Danish Research Says Run for Your Life
Running and jogging can extend your lifeIf you have trouble getting motivated to be active every day, there's now even more evidence that just a small amount of daily exercise can help extend your life. Research from the Copenhagen City Heart Study (CCHS) -- begun in 1976 -- found that jogging between one and two and a half hours per week helped both men and women live longer. The greatest benefits came from jogging at a slow or average pace.
Peter Schnohr, chief cardiologist of the CCHS, said in a statement, "We can say with certainty that regular jogging increases longevity. The good news is that you don't actually need to do that much to reap the benefits."
About 2,000 male and female joggers were questioned about their running habits, such as how much they exercised, and how intensely. During the follow-up period the men who jogged gained an average of 6.2 years of life, while the women joggers gained 5.6 years.
The findings were presented at a European Association for Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation meeting in Dublin, Ireland.
The Copenhagen City Heart Study began tracking almost 20,000 men and women between the ages of 20 and 93 back in 1976. Research findings from this prospective study include a 2006 paper on the longevity gains of 5-7 years thanks to moderate and high-intensity physical activity. The longevity boost in that research was strongest against cardiovascular disease and cancers.
Read more: How many calories should I be eating, as I get older?
Source:
Schnohr P, Lange P, Scharling H, Jensen JS. "Long-term physical activity in leisure time and mortality from coronary heart disease, stroke, respiratory diseases, and cancer. The Copenhagen City Heart Study." Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil. 2006 Apr;13(2):173-9.
Get Out Your Sunscreen
Finally - some sunny and warm weather for those of us who've been buried under winter clothing for the last several months. Along with the warming trend, much good - a chance to bare your arms and let your skin make some Vitamin D - helping you to ward off a range of health threats. On the negative side, the sun causes photoaging, one of the major drivers of skin aging. Not only does the sun accelerate the formation of wrinkles that naturally occur in skin over time, but it wreaks its own havoc on the skin's structure, affecting its thickness and texture. Make sure you apply a high-SPF sunscreen after fifteen or so minutes in the sun!
Learn how Vitamin A can reverse photoaging
Read more about aging skin problems: Skin tags
Inappropriate Medications Continue to be Prescribed for Seniors, Panel Finds
New guidelines for doctors have been issued by the American Geriatrics Society, in an effort to reduce the number of medications inappropriately prescribed for seniors. Published in the society's monthly journal, the paper outlines the dangers associated with "potentially inappropriate medications", citing the national cost of medication-related problems in 2000-2001 as $7.2 billion. Many of the adverse drug problems were preventable, and associated with ordering and monitoring of the medications, according to the paper.
Seniors tend to take multiple prescriptions, leaving them more vulnerable to interactions between medications. In addition, their aging physiology affects how the drugs work in their bodies.
In many cases, the guidelines strongly recommend a medication not be prescribed. For example, oral and transdermal estrogen for urinary incontinence in women is strongly recommended against, because research evidence strongly suggests it aggravates incontinence. The guidelines suggests many other medications, including certain antipsychotics, should be avoided in seniors.
The guidelines, called the "2012 AGS Beers Criteria", were developed by an interdisciplinary panel of 11 geriatric and pharmacotherapy experts. They offer guidance for doctors weighing the risks and benefits of specific drugs in their older patients.
Read More: Are Pillboxes Safe for Multiple Medications?
How to Use Pillboxes and Blister Packs Effectively
Source:
Barbara Resnick and James Pacala. "2012 Beers Criteria." Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
April 2012. Volume 60, Issue 4, pages 612-613
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/store/10.1111/j.1532-5415.2012.03921.x/asset/jgs3921.pdf?v=1&t=h1fe877q&s=fbf12d2a34a3e13213cdc6c494856e535294ca54
The American Geriatrics Society 2012 Beers Criteria Update Expert Panel. AGS updated Beers Criteria for potentially inappropriate medication use in older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc 2012;60:616-631.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1532-5415.2012.03923.x/full
Gum Disease No Threat to Heart
David Rosenberg / Getty ImagesFor years, it's been suggested that periodontal, or gum disease, could cause heart problems, and that dental hygiene might prevent cardiovascular disease. New research published online this week in the American Heart Association journal Circulation debunks that theory.
The review, involving more than 500 peer-reviewed studies published between 1950 and 2011, was led by a cardiologist and a dentist. It concluded that while many patients with heart problems also suffer from gum disease, and both conditions share many risk factors like age and smoking, there's no evidence that poor oral health causes atherosclerosis.
