Answers to Questions about Health and Aging

For some basic, unbiased information on health issues facing us as we grow older, here's a good place to start. The National Institute on Aging (part of the federal government's National Institutes of Health) has a special website devoted exclusively to age-related health topics. The newest section is on depression, a problem that plagues millions of older individuals and often goes untreated.
The site has several user-friendly features, including adjustable text size, a sound option and your choice of dark or light background. They also have links to information on the Medicare prescription drug plan, but don't go so far as to claim to be able to make sense of it. Clearly, that's an impossible dream. Just in case you missed the story a few months ago, Mike Leavitt, the director of Health and Human Services, the agency that is in large part responsible for the plan, discovered that he'd signed his parents up for the wrong program. So if you're feeling bewildered by the Medicare Prescription Drug offerings, you have plenty of company!

Alzheimer’s is such an awful disease. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. With the Baby Boom generation now approaching retirement age, experts are predicting a tremendous increase in the numbers of people with Alzheimer’s. About four million people are currently suffering with the disease, but that figure could soar to four or more times that many in the coming years. There’s no cure, and no housing for that many patients, who require a great deal of attention and care.

How the situation will play out is anyone’s guess. At this point, the only silver lining is at the Alzheimer’s Prevention Foundation International (APFI) in Tucson, Arizona. Established by Dharma Singh Khalsa, M..D., the APFI is leading the way in cutting edge solutions for preventing Alzheimer’s. I encourage anyone who is concerned about minimizing the risk of developing this dreaded disease – or who wants to help a loved one who may be dealing with it -- to visit the website, read the four recommendations and follow them carefully. There’s nothing particularly challenging, difficult or costly about them, and no one is selling anything. I’m planning on interviewing Dr. Khalsa in the near future, so check back in a week or so to see if our Q and A has been posted.

“Discover” a Better Way to Manage Weight

I love the Discovery Channel. It’s smart, engaging and entertaining. As Stephen Colbert would say, the Discovery Channel "gets it." And now they’ve come with something even better than terrific programming – the National Body Challenge 2007! It’s a “FREE, eight-week comprehensive fitness and weight-loss challenge that provides the tools and inspiration to get in shape, shed extra pounds and adopt a healthier lifestyle.“ Join the Challenge beginning Dec. 29, 2006, and you get a customized meal plan, expert fitness and weight loss information, and a free health club pass! Don’t wait – or should that be don’t weight? – another minute. Click that link and do something good for yourself!

Friday Book Blogging: The User's Guide to Good Fats and Bad Fats

Fat just might be the most confusing aspect of nutrition. Not long ago, while roaming the aisles of a local vitamin store, another customer asked me for advice on omega-3 supplements. “Oh, I just wrote a book about that,” I told her, and proceeded to explain the difference between omega-3s and omega-6s. After about thirty seconds, her eyes glazed over and you could tell she really regretted asking the question.

Who can blame her? Fats are a complicated issue. Part of the confusion comes from the contradictory health advice of the past few decades. In the ‘80s, all fat was considered bad. Health-conscious people forced down dreadful fat-free foods (anyone remember the original Pritikin salad dressings – the ones that tasted like they had been siphoned from a load of laundry?) believing that they would be spared future health problems.

Then food manufacturers fine-tuned their approach, marketing “fat-free” snacks that were loaded with sugar, like the notorious SnackWells. At some point, the fake fats debuted and way too many people learned the definition of “anal leakage.” (Sorry, but it’s true.)

More recently, scientists have done an admirable job of sorting it all out. We now know there are good fats and bad fats and that the good fats have health benefits and the bad fats (saturated fats and trans fats) cause health problems. The public, however, seems weary of the discussion. Again, who can blame them?

Well, let’s try to break it down in a way that makes sense, without forcing anyone to buy my book (which, by the way, only costs $5.95 at Barnes and Noble, or $5.35, if you’re a club member). Fats are divided into different categories. Under the umbrella term “essential fatty acids” (EFAs) we have omega-3s, omega-6s and omega-9s. Our bodies cannot produce EFAs so we need to get them from our diet. And we do. Unfortunately, anyone eating the Standard American Diet (the aptly acronymed SAD) is getting way more of the omega-6s found in vegetable oils than the omega-3s, primarily found in fish. Experts say our current ratio of 6s to 3s is something like 20-1 when it should be more in the neighborhood of 2 to 1.

What happens when these two EFAs are out of balance? Developing heart disease becomes more likely, along with depression, inflammation, diabetes, cancer and other serious health concerns.

There are different ways to correct the imbalance. You could cut back on the processed and snack foods that contain lots of omega-6s. You could take EFA supplements. You could eat more fish.

Here’s what makes the most sense – do all three. Processed and snack foods are typically full of sodium and sugar, and lacking fiber, not to mention nutrition. Next, find a good omega-3 supplement, such as fish oil. Choose a product that is molecularly distilled to remove toxins from the oil. (If you’re a vegetarian, flaxseed oil or freshly ground flaxseeds appear to have comparable benefits.)

Finally, you can eat more fish -- but choose carefully. Mercury and other toxins have contaminated the water, and these substances accumulate in fish. Large fish – shark, orange roughy, and swordfish, for example – have the highest concentrations of toxins. Smaller ones, like salmon, shrimp, mackerel, and herring, are usually safer. You only need to eat fish a few times a week, and even then there’s no need to overdo it. A four-ounce serving (approximately the size of a deck of playing cards) is fine. These recommendations do not apply to everyone, though. Children and pregnant women should follow the guidelines of a knowledgeable physician in regard to fish consumption. For more details on which fish are safe for you and the environment (a whole other issue!) visit The Monterey Bay Aquarium website.

Got Aches and Pains? Get Cherries!

That’s right, drop that aspirin and head for the nearest store that sells cherries (fresh, canned or dried) or cherry juice. Several recent studies have shown that tart cherries contain pain relievers powerful enough to ease arthritis aches and they can also prevent muscle soreness caused by tough workouts. Better yet, cherries don’t have any of the downsides of prescription or over-the-counter medications, such as the recently discovered tiny bits of metal in some brands of acetaminophen. Plus, they’ve been linked to a number of other health benefits, including fighting cancer. To learn more about cherries, go here.

Cherries aren’t the only fruit that can improve your health. Apples, for example, help lower cholesterol and combat Alzheimer’s disease. Blueberries are loaded with disease-fighting antioxidants. Raspberries contain powerful anti-cancer compounds. Get more juice on the good things in fruits at the Fruit Institute.