Encouraging Health

Top skin creams average about $400 per ounce (and you thought gas was expensive!), yet most offer little proof that they do half of what they promise.

Want to save a bundle and improve your skin? Load your shopping cart with nutrients that have been shown to possess skin-hydrating, sun-protecting, and even wrinkle-preventing powers, says Manhattan dermatologist Amy Wechsler, MD. Here’s her grocery list of the best foods for your skin:

Firm and Bright
You’re probably up to your eyebrows (Botoxed or not) with the mantra “eat more fruits and vegetables.� But if you’ve yet to take that advice to heart, maybe knowing that they prevent wrinkles will do the trick.

The skin doc’s three top picks: sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and cantaloupe.

What they do: Replenish your skin’s supply of antioxidants, so they’re ready to scarf up free radicals whenever they make an appearance. Free rads are highly reactive oxygen molecules that damage cells and contribute to just about everything that can go wrong with skin, from dryness to wrinkles.

Fresh and Juicy
Your body can’t store much wrinkle-fighting vitamin C, so you need to top up your supplies regularly. The easiest way: Have some citrus every day.

The skin doc’s four top picks: oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruit.

Ounce for ounce, oranges are the top citrus source of C, but you can only eat so many, right? For variety, make lemonade; squeeze limes on melon; add grapefruit to salad; and, instead of drinking soda, fizz OJ with sparkling water. It all adds up.

What they do: Keep skin’s vitamin C levels high. While C is a nifty antioxidant, that’s not the key reason it’s here. It helps keep collagen — the supportive protein fibers that stop skin from sagging — strong and resilient. (Flimsy collagen means lines and wrinkles.) Since collagen breakdown really picks up in your mid-30s, eat citrus early and often to head off aging.

Smoothing and Soothing
There’s a particularly potent antioxidant known as EGCG that does all kinds of good things for skin. The best place to find it? True teas: black, green, or white (not herbal). Brew a full teapot every morning so that sipping 4 to 6 cups throughout the day is a no-brainer.

The skin doc’s #1 pick::green tea.

While all true teas contain EGCG (by the way, that stands for epigallocatechin-3-gallate), the various types of green tea have the most. Dr. Wechsler’s personal favorite is hojicha green tea (available at http://www.adagio.com/). “The roasting process that turns this green tea a brownish color also lowers its caffeine content,â€? she says — handy if you’re caffeine sensitive or it’s one of those days when you don’t need another stimulant.

What it does: Gives your skin a healthy dose of EGCG, which is a great multitasker. EGCG puts a damper on inflammatory chemicals involved in acne and sun-related skin aging, it helps prevent skin cancer; and it has a lion-tamer effect on tumor cells. What’s more, green tea contains L-theanine, a de-tensing amino acid — and anything you can do to stanch the flow of the stress hormone cortisol helps keep collagen fibers intact.

Dark and Green
Certain dark green vegetables, whether they’re fresh, frozen, raw, or steamed, really deliver on vitamin A, one of the most skin-essential vitamins going.

The skin doc’s three top picks: spinach, turnip greens, and broccoli.

What they do:Deliver a hefty supply of vitamin A, which supports skin-cell turnover, the process that keeps cell growth and development humming along flawlessly. Without enough A, skin becomes dry, tough, and scaly.

Fish Faves
Several cold-water catches give your skin a double benefit: age-fighting omega-3 fatty acids and the restorative powers of protein.

The skin doc’s seven top picks: salmon, trout, tuna, sardines, Atlantic mackerel, Pacific herring, and most shellfish.

Just don’t, uh, go overboard. As good as omega-3s are for skin (and the rest of you, too), worries about the amount of mercury in many fish mean it’s smart to limit seafood or freshwater fish to two meals a week. That’s a must for young children and for women who are pregnant, who may become pregnant, or who are nursing. (Go here for the government’s fish guidelines)

What they do: Omega-3s fight inflammation, now considered one of the top skin agers, and they also help protect against sunburn, enhancing the effects of your sunscreen’s SPF. Protein is required to build and repair skin cells and to make enzymes and hormones that help keep it glowing.

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If your neck’s in knots from stress and tension — or too many hours in front of the computer — it might be time to flap your wings.

