Along with lower breast cancer and prostate cancer risk red wine is found to assist those with increased risk of lung cancer as well. Researchers analyzed data from the California health study (84,170 men aged 45-69 years) and measured the effect of beer, red wine, white wine, and liquor consumed on the risk of lung cancer. There were no clear associations with lower risk of lung cancer with regard to liquor, white wine, and beer consumption, but with each glass of red wine consumed per month a 2% lower risk of lung cancer was found. The most substantial risk reduction was among smokers (the group was broken down into multiple categories) who drank 1-2 glasses per day. A 60% reduced lung cancer risk was found in these men.
Obviously for those men the best way to decrease the risk of lung cancer was to stop smoking, but if they did not, those who drank red wine received a lower risk.

Drinking red wine in moderation is a healthy choice – 4-7 glasses per week is considered in moderation.

American Association for Cancer Research (2008, October 7). Red Wine May Lower Lung Cancer Risk.

Previously the health benefits of red wine were shown in lowering the risk of breast cancer – now the same benefits can be seen in lowering risk of prostate cancer. Researchers collected data on multiple risk factors that might influence the risk of prostate cancer in men between the ages of 40 and 64. The researchers evaluated the risk of alcohol and found that among all alcohol consumed, red wine was linked with lower risk. White wine was compared to red and red was found to be far superior in its protective benefits, even in small doses. It was found that men who drank an average of 4-7 glasses of red wine a week were 62% less likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Doctors do not know the exact reasons to red wines benefits, but it is speculated that the various flavonoids and resveratrol levels have anti-oxidant properties. Even small levels of red wine consumption helped, and for every additional glass of red wine per week, the relative risk declined by 6%.

Recommendations to most clients is to limit alcohol consumption in total as it lowers testosterone levels and increases estrogen levels, but red wine still remains the contradictory alcohol as it shows health benefits with moderate consumption. Moderate consumption is considered 4-7 glasses per week.

Harvard Men’s Health Watch (2007, May 25). Red Wine Protects The Prostate, Research Suggests.

Nearly 1 in 5 American children is obese, according to the federal centers for disease control and prevention – this is triple the rates from 30 years ago.

How many times have you heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it provides the needed nutrition for taking on the day and breaking the fast of the night slumber. The last thing most people would consume for breakfast are sugar laden foods such as Twinkies, carrot cake, or cookies, yet many parents do just that with the breakfast cereals they provide their children.
Environmental working group tested 84 of the most popular cereals for their sugar contents and found the following as the top 10 worst:

10 Worst Children’s Cereals
Based on percent sugar by weight
1.) Kellogg’s Honey Smacks 55.6%
2.) Post Golden Crisp 51.9%
3.) Kellogg’s Froot Loops Marshmallow 48.3%
4.) Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch’s OOPS! All Berries 46.9%
5.) Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch Original 44.4%
6.) Quaker Oats Oh!s 44.4%
7.) Kellogg’s Smorz 43.3%
8.) Kellogg’s Apple Jacks 42.9%
9.) Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries 42.3%
10.) Kellogg’s Froot Loops Original 41.4%
From the EWG website.

It is amazing that foods such as these are marketed towards children as there is not a place or time that this could be considered appropriate. Granted most parents do not serve these foods to their children on a daily basis (I hope), but the point is that these foods should never be served to children. You would not serve chocolate cake for breakfast, nor should you be serving most cereals available at the grocery store as most if not all are laden with sugar.
Sugar has been linked to attention deficit disorder, mood irregularities, diabetes, poor scholastic performance, and multiple other issues in children. Breakfast should consist of whole foods not processed garbage. Better choices for children’s breakfasts are oatmeal, fruit, and eggs. For more productive children and happier children stay away from sugar and stop serving cereals with more sugar than most candies and desserts provide.

Anecdotally we all agree that children should be more active – not only for better physical condition, weight loss, and self esteem, but also to improve their grades in school. A review of previously completed studies shows a link with the level of activity of school ages children and their scholastic performance.

