Healthy Aging: Body, Mind & Spirit

Study shows our sleep needs differ significantly

Experts studied more than 10,000 people across Europe and found those with the gene ABCC9 need around 30 minutes more sleep per night than those without the gene.   This gene is carried by one in five Europeans, so says a study published in Molecular Psychiatry.

Learn more here.

New scan spots cause of high blood pressure

Doctors say they have found a medical test that can diagnose the most common curable cause of high blood pressure.

Learn more here.

40% of cancers due to lifestyle choices

Nearly half of cancers diagnosed in the UK each year – over 130,000 in total – are caused by avoidable life choices including smoking, drinking and eating the wrong things.

Tobacco is the biggest culprit, causing 23% of cases in men and 15.6% in women, says the Cancer Research UK report.

Next comes a lack of fresh fruit and vegetables in men’s diets, while for women it is being overweight.

“Looking at all the evidence, it’s clear that around 40% of all cancers are caused by things we have the power to change.”

The report is published in the British Journal of Cancer.

Read more about it here.

Need some information on brand or generic drugs?

Drugs Archive is your source for valuable information on brand and generic drugs, providing easy-to-read,  in-depth, authoritative medical information for consumers via their user-friendly, interactive website.

Check it out here.

Why an apple a day may keep the doctor away

The first apple is said to have been developed and grown in Kazakhstan in 382 B.C.  It was a dwarf variety compared to the more than 7,500 known cultivars of apples today.

Apples are one of our healthiest fruits.  Rich in antioxidants and nutrition, apples can help prevent certain diseases, including certain cancers such as those of the colon, prostate, and the lungs.   One advantage to apples compared to other fruit is the large amount of fiber, which causes them to not severely raise your glucose level even though they can be quite sweet.   Of course that depends on whether you eat the skins or not.

While the pulp of the apple is certainly the most delicious and juicy part of the fruit, it’s the skin that contains more nutrition.  The skin has 4 times more antioxidants.  The average apple skin has 4mg quercetin, a renowned anti-oxidant that prevents oxygen molecules from causing free radical damage to our body cells.   According to research, your intake of quercetin can help decrease your risk of heart disease by a surprising 20% while reducing cholesterol and your risk of diabetes.

So go ahead and eat an apple a day!

A gift truly made in America!

Diane Sawyer on the ABC News has been encouraging us all to buy gifts made in America, to help create more jobs here.

I couldn’t agree more with that sentiment!

So in the interest of full disclosure, here’s where your dollars and cents go when you buy one copy of my new book on Amazon:

Amazon, an American company, receives $3.88

My printer Lightning Source Inc., located in LaVegne, Tennessee, receives $2.30

And I (an American author located in Fort Collins, Colorado) receive  $6.77

GO BUY AMERICAN TODAY!

The dangers of arsenic poisoning

Dr. Oz: Arsenic Poisoning Dangers

• Bladder Cancer
• Lung Cancer
• Skin Cancer
• Heart Disease
• Diabetes
• Learning Disabilities

Learn more here.

Eat fish weekly and save your brain!

Regular consumption of baked or broiled fish has been linked to a decrease in Alzheimer’s risk, according to a new study.

Eating a portion of fish on a weekly basis improves brain health and cuts the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

“Working memory is destroyed by Alzheimer’s disease.   We found higher levels of working memory in people who ate baked or broiled fish on a weekly basis, even when accounting for other factors, such as education, age, gender and physical activity.”

Learn more here.