Strength-training exercises aimed at toning arm, shoulder, and neck muscles can help soothe a chronic crick in the neck, research shows.

A One, a Two . . .
If you’ve got neck pain, talk to your doctor before you begin any exercise program. He or she may want to guide you to safe choices. In a study, simple dumbbell-in-hand exercises — like lifting your arms straight out from your sides (kind of looks like you’re flapping your wings) or doing one-arm rows — soothed people’s stiff necks after 10 weeks of supervised strength training.

The Problem with Pain
Besides making you miserable, chronic pain can cause other health problems — like sleep loss or even depression. So don’t just grin (or grimace) and bear it! See your doctor and find a treatment that works for you.

5 Point Tuneup to Knock Out Stress
These tips can help you get a grip on managing stress to relieve neck or back pain.

1. Check Those Vital Signs

Get a medical checkup

Talk to your health-care provider about stress. Sometimes, side effects from medication (prescription or over-the-counter), herbal products, or other supplements can cause restlessness, insomnia, anxiety, and stressful feelings.

If neck or back pain is severe, your health-care provider may suggest physical therapy. Physical therapy combines pain-relieving noninvasive treatments with therapeutic exercise, posture correction, and preventive body mechanics.

Consider talk therapy with a stress counselor, psychologist, or support group.

2. Get Moving!

Some yoga positions and relaxation movements help reduce stress and stretch muscles. Viniyoga blends breathing and movement together to quiet body and mind. Unlike other forms of yoga, viniyoga movements are less precise and adapted to the person’s unique physical condition. Talk to your health-care provider about yoga or other stretching movements to ease stress and back pain.

Swimming combined with a sauna or steam bathing can help relieve stress-induced pain.

Take frequent stretch breaks to loosen up tight neck or back muscles.

Go for a short walk at break or lunch time to rev up your circulation to reduce stress.

3. Learn to Relax

Kick back for 5 minutes and put your feet up.

Cold and hot compresses can help ease stress-related neck and back pain. Wrap an ice pack and hot pack (or hot water bottle) individually in towels. Apply the ice pack for 10 minutes and then the hot pack for 5 minutes. Alternate several times.

Massage and aromatherapy are stress-relieving spa treatments you can do at home. Ask a friend or partner to massage sore neck and back muscles gently. Aromatic massage oils containing eucalyptus may help ease muscle pain.

Try meditation or visualization to ease stress. Some meditation practices focus on breathing and calm a busy mind. Visualization techniques to reduce stress sometimes combine imagery with breathing exercises.

4. Control the Little Things in Life

Break up problems into smaller manageable units and work on resolving the easier aspects first.

Learn your limits and say “no” to burdensome commitments.

5. Eat and Drink for Life

Make meal times less stressful. Choose nourishing foods, eat slowly, and savor each bite. Be aware of how much you eat and drink, and graze on healthy foods.

Caffeinated coffee, cola, and other drinks do little to reduce stress or promote restful sleep. Avoid red wine at night, as it can make falling and staying asleep difficult. A good night’s sleep or afternoon catnap can help relieve stress.

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Tart apple and spicy cinnamon can sure get your taste buds tapping. But help control your blood sugar, too?

It very well might. Turns out that a daily dose of cinnamon may help improve insulin receptivity — an important part of blood sugar control. Slip a little more cinnamon into your day with a Double Apple Cinnamon Smoothie (recipe below).

A Little Does a Lot
You may need only a little bit of cinnamon — as little as a quarter teaspoon a day — to reap blood sugar rewards. Just don’t overdo it — highly unlikely with a typical diet, but loading up via supplements could be toxic. Another cinnamon bonus: When you add it to high-glycemic-index foods, it can help lessen their impact on your blood sugar.

Double Apple Cinnamon Smoothie
This cinnamon-inspired smoothie recipe is brought to you compliments of the YOU docs — Mehmet Oz, MD, and Michael Roizen, MD — and their newly updated and expanded YOU: The Owner’s Manual. To be sure you get enough cinnamon — this recipe serves two — we suggest topping your drink with a generous sprinkling of the fragrant spice.

