HEALTH
Creston News Advertiser Friday, February 20, 2015
5A
Better knowledge, products make ‘aging gracefully’ easier than ever (BPT) — Did your grandmother age gracefully? She might have thought growing older with poise meant accepting age-related changes in her skin and overall health, or that costly cosmetic surgery was the only way to look her best as she grew older. Today, better health knowledge and leading-edge products have revolutionized the concept of what it means to age gracefully. Growing older is inevitable, but looking and feeling old don’t have to be. Here are five important actions women of any age can take to ensure they stay healthy and looking good throughout their lives. • Get and stay active. Health authorities, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, recommend healthy adults get at least two hours and 30 minutes of moderate aerobic activity (such as brisk walking) every week, and engage in muscle-strengthening activities at least two days a week. The benefits of exercise are many, including helping with weight control, lowering the risk of heart disease, improving cardio-vascular health and even supporting brain health. It’s never too late
to become active, so talk to your doctor about an exercise routine that works for you. • Take care of your skin. It’s the body’s largest organ and the one that protects all the others. Skin also directly affects how we look and how we feel about our appearance. Fortunately, the latest skincare technology makes it possible to care for your skin while visibly reducing the signs of aging. For example, glo therapeutics Cyto-luxe Hydration+ uses plant stem cells to help deep hydration while instantly smoothing and refining the skin’s surface. Triple Action Serum combines Hydroquinone, Retinol and Glycolic Acid to improve skin texture and tone while lightening hyperpigmented areas. Some products, such as glo therapeutics Line Smoother, work in as little as 30 minutes to smooth and tone fine lines and wrinkles. • Protect against sun damage. Sun exposure is the leading cause of premature aging of the skin and can even lead to skin cancer. Always wear sunscreen to protect all exposed skin - even hands and feet. Choose a broad spectrum product with an SPF
of 30 or more. Many sunscreens can do double duty to enhance your appearance while protecting your skin. Moisturizing Tint SPF 30+ from glo therapeutics
is perfect for lightweight broad-spectrum sun protection while offering a sheer hint of color. • Make good nutrition a lifestyle. Proper nutrition
throughout life impacts overall health, including weight and the health of your muscles, digestive system, bones and brain. It also affects the appearance,
clarity and elasticity of skin. Be sure to follow a balanced diet. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Pyramid is a good guideline for nutrition. For help understanding nutrition, talk to your doctor or a certified nutritional counselor. • Take care of your bones. Osteoporosis - the gradual loss of bone mass over time - is a concern for women as they age. Bone health is essential for overall health, and directly affects a woman’s ability to maintain mobility and posture later in life. The National Osteoporosis Foundation says you can support your bone health in many ways, including ensuring you get plenty of calcium and vitamin D - either in your diet through lean dairy products or through supplements engaging in bone-building exercises, choosing foods that are good for bone health like fruits and vegetables, avoiding smoking and limiting alcohol consumption to just two or three drinks a day. Growing older doesn’t mean you have to feel and look “old.” Empowered with knowledge and the right products, it’s possible to age gracefully, stay healthy and look your best.
Work hard, play hard dangers On the TV show “Mad Men,” “work hard, play hard” is touted as a virtue. Yet the characters are, well, slightly mad, and become more tragic and self-destructive every season. Even though it’s just a TV drama, it tells a very real cautionary tale. Working long hours is associated with mental-health problems, occupational injuries, sleep deprivation and the risk of cardiovascular disease. And according to researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health, people who work 49-54 hours a week -- and it doesn’t matter where you live, male or female, young or old, ad exec or bus driver -- are more likely to play hard and abuse alcohol at the end of a very long day. If you work more than 55 hours, your risk more than doubles. (More than 12 percent of Americans work more than 55 hours -- we both do -- and at least 32 percent of you work 45-plus hours weekly.) So, how can a hardworking person avoid the pitfalls? Fortunately, the chain-smoking, multi-martini-lifestyle isn’t your only choice! You can opt for positive playtime at the end of a long day, whether it’s bowling or a baking class, working out at the gym or taking a walk. This smart form of behavior modification (replacing bad behavior with good) helps relieve stress and improves sleep, heart health and your love life! Then you can have a no-phone/ no-TV time with your family. And while this
Weekly health tips Dr. Mehmet Oz, M.D. and Dr. Michael Roizen, M.D.
