Orange County Health news
for ...
The health benefits of having a pet (or two)
Do you have a pet in your life? Emerging research shows that having a furry friend may give your health a boost. In 2006, there were over 160 million pet cats and dogs in U.S. households. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), pets can decrease your:
- Blood pressure
- Cholesterol levels
- Triglyceride levels
- Feelings of loneliness
Pets can also increase your opportunities for exercise, outdoor activities and socialization.
Heart helpers
A National Institutes of Health study showed that heart attack patients who had dogs were more likely to be alive a year after their attack than people without dogs. Also, male pet owners have been shown to have lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels than non-pet owners.
In a study of married couples, those with pets had lower heart rates and blood pressure than those without. And in the presence of their pet, they responded better to stress and recovered more quickly than when they were with their spouse or a friend.
A calming presence
Animals have been shown to have a soothing effect on many people. Alzheimer's patients who have a pet in the home have been shown to exhibit fewer outbursts. Autistic children who work with therapy dogs have shown exciting improvements. And for years, dogs have been used in hospital settings and nursing homes to bring joy to patients and residents.
Exercise and companionship
Those who regularly walk their dogs are less likely to be obese than those who don't own or walk a dog, according to one study. Plus, walking a dog gives you more opportunity to meet people -- no one can resist saying hello to a happy dog!
Want the benefits of pet ownership without the allergies?
There are several dog breeds considered "hypoallergenic" because they are non-shedding. However, be sure to spend time with a dog before bringing it to your home no animal is guaranteed hypoallergenic. Also keep in mind that even though they don't shed, they still have dander 
so they need to be bathed regularly.
- Poodles
- Schnauzers
- Bichons Frises
- Maltese
- Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers
The more you imagine eating sweets, researchers say, the less you may eat of it
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University found that repeatedly thinking about eating a food resulted in people eating less of that food.
In a series of tests, study participants were asked to do a repetitive task while imagining eating a specific amount of candy, and were then invited to eat as much candy as desired. 
Those who imagined eating more candy ate less of it.
"These findings suggest that trying to suppress one's thoughts of desired foods to curb food cravings is a fundamentally flawed strategy," said Carey Morewedge, lead author of the study. He added, "We think these findings will help develop future interventions to reduce cravings for things such as unhealthy foods, drugs and cigarettes."
The importance of outdoor activities for children's health
How much time did your kids or grandkids spend in unstructured, outdoor play this week? If they're like most kids, it could've been less than seven minutes per day! In fact, kids are spending half as much time outdoors as they did 20 years ago. On top of that, 8 to 18 year-olds spend an average of 7 hours and 38 minutes using entertainment media each day; this includes TV content, music/audio, computers, video games, movies and print. That's according to a study on the changing times of American youth published by the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research and confirmed by a paper on Generation M (for Media) by The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
Is it any wonder that childhood obesity is skyrocketing at alarming rates? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), childhood obesity has more than tripled in the last 30 years. Over 19% of 6 to 11 year-olds are obese and over 18% of children age 12 to 19 are obese. In addition to social and psychological problems, obese children face a higher risk of health issues, including:
- High cholesterol
- High blood pressure
- Bone problems
- Joint problems
- Sleep apnea
- Breathing problems
- Becoming an overweight adult, which brings its own set of health consequences
However, lack of outdoor play takes both a physical and mental toll on today's kids. Decreased time outdoors is not only associated with increasing obesity, but also with declining creativity, concentration and social skills. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, 60 minutes of daily unstructured play is essential to children's physical and mental health. The move to an indoor childhood is negatively impacting the health and wellness of today's children.
Health benefits of outdoor play
It's time to get kids in tune with nature and help avoid the negative effects of an indoor childhood. Sending kids to play outdoors (or maybe enlisting their help with yard work or gardening) can help:
- Increase fitness levels
- Enhance the imagination
- Improve concentration
- Raise levels of Vitamin D
- Decrease aggression
- Schools with environmental programs score higher on standardized tests
- Stress levels fall within minutes of just seeing green spaces
- Unstructured play protects children's emotional development
- Nature makes kids nicer and enhances social interactions
- Kids who spend more time outdoors are less likely to be nearsighted and need glasses
Now's the perfect time to get kids outdoors and re-introduce them to the joys of the natural world. Join your kids or grandkids in their rediscovery; after all, everyone needs to play! Their -- and your -- health may depend on it.
