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Lead Stories: Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Q&A: Is it normal to gain weight and be puffy after long, intense exercise?

Posted August 9th, 2007 at 12:30 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: Health & Fitness, Injury & Rehab, Exercise

It is not normal to be puffy after a long ride or any other form of exercise. Your doctor should check for kidney problems, hormone abnormalities or diabetes. If these tests are normal, you drank way too much during your ride and are lucky that you only suffered from excess fluid retention. You could have developed hyponatremia, a serious condition that can kill you.

Normal healthy kidneys have a limit to how rapidly they can rid your body of excess fluid. If you take in more fluid than your kidneys can clear, fluid accumulates in your blood and dilutes the salt level. Since fluid moves from an area of low salt to high salt, and your brain has far more salt than your blood does; the fluid will move into your brain to causes swelling, seizures and even death.
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Book Review: Dr. Kerrie Saunders’ “The Vegan Diet as Chronic Disease Prevention”

Posted May 21st, 2007 at 8:51 AM by Katie Drummond

Section: Motivation, Books, Nutrition, Vegetarianism, Special Features, Health & Fitness, TFS Reviews

For the average American, dinner probably means sitting down to a plate of meat, rounded out with sides like white bread and potatoes, and polished off with an after-dinner bowl of ice cream in front of the television. If this sounds familiar, Dr. Kerrie K. Saunders has written a book you need to read. A practitioner of integrative medicine, Dr. Saunders penned The Vegan Diet as Chronic Disease Prevention to argue that a diet based on “the new four food groups” can prevent or cure the epidemic ailments, from obesity and diabetes to cancer, that are increasingly prevalent across North America.

Read the rest at our partner site: HerActiveLife.com

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Studies: Exercise can make your brain larger

Posted April 5th, 2007 at 3:00 AM by Jamal Walker

Section: Health & Fitness, Exercise

Regular exercise makes your brain larger, according to a study from the University of Illinois (Journal fo Gerontology, November 2006).

With aging, your brain becomes smaller. This study showed that 60 to 79-year-old men who exercised regularly actually had their brains grow larger. Study participants who did only a stretching and toning program had their brains shrink.
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Exercise makes cells more efficient; increases overall health & life expectancy

Posted March 23rd, 2007 at 9:15 AM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: Health & Fitness, Exercise

Why does risk for heart attacks, strokes or diabetes increase with age? A team from Yale University showed that as you age, you lose your ability to make AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) (Cell Metabolism, February 2007). This enzyme functions to increase mitochondria in muscles.

Anything that reduces the number or efficiency of mitochondria interferes with your body’s ability to burn fat and sugar for energy. As a result, blood sugar, fat and cholesterol levels rise.
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Are soybean products
healthful or harmful?

Posted January 13th, 2007 at 8:00 AM by Martin Kennedy

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Health & Fitness

All plants contain chemicals that are healthful and chemicals that can harm us. Fortunately for us, our ancestors learned which plants are edible and healthful, and taught us to avoid those that are poisonous. However, if you eat very large amounts of one food, you can poison yourself, even though reasonable amounts are harmless or beneficial.
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Effects of alcohol on your performance & health

Posted January 1st, 2007 at 3:30 PM by Jonathan Faccone

Section: Running & Training, Training Tips, Health & Fitness, Injury & Rehab

There are many studies that demonstrate alcohol’s negative effects on health and physical performance, but the good news is that avoiding it may not be the best idea either.

Believe it or not, athletes used to consume alcohol prior to competition to improve performance. The thinking behind this idea is that alcohol could alter energy metabolism, improve physiological processes, or modify psychological factors to help the athlete. Unfortunately this idea no longer holds as more research is demonstrating that alcohol by no means should be considered a performance-enhancing supplement.
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This New Year’s Resolution:
A Healthy Heart

Posted January 1st, 2007 at 11:00 AM by Megan Hueter

Section: Health & Fitness, Exercise, Weight Loss

Eat too much this holiday season? You’re most likely not alone. However, eating too much on a daily basis takes a toll on your body, especially your heart. Make this New Year’s resolution a healthy one for you and your family.

You can start by checking out some different online opportunities, including the Discovery Health Channel’s National Body Challenge, and the American Heart Association’s Choose to Move program.

Programs such as these have been established due to chronic public health problems in the United States associated with poor diet and lack of physical activity. Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death for all people in the United States, currently affecting nearly 12 million people.
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Type 2 Diabetes: How diet and exercise could save your life (PART 4)

Posted December 20th, 2006 at 2:05 PM by Megan Hueter

Section: Health & Fitness, Exercise, Weight Loss

This is the final installment of a four part series. Part 4 is entitled: “Type 2 Diabetes and the Benefits of Resistance Training”.

Attention type 2 diabetics: studies show that adding resistance training to your exercise program can enhance its benefits and improve insulin control. With a total change in lifestyle (through education about type 2 diabetes, adherence to a strict diet, aerobic exercise and resistance training) you can restore you body’s sugar to a non-diabetic level.

The treatment goal for type 2 diabetic individuals is to achieve and maintain near to normal blood sugar levels and optimal fat levels in the body. With exercise the body becomes less resistant to insulin. Aerobic exercise is commonly prescribed.
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Type 2 Diabetes: How diet and exercise could save your life (PART 3)

Posted December 13th, 2006 at 7:00 AM by Megan Hueter

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Health & Fitness, Exercise, Weight Loss

This is the third installment of a four part series. Part 3 is entitled: “Type 2 Diabetes: How Aerobic Exercise Can Save Your Life “.

Attention Type 2 diabetics: studies show that a change in lifestyle can restore the body’s sugar levels to a non-diabetic level. Understanding how this happens could save your life.

The treatment goal for type 2 diabetic individuals is to achieve and maintain near to normal blood sugar levels and optimal fat levels in the body. With exercise the body becomes less resistant to insulin. Therefore, aerobic exercise is a very effective treatment modality and is commonly prescribed.
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Type 2 Diabetes: How diet and exercise could save your life (PART 2)

Posted December 6th, 2006 at 7:00 AM by Megan Hueter

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Health & Fitness, Exercise, Weight Loss

This is the second installment of a four part series. Part 2 is entitled: “Type 2 Diabetes and Nutrition”. To check out Part 1: “Understanding Type 2 Diabetes”, please click here.

Attention Type 2 diabetics: recent studies show that a nutritional diet combined with physical can restore the body’s sugar levels to a non-diabetic level. Understanding the importance of the nutritional diet could save your life.

When diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, patients are commonly prescribed an immediate change in lifestyle which includes a very strict nutritional diet. The purpose of this diet is to maintain a quality level of glycemic control. This means that a carefully monitored diet can manage the amount of sugar in the blood. Because obesity is very common with those suffering from type 2 diabetes, the most important component of diet therapy is weight loss.

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