Let's take a minute to note all of the wonderful health benefits of playing football. Football provides decent exercise to help increase your fitness and improve your well-being. Many people, young and old, join football clubs to keep active and have fun. Football can help you lose weight, build muscle strength, reduce your risk of heart disease, and lower your stress levels.
However, you can also get a concussion, sprain your ankle, tear your ACL, or dislocate your shoulder. (That's why I only play two-hand touch!)
If you're like me, you'll be watching football instead of playing football tomorrow. While you're not risking serious injury sitting on an armchair compared to those getting chased down by Troy Polamalu on the field, your body will still want a little more physical activity. No kidding, thanks to health.com, here are 30-minute halftime workouts that will help you release your football excitement. And here are healthy Super Bowl Foods you can have for your Super Bowl party.
In the spirit of the Super Bowl, health professionals at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center wrote an article about maximizing your health and safety in a football style. The article starts off by comparing your health goals to a football game by giving you a game plan for improving your health. One strategy suggests that you should "limit the opposing team in the red zone - keep your sodium intake to 1,500 to 2,300 milligrams a day." Then the article goes over how "you can satisfy your appetite on Super Bowl Sunday without looking like a Steelers lineman post-game" by making sure you "kick off the Super Bowl with a breakfast bowl." The Pittsburgh medical specialists also talk about the dangers of being surrounded by screaming fans as well as the costs and benefits of having your emotions attached to a football team. Basically, if your team wins, your mood should be pretty good.
Have a fun Super Bowl Sunday,
Your Sarasota Health Blogger
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Dieting Does Not Work?
Obesity is a major health problem in our nation and is associated with various diseases, such as heart disease. It is also a growing problem. In 1997, our obesity rate was 19.4%. In 2007, it was 26.6%, with 64% of adults being classified as overweight. The graphs below show state incident rates of obesity in 1990 and 2006.
The most common treatment for obesity is diet and exercise. However, there have been several arguments that dieting is ineffective, and sometimes harmful, depending on the type of diet.
I was watching the Discovery Channel late last night (around 4am) and they had a health episode about obesity. Some of the experts interviewed during the segment claimed that the vast majority of patients cannot successfully diet and quickly regain their lost weight and sometimes even more weight. Some people attribute failed diets to lack of willpower and self-control, but there is a biological basis for this phenomenon. In our evolutionary past, our bodies valued fat. It cushioned our vital organs, insulated our body from frigid temperatures, and provided our system with a reserve of molecules to promote healthy cell function. When our bodies experience a significant weight drop, it thinks we are experiencing a famine. Our biological mechanisms do not understand that our body is dieting in order to reach a healthy weight level, it just notices that there has been a large drop in its fat reserve. So what happens? The body tries to protect itself by building back up the fat. People who diet often experience drops in mood, headaches, and physical pain, which could be our body's way of saying, "this isn't working for me."
Whether the biological response to dieting is true or not, research has supported that dieting often does not work. UCLA researchers analyzed 31 long-term dieting studies to determine the effectiveness of dieting. Psychologist and lead researcher, Traci Mann, reported the following--
"You can initially lose 5 to 10 percent of your weight on any number of diets, but the weight comes back. We found that the majority of people regained all the weight, plus more. Sustained weight loss was found only in a small minority of participants, while complete weight regain was found in the majority. Diets do not lead to sustained weight loss or health benefits for the majority of people."
A recent study by The New England Journal of Medicine corroborated these results.
Keep in mind, that repeated weight loss attempts can lead to health issues, such as heart problems and stroke.
Unfortunately, there is often a negative stigma around people who fail at dieting. The growing rate of obesity is associated with the growing number of weight discrimination reports. Dieting is difficult and can often fail. However, it is very important to have a healthy diet and to keep active. The combination of both healthy eating and an active lifestyle is the best way to achieve a healthy weight level.
