Lack of sleep may raise health risks

Lack of quality sleep for adults may negatively impact heart health. Evidence now suggests that sleep problems during adolescence may increase health risks as well.

The research appeared Monday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

"When most people think about cardiovascular risk factors and risk behaviors, they don't necessarily think of sleep," said Dr. Brian McCrindle, senior author and cardiologist at SickKids in Toronto, Ontario. "This study ... shows a clear association between sleep disturbance (in adolescents) and a greater likelihood of having high cholesterol, high blood pressure and being overweight or obese."

"These findings are important, given that sleep disturbance is highly prevalent in adolescence and that cardiovascular disease risk factors track from childhood into adulthood," noted Dr. Indra Narang, the lead study author and director of sleep medicine at SickKids.

The researchers examined data from the 2009/2010 school year for adolescents in the Niagara region of Ontario.

More than 4,000 ninth-grade students completed questionnaires asking about their sleep duration, quality, disturbances, snoring, daytime sleepiness and the use of any sleep medications during a period of one month.  Their average age was 14.6.

The students also answered questions about their physical activity, time spent in front of a computer or television and nutrition.

Researchers studied participants' height, weight, waist circumference, cholesterol levels and blood pressure. They adjusted for those with family history of cardiovascular disease, so they could be confident of the association found.

Participants slept, on average, 7.9 hours during the week and 9.4 hours on weekends. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends adolescents get 8.5 to 9.5 hours of sleep a night.

Almost one in five reported their weeknight sleep as "fairly bad" or "bad." One in 10 said the same was true for their weekend sleep. In addition, almost 6% of respondents said they had used medications to help them sleep.

"What happens with these kids is they have very poor sleep habits and sleep hygiene, so they're sleepy and tired and have poor energy during the day, so they hop themselves up on caffeinated beverages and then that just perpetuates their problem and a lot of them wound up taking some kind of sleep medication," McCrindle said. "So they get in a cycle."

Narang said 6% was "quite a lot" of adolescents taking over-the-counter and prescription medication to help them sleep.

"It really shows that some adolescents are experiencing very disturbed sleep that they're then needing sleep medication," she said.

Common sleep disturbances reported by the adolescents included waking up during the night or early in the morning, not being able to fall asleep within a half-hour, feeling too hot or too cold, having to use the restroom and bad dreams.

Those who reported sleep disturbances more often consumed soft drinks, fried food, sweets and caffeine, the research showed. They also reported less physical activity and increased screen time. In addition, the adolescents with shorter sleep routines reported less physical activity and more screen time.

In the short term, poor sleep impairs daytime function.

"It can affect (your) learning, it can affect (your) memory," Narang added.

Parents concerned about their child's sleep can intervene in several ways.

McCrindle suggests trying to minimize media use in the bedroom.

"Do (the adolescents) really need to have a TV, a computer, all their video games in the bedroom?" he asked.

Instead, ensure kids have down time before bedtime.

Narang feels consumption of high-energy caffeine drinks may largely be to blame.

But the big picture, she says?

"Everybody involved in the health care of a child - a nurse, a physician, a teacher - needs to promote well sleep, and that would involve a certain number of hours a sleep and routine of sleep," Narang said.

The routine would keep them on the same sleep schedule all week long, she added.

Fewer, larger meals - Key to weight loss?

You've probably heard that eating multiple small meals throughout the day is a good way to stave off hunger and keep your metabolism revved up while trying to lose weight. But a new study could change your diet strategy.

healthy-meals

Eating two large meals early and skipping dinner may lead to more weight loss than eating six smaller meals throughout the day, research presented at the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions conference this week in Chicago suggests.


The study

Researchers from the Czech Republic followed 54 patients with Type 2 diabetes for 24 weeks. The study participants were split into two groups at random. Both groups followed a diet that reduced their energy intake by 500 calories per day and contained 50 to 55% carbohydrates, 20 to 25% protein and less than 30% fat.