The researchers comment:
According to the best-evidence synthesis, we found strong evidence of a significant positive relationship between physical activity and academic performance. The findings of one high-quality intervention study and one high-quality observational study suggest that being more physically active is positively related to improved academic performance in children.

These results may be due to the increased blood and oxygen flow to the brain, which can increase norepinephrine and endorphin levels, which can improve mood and decrease stress levels.
Getting your children active and keeping them active throughout life is crucial for optimal well-being and now we have proof of the positive relationship towards scholastic performance and activity levels.

Petra Rattue. “School Performance And Physical Activity Positively Linked.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 5 Jan. 2012. Web.

Widespread belief states that consumption of alcohol can increase the risk of breast cancer due to alcohols ability to raise estrogen levels and decrease testosterone levels.
A recent study contradicts this common belief. Researchers studied a group of premenopausal women who consumed 8 ounces of red or white wine a day. The red wine group tested had increased testosterone and decreased estrogen levels after one month of red wine ingestion, the white wine group showed no results.
The researchers suggest that the chemicals in the seeds and skin of grapes reduce estrogen levels and raise testosterone levels by influencing the aromatase enzyme.
Aromatase inhibitors are used in breast cancer therapy.

Typically my recommendations to all bio-sig clients are to avoid alcohol and if you wish to have a drink – red wine is your best choice. My guidelines are a max of 4-5 drinks a weeks of red wine. Now we know that there are multiple benefits of red wine ingestion – no more guilty associations (consume in moderation of course).

“Red Versus White Wine as a Nutritional Aromatase Inhibitor in Premenopausal Women”
Chrisandra Shufelt, C. Noel Bairey Merz, YuChing Yang, Joan Kirschner, Donna Polk, Frank Stanczyk, Maura Paul-Labrador, and Glenn D. Braunstein
Journal of Women’s Health. Jan 2012. doi:10.1089/jwh.2011.3001.

Sorry for the weak article title, but I think this study is a no brainer.  It is always good to read about the positive benefits of exercise and leading a healthy lifestyle – the article below from Life Extension again proves that exercise has multiple positive benefits on life expectancy and overall well being.  This can be filed away in the “we already knew that, but like to hear it again anyhow” file of your brain.

Fifteen minutes of exercise a day can extend life expectancy

Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa)

Berlin (dpa) – Taking a minimum of 15 minutes of exercise a day can extend life expectancy by up to three years, according to Germany’s Society of Neurologists and the Stroke Society.

A regular program of exercise can reduce the risk of stroke, cardiovascular illness, cancer and diabetes. The advice is based on a study of over 400,000 participants in Taiwan whose health status was checked regularly over eight years.

The study discovered that 15 minutes of exercise a day made a surprising contribution to improving overall health. The mortality rate for those who took the exercise was 14 per cent lower than the inactive participants.

Extrapolating the results over 30 years resulted in a projected extended life expectancy of three years as well as a reduced chance of developing cancer and diseases of the cardiovascular system. The conclusion was that the more a person exercises, the less chance they have of falling ill.

The recommended 15 minutes a day is half what the World Health Organisation advises people to take.

Copyright 2012 dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH

Chad

Protein is a requirement for everyone on a daily and meal-to-meal basis. Protein is required for repair and development of skeletal muscle, damaged cells and tissue and a variety of metabolic and hormonal activities. Protein is the only macronutrient that contains nitrogen and it is incredibly important to maintain a positive nitrogen balance, especially for those who exercise.
The recommended dietary allowance for protein is 0.8g/kg body weight per day – this works out to 58g for a 150# female individual and 72g for a 200# male athlete. This amount of protein is abysmal and is never recommended for a person taking part in high levels of exercise (I would not recommend this amount to a couch potato).
General recommendations for individuals who engage in strength training (all those reading this) range from 1-1.5g/pound lean body mass for women and 1.5-2g/pound lean body mass for men. Protein intake at these levels will help ensure that the net protein balance remains positive, a pre-requisite for skeletal muscle growth and repair.

In a post-workout situation the body is in a catabolic (muscle wasting) state as key muscle nutrients are being broken down. The opportunity exists to modify this catabolic state into an anabolic state (muscle building) and thus initiate a much faster recovery rate. The best way to do this is to ingest proteins and amino acids immediately after the workout in the form of a highly digestible whey protein shake.
Whey protein is digested at a higher rate than other proteins, which increases blood amino acid levels quickly. This allows the drive towards an anabolic state to occur quickly.

Everyone should be making use of a post workout protein supplement as it is a cost effective method to get the amount of protein required after a workout and is quick and easy to make and digest. Typically a dosage of 0.25-0.3g per pound of lean body mass can be taken in after a workout. For a typical female athlete this can be 30-40g and for the typical male athlete this equals 40-60g.

You workout hard – ensure you are taking the necessary steps to recover properly – step 1 is the intake of protein post workout.

Many of you have never read this article - it is an original CrossFit article form the CrossFit Journal.  This was one of the original articles that was highly convincing for me as a beginning coach to try CrossFit.  I highly recommend reading it as it is full of exceptional information.

- the 10 general physical skills

- elite fitness in 100 words

- sickness to fitness continuum

The article truly provokes thought on what Fitness real should be and how we as a society have strayed far from it.

Read it HERE

The concept of the last 4 doctors is something I learned from Paul Chek a while ago. The concept is simple, but so important. Paul Chek studied the ancient Greek physicians who spoke of the philosophy of the three doctors (Dr. Quiet, Dr. Happiness, and Dr. Diet) in their teachings – they believed that one could heal any illness with regular visits to these three doctors. Paul Chek added the fourth doctor (Dr. Movement), due to the fact that so many of us lead increasingly sedentary lives nowadays. The four doctors are meant to create wellness within the individual using them. One must understand the four doctors and the purpose of the doctors in order to create true health and well being. Regular visits or reflections with these doctors can give high levels of clarity to anyone seeking optimal health.

Dr. Diet – Quality of food greatly affects the bodies’ production of energy, which affects your mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical state of being. Dr. Diets influences all the other doctors in its ability to keep the body strong, healthy, and repaired. Dr. Diet then allows us to be in touch with nature and the closed organic cycle. “Let diet by thy medicine” said Hippocrates – this is a statement worth living by. Let go of the garbage food and focus on whole real food that matches the human body’s unique needs. Follow the Synergy food pyramids base of Protein, vegetables and water for 80+% of the food you eat and you will find optimal health.

Dr. Quiet – Is the physician who guides energy management and recovery. Dr. Quiet leads us to achieving relaxation and self time, which leads to better quality sleep and energy levels throughout the day. Dr. Quite is where one begins to know oneself, what are your dreams, aspirations, and core values? Most people undervalue the benefits of sleep and alone time – allow sleep to become a priority in your life and reap the benefits of a leaner healthier body. Refer to Synergy S&C’s 9 sleep rules. When one manages the constant triggering of the stress response one can recover and repair from exercise and the battles of everyday life with greater ease.

Dr. Happiness – is meant to lead us to a life of fulfillment. The less likely your daily habits fit with your core values the more likely you are to be stressed and at this point this is when life begins to DO YOU rather than YOU DOING life. Discover what makes you happy and move in that direction more often for a more fulfilling and happy life from day to day.

Dr. Movement – allows one to truly enjoy life and do the things that you want to do. I believe one of the working definitions for true fitness is the ability to be “capable” – capable of anything, staying fit and active is necessary for this to occur. Human beings have become increasingly more sedentary over history and are in need of movement as the body is a system of pumps that push energy through the body and waste out of the body. We must return to our functional movement patterns that the human being has evolved to employ. Push, pull, lunge, squat, deadlift, remain strong, and lean for a lifetime.

Most people are looking for the easy way out or a pill that will allow them to get the results that they are looking for – sadly these pills never address the root causes of disorders or diseases, but rather simply the symptoms. This is backwards and does not allow true health to be expressed. The four doctors will take you back to changing and altering your lifestyle to allow better health. Sit down with the four doctors and reflect upon what you really want in life and what truly makes you happy – begin reaching for it.