is he last season of “Mad Men,” you can make sure you have many more seasons to come. SWEET SOLUTIONS TO SUGAR ADDICTION When the Archies crooned longingly “You got me wanting you” in the song “Sugar, Sugar,” they described perfectly what it’s like to crave the sweet stuff -- and millions of you feel the same. Nearly 13 percent of North American adults’ caloric intake comes from high fructose corn syrup and sugar. That adds up to 152 POUNDS of sugars a year -- another whole person! No wonder so many people are fighting obesity, metabolic disorders, high blood pressure and heart disease. Ever since the book “Sugar Blues” came out in 1975, researchers have debated whether sugar really can trigger an addiction’s “gotta have it and have it now” response. Now it seems it really does. Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology say mice will cross an electrified zone to get to sugar even when they’re completely full, and getting that sugar bomb stimulates the same brain regions that are associated with good lovin’ and bad drugs. So if you have a sweet tooth that just won’t quit, it’s time to use proven detox methods:
1. Talk to your doctor about reducing your sugar intake; set up an appointment with a nutritionist or coach who can offer you nutritional guidelines, emotional support and a plan. 2. Get a buddy to do the added sugar elimination with you! You can kvetch, offer each other support and cook healthy foods together. 3. Tell your honey you want to substitute some sweet lovin’ for sweets -that’ll make those brain circuits light up and satisfy your sweet tooth! A BREATH OF FRESH AIR In “To Have and Have Not,” Marie (Lauren Bacall) asks Harry (Humphrey Bogart), “You know how to whistle, don’t you? You just put your lips together and blow.” A career was launched, and Bogart -- and millions of other guys -were left speechless. That’s just how powerful taking a deep breath and then exhaling purposefully can be. When you breathe in, your lungs fill with oxygen, nitrogen and water vapor, along with a smidgen of argon. Oxygen passes from your lungs into your blood and (via the heart) to all the tissues in your body. Sensors in your brain, the carotid artery and the aorta detect your blood’s carbon dioxide and oxygen levels, and
adjust your breathing rate as needed. Without thinking about it, you breathe 17,00023,000 times a day! But if you become aware of your breathing (and practice deep breathing techniques), you can reduce your stress response, promote better sleep and boost your immune strength. Start by practicing this routine: Lie on your back on a firm surface. Counting to five, inhale slowly and let your torso expand and your bellybutton move away from your spine, as you fill your lungs from the bottom to the top. Then, exhale slowly, counting to seven. That’s one. Take 10 deep breaths every morning, 10 every night, or as many as you need to keep you whistling. JUST HOW EXTRA-VIRGIN IS YOUR OLIVE OIL? Olive Oyl stirred up trouble between her boyfriend, Popeye, and brutish Bluto, but she was slick enough to escape from harm’s way. Seems OO has a way of making things turn out healthier! But lately there’s been some confusion about how Miss Oyl conducts herself; seems extra-virgin olive oil might not be as pure as it claims. So how do you get the most health benefits from your EVOO and make sure you’re getting what you pay for? First, maximum health benefits from EVOO happen when you “Go to Italy ... with your mouth.” The mono- and polyunsaturated fats found in olives, olive oil, anchovies, avocados
and pine nuts (all Italian favorites), not to mention wild salmon (not so Italian), help keep your arteries clear and inflammation down to a minimum. Second, real extra-virgin can be hard to get, but it’s worth it. EVOO is cold pressed, first harvest, with only 1 percent acid content; all that preserves taste and nutrient values. Check your EVOO label to see if it carries a harvest date (two years old is max) PLUS the North American Olive Oil Association or California Olive Oil Council designation; they make sure olive oils are not adulterated or mislabeled. The International Olive Council sets standards for the rest of the world. Also, avoid oils that say “packaged in” or “distributed from” Spain, Italy, Greece. The label should indicate the origin of the oil itself. Buon appetito! A PARDON FROM JOE BEAN On the album “At Folsom Prison,” Johnny Cash sings about Joe Bean, a career criminal headed to the gallows on his birthday for a shooting he could not have committed. His mamma knew he was miles away, robbing a train, but she couldn’t get her son pardoned. Now there’s another Joe Bean in town who might just be able to get you pardoned from a run-in with a deadly skin cancer. And there’s no mistakin’ this Joe: It’s coffee. National Cancer Institute researchers recently investigated the association between coffee drinking
and the risk of developing malignant melanoma. They looked at 447,357 cancer-free, non-Hispanic whites and found that folks who downed four or more cups of caffeinated coffee per day had a 20 percent lower risk for malignant melanoma. So, for paleskinned folks anyway, coffee intake was clearly associated with a lowered risk of the most lethal form of skin cancer. (Other studies have shown that black coffee made with a paper filter reduces the risk of eight other cancers as well as diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease by more than 20 percent.) It’s possible this is because coffee contains polyphenols and caffeine, which help keep the cancer-fighting powers of your immune system healthy so your DNA is protected from the sun’s ultraviolet rays. The researchers also speculate that caffeine acts as a molecular sunscreen, absorbing UV rays, preventing sun damage from the inside out. So if you’re cleared by your doc to consume caffeine, think of the good Joe Bean and drink to your health. *** Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. To live your healthiest, tune into “The Dr. Oz Show” or visit www.sharecare.com. (c) 2015 Michael Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet Oz, M.D. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.
Dr. Oz and Dr. Roizen column feature brought to you by Hammer Medical Supply of Creston