Obesity is a societal problem and according to scientists, the best way to combat obesity is to look at the societal issues that relate to our increased rates of obesity. Our genes have remained the same for thousands of years, so our higher rates of obesity is not something that is genetic, but environmental. Not only are we consuming less healthy foods in our diet, but our lifestyles have significantly changed. Our bodies were made to roam sub-Saharan Africa in search of food. Now, we live more sedentary lifestyles as our daily routines have become dependent on technology. Many of us (more than 95% of Floridians) drive to work instead of biking or walking and we have become addicted to television and computers (however, it is okay to be addicted to health blogs). Because of this, scientists argue that promoting healthier diets and active lifestyles is the only solution to our increasing obesity problem.
The most common treatment for obesity is diet and exercise. However, there have been several arguments that dieting is ineffective, and sometimes harmful, depending on the type of diet.
I was watching the Discovery Channel late last night (around 4am) and they had a health episode about obesity. Some of the experts interviewed during the segment claimed that the vast majority of patients cannot successfully diet and quickly regain their lost weight and sometimes even more weight. Some people attribute failed diets to lack of willpower and self-control, but there is a biological basis for this phenomenon. In our evolutionary past, our bodies valued fat. It cushioned our vital organs, insulated our body from frigid temperatures, and provided our system with a reserve of molecules to promote healthy cell function. When our bodies experience a significant weight drop, it thinks we are experiencing a famine. Our biological mechanisms do not understand that our body is dieting in order to reach a healthy weight level, it just notices that there has been a large drop in its fat reserve. So what happens? The body tries to protect itself by building back up the fat. People who diet often experience drops in mood, headaches, and physical pain, which could be our body's way of saying, "this isn't working for me."
Whether the biological response to dieting is true or not, research has supported that dieting often does not work. UCLA researchers analyzed 31 long-term dieting studies to determine the effectiveness of dieting. Psychologist and lead researcher, Traci Mann, reported the following--
"You can initially lose 5 to 10 percent of your weight on any number of diets, but the weight comes back. We found that the majority of people regained all the weight, plus more. Sustained weight loss was found only in a small minority of participants, while complete weight regain was found in the majority. Diets do not lead to sustained weight loss or health benefits for the majority of people."
A recent study by The New England Journal of Medicine corroborated these results.
Keep in mind, that repeated weight loss attempts can lead to health issues, such as heart problems and stroke.
Unfortunately, there is often a negative stigma around people who fail at dieting. The growing rate of obesity is associated with the growing number of weight discrimination reports. Dieting is difficult and can often fail. However, it is very important to have a healthy diet and to keep active. The combination of both healthy eating and an active lifestyle is the best way to achieve a healthy weight level.
Obesity is a societal problem and according to scientists, the best way to combat obesity is to look at the societal issues that relate to our increased rates of obesity. Our genes have remained the same for thousands of years, so our higher rates of obesity is not something that is genetic, but environmental. Not only are we consuming less healthy foods in our diet, but our lifestyles have significantly changed. Our bodies were made to roam sub-Saharan Africa in search of food. Now, we live more sedentary lifestyles as our daily routines have become dependent on technology. Many of us (more than 95% of Floridians) drive to work instead of biking or walking and we have become addicted to television and computers (however, it is okay to be addicted to health blogs). Because of this, scientists argue that promoting healthier diets and active lifestyles is the only solution to our increasing obesity problem.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Our Report Card
Looking at the results from the American Lung Association, the state of Florida received three "F"s and a "B" for tobacco control. An "F" for tobacco prevention and control spending, an "F" for cigarette tax, and an "F" for cessation coverage. However, the state did receive a "B" for smokefree air since it restricts smoking in government workplaces, schools, restaurants, stores, and recreational facilities. A breakdown of our report card can be found here.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Daschle's Health Care Discussions
Last month, Sarasota held a community health care discussion to provide input to Presidential-elect Obama's transition team on health care issues we face.
There's now a video of the Health and Human Services Secretary-designate, Tom Daschle, participating in these discussions.
Based on the video, people across the country share some of the same concerns that Sarasota citizens expressed during their community health discussion:
Concern about the way insurance companies dictate the type of care patients receive, the growing costs of medical care, and difficult access to certain levels of health care.
Another thing expressed by Sarasota citizens and other discussion participants is the need for a stronger emphasis on preventive medicine. I'm glad that President-elect Obama also shares these views.
