Encouraging Health

Cheap Skincare Treatments that work according to Leslie Bauman over at health.yahoo.com.

From the Blog:

Many patients with sensitive skin are immediately turned off by any product with “acid” in its list of ingredients, but they needn’t be.

Salicylic acid (a.k.a. beta hydroxy acid) is actually a great, non-irritating alternative to several popular skin care ingredients. Salicylic acid can be found in cleansers, facial creams, and lotions and is available at all price points. This is a skin care area where you can save money rather than splurge - cheaper products are just as good.

Salicylic acid is ideal for people with acne and rosacea but can be drying if used too often. Try using it only once a day if you have dry skin and twice a day if your skin is oily.

Salicylic acid is particularly successful in treating acne, because it targets oil in hair follicles and exfoliates pores. (Remember, clogged pores are one of the three contributing factors to acne.) Many popular acne treatments contain benzoyl peroxide, which is highly effective but may be too irritating for high-scorers on the sensitive scale. If you think that applies to you, try salicylic acid instead.

To read the rest of her post, click here: http://health.yahoo.com/experts/skintype/2084/salicylic-acidinexpensive-skin-care-that-works

cheap skincare, Leslie Bauman

cheap skincare, Leslie Bauman

Strength Training for aging muscles, according to CNN.com’s Health section.

From the Article:

Strength training may not only make older adults’ muscles stronger, but younger as well, a small study suggests.

It’s well known that resistance exercises improve muscle strength and function in young and old alike, but the new research suggests that strength training also affects older muscles on the level of gene expression — essentially turning back the clock on muscle aging.

The study, published in the online journal PLoS One, looked at whether strength training affects the “gene expression profile” in older adults’ muscle. Genes hold the instructions from which the body manufactures proteins; gene expression refers to the processes that translate these instructions into proteins.

Analyzing small samples of muscle tissue from a group of healthy young and older adults, researchers found that older and younger muscle tissues differed significantly in their gene expression profiles. The difference indicated that older muscle tissue had impaired functioning in mitochondria — structures within cells that act as the cell’s “powerhouse.”

That impairment was reversible, however. After 14 of the older adults underwent 6 months of strength training, the gene expression profile in their muscles showed a more youthful appearance.

“In a very real sense, the muscle was younger,” said lead study author Dr. Simon Melov of the Buck Institute for Age Research in Novato, California.

Experts have long known that exercise is good for younger and older adults alike, Melov told Reuters, but the new findings suggest that it can “actually rejuvenate muscle” in older individuals.

To read more: http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/diet.fitness/05/25/strength.training.reut/index.html

strength training, weights, aging muscles

strength training, weights, aging muscles

RealAge.com has toothcare tips for infants and children.

The Article:

Only about half of kids 1 to 5 years old have received preventive dental care.

Bad news — prematurely losing a baby tooth because of decay may set the stage for bite problems down the road. Dental appointments should start with the first tooth. Talk with your dentist about how often your child needs additional checkups. It will vary, depending on factors such as what your child eats and how he or she cares for those budding pearly whites.

More than half of kids between the ages of 5 years and 9 years have at least one cavity or filling, and more and more toddlers are getting tooth decay in their baby teeth. It’s an alarming trend, and it confirms that preventive tooth care should start long before a child even has teeth.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends cleaning an infant’s gums daily with a soft cloth or infant toothbrush and water.

To read more: http://www.realage.com/ParentingCenter/PCTip.aspx?cid=17999&v=1

infant toothcare, child toothcare, cavities

infant toothcare, child toothcare, cavities

From RealAge.com, How to save your eyes.

Walking is a quick path to a more youthful body. But more youthful eyesight?

Seems so. People who hit the walking trail at least three times a week are less likely than exercise slackers to develop wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), an eye disease that can smudge out central vision.

In the U.S., AMD is one of the most common causes of blindness in people over age 60. Wet AMD is an advanced form of the disease. But you don’t have to go down to wet AMD without a fight. If you’re over 65, simply walking more can help your peepers steer clear of the condition.

Vitamin E is found in whole grains, vegetable oil, eggs and nuts; zinc in meat, poultry, fish, whole grains and dairy products; beta carotene in vegetables such as carrots, kale and spinach; and vitamin C in citrus fruits and juices, green peppers, broccoli and potatoes.

Although the study results still need to be confirmed, they do add valuable information, the researchers said.

“Up to now, we thought you needed to take heavy doses of supplements to achieve the benefits of these antioxidants,” Cykiert said. “Now we know that if you eat a diet rich in these substances you achieve the same benefit, and possibly even more.”

“If people start eating these things now, it may be a way to prevent problems 10, 15 or 20 years later,” he added.

Age-related MacularDegeneration, eye health, carrots, kale, vitamin E

Age-related MacularDegeneration, eye health, carrots, kale, vitamin E

TB case brings warning to air passengers , according to Yahoo News.

A man with a rare and exceptionally dangerous form of tuberculosis has been placed in quarantine by the U.S. government after possibly exposing passengers and crew on two trans-Atlantic flights earlier this month, health officials said Tuesday.

This marks the first time since 1963 that the government issued a quarantine order. The last such order was to quarantine a patient with smallpox, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC urged people on the same flights to get checked for tuberculosis.