For the first 12 weeks, one group ate three main meals - breakfast, lunch and dinner - and three small snacks in between meals. The other group ate a large breakfast between 6 and 10 a.m. and a large lunch between noon and 4 p.m. The two groups then switched for the second 12 weeks.

Researchers asked the patients not to alter their exercise habits during the study.

The results

Although both groups lost weight and decreased the amount of fat in their livers, the group that was eating only two larger meals lost more during each 12-week session. Eating fewer, bigger meals also led to lower fasting blood sugar levels, meaning that the body's insulin production was working more efficiently.

The timing and frequency of the groups' meals did not seem to have an effect on the function of beta cells that produce insulin or on the glucose metabolic clearance rate - i.e. how fast their bodies were able to process and get rid of sugar.

Our expert's take

"This is interesting," says CNN diet and fitness expert Melina Jampolis. "But the first thing I think of is that it's not really liveable, telling people to skip dinner every day."

Jampolis is also concerned that the two groups did not end up eating the same total number of calories. "Eating six times a day, it's very hard to control calories," she says. The researchers admit that while they did their best to ensure both groups consumed the same amount, the group that ate two larger meals may have eaten less.

While the study was small, Jampolis agrees that there's research to support eating a lighter meal later in the day. Most of us consume the majority of our day's calories late at night when we're the least active, she says. And when we're not active, our insulin sensitivity drops. A recent study showed that walking for just 15 minutes after dinner can help lower your risk for diabetes. Fasting between lunch and breakfast may have a similar effect, she says.

The takeaway

Don't skip dinner altogether. Focus instead on eating a hearty breakfast and lunch, and keep your last meal of the day low in calories.

Truths About Training

I was never a runner. In fact, I kind of despised running—especially since my high school soccer coach used it as punishment. As an adult, however, I’ve come to love it so much I’ve completed five marathons.

But after Hurricane Sandy put the kibosh on last year’s New York City Marathon, I fell off track. Though I stayed active, for four months I never ran. Now I’m training again to run the marathon this November, and dealing with body aches and slooow runs.

Yet I know I won’t quit, because I’ve found that the sucky days are the ones that make you better. Thinking of running a race, too? Here are a few other things I’ve learned along the way.

Training is a bit scary
I can’t lie. The training is grueling. Four. Long. Months. But at some point—for me, it’s after the first month—you hit your stride. And before you know it, you’re a week out from the big day.

Commitment is key
You can’t BS your way through training. Believe me, I tried once. I figured if I did my long runs I’d be OK. The problem: Training is like a ladder. Each rung prepares your body for the next, so skipping just one step weakens your foundation, making those 15- and 20-milers—and ultimately the big 26.2—tougher. My advice: Stick to a schedule. I run after work, though life can get in the way. Sometimes I’ve had to get up at dawn (wearing running clothes to bed helps!).

Find what fuels you
Sure, I love my shrinking waistline and toned thighs. But the real reason I run is it’s a total stress buster. When my granny died two years ago, the first thing I did was lace up my sneakers. There was something about falling into the rhythm of the run that soothed me and helped me wrap my mind around my grief. I ran my 2011 marathon in her honor.

You’ll surprise yourself
Some days, self-doubt tells me I won’t succeed. It’s then I have to remind myself: No one ran those miles for me. I pushed my body and found my way to the finish line. So much of running is mental (I can forge ahead!). You are showing yourself that you can do what less than 1 percent of the population can do. How’s that for an ego boost?

More and more teens get unapproved weight-loss surgery

A type of weight-loss surgery not approved for adolescents is becoming more and more common among teens in California, according to a report published today.

weight loss surgery

Most of the patients are white girls, although they make up less than half of overweight youth, researchers say.

From 2005 to 2007, they found rates of so-called gastric banding, in which a silicone band is placed around the top portion of the stomach to restrict food intake, rose five-fold. However, use of gastric bypass -- which surgically reduces the size of the stomach -- dropped, leaving the overall rate of weight-loss procedures constant.

