Uncategorized Five healthy lifestyle habits for increased life expectancy

Five healthy lifestyle habits for increased life expectancy

Maintaining five healthy habits eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, keeping a healthy body weight, not drinking too much alcohol, and not smoking during adulthood may add more than a decade to life expectancy, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Researchers also found that U.S. women and …

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Uncategorized Seniors stick to fitness routines

Seniors stick to fitness routines

Older adults are more likely to stick with a group exercise program if they can do it with people their own age, a new University of British Columbia study has found. Working out with peers of the same gender doesn’t seem to make a difference – it’s the age that counts. “This study points to …

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Uncategorized Mediterranean diet boosts beneficial bacteria

Mediterranean diet boosts beneficial bacteria

Scientists at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center found that eating a plant-based diet enhanced the good bacteria living in the gut by up to 7 percent as compared to only 0.5 percent from eating a more meat-centric, Western diet. Using an animal model, the research team designed the study to mimic human Western- and Mediterranean-type …

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Uncategorized Could exercise make the heart younger?

Could exercise make the heart younger?

After a heart attack, patients must create new heart muscle cells to heal. Harvard study shows that mice make more new heart muscle cells when they exercise compared to when they do not. This was true for both healthy mice and those that had experienced a heart attack. Findings demonstrate that one reason exercise is …

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Uncategorized Music reduces pain and anxiety in surgical patients 

Music reduces pain and anxiety in surgical patients 

Music can reduce the anxiety and pain of invasive surgery, according to an analysis of all relevant randomized controlled trials published since 1980. Ninety-two trials with a total of 7385 patients were included in the BJS (British Journal of Surgery) analysis. Music interventions significantly decreased anxiety and pain compared with controls, equivalent to a decrease …

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Uncategorized Meditation for anxiety and cardiovascular health

Meditation for anxiety and cardiovascular health

It sounds like a late-night commercial: In just one hour you can reduce your anxiety levels and some heart health risk factors. But a recent study with 14 participants shows preliminary data that even a single session of meditation can have cardiovascular and psychological benefits for adults with mild to moderate anxiety. John Durocher, assistant …

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Uncategorized Major decrease in opioid prescriptions since 2011

Major decrease in opioid prescriptions since 2011

However, the study does not track illegal use of opioids like heroin or fentanyl, which can replace the use of prescription opioids. Still, the report says the progress in reducing opioid prescriptions could be resulting from recent changes in policy. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued prescribing guidelines in 2016 looking …

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Uncategorized Becoming a Systems Thinker

Becoming a Systems Thinker

How do you deal with ignorance? I don’t mean how do you shut ignorance out. Rather, how do you deal with an awareness of what you don’t know, and you don’t know how to know, in dealing with a particular problem? When Gregory Bateson was arguing about human purposes, that was where he got involved …

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Uncategorized Improving brain metabolism and muscle energetics in older adults with Tai Chi

Improving brain metabolism and muscle energetics in older adults with Tai Chi

Using magnetic resonance spectroscopy, a non-invasive method of measuring brain and muscle chemistry using MRI machines, tests conducted in 6 older adults enrolled in a 12-week Tai Chi program revealed significant increases in a marker of neuronal health in the brain and significantly improved recovery rates of a metabolite involved in energy production in leg …

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Uncategorized Can medical marijuana benefit older adults?

Can medical marijuana benefit older adults?

Importantly, however, medical marijuana’s positive and negative effects have not been thoroughly studied specifically in older adults. “There is a dearth of evidence supporting the use of cannabinoids for medical indications in older adults. Common sense practices are applicable here though, including performing a thorough assessment for side effects and expecting that lower doses will …

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