There's now a video of the Health and Human Services Secretary-designate, Tom Daschle, participating in these discussions.
Based on the video, people across the country share some of the same concerns that Sarasota citizens expressed during their community health discussion:
Concern about the way insurance companies dictate the type of care patients receive, the growing costs of medical care, and difficult access to certain levels of health care.
Another thing expressed by Sarasota citizens and other discussion participants is the need for a stronger emphasis on preventive medicine. I'm glad that President-elect Obama also shares these views.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Sarasota Memorial vs. Manatee Memorial
The New York Times had an interesting article about the web sites that doctors use to research doctors and diseases.
The most fascinating web site was www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov from the Department of Health and Human Services that allows you to compare hospitals within your area.
I naturally decided to take a look at a comparison between Sarasota Memorial Hospital and Manatee Memorial Hospital.
Statistically, both hospitals performed well, typically performing above the US hospital average. The two hospitals performed nearly the same in many categories. However, there were some categories where one hospital outperformed the other. Overall, it seems like Sarasota Memorial performed slightly better than Manatee Memorial, but it really depends on the category.
The first category dealt with surgical care, including the percentage of patients who received the right kind of antibiotics at the right time to prevent infections. Sarasota Memorial was much better at giving antibiotics at the right time to prevent surgical infections and both hospitals had nearly the same performance with providing the right kind of antibiotic to prevent infection. Manatee Memorial performed better at stopping antibiotic dosages at the right time, but I'm not sure that makes up for having a weaker performance giving antibiotics at the right time.
I decided to create a few charts using Excel to help compare the hospitals. I also included the US hospital average for further comparison. Both Sarasota and Manatee Memorial performed better than the US hospital average in these categories. Click on the image to see a larger view.
If you have a heart attack, it seems like you're in great hands at both hospitals. The hospitals performed nearly the same in every reported statistic except for two categories. Manatee Memorial gave 57% of their heart attack patients Fibrinolytic medication within 30 minutes of arrival, while Sarasota Memorial gave 0% of their patients that medication. It's important to note that the data for this statistic was so low for both hospitals (only 1 case was used for Sarasota Memorial) that there is no way of really knowing if these percentages are true. The second category, in which Manatee Memorial also performed better, was the percent of heart attack patients given PCI within 90 minutes of arrival. Eighty-three percent of Manatee patients received PCI within 90 minutes while only fifty-two percent of Sarasota Memorial patients did.
One of the biggest differences between the two hospitals was not the type of medicine patients received, but the type of experience patients had while they were there. This blog has reported how important good doctor-patient communication is, as well as having patients feel like they are in a clean and organized environment. Well, Sarasota Memorial performed better on surveys given to patients about their inpatient care during their stay. Sarasota's performance wasn't spectacular since they only performed around the national average, but Sarasota Memorial did perform significantly better than Manatee in every patient experience category. A higher percentage of Sarasota Memorial patients rated their hospital experience very positively and a higher percentage of Sarasota Memorial patients also felt that their nurses and doctors always communicated well with them. The largest percentage difference was that 77% of Sarasota Memorial patients would definitely recommend the hospital while only 51% of Manatee Memorial patients said the same. Click on the image for a larger view.
Feel free to explore the comparisons at www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov and be sure to check out the other medical links from the New York Times article.
The most fascinating web site was www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov from the Department of Health and Human Services that allows you to compare hospitals within your area.
I naturally decided to take a look at a comparison between Sarasota Memorial Hospital and Manatee Memorial Hospital.
Statistically, both hospitals performed well, typically performing above the US hospital average. The two hospitals performed nearly the same in many categories. However, there were some categories where one hospital outperformed the other. Overall, it seems like Sarasota Memorial performed slightly better than Manatee Memorial, but it really depends on the category.
The first category dealt with surgical care, including the percentage of patients who received the right kind of antibiotics at the right time to prevent infections. Sarasota Memorial was much better at giving antibiotics at the right time to prevent surgical infections and both hospitals had nearly the same performance with providing the right kind of antibiotic to prevent infection. Manatee Memorial performed better at stopping antibiotic dosages at the right time, but I'm not sure that makes up for having a weaker performance giving antibiotics at the right time.