L.A. Times - Health
Headlines from latimes.com| 05/20/2012 12:00 AM |
| Graduating collegians cope with student debt in a weak economy |
|
Students and graduates from several Southland campuses talk of their loans and how paying them off figures into their plans. For some, the path seems secure; for others, uncertainty is the only certainty. College graduation is typically a time to tally accomplishments and to look ahead. But for many graduates, it is also a time to tally student loans and figure out how to repay them.
|
| 05/20/2012 12:00 AM |
| McManus: A campaign bombshell |
|
If the court upholds the healthcare reform law, the president wins; if it declares the law unconstitutional, he loses. Right? Well, not so fast. The Supreme Court is about to toss a judicial bomb into the middle of the presidential campaign, and nobody knows what impact it will have.
|
| 05/19/2012 12:00 AM |
| Gear: Big wheels rule |
|
The revolution is over — and big wheels have won. The "29er" mountain bike, which first appeared on the scene a decade ago with monster-truck tires 3 inches taller than the age-old 26-inchers, now dominates the market. It's easy to see why: The bike makes you faster and safer, gaining more momentum and floating better over sand and rocks. This year, the demand's so hot for huge hoops that some companies don't even sell 26ers anymore. Others have started experimenting with different-size big wheels, like the 650B, a "27.5er" (reviewed below) that touts faster speed with sharper steering. At the recent Handmade Bicycle Show in Sacramento, one company even rolled out a 36er — a cruiser with 3-foot-diameter tires. A mountain-bike version can't be far behind.
|
| 05/19/2012 12:00 AM |
| Fitness: Exercise apps for your smartphone |
|
IPhone, iPad and Android apps can help you boost your fitness level. Reviewed: Yoga With Janet Stone, Endomondo Pro, Nike Training Club, Zombies, Run!, Fleetly. Forget Angry Birds. Your smartphone can be a powerful tool for improving your overall fitness if you give it half a chance.
|
| 05/19/2012 12:00 AM |
| Are raspberry ketones a 'miracle' fat burner? Dr. Oz weighs in. |
|
Sales took off after the supplement was touted on 'The Dr. Oz Show.' But does it really work? Until recently, very few people had ever heard of raspberry ketones, the aromatic compounds that give the berries their distinctive smell. Today, health food stores have trouble keeping the capsules or drops of the stuff on their shelves. Almost overnight, an obscure plant compound became the next big thing in weight loss — and all it took was a few words from Dr. Oz.
|
| 05/18/2012 12:00 AM |
| AIDS researchers sideline women |
|
Although they account for 25% of those living with HIV in the U.S., women are significantly underrepresented in clinical trials. At any one time, hundreds of clinical trials are underway in the U.S. to test simpler and more effective ways to treat and prevent HIV infection, which afflicts more than 1 million people in this country. Most of those in the U.S. with HIV — and with AIDs in its full-blown stage — are men. So, understandably, men make up the majority of the participants in the trials.
|
USATODAY.com Feed
http://www.usatoday.com| 04/02/2012 07:15 AM |
| Melanoma cases rising; young women at greatest risk |
|
Study says that could be because they are more likely to use tanning beds than men.
|
| 04/01/2012 10:28 AM |
| Long use of any hormones raises women's breast cancer risk |
|
A new study tracked about 60,000 nurses and found that use of any kind of hormones for 10 years or more slightly raised the chances.
|
| 04/03/2012 08:27 AM |
| Black women have trouble clearing cervical cancer virus |
|
Provocative new research might help explain why black women are so much more likely than whites to develop and die from cervical cancer.
|
| 04/02/2012 07:05 AM |
| FDA rejects call to ban BPA from food packaging |
|
The FDA has rejected a petition from environmentalists that would have banned BPA from all food and drink packaging.