Ingredients
1/4 cup frozen apple juice concentrate, not thawed
1/2 cup cinnamon applesauce
3/4 cup vanilla or plain fat-free or light soymilk
3/4 cup low-fat vanilla frozen yogurt
1/8 teaspoon apple pie spice

Preparation
Combine all ingredients in a blender container. Cover; blend at high speed for 1 minute. Pour into frosty mugs, if desired, and top with powdered cinnamon. Makes 2 servings.

Reduce your risk of diabetes by losing excess weight!

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Which is better for your brain — a glass of juice or a cuppa tea?

When it comes to preventing Alzheimer’s, juice may have the edge. In a recent study, three servings a week reduced Alzheimer’s risk impressively.

Drink Up
Polyphenols in juice may be one of the best things that’s ever happened to your brain. The ones in apple and citrus juices, in particular, are very brain friendly. That’s because they’re able to cross the blood-brain barrier. Once inside your head, they can protect neurons from a damaging chemical associated with Alzheimer’s. Some of those polyphenols, like quercetin, also squelch inflammation.

Tea Is Still Great
Of course, this juicy news about protection against Alzheimer’s doesn’t mean it’s time to toss your tea. Tea still has lots of other healthy benefits, like these:

Tea is great for your heart:

Compounds in green and black teas have a healthful impact on several markers of heart disease risk, but debate continues as to which kind of tea is healthiest. Recent research suggests it may be a dead heat. In a study, green and black tea appeared equally protective against fatty arterial plaque buildup.

Tea may help thwart this deadly female cancer:

Each daily cup of green or black tea helps beat down ovarian cancer risk. Two or more cups per day helped cut risk almost in half in a recent study. The likely good guys in this scenario are the tea polyphenols, which are potent cancer fighters in both men and women.

Tea turns down your stress response:

When a group of men were tested with two beverage choices, the men who drank a beverage that was rigged to mimic black tea’s constituents recovered more quickly from stress than the group sipping a beverage missing the black tea ingredients. The credit may go to black tea’s healthful polyphenols, flavonoids, and amino acids. Whatever the reason, it’s a good pick-me-up when the pressure’s on.

Tea may help keep your knees feeling fine:

The EGCG and ECG found in green tea are powerful flavonoids known as catechins. Seems these particular catechins may help fight inflammation, as well as some of the underlying mechanisms at work in both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

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We know how it is. The thought of sweating through a workout can turn couch gravity into an absolutely irresistible force.

But here’s some good news for slackers: Easy, breezy, light exercise may do more for your energy levels than the hard stuff. So go ahead, put your workout on cruise control. Just this once.

Get up and go . . .
Research shows that a program of low intensity exercise training — like light cycling on a stationary bike for 30 minutes three times a week — can reduce tired-all-the-time feelings by as much as 65 percent. And it only takes 6 weeks of light workouts to feel pepped up. Moderate-intensity exercise programs boost energy levels, too, but not as much.

…got up and went
One possible explanation for the better energy boost from lighter workouts: More vigorous workouts shape you up but also tire you out. So if you’re just trying to get off the couch for a change, start slow. Go at whatever pace is comfortable for you — in a few weeks, you’ll feel your tiredness fade. Then you can think about kicking things up a notch.

Energy Drain–Running on Empty

The best antidote for an afternoon slump is a cold energy drink, right? Not so fast.

You may be so tired that you could fall asleep right here, right now, on your keyboard. But before you pop open another energy drink, read the list of ingredients on the label. Some so-called “energy” drinks are high in sugar and low in caffeine, a combination that, according to research, could actually have you crashing even harder about 70 to 80 minutes later. A better remedy: a cup of coffee (not decaf) or a 20-minute nap. You’ll feel like a new person.

High-sugar drinks make your blood glucose rise — and fast. Your body’s response? Pump out massive amounts of insulin to handle the load. Your system metabolizes all that sugar just as quickly as it entered your system, leading to a big drop in blood glucose about 70 to 80 minutes after you consumed the beverage. Essentially, you crash — hard.

So what’s sapping your energy?
Are you having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep through the night? Your sleep struggles may be due to insomnia, medication side effects, or a common condition called restless legs syndrome (RLS). You’ll receive personalized recommendations about:
Symptoms associated with serious sleep disorders
Your risk for RLS, insomnia, and sleep apnea
Causes of your sleep troubles
Strategies to manage your sleeping difficulties

Or maybe you’ve got a food allergy. Or maybe you need more B vitamins.