Despite not being approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in adolescents younger than age 18, gastric banding overtook gastric bypass as the most frequently performed weight-loss procedure in this age group, Dr. Daniel DeUgarte and colleagues from the University of California, Los Angeles, report in the journal Pediatrics.

This increase in the use of gastric banding, they note, occurred during a time at which there was a significant increase in the intensity of marketing and propensity to use the procedure in morbidly obese adults.

They add that gastric bypass remains the "gold standard" of weight-loss surgery, and that some medical centers have found poor long-term results with gastric banding.

Among the 590 California youths between 13 and 20 years of age who underwent weight-loss procedures over three years, no one died and the rate of in-hospital complications were comparable at less than six percent.

Gastric banding leapt from 0.3 per 100,000 youth to 1.5, whereas bypass surgery decreased from 3.8 per 100,000 to 2.7. Hospital stay was less than a day with the first procedure, and more than two with the second.

While white people account for just over a quarter of overweight adolescents in California, they made up about two-thirds of those who had surgery. There could be many reasons for these findings, according to the researchers, who note that only severely obese people who have failed diet and exercise programs are considered for weight-loss surgery.

"I do think that has something to do with the difference between male and female body image perception," said Dr. Marc P. Michalsky, surgical director for the Center for Healthy Weight and Nutrition at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, who was not involved in the research.

But, he added, "We try very, very hard to dispel any notion that this is a cosmetic procedure."

Michalsky said he wasn't surprised by the new findings, but noted that solid evidence for gastric banding has yet to be produced.

"Why do we feel it is necessary to operate on a bunch of 15-year-olds?" he told Reuters Health. "The theory is, and we have yet to prove this, that early intervention will result in a substantial difference in the outcomes regarding obesity-related diseases," such as diabetes and heart disease.

While weight-loss surgery may cost up to $50,000, for some individuals, he said, it appears to be the only way to achieve durable results.

A British study last month showed that use of the procedures had increased 10-fold since 2000. At 30 months, those who had had gastric banding had lower death rates than those who had undergone bypass surgery.

Other experts remain skeptical of gastric banding, including Allergan's Lap-Band, which commands more than two-thirds of a $300 million to $400 million market.

"I think there's a fundamental problem with putting a rigid plastic object around a moving organ. You're asking it to stay in place and not erode over a long period of time," Dr. Mary Brandt, director of the pediatric surgical program at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, told Reuters in July.

"I'll be happy to reverse my position as soon as I see 10 or 20 year data. Unfortunately, that's not something that industry is excited about funding," she said.

Stress can take its toll on your health

stress

Several studies have shown that stress, whether caused by your job, relationship, tragedy, or whatever else, can take its toll on your health.

It's likely tied to the fact that when you're stressed, cortisol is secreted. This is our ‘fight or flight’ reaction that evolved in humans to keep us alive when large animals were running after us as cavemen. But today a stressful job makes us feel like a lion is running after us 40 hours a week.

When cortisol is released it produces a quick burst of energy along with a lower sensitivity to pain. In caveman times the release of cortisol was replaced by a relaxation response so that cortisol wasn’t constantly flowing through the body. Too much cortisol for prolonged periods of time creates a slew of side effects like high blood pressure and lowered immunity. Stress can also lead to heart attacks, abdominal fat, strokes, and so much more.

Researchers from The Epidemiology and Public Health Research Center demonstrated why being vigilant about stress is so important. The study, reported on Science Daily, followed 7,268 people, asking them to fill out a questionnaire on their stress levels. The study, published in the European Heart Journal, asked participants a simple question:

To what extent do you consider the stress or pressure that you have experienced in your life has an effect on your health?

Participants could choose from “not at all,” “a little,” “moderately,” “a lot,” or “extremely.” Participants were later asked about stress levels and other things that might impact their health like smoking, alcohol consumption, and physical activity.

Researchers found that those who reported that their health was impacted “a lot” or “extremely” by stress were 2.12 times more likely to have or die as a result of a heart attack. Capacity for dealing with stress had a large impact.