I decided to create a few charts using Excel to help compare the hospitals. I also included the US hospital average for further comparison. Both Sarasota and Manatee Memorial performed better than the US hospital average in these categories. Click on the image to see a larger view.
If you have a heart attack, it seems like you're in great hands at both hospitals. The hospitals performed nearly the same in every reported statistic except for two categories. Manatee Memorial gave 57% of their heart attack patients Fibrinolytic medication within 30 minutes of arrival, while Sarasota Memorial gave 0% of their patients that medication. It's important to note that the data for this statistic was so low for both hospitals (only 1 case was used for Sarasota Memorial) that there is no way of really knowing if these percentages are true. The second category, in which Manatee Memorial also performed better, was the percent of heart attack patients given PCI within 90 minutes of arrival. Eighty-three percent of Manatee patients received PCI within 90 minutes while only fifty-two percent of Sarasota Memorial patients did.
One of the biggest differences between the two hospitals was not the type of medicine patients received, but the type of experience patients had while they were there. This blog has reported how important good doctor-patient communication is, as well as having patients feel like they are in a clean and organized environment. Well, Sarasota Memorial performed better on surveys given to patients about their inpatient care during their stay. Sarasota's performance wasn't spectacular since they only performed around the national average, but Sarasota Memorial did perform significantly better than Manatee in every patient experience category. A higher percentage of Sarasota Memorial patients rated their hospital experience very positively and a higher percentage of Sarasota Memorial patients also felt that their nurses and doctors always communicated well with them. The largest percentage difference was that 77% of Sarasota Memorial patients would definitely recommend the hospital while only 51% of Manatee Memorial patients said the same. Click on the image for a larger view.
Feel free to explore the comparisons at www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov and be sure to check out the other medical links from the New York Times article.
The Urban Brain
"For the first time in history, the majority of people reside in cities," Jonah Lehrer writes. Human evolution started with us swinging from trees and roaming the African savannah and now we're living in dense urban environments with fast-paced lifestyles and constant visual stimulation.
More research is now being done on how the mind is affected by urban environments. With more concrete than green space, cities are quite different from the natural environments we evolved from. According to a University of Michigan psychological test, participants who travelled through the city had a worse mood and had significantly lower scores on attention and working memory tests. Other researchers have stated that city environments can overwhelm the brain, leading to emotional control issues. This blog has talked about some of the problems associated with noise stress, an issue that residents of urban areas constantly experience. Jonah Lehrer made an interesting comment, "a tired brain, run down by the stimuli of city life, is more likely to lose its temper."
Other studies have shown the benefits of green space. Even people confined to indoor spaces, like in hospitals, benefit significantly by just having a view of trees from their window -- their moods tend to be better and they tend to recover more quickly from surgery or treatment.
This article stresses the importance of parks in urban areas so people can have an easy escape from the city. Marc Berman, a psychologist at the University of Michigan, was quoted, "It's not an accident that Central Park is in the middle of Manhattan."
More research is now being done on how the mind is affected by urban environments. With more concrete than green space, cities are quite different from the natural environments we evolved from. According to a University of Michigan psychological test, participants who travelled through the city had a worse mood and had significantly lower scores on attention and working memory tests. Other researchers have stated that city environments can overwhelm the brain, leading to emotional control issues. This blog has talked about some of the problems associated with noise stress, an issue that residents of urban areas constantly experience. Jonah Lehrer made an interesting comment, "a tired brain, run down by the stimuli of city life, is more likely to lose its temper."
Other studies have shown the benefits of green space. Even people confined to indoor spaces, like in hospitals, benefit significantly by just having a view of trees from their window -- their moods tend to be better and they tend to recover more quickly from surgery or treatment.
This article stresses the importance of parks in urban areas so people can have an easy escape from the city. Marc Berman, a psychologist at the University of Michigan, was quoted, "It's not an accident that Central Park is in the middle of Manhattan."
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
U.S. Life Expectancy
Dr. Robert Butler, CEO of the International Longevity Center in New York, argued that there are four major reasons why American life expectancy has slowed during the last five years.
Butler's four reasons were clearly described in The Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch. The reasons are found below.