Then again, it could be stress that has you feeling drained.

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may be bad for your eyes. With this exception: nuts!

Yep, eating nuts at least once a week may help protect your peepers from vision-stealing conditions like macular degeneration.

Feed Your Vision
Scientists discovered that people with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) could slow down the disease by eating one or more servings of nuts a week. Makes sense. The supernutrients in nuts — vitamin E, copper, magnesium, fiber, and resveratrol — all help protect against blood vessel problems that might contribute to AMD.

More Sight Savers
Not so nuts about nuts? Here are some other ways to keep your eyes sharp.
Go fish! Turns out eating fish, like eating nuts, may have a protective effect against AMD progression. It’s also good for warding off this eye syndrome:

Set your sights on healthy fats that can help protect your eyes.

Getting adequate amounts of omega-3 fatty acids in your diet may help ward off irritating dry eye syndrome, a condition that causes decreased tear production and can damage eyes. Look to salmon, chunk light tuna, flaxseeds, and walnuts to boost your omega-3 intake and help keep your peepers in top form.

People produce fewer tears as they age, so increased age is a risk factor for dry eye syndrome. In addition to eye irritation, people with the condition also may be sensitive to bright lights. In a recent study of women aged 45 to 84 years old, researchers discovered that women whose intake of omega-6 fatty acids was much greater than their intake of omega-3 fatty acids were at an increased risk of suffering from dry eye syndrome. Omega-6s are polyunsaturated fatty acids found in meat, refined grains, and eggs. Reducing your intake of omega-6s while increasing consumption of omega-3-rich oily fish, flaxseeds, and walnuts could help you achieve a healthy fatty acid balance and may help reduce your risk of dry eye syndrome, depression, and other conditions.

Be cool. Wear your shades.

Hit the road. Simple exercises like walking may be good for your eyes.

Bulk up. Your diet, that is, with fiber.

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Healthy ideas to live your life

Go to sleep. Getting enough sleep every night keeps you slim. Why? When your body doesn’t get the 7 to 8 hours it needs every night, it doesn’t get a full resupply of serotonin and dopamine, two feel-good brain chemicals it craves. So it looks for ways to replenish them, and guess what immediately releases both in the body: sugary foods. That’s why when you’re tired you start craving sweets! So tuck yourself in early and stay slim.

Keep your hands full. You’d think that sitting around playing video games, solitaire, or surfing Yahoo! would be a recipe for putting on pounds. Nope. When your fingers are flying, they’re not knuckle-deep in a bowl of chips. Now, that’s not to say that endless hours on your duff are good for your waistline, but when you keep your hands and brain occupied, you’re not automatically reaching for something to eat. In fact, you’re probably not even thinking about food. So the next time you start to open the fridge door, turn on the computer or pick up your knitting instead.

Pick and stick. Yeah, sure, variety may be the spice of life. But it can also be the death of dieting. When you have a lot of choices for a meal, it’s a lot easier to slip out of good eating habits and into buffet binges. One way to avoid trouble is to eliminate choices for at least one meal a day. Pick the meal you rush through most, and then automate it. For most people, that’s lunch. Find a healthy lunch — maybe salad with grilled chicken or a turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread — and have it for lunch every day. Every day. Yes, every day. The less you think about food, the easier it is to control your appetite. And decreasing choices decreases temptations.

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Your liver is as vital to your health as your heart and lungs are. But do you know how to keep it healthy?

It can be as simple as living clean, adding crunch, and eyeing your supplements. Here’s what we mean by that.

Vital Parts
Your liver isn’t just a place to filter out tequila shots. All of the blood that has visited your small intestine flows through the liver, where it gets detoxified. A big job, but something has to do it. Michael Roizen, MD, and Mehmet Oz, MD, RealAge experts and authors of the best-selling, newly expanded YOU: The Owner’s Manual, have four tips for helping your liver help you.

Live clean. Reduce your personal pollution so there’s less to filter out. Drink filtered water, eat unprocessed foods, choose veggie protein over red meat, and practice safe sex. And yes, keep the mojitos to a minimum.