Keep Your Teeth White and Looking Younger
Source:
Peter B. Lockhart et al. "Periodontal Disease and Atherosclerotic Vascular Disease: Does the Evidence Support an Independent Association?" Circulation 2012;125. doi: 10.1161/CIR.0b013e31825719f3 http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2012/04/18/CIR.0b013e31825719f3.full.pdf
Eat, Sweep and Be Healthy
As good weather approaches, even those of us in colder climates can look forward to fresh, local produce. Not only are whole foods beneficial for their phytonutrients, as part of an anti-aging diet -- they also provide a mechanical benefit to digestion thanks to their fiber content. The fact is, people who consume high amounts of fiber (26-29 grams/day) have been shown to live longer than those who eat much less (10-13 grams/day). It's not called "nature's broom" for nothing!
10 Things to Stop Doing
Here at About.com we have dozens of health writers specializing in everything from disease-specific advice, to general lifestyle and wellness information. Across the health channel, we've been busy assembling lists of behaviors to stop, so you can be healthier, avoid diseases, and live longer. Here's a look at what to stop doing, in the areas of longevity, exercise, walking, and weight loss.
There are many more great lists, and great topics, from my health colleagues at About.com. Check them out!
Anti-Wrinkle... Bra??
Recently my colleague Marie Redding, About.com's Guide to Lingerie, wrote about a bra that's gaining traction (so to speak) in Europe. It promises to keep your breasts separated while you're lying in bed at night, to prevent vertical wrinkles in your décolletage in the morning.
Developed out of the Netherlands, the bra designers boast research from a Paris-based institute Centre d'Etudes et de Recherches Cosmétologique (CERCO), that shows chest wrinkles were less visible after wearing La Decollette just one night. I had a hard time locating the study - or the institute - but it may be that women are more concerned with supportive bras than supporting research. Reportedly, several thousand of the anti-wrinkle bras have been sold.
Another product promising to reduce chest wrinkles is called the Decollette Pad, a reusable silicone pad that adheres to your chest while you sleep. Who knows? I've heard of women who put strips of tape between their eyebrows during the night so their brows are less furrowed in the morning.
Here's Marie's blog, if you'd like more information. In the meantime, don't forget to wear sunscreen when you're outside, as UV rays are considered the primary source of skin aging, on your chest, and the rest of your body!
Read more about the ways your body changes with age
Longevity News
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What is Longitudinal Research?
At What Age Should We Start Studying Aging?
I attended a symposium on aging research today at the University of Calgary, and an interesting question emerged regarding how early we should begin investigating the effects of age on the mind and body. Of course, aging begins the moment we are born. However, aging science is constrained by some practical issues, namely time and money.
The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) began recruiting subjects in 2009, with a long-term goal of tracking 50,000 people between the ages of 45 and 80, for a period of twenty years. Clearly, some aging has taken place before a person's 45th birthday. However, the scientists in the room today noted that many of the longitudinal studies, or long-term population research underway around the world, have targeted people aged 50, 60, or even 65 years and older. In that context, "45 is pretty young", according to Anne Martin-Matthews, former scientific director of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's National Institute of Aging.
The Canadian research will rely on multi-disciplinary teams from several universities across the country, led from its national headquarters at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.
Read More on How We Age:
Understanding the Aging Process
Eat Chocolate, Be Slim?
Radius Images / Getty ImagesOf all the things to love about chocolate, new research suggests you might add "helps weight loss" to the list. Published this week in the Archives of Internal Medicine, the study found that adults who ate chocolate a few times a week, had a lower body mass index, or BMI, than those who consumed it less frequently. The paper adds to a growing body of research that suggests people who regularly eat chocolate and cocoa products also have a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease, stroke and diabetes.
Led by University of California medical professor Beatrice Golomb, the new research investigated the BMI of almost 1,000 healthy adult men and women. After ruling out factors like calories consumed, physical activity and mood, only the frequency of weekly chocolate consumption was associated with the lower body mass index.
More About Chocolate and Longevity:
How Much Chocolate, for a Longer Life?
Source:
Beatrice A. Golomb, Sabrina Koperski, and Halbert L. White. "Association Between More Frequent Chocolate Consumption and Lower Body Mass Index." Arch Intern Med. 2012;172(6):519-521. doi:10.1001/archinternmed.2011.2100.