1. The shockingly high infant mortality rate in the U.S. Mostly because so many babies are born in urban slums and country hollows, where prenatal and infant care is often primitive, America has the second steepest newborn mortality rate among developed nations. In 2005, the latest year for which statistics are available, about seven out of every 1,000 babies in the U.S. died before their first birthdays. Though there has been steady improvement for many years, the U.S. is 29th in the world, behind even Cuba.
2. The multibillion dollar political power of the industries that contribute to the steep rate of obesity among U.S. children and adults, such as fast foods and sugared drinks. Butler urges that the U.S. government create public-private initiatives to promote healthier diets and physical fitness programs among the public at large.
3. The estimated 46 million Americans (15.8 percent of the population) who do not have health insurance and thus lack the kind of medical care that would expand and enhance longevity.
4. The slowdown in medical research in the U.S. Especially absent is the kind of what-makes-the-sky-blue basic research usually conducted by younger scientists and technicians, who tend to be the most innovative, daring, productive -- and successful when it comes to life-expanding discoveries.
Butler's four reasons were clearly described in The Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch. The reasons are found below.
1. The shockingly high infant mortality rate in the U.S. Mostly because so many babies are born in urban slums and country hollows, where prenatal and infant care is often primitive, America has the second steepest newborn mortality rate among developed nations. In 2005, the latest year for which statistics are available, about seven out of every 1,000 babies in the U.S. died before their first birthdays. Though there has been steady improvement for many years, the U.S. is 29th in the world, behind even Cuba.
2. The multibillion dollar political power of the industries that contribute to the steep rate of obesity among U.S. children and adults, such as fast foods and sugared drinks. Butler urges that the U.S. government create public-private initiatives to promote healthier diets and physical fitness programs among the public at large.
3. The estimated 46 million Americans (15.8 percent of the population) who do not have health insurance and thus lack the kind of medical care that would expand and enhance longevity.
4. The slowdown in medical research in the U.S. Especially absent is the kind of what-makes-the-sky-blue basic research usually conducted by younger scientists and technicians, who tend to be the most innovative, daring, productive -- and successful when it comes to life-expanding discoveries.
Monday, January 5, 2009
Bike to Work for $$
"As of January 1, bicyclists got their first piece of the economic stimulus plan," David Beard of The Boston Globe's 'The Green Blog' commented. Cyclists who commute to work "can get reimbursed up to $20 per month, either as a cash reimbursement or a pre-tax deduction" if their employers participate in the national program.
The plan was passed by Congress, referred to as The Bicycle Commuter Act, written by Congreesman Blumenauer of Oregon. You can read the full legislation here.
The plan was passed by Congress, referred to as The Bicycle Commuter Act, written by Congreesman Blumenauer of Oregon. You can read the full legislation here.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Health News
"Hospitalizations for heart attacks fell sharply in Pueblo, Colo., after the implementation of a law that banned smoking in public places and work places" according to a Centers for Disease Control report.If you made plans this year to quit smoking, the American Lung Association has a few tips.
New Jersey became the first state to require flu shots for preschool students. State epidemiologist, Dr. Tina Tan, said "stopping flu transmission among kids will stop flu transmission in the community at large."
Tracking the Flu
The Centers for Disease Control have a variety of surveillance measures to analyze medical data to detect or anticipate disease outbreaks. Well, Google has one, too.
Google Flu Trends is a Google service that tracks the occurrence of flu across the United States based on the number flu-related searches made in areas around the country. It actually has been very accurate at tracking flu cases, with their statistics matching closely to the CDCs resources, and often times, measuring outbreaks one to two weeks quicker.
This year, flu rates have been at low to moderate levels in each state, including Florida which has seen a moderate amount of flu cases since the end of September.
Google Flu Trends is a Google service that tracks the occurrence of flu across the United States based on the number flu-related searches made in areas around the country. It actually has been very accurate at tracking flu cases, with their statistics matching closely to the CDCs resources, and often times, measuring outbreaks one to two weeks quicker.
This year, flu rates have been at low to moderate levels in each state, including Florida which has seen a moderate amount of flu cases since the end of September.
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