Whole Life Magazine

October / November 2016

Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/732294

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 13 of 43

healthy living By Laura G. Owens Rock Body YOUR H ealthy nutrition benefi ts everybody but not every body, benefi ts from "one size fi ts all" nutrition advice. Researchers with Newcastle University found that a personalized nutrition plan rather than generic eating recommendations like, "Eat at least fi ve portions of fruits and vegetables daily. Two portions of fi sh, one of which is oily fi sh, per week," helped motivate people to make bigger and more sustainable changes to their eating patterns. In the study, scientists reviewed subject's current eating habits then created individual recommendations such as to reduce or avoid specifi c high fat dairy products, lower saturated fats, increase dietary fi ber or choose wholegrain breads and cereals. Subjects who followed the personalized eating plan showed signifi cant improvement in their eating habits over the control group who received conventional cookie-cutter nutrition advice. The study called Food4Me, took an innovative approach. Subjects recorded their current eating patterns and other data online. The data was used to create a personalized nutrition plan. "What is exciting about this study is that we now know that the internet can be used to deliver personalized nutrition advice to large numbers of people," explained lead author Professor John Mathers. "People fi nd this approach convenient and it is better at improving people's diets than the conventional 'one size fi ts all' approach." PERSONALIZED NUTRITION BOOSTS SUCCESS EXERCISE OFFSETS RISKS OF SITTING I t doesn't matter how you move it, just move it. Research shows that an hour of moderate daily exercise is enough to offset the health risks associated with a sedentary lifestyle. In an analysis published in the July issue of The Lancet, scientists found that if individuals are active enough, they can reduce or even eliminate, the increased risk of early death associated with sitting down most of the day. The key word is "enough" but don't panic, some activity is better than none. Zero exercise puts people at greater risk of early death (similar to smoking and obesity) than prolonged sitting. "We cannot stress enough the importance of getting exercise, whether it's getting out for a walk at lunchtime, going for a run in the morning or cycling to work," said lead author Professor Ulf Ekelund. B rain health is no longer held hostage by age or genes. Scientists at UCLA found that regular exercise, a healthy diet (notably the Mediterranean) and a normal body mass index reduce abnormal brain proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease. Plaque, toxic brain deposits called beta-amyloids, and tangles, knotted threads of the tau protein in brain cells are known markers for Alzheimer's. The fi nding might not seem novel but it's the fi rst of its kind to show that lifestyle factors directly affect abnormal proteins in people with slight memory loss who haven't yet been diagnosed with dementia. "The study reinforces the importance of living a healthy life to prevent Alzheimer's, even before the development of clinically signifi cant dementia," said Dr. David Merrill, lead author on the study. "This work lends key insight not only into the ability of patients to prevent Alzheimer's disease, but also physicians' ability to detect and image these changes." LIFESTYLE FACTORS AFFECT BRAIN 14 wholelifetimes.com

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Whole Life Magazine - October / November 2016