The infected man flew from Atlanta to Paris on May 12 aboard Air France Flight 385. He returned to North America on May 24 aboard Czech Air Flight 104 from Prague to Montreal. The man then drove into the United States.

He cooperated with authorities after learning he had an unusually dangerous form of TB. He voluntarily went to a hospital and is not facing prosecution, officials said.

To read more:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070529/ap_on_he_me/tuberculosis_infection;_ylt=AhWLTyqgAdt8iKT8gE3k7SrVJRIF

Tuberculosis, airlines

Tuberculosis, airlines

Health.Yahoo.com has this article on the importance of swimming for health. This could be for Men as well as Women:

(HealthDay News) — Exercise should be part of everyone’s healthy lifestyle, but some people may have difficulty with high-impact exercise like running.

Swimming is a low-impact activity that offers a great workout for all muscles of the body.

According to Epigee Women’s Health, swimming may be a good option for people who need to be extra careful during exercise, including those who are:

Pregnant.
Extremely overweight.
Elderly.
Disabled.
Recovering from an injury.

end.

Swimming is great for toning, cardiovascular health and strength training for a wide range of peole. More groups I would add are: Children and even Olypmic Gold Medalists! So enjoy the fruits of summer!

swimming, toning, health

swimming, toning, health

According to this CNN.com Article, Scientists have found that women carry at least one of these genetic markers.

From the article:

A genetic mutation that raises the risk of breast cancer is found in up to 60 percent of U.S. women, making it the first truly common breast cancer susceptibility gene, researchers reported on Sunday.

Reports from several teams around the world identified changes in four other genes that raise the risk of breast cancer significantly. Several are found in many men and women.

More than 60 percent of the women in the United States probably carry at least one of the mutations in one of the genes, called FGFR2, the researchers said.

“This is a truly landmark breakthrough for breast cancer research, because these genes are the first confirmed common genetic risk factors for breast cancer,� said Jianjun Liu of the Genome Institute of Singapore, who took part in one of the studies.

The researchers, reporting in the journals Nature and Nature Genetics, said the discoveries are the most important genes associated with breast cancer since BRCA1 and BRCA2 were identified.

To read more, click: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18899252/

breast cancer gene

breast cancer gene

Over on health.yahoo.com, they give some great tips to keep your meats and veggies cancer-free on the grill:

The Memorial Day holiday is the traditional kick-off of the summer barbecue season in the United States, but research has shown that grilling can create cancer-causing compounds in meat, experts say.

Among the compounds are heterocyclic amines (HCAs), which are created when heat acts on amino acids, and creatinine in animal muscle.

The longer the cooking time and the higher the heat, the more HCAs, say experts at the University of California, Davis, Cancer Center. That means that barbecuing produces the most HCAs, followed by pan-frying and broiling. Baking, poaching, stir-frying and stewing produce the least HCAs.

Click above to read the tips!

barbeque, bbq, grilling, meats, vegetables, cancer, HCA

barbeque, bbq, grilling, meats, vegetables, cancer, HCA

Over on CNN.com’s health section, they talk about the myths and facts of Suncreen. Since Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer, I felt it was appropos.

From the article:

Next time you’re scanning the aisles for your summer sun protection, consider that producers of five well-known sunscreen brands are facing a class action lawsuit alleging that their claims mislead consumers about their products’ ability to ward off UV rays and prevent skin damage and cancer.

The suit got us thinking: Are we really clear on what sunscreens can and can’t do? Maybe not. So we took some of the biggest claims and ran them by experts. You might want to take what they say — along with the sunscreens they use — to the beach with you this summer.

Myth No. 1: Sunscreen is all you need to stay safe.

Reality: “Sunscreen is only one part of the sun-protection picture,” explains Francesca Fusco, M.D., an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. “Just slathering it on and doing nothing else isn’t going to cut it because, even with sunscreen, there’s still up to a 50 percent risk that you’ll burn.”

You also need to seek shade between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. when sunlight is strongest; cover up with clothing, a broad-brimmed hat, and UV-blocking sunglasses; do regular skin self-exams; and get a professional skin evaluation annually. (Health.com: How to spot skin cancer )

Myth No. 2: SPF measures levels of protection against both UVB and UVA rays.

Reality: The SPF (sun protection factor) measures only the level of protection against UVB rays. But several of the 16 active ingredients approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in sunscreens also block or absorb UVA rays, says Warwick L. Morison, M.D., professor of dermatology at Johns Hopkins Medical School and chairman of the Skin Cancer Foundation’s Photobiology Committee.

Ingredients include: avobenzone (Parsol 1789), octocrylene, titanium dioxide, and zinc oxide, as well as the recently approved Mexoryl SX. Make sure one of these is in your sunscreen, or look for products labeled “broad spectrum,” which means they protect against UVB and UVA rays. (Health.com: Remedies for skin-care problems )

To read more, click the above link.

suncreen, skin cancer, sunscreen myths

suncreen, skin cancer, sunscreen myths

Sally Anderson, over on http://www.livingwithoutmeat.com, wrote some good posts yesterday and today on Protein.

In Part, here is what She wrote yesterday:

want to share with you how and why non-meat eaters are not protein-deficient. However, I seem to have talked my undergrad advisor into excusing me from my science requirements and quit grad school before taking biology. Hence my 11th grade physics is neither recent nor adequate enough. So I offer you the protein paragraph that made me go “aha!�: