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Hillside Family Medicine
& Occupational Medicine
Hillside Family Medicine
& Occupational Medicine
News/Information
Pesticides
~Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health e-Zine
Many people who want to follow a high-plant diet are concerned about pesticides. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 20,000 farmers and their families are poisoned by pesticides each year, but no studies have shown pesticide poisoning from routine consumption of fruits and vegetables.
Both conventional and organic fruits and vegetables are grown with pesticides, but organic growers use "natural" pesticides (such as ground-up chrysanthemums), while conventional growers use "artificial" pesticides that are often copies of the pesticides found in nature. Your body cannot distinguish between "natural' and artificial pesticides.
Osteoporosis and Diet
~Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health e-Zine
New data from the Rotterdam Study, a prospective study of 14,926 people 45 or older who have been followed since 1990, show that a diet based on vegetables, fruits, dairy, fish and poultry is associated with:
* markedly reduced risk for fractures,
* higher bone density on X ray, and
* stronger bones characterized by a higher bending strength (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Dec 22, 2016, and Eur J Nutr, Aug 24, 2016).
Diets that included a lot of sweets, processed meats or alcohol were associated with increased risk for fracture and weaker, more unstable bones, independent of bone density.
The Women's Health Initiative showed that an inflammatory diet is associated with increased hip fracture rates in women ages 50 to 63 and an anti-inflammatory diet is associated with less bone density loss in this same group of postmenopausal women (J Bone Miner Res, Dec 26, 2016). Anti-inflammatory foods include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, seeds and nuts, while pro-inflammatory foods include processed meats, sugar-added foods, sugared drinks and fried foods. See Anti-Inflammatory and Pro-Inflammatory Foods Another study showed that risk for osteoporosis of the spine and hip are reduced by eating lots of fruits, vegetables, and cereals and reducing alcohol and red meat (Open Journal of Epidemiology, May 2013;3(2):79-84).
What Are the Benefits of Undergoing an Annual Wellness Exam?
Check out our article on Anchorage County NearSay!
http://nearsay.com/c/224283/199173/what-are-the-benefits-of-undergoing-an-annual-wellness-exam
Ten-Minute Workouts for Fitness
~Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health e-Zine
One minute of intense exercise can give you the same level of fitness as 45 minutes of more casual exercise (PLoS One, April 26, 2016;11(4):e0154075). Two groups of out-of-shape men exercised three times a week for 12 weeks.
One group pedaled stationary bicycles for 45 minutes. The other group did the following 10-minute workout:
* warm up for two minutes on a stationary bicycle
* pedal as hard as possible for 20 seconds followed by very slow pedaling for two minutes (recovery)
* repeat the 20-second all-out pedaling followed by two minutes of slow recovery
* pedal all-out for the last 20-second sprint and then cool down for three minutes.
Both groups made the same improvements in fitness as measured by:
* Maximal amount of oxygen uptake (Vo2max) - 20 percent increase in both groups
* Insulin sensitivity index (to prevent diabetes) - more than 50 percent increase in both groups
* Skeletal muscle mitochondrial content also increased by the same amount, even though the intense exercise group worked out for only 10 minutes per session while the casual-exercise group's workout took 45 minutes, or 4.5 times as long.
Benefits of Exercise
* Your fitness level determines, in part, your susceptibility for suffering heart attacks (Prog Cardiovasc Dis, 2014;56:382–90), diabetes, certain cancers and premature death (Ex and Spts Sci Reviews, 2017;45(1):7-15).
* Regular exercise helps to prevent many chronic diseases including type 2 diabetes (Can Med Assoc J, 2006;174: 801–809).
* High levels of fitness predict a long lifespan (Arch Int Med, 2012;172:1333-1340), and low levels of fitness predict a shortened lifespan (Circulation, 2008;117:614-622). * Not exercising is the most common modifiable cause of chronic disease (Can Med Assoc J, 2006;174: 801–809).
* The most common excuse for not exercising is lack of time (Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2002;34: 1996–2001). This new study shows that ONE minute of intense exercise, in a regular program of ten-minute workouts, is enough to gain significant fitness benefits.
My Recommendations
* Everyone should try to exercise every day because a high level of fitness helps to prevent disease and to prolong life.
* Intense exercise takes far less time than more casual exercise for the same health benefits.
* Caution: Always check with your doctor before starting a new exercise program or making a sudden change in the intensity of your existing exercise program.
www.DrMirkin.com
CPAP Mask Recomendation
For those of you that have had a sleep study and been found to have sleep apnea, this is the CPAP mask that is recomended by Dr. John Nolte. Everyone needs a good night's sleep!