According to Hermann Nabi on Science Daily, "the main message is that complaints from patients concerning the effect of stress on their health should not be ignored in a clinical environment, because they may indicate an increased risk of developing and dying of coronary disease. Future studies of stress should include perceptions of patients concerning the effect of stress on their health."

Top 5 Proven way to become more flexible

Flexibility is an important part of your workout routine, since stretching your muscle fibers helps increase your fitness level, prevent injury, and stay agile and well. These daily must-dos will help you become more flexible, whether you’re just trying to touch your toes or if you’re aiming to finally be able to do the splits.

Start in the morning. Wake up your body with a daily habit that will both energize you and help you become more flexible. These morning stretches you can do in bed are gentle and soothing enough to also do before bedtime. Since your muscles won’t be warmed up when stretching first thing in the morning, be sure you never push your body farther than is comfortable.

Target problem areas. Overall stretching should be part of your flexibility routine, but taking time to focus on your tightest areas is very beneficial. If you spend a good deal of the day sitting, for example, you should focus on shoulder- and hip-opening stretches to combat it. When targeting muscle groups, try to hold stretches for few minutes before switching sides but stop if the stretch becomes uncomfortable or painful.

Roll out. It’s not a secret that proper rolling techniques help loosen knots in the layer of soft connective tissue in your body (called the fascia) while also loosening tight muscles. Foam rollers are affordable and easy to use, so invest in one and do these essential foam roller exercises regularly to help you become more flexible.

Complement your workout. If you’re serious about becoming more flexible, add yoga or Pilates to your fitness routine. Both will help you stretch and strengthen all your muscles so that you’ll see results as you stick with it.

Don’t skip the cooldown. Post-workout stretches are important, especially if you’re a runner or cyclist, since these types of exercises can create tight joints. Open up your body and help increase your flexibility by never skipping out on your cooldown. All it takes is a few minutes of these post-workout stretches after every workout to help your body stay flexible.

Teens - Smoking is simply NOT cool

If you don’t smoke, congratulations. Smoking is about as cool as sticking your hand into a food processor. Here are ten reasons why you should never start, or if you have, why you should stop.

No smoking

Cigarettes make your breath smell. Yes, they do. Kissing you, after you’ve had a cigarette is almost like licking out an ashtray. If you smoke and it’s been a while since someone kissed you, start wondering why.


The Marlboro man died of lung cancer. That cool guy you used to see in the ads, Wayne McLaren, died in 1997 after a long battle against lung cancer. Needless to say, he was a heavy smoker.

Smoking causes impotence. Now there’s a reason why you shouldn’t start. Smoking reduces peripheral vascular flow and the blood flow necessary to attain an erection may become blocked. This seems to be a very high price to pay for a cigarette.

If you break a leg, you’ll be laid low. If you smoke, bone fractures can take 70 percent longer to heal than they do in non-smokers. If you’re keen on sport, this should be a consideration.

It doesn’t make you look cool. All it does do is to make you look like a 13-year-old who is prepared to sacrifice his health to look like a 15-year-old. And that behind the bicycle shed. There are better ways to make yourself look older or to make yourself feel like you’re living on the edge.

Getting cold feet? Smokers often have cold feet and hands as a result of poor circulation. Components of cigarette smoke block the transfer of life-giving oxygen throughout the body.

Don't let your fingers do the walking. Would you let someone run their fingers through your hair if they were yellow and smelly and nicotine-stained? Get the picture?

Non-smokers get the best restaurant seats. The smoking section is usually small, smells hideous and is often tucked in behind the counter and the ladies’ toilet.


Ever heard an old person with a smoker’s cough? That deep rattle, that hacking, wheezing strain to rid the lungs of yesterday’s muck. How attractive is that? Is that what you want to sound like one day?

Smoking is expensive. Somebody who smokes a packet of cigarettes a day, could buy a plane ticket to London every December for what they spend on getting their lungs dirty.