Add crunchy veggies. Cruciferous produce (like broccoli and cabbage), B-rich foods (like whole grains), and high C items (like citrus fruit and leafy greens) assist the liver’s detoxifying process.

Consider a supplement. Lecithin (egg yolks and soybeans are good sources) and zinc support liver function, and you may want to consider supplementing your diet with them if you don’t get much naturally. Herbs like milk thistle and dandelion may help liver function, too, but consult your doctor before taking them.

Don’t take too much vitamin A. If you do, you risk liver problems, including cirrhosis.

Green Tea and Mango Splash

Ingredients
1 cup strongly brewed green tea, (2 tea bags to 1 cup water)
2 cups mango nectar
Ice cubes
Mint sprigs, for garnish
Mango slivers, for garnish

Directions
1. Combine tea and mango nectar in a pitcher. Serve over ice, garnished with mint sprigs and mango slivers.

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Gallstones — those pesky, painful pebbles that plague some people’s gallbladders — are no fun. But could a muffin keep you feeling fine?

Maybe. If it’s an oat-bran muffin. Studies show that a diet high in magnesium-rich foods may reduce the risk of gallstones. Oat-bran muffins fit the bill.

The Moderate Muffin
One medium oat-bran muffin will serve up anywhere from 50 to 90 milligrams of magnesium, depending on ingredients. Just don’t go eating so many muffins that you turn into one yourself. One of the biggest risk factors for gallstones is extra weight. And you’ll want a muffin recipe that doesn’t go overboard on fat and cholesterol — a diet high in either has been linked to gallstones, too.

How does it occur?
You are more likely to have gallstones if:

You are female.
You are overweight.
You have type 2 diabetes.
You are Native American.
You have sickle cell anemia or another disease that breaks down red blood cells.
Other members of your family have had gallstones.

Magnificent Magnesium
Why magnesium? Without enough of the mineral, triglycerides can soar and HDL levels can drop — a combo that’s linked to cholesterol-packed gallstones. Just about any whole-grain food will boost your magnesium intake better than white-flour products, so check labels closely and make the swap.

Good Sources:
Magnesium is found in whole grain breads and cereals. Other foods containing magnesium include:

Tofu, 120 grams
130 mg

Soybeans, 1/2 cup
80 mg

Cashews, 1 ounce
80 mg

Tomato paste, 1/2 cup
75 mg

Salmon, one average-sized steak (4 ounces)
60 mg

Spinach, 1/2 cup
60 mg

Oatmeal, 1 cup
55 mg

Peanuts, 1 ounce (thirty nuts)
50 mg

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Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are teaming with Purdue University scientists to tame bird flu.

Student scientists and CDC researchers have been working for seven years on a vaccine that protects humans.

They’ve tested it in mice and found that it can neutralize two strains of the disease. Next, they plan to test it on mutated forms of the virus, said Suresh Mittal, a Purdue University professor and one of the project’s researchers.

“The concern is that since the virus is spreading, it is mutating, and if the virus can begin to spread (from person to person) it may cause an influenza pandemic,” Mittal said.

Avian influenza is an infection caused by influenza viruses that naturally occurs among birds. Its symptoms in humans can range from a fever, sore throat and cough to eye infections, pneumonia or severe respiratory diseases.

Overall, 381 human cases of avian influenza have been confirmed in 14 countries, mostly in Asia, with some in Africa and Turkey. Of those, 240 resulted in death.

Bird Flu Symptoms

Fever:
One of the first symptoms of bird flu in humans is a fever higher than 100 °F, that is 38 °C.

Cough:
Cough similar to regular flu symptoms. Coughing patients emit droplets laden with virus, and for this reason, a protective face mask is recommended for both patients and caretakers. A surgical mask is sufficient for patients, while caretakers should wear a face mask that is N95 certified or better.

Diarrhea and Abdominal Pain:
Diarrhea and abdominal pain has been a symptom in some patients, but not all of them. Watery diarrhea may be a symptom in bird flu cases, but is not a common symptom in regular flu. Diarrhea comes before respiratory symptoms. Two young patients had encephalitis and diarrhea without any respiratory symptoms.

Bleeding of nose and gums:
A symptom reported in some patients.

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