The advertisements for drinking water are abundant in the media.  Everything from detoxing your body, cleaning out your kidneys, to suppressing your appetite and shuttling fat quicker through your body.  There are many people you see on the street that have a cell phone in one hand a bottle of water in the other.  Our society has been conditioned that constantly drinking water is extremely healthy.  The trend has spread out into Europe as well, and there are now thousands of bottled water manufacturers world wide, touting that their product is superior.
There are two kidney experts that believe that there is no definitive scientific proof for the average person to consume eight or more glasses of water per day.  According to the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, the health claims are almost non existent, and minor in comparison from what the media is reporting.

The fact about water being a good appetite suppressant has been proven wrong in the fact it is absorbed so quickly upon ingestion does not satiate people as much as has been previously thought.  There is no evidence that there is any hormones which are released as previously thought.  Consuming large amounts of water does not remove excess toxins.  What ends up happening is that the person builds up excess urine, which doesn’t contain any excess toxins as previously reported.

There is also a danger to drinking too much water as it may dilute the electrolytes that are needed for proper body function.  These can be replaced with a non-stimulant energy drink.  So the moral of the story here is that moderation is best. 

In a recent study of healthy older adults who were lifting weights regularly who were weight training for at least 3 months, and taking a prescribed dose of ibuprofen and acetaminophen had a much greater increase over the non active placebo group in quadriceps muscle mass and strength.
The study was conducted at the Human Performance Laboratory at Ball State University in Muncie Indiana. The study was conducted by Dr. Trappe and a postdoctoral student Dr. Chad C. Carroll. They reported the study at the annual American Physiological Society meeting conference in San Diego for Experimental Biology.

They showed that taking acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) during consistent weight resistance training reduced the metabolic response within the muscle which allowed the muscle to grow larger and resulted in considerable strength gains of the subjects. The study was conducted over the course of 12 weeks and was supervised. The subjects were men aged 60 to 78 years old, and performed weight training activities three times per week for 15 to 20 minute intervals. The doses used on the subjects were 1200 milligrams of ibuprofen and 4000 milligrams of acetaminophen, which is the current limit for over the counter use of the products. The ibuprofen group showed a much greater response over the acetaminophen group.

In past research when muscle protein synthesis was measured over a 24 hour period there were negative affects from the painkillers due to the blocking of the COX enzyme, which is necessary for protein synthesis. As we age muscle tissue starts to deteriorate and there are certain nutritional supplements that can help this catabolic state. Some of these include L-glutamine, Branch Chain Amino Acids, Free Form Amino Acids, And Whey Protein. We will be discussing these supplements in a future article which will focus on sparing muscle as we age.

Anxiety is a normal part of life that everyone experiences from time to time. Research shows that even mild to moderate anxiety will enhance your focus to attention, alertness, and motivation. However if the anxiety is extreme feelings of doom, helplessness, and severe worry can come about and have detrimental affects on a persons perception of these feelings towards their life. When this form of severe anxiety continues and intensifies this can lead to depression.

Anxiety has been shown to cause many physical and emotional symptoms. Certain situations can bring about some or all of these symptoms for a short duration. As the situation subsides and fear levels drop so do the symptoms.
The physical symptoms of anxiety include: Shaking, twitching, body trembling. Shortness of breath and shallow breathing. Elevated fullness in the chest and thorax areas. Rapid heartbeat and lightheadedness. Hot flashes, sweaty, clammy hands, extreme coldness. Loss of appetite, loss of sleep, disturbed sleep.

Communicating creatively is very difficult for people suffering from anxiety as it affects the part of the brain that controls how we communicate. This can lead to emotional symptoms of anxiety which can hinder relationships on many levels. Some of these include, worrying too much, inability to focus on conversations, a racing mind, unable to concentrate, and feeling that something bad is going to happen. When people experience physical and emotional anxiety for a length of time they can develop Anxiety Disorders.
Anxiety disorders will affect how people communicate with others, and women have been shown to suffer from this disorder twice as likely as males. Panic attacks, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorders are all examples of anxiety disorders. Many of these disorders can start at any age, and there is not any one factor contributing to it. Research does show that children having at least one parent with depression are more than two times likely to have an anxiety disorder. Persistent substance abuse can lead to mental health problems as can poor diet and excessive caffeine consumption.

Panic attacks are also common in people who suffer extreme anxiety. This attack comes on very suddenly when a person least expects it. They can occur in normal healthy people and usually last only a few minutes, but seem to have lasted longer. The person inflicted with a panic attack will feel exhausted after the experience and may become lethargic. Many people mistake panic attacks for heart attacks as the symptoms include trouble breathing, chest tightening and pain, and an irregular heartbeat. When these attacks persist over time the person suffering from them is said to have panic disorder.

There are many things that you can do to help control anxiety to moderate levels.
Journaling: Journaling has been shown to be an excellent stress management tool. In doing so you write down the way your feeling and this can lead to great breakthroughs in self exploration. Journaling allows you the freedom to clarify your thoughts and really dig deep into things that are troubling you in your life. This method allows you to see your problems as an outsider when you read your thoughts, it also allows both sides of your brain to be used so there much more cognitive processing which may balance out your thinking.