Ideal Lunch for Teenagers

A healthy diet for teens will help them develop healthy diet habits for their future. Here you will find resources for teens and parents on what a healthy diet is and the nutritional needs of a teenager - along with problems in teen diets and how to avoid bad food habits.

Eating lunch is extremely important for an active teenager. The time between breakfast and dinner can be much too long to wait for food. A teen that misses lunch tends to over-snack on sugary foods after school and isn't at his/her best during his/her afternoon classes.

Ideal Lunch

Here's How:

1. While you will want to pack a healthy lunch, don't overdo it. Teens don't mind eating some healthy things as long as they are tasty too.

2. Always look for ideas and surprises within the realm of things that your child likes. Things like fruit kabobs or cheese and crackers are fun to eat and can be made with different fruits and cheeses.

3. Be sure to have the containers you will need to pack a teen lunch. Soup or a hot food thermos and an insulated bag are a better choice for teens than the traditional 'brown bag'.

4 .Talk to your teen and involve your him/her in the process of choosing his/her lunch. Teens who help make the choices are more likely to eat the lunches.

5. 'Make your own' is always in style with teens. Try giving them all of the ingredients for a wrap in separate baggies and let them put it together.

6. For the teens that like to pick, make your own trail mixes with all kinds of good and healthy foods - add just a little chocolate to make it cool too.

7. Left-overs are great for teen lunches. Does your teen have a favorite homemade food? Are you having it for dinner this week? If so, make extra! Warm it in the morning and put it in a hot food thermos. Pack a fork and they are all set.

Tips:

1. Stick a note in their lunch every once in a while with encouragement, or just to let them know you are thinking of them.

2. Be sure to keep in mind that your teen's lunch will be in his/her locker all morning. Do not use foods that spoil easily.

3. While your teen may like something this week, he/she may not next week. Keep this in mind and have alternative ideas ready.

Be a happy teenager - The way to be healthier

Healthier Teenager

Teenagers who turn their backs on a healthy lifestyle and turn to drink, cigarettes and junk food are significantly unhappier than their healthier peers. New research also shows that 12-13 is a catalyst age when young people turn away from the healthy habits of their younger years and start to get involved in risky behaviours.

The research, which used information from Understanding Society, a long-term study of 40,000 UK households funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), looked at the responses of 5,000 young people between the ages of 10-15 to questions about their health-related behaviours and levels of happiness. The results show that:

Young people who never drank any alcohol were between four and six times more likely to have higher levels of happiness than those who reported any alcohol consumption.

Youth who smoked were about five times less likely to have high happiness scores compared to those who never smoked.

Higher consumption of fruit and vegetables and lower consumption of crisps, sweets and fizzy drinks were both associated with high happiness.

The more hours of sport youth participated in per week the happier they were.

Researchers at the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex believe the data showed that unhealthy behaviours such as smoking, drinking alcohol and taking no exercise are closely linked to substantially lower happiness scores among teenagers, even when socio-demographic factors such as gender, age, family income and parent's education are taken into account.

Twelve per cent of 13-15 year olds reported that they smoked compared with two per cent of 10-12 year olds.  The figures for alcohol consumption were even more striking with eight per cent of 10-12 year olds reporting having had an alcoholic drink in the last month rising to 41 per cent amongst 13-15 year olds.

The research also showed that between the ages of 13 and 15, when young people are given more autonomy over their lifestyle choices, their food consumption becomes less healthy and their participation in exercise reduces.

Only 11 per cent of those aged 13-15 years reported consumption of 5 or more portions of fruit and vegetables per day and even amongst the 10-12 year olds less than a fifth reported eating fruit and vegetables 5 or more times per day.

Dr Cara Booker, one of the co-authors of the research said: "What this research shows us is that young people across the social spectrum are failing to eat healthy balanced diets and are starting to consume alcohol at a young age. This is storing up problems for later life, because we know that there are clear long-term links between health-related behaviours and well-being in adulthood.  Helping young people to reduce damaging health choices as they start making independent decisions are important in order to reduce the number of adults at risk from chronic disease because of their low well-being and poor health-related behaviours."