|
| 05/18/2012 01:10 PM |
| New lead poisoning guidelines: What parents should know |
|
Blood testing is especially important for poor children, although few of the highest-risk kids are ever tested.
|
| 05/18/2012 12:54 PM |
| Pool rules: Never drink the water, swim sick |
|
Utah residents know all about how to prevent one illness spread in pool, thanks to education campaigns started after a 2007 outbreak.
|
| 05/18/2012 03:56 PM |
| Worried about lead poisoning in your home? What to do |
|
Should pre-1978 homes be tested even if no children live there? Are home-testing kits OK? Answers to your questions.
|
| 05/18/2012 02:05 PM |
| CDC urges Boomers to get tested for hepatitis C |
|
U.S. health officials want all baby boomers to get tested for hepatitis C.
|
| 05/18/2012 10:17 AM |
| French autistic kids mostly get psychotherapy |
|
In France, autistic children are more often sent to a psychiatrist where they get talk therapy.
|
| 05/18/2012 10:22 AM |
| Georgia woman learns toll of flesh-eating bacteria |
|
A young woman fighting a flesh-eating bacteria has said "Let's do this" after being told that she will lose her hands and remaining foot.
|
Well
Tara Parker-Pope on Health| 05/18/2012 02:48 PM |
| Turning Yoga Into Art |
|
Robert Sturman, an artist from Santa Monica, Calif., has traveled around the world painting and photographing landscapes, musicians and athletes. But it is the study of yoga that has triggered one of the most creative periods of his career.
|
| 05/14/2012 12:32 PM |
| Can Runners Have 'Too Many Miles on the Tires'? |
|
If you start racing when you are young, will you be slower in middle age than if you started when you were older?
|
| 05/20/2012 09:01 PM |
| Diabetes on the Rise Among Teenagers |
|
A study found a sharp increase in the disease's prevalence among teens, adding to worries that diabetes may progress more rapidly in children than in adults.
|
| 05/20/2012 02:01 PM |
| Sleep Apnea Tied to Increased Cancer Risk |
|
Two new studies have found that people with sleep apnea, a common disorder of sleep that causes snoring, fatigue and dangerous pauses in breathing at night, have a higher risk of cancer, the first time that sleep apnea has been linked to cancer in humans.
|
| 05/18/2012 01:04 PM |
| When Garlic Goes Green |
|
Shoppers at farmers' markets may come across green garlic, which has been harvested early, before the cloves have matured. The Recipes for Health columnist Martha Rose Shulman offers five new ways to cook with green garlic.
|
| 05/17/2012 01:15 PM |
| Does Facebook Turn People Into Narcissists? |
|
Some research suggests that people who frequently update their Facebook status are more likely to exhibit narcissistic traits, but the social medium of choice for the self-absorbed may actually be Twitter.
|
| 05/17/2012 09:35 AM |
| Using a D.M.V. Wait to Enroll Organ Donors |
|
Showing people who were waiting to get a driver's license a short video about the impact of organ donation increased the number of organ donors by more than 10 percent, and the increase was especially dramatic among African-Americans.
|
| 05/17/2012 07:26 AM |
| Life, Interrupted: Hope Is My New Address |
|
I've left the isolation of the hospital after my bone marrow transplant and no longer need to be connected to IVs around the clock. I'm enjoying my freedom, but cancer continues to dictate my choices, writes Suleika Jaouad.
|
| 05/16/2012 02:00 PM |
| Coffee Drinkers May Live Longer |
|
The largest-ever study of the relationship between coffee consumption and health showed that regular coffee drinkers had a lower risk of dying from a variety of diseases.
|
| 05/16/2012 12:28 PM |
| Skechers Toning Shoe Customers to Get Refund |
|
Federal regulators announced on Wednesday that Skechers has agreed to pay $40 million to settle charges that the company deceived consumers with claims about its toning shoes.
|
| 05/15/2012 09:01 PM |
| Cancer Survivors Who Stay Active Live Longer |
|
Even moderate activity like taking a walk may improve cancer survivors' long-term prognosis, according to new research showing that regular exercise can lower survivors' risk of premature death, not only from cancer but from any cause.
|
