Health Supreme Daily NewsGrabs - 4 August 2006

Health Supreme's Daily News Grabs - selection of alternative health news. New experiences 'improve memory' Being exposed to new experiences can boost memory, research suggests. UK scientists believe introducing new facts when learning, rather than repeatedly processing information, improves memory performance. Maybe that is where the phrase "healthy curiosity" comes from... Honey heals wounds faster than antibiotics A new study into an ancient remedy now proves that honey helps the treatment of some wounds better than most modern antibiotics. The study, by researchers from the University of Bonn, Germany, has found that medihoney is a very effective healer, even healing chronic wounds infected with multi-resistant bacteria within a few weeks....

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http://www.newmediaexplorer.org/sepp/2006/08/04/health_supreme_daily_newsgrabs_4_
august_2006.htm

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Man writes bad check to save life

Filed under: Politics, Opinion, Daily news, Cancer Caregivers, Cancer Survivors

Roy Thayers has experienced death up close, as he was caregiver for his first wife as she battled cancer, he knows what it is like to watch someone fight for their life, and he was there when she lost her life to cancer.

Thayers, who at the age of 77 lives alone, was recently told by his doctors that he was at risk for a fatal heart attack and might lose his life if he didn't undergo heart surgery to unblock the heart valves immediately.

The problem of avoiding death and living longer became a matter of time and money. When the NHS put Thayers on a nine-month waiting list for heart surgery, he worried he might not have that long to wait -- considering the urgency with which the doctors had impressed upon him concerning the imminent threat of a fatal heart attack without surgery. He was told he could have the surgery immediately if he paid for it himself.

So Thayers told the hospital to schedule the surgery and he wrote them a £6,500 check. A check he knew would bounce -- but he reasoned by the time the bank returned the check to the hospital for non-sufficient funds, his surgery would be done. According to Thayers, "I love my budgies, I love my dogs, I love my fishing and I'm not going to die for money. I've worked all my life and put my money into the system, why should I die for the sake of money? Life is a great thing and when you've got it you fight for it."

Now he is dealing with the stress of bill collectors but his heart is healthy. In that moment, he fought for his life in the only way he could think to do. In the US, our health insurance is privatized. We do not face long waiting lists, but over 45 million working Americans go without health insurance, and in many cases this means a delay in treatment. In other countries, like the one Thayer's lives in, health insurance is provided in a government-funded program. But the waiting list stories are nightmarish for those who need care and cannot receive it in a timely and sometimes life-saving manner.

As the politicians get prepared for another presidential election, you can see the posturing and promises of a solution to the health coverage problems many Americans face. In the months ahead of us, there will be discussions and debates about what is the best health care system. Personally, I don't think either systems, the private or public, work for all people all the time -- and I spend time wondering what the best system would be that provides high-quality care in a timely fashion. Which system do you think is the best system in providing health care for all people? Or do you have a better idea? Let's talk about it.

via AdamsBriscoe at Netscape

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http://www.thecancerblog.com/2006/08/03/man-writes-bad-check-to-save-life/

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Eat less calories, get more nutrients

Filed under: Diet, Prevention, Research, Obesity, Nutrition

You can eat as much as you want, as often as you want -- as long as what you eat is low-calorie, a new study reports. People who eat a diet heavy in vegetables and fruits, low-cal dairy, whole grains and lean meats. Those who consume more low-calorie foods also dramatically increase their intake of nutrients.

Low-calorie density foods are those that contain less calories ounce for ounce while still retaining their mass. Good examples are fruits and vegetables full of fiber and water -- there's still bulk to chew, without the extra weight gain. Calorie dense foods are those full of flour, fat and sugar -- which pack on the pounds even if eaten only in small portions. These include processed snack foods -- especially anything with high oil content like potato chips -- as well as sugary treats and fatty meats. Men who consumed the low-calorie diet consumed 425 less calories, and women consumed 250 less -- though all participants on the diet consumed considerably more food by weight. If you like to eat, eat light.

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http://www.thecardioblog.com/2006/08/03/eat-less-calories-get-more-nutrients/

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Off the beach

Ok ladies and the sole guy that read my site ;), I'm going off the beach for a few days, heading to the marshy low country of SC to be exact, where curious kittens await my finger poking hands? ...oh...

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http://www.reneegetsfit.com/archives/2006/08/off_the_beach.php

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Gout found to be new heart attack risk indicator

Filed under: Research, Men Heart Health

Gout patients, or people with gouty arthritis -- are at a higher risk of experiencing a heart attack, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh report. A newfound independent risk factor among those with no previous history of heart disease, the condition primarily affects men -- though an increase of the condition has been noted in post-menopausal women.

Of the 1,123 men who developed gout in the course of the study, 1,108 of the patients experienced a heart attack -- 246 of which were fatal. The risk of the association between the presence of gout and the occurrence of a heart attack is relatively low, noted researchers. However, the odds ratio was considerably high compared to other risk factors. For more information on gouty arthritis and its symptoms, click here.

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http://www.thecardioblog.com/2006/08/03/gout-found-to-be-new-heart-attack-risk-in
dicator/

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New research shows kids need extra exercise to
prevent heart risk

Filed under: Prevention, Research, Obesity, Exercise, Children Heart Health

To avoid a range of heart disease risk factors extending into adulthood, the government advises that children require 90 minutes of exercise daily. However, according to a new study from the Norwegian School of Sports Sciences, children may need even more activity than for the healthiest heart. The researchers recommendations are for all children, not just those who are overweight.

The 9 and 15-year-old study participants physical activity levels were measured by the accelerometers they wore for four days. The most active children played and exercised for 1.5 to 2 hours per day, at a pace equal to walking 2.5 miles per hour -- these kids were the healthiest. Those who were the least active exhibited a cluster of heart disease risk factors, including high blood pressure, higher cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and higher body fat.

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http://www.thecardioblog.com/2006/08/03/new-research-shows-kids-need-extra-exerci
se-to-prevent-heart-ris/

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Majority of obese claim to eat healthy, exercise
regularly

Filed under: Diet, Prevention, Research, Obesity, Exercise

One-third of Americans are obese, and at least another third are overweight -- so if three-quarters of these people claimed to eat healthy and nearly half claim to exercise vigorously three times a week, then where's the weight problem coming from?

Perhaps what the 11,000 person telephone survey failed to ask was if these people perceived themselves as overweight, and thus unhealthily at risk for heart disease and diabetes. The survey definitely did not ask what or how much these people ate in a sitting -- although 28 percent reported snacking at least two times a day.

Most of the statistics in this survey turned out to be very similar between the obese or overweight people compared to the normal weight participants -- they snack and eat out only slightly more, and exercise almost as often as their normal weight counterparts. So is the question how do you define healthy eating and vigorous exercise -- or do these kinds of surveys need to be conducted in person, using a scale?

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http://www.thecardioblog.com/2006/08/03/majority-of-obese-claim-to-eat-healthy-ex
ercise-regularly/

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Keeping a Food Diary

A food diary is a way of discovering hidden causes of your health problems. After you have kept it for a while, you will be able to detect patterns that you were never able to see before. In fact, the whole process of finding out what is going on becomes, as Sherlock Holmes might say, [...]

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http://www.nafwa.org/blog/?p=146

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