not give an estimate as to when it might be available to the public. Given normal FDA approval process, no doubt it will be years.

This older article by Bill Sardi estimates that one would need 3 milligrams of Resveratol to achieve its full anti aging benefits. Sadly, this is equivalent to 15 ounces of red wine per day, possibly outside the normal bounds of what would be healthful for alcohol consumption.

Sardi also indicates that not all red wines are created equal in their Resveratol content. Those that use a macerating process in their production are best.

Read Full Post No Comments

This comprehensive UK study shows the combined impact of four various health related behavior on life expectancy. The study tracked approximately 20,000 men and women over the period 1993-1997 with a follow up in 2006.

The four effects studied were: alcohol consumption, smoking, being physically inactive and having a low intake of fruits and vegetables.

The only possible surprise of the study was that moderate amounts of alcohol consumption do correlate with increased longevity as compared to zero alcohol consumption. However, perhaps not so surprisingly, excessive amounts of alcohol consumption correlated negatively with increased longevity.

Here is the a direct quote from the study: “Each of the health behaviors: smoking, being physically inactive, not having a moderate alcohol intake, and a low fruit and vegetable intake as indicated by plasma vitamin C level <50 mmol/l. were associated with significantly higher risks of mortality from all causes…..There was a strong trend of decreasing mortality risk with increasing number of positive health behaviors, with those who scored four having approximately one quarter the mortality risk of those who scored zero, equivalent to about 14 year difference in chronological age. Money quote: The evidence that behavioral factors such as diet, smoking, and physical activity influence health is overwhelming. Of course, there are no real surprises here. But perhaps readers of the study will be motivated to change unhealthful behavior patterns when they see the sheer potential improvement in length of life as quantified in the study. And, perhaps as important as improvements in longevity is the quality of life improvements which these behavior modifications would facilitate. Good health allows active participation in all facets of life as we age. 

Read Full Post No Comments