Exercise: The affects of exercise of stress is tremendous. Besides keeping your weight at bay, vigorous exercise releases endorphins that put you at ease and give you an all around sense of well being. Exercise may include weight training, cardio vascular exercise such as a treadmill, stair climbers, elipticals, spinning, and yoga.

Nutritional Supplements: Proper nutrition is key to overall good health. To ensure that you reach these levels it may help by taking certain nutritional supplements. The most important would be a high quality multi vitamin and antioxidant formula. Next would be an essential oil supplement containing a large amount of omega 3, 6, and 9. EFA’s as they are called are found in fish oils and have shown to greatly affect mood. Lastly a good amino acid supplement is recommended. Amino acids greatly affect brain chemistry, proper firing of neurons, and correct neurotransmitter response. These can aid in reducing stress by keeping all of your hormones balanced.

With proper care which includes exercise, healthy diet, and proper nutritional supplementation you will have a great defense in battling severe anxiety.

Have you ever wondered how sleep can play a role on hair-loss, depression, obesity, cardiovascular disease.  The media is always informing us how Americans are a nation of sleep deprived workaholics that are sacrificing their well being for overloading and over-scheduling themselves to maintain the modern lifestyle.  But what about those people that sleep beyond the seven to eight hours per night.

There are new studies that have concluded that sleeping nine hours or more per night may have a negative impact on health.  The evidence however, is much more conclusive that too little sleep can lead to illness, accidents, and lowered productivity.  We also know that depression can rise about in individuals who suffer from insomnia.

Here are some tips for better sleep, which will yield to better health.

Do not use sleep to overcome emotions:  When some people become overwhelmed they can become lethargic and start to fall asleep when feeling threatened.  While this may not seem that harmful, it clearly shows that a person is not dealing with the issues at hand and is not a good indicator that their night sleep will be disruptive.  Try going through the period of discomfort with a different activity such as exercise to lessen anxiety.
Do not nap too much:  Lately naps have gotten some bad press in the United States, but there has been a trend in the last few years to try a power nap.  Power naps are basically a short 15 to 20 minute sleep session that will act as an afternoon refresher, and it was speculated that Leonardo Da Vinci used this method often.  Current studies show that these power naps are an excellent way to revive yourself and sustain your energy and focus for a more productive day.  However, if the power nap turns into a traditional multi hour nap, this amount of sleep will disrupt your sleeping pattern at night.

Do not use the weekends as a sleepathon:  When our work schedules keep us busy we may sometime indulge in sleeping in on the weekends.  This behavior falls into the same pattern as overeating, and has no benefit at all.  You cannot catch up on your sleep, its all about consistent hours of sleep every night.
Nutritional Supplements help with sleep:  There are many great nutritional supplements that will condition you to fall asleep and stay asleep.  The first of these is Melatonin, which is secreted by the pineal gland and with age becomes less.  Supplemental Melatonin may help with this condition, and many users report its effectiveness form the first night of use.  Another great supplement to relax and get you ready for bed is Valerian root, this is an herb and is usually taken in a capsule or brewed as a tea.  Lastly, taking calcium before bed may also help in assisting with better sleep.

While there may be some moral benefits to abstinence, there is now conclusive proof that having regular and enjoyable sexual activity offers a host of health benefits for men and women.

One of the most credible and comprehensive studies conducted by Queens University in Belfast tracked the mortality of 1,000 middle aged men over the course of a decade. The study was published in the 1997 British Medical Journal, in which men who reported the greatest frequency of orgasms had a death rate of half from the stragglers. There are other studies that show that having sex even a few times per week has an affect on the following:

-An improved sense of smell: Production of the hormone prolactin surges after sex, which in turn develops new neurons in the brain’s olfactory smell center.

-A reduction for risk of heart disease: There was a follow up to the Queens University study which showed that men who had sex three or more times per week, reduced their risk of heart attack or stroke by half.

-Overall fitness and weight loss: Sex, can be considered exercise. A vigorous jaunt can burn about 200 calories or about the same as running 15 minutes on a treadmill. The pulse rate of an aroused person rises up to 150 beats per minute from 70, the same as an athlete in training. Muscular contractions during sex work the pelvis, thighs, buttocks, arms, neck, and thorax. Sex also increases testosterone production which leads to stronger muscles and bones.

-Depression reduction: Prostoglandin, a hormone which is found in semen, can be absorbed in the female genital tract thus regulating female hormones.

-Pain relief: Levels of the hormone oxytocin increase up to five times their normal level right before orgasm, which in turn releases endorphins that alleviate anything from a simple headache to arthritis. In women this can even reduce symptoms of PMS.

-Less Colds and Flu: A study conducted at Wilkes University in Pennsylvania shows that individuals who have sex once or twice per week have 30% increased level of immunoglobulin A, which boosts the immune system.

To keep your body healthy for sexual activity a good multi-vitamin is recommended. Anti-oxidants such as vitamin A, C, E, and coenzyme Q10 are essential for proper recovery and healthy semen production. Ginkgo Biloba may also help with sexual activity as its ability to improve blood flow to the brain and its antioxidant properties.