[ Note: This article was written by fitness and nutrition author Jon Benson. Jon is a good friend of mine so I have his permission to share it with you.  I have personally reviewed Every Other Day Diet in addition to Jon's other products and I give them my highest recommendation. I'm an affiliate of Jon's and receive a portion of the proceeds made via the links in this article. A portion of the proceeds I receive are used to help expand Natural Health On The Web. This gives me the resources to expand so I can continue to create articles, blogs and offer you a free and reliable resource of natural health information. Enjoy the article.]

There’s stuff you know.

Then there’s stuff you don’t know.

But the key to success in anything is the discovery of one other variable:

The things you don’t know you don’t know.

Think about that.

So many people ask me questions like…

– How can I get rid of my stubborn bodyfat?
– How fast can I do it?
– What’s the best dietplan for me?

These are good questions, don’t get me wrong.

But there are at least 10 questions most people never know to ask.

It’s the stuff they didn’t know they didn’t know… make sense?

Today we’ll cover 3 of the 10…

HIDDEN QUESTION 1:
“What’s The Best Dietary-Fat To Eat To Get Rid Of Bodyfat?”

Sounds nutty, doesn’t it?

The media loves to deceive you when it comes to dietary fats… and I’m here to set the record straight:

You absolutely must consume dietary fat in order to burn-off your bodyfat.

There’s an old saying: “Fat burns…but in the presence of dietary-fat.”

It’s true.

There are actually two “Best Fats” you should be eating:

Coconut Oil
CLA

Coconut oil is ideal to cook with. Use that in place of all the starchy foods you may be eating. You’ll get leaner faster… and you’ll be a ton more healthy too.

Coconut oil keeps you satisfied longer, lubricates your joints, and yes… actually helps you get rid of stubborn bodyfat.

Use 1 tablespoon per 50 lbs per day, but be sure to decrease your starchy carbs (breads, rice, potatoes, etc.)

CLA is a form of (gasp!) transfat… but it’s a healthy form that helps your body get rid of bodyfat. You can only get it in supplement-form… well, that’s the best way.

I personally take 4 grams per day. Jarrow is my favorite brand. You can get it at most health food stores.

I cover several other fats you need to eat in my video and book, found here:

The Every Other Day Diet <== Click-Here

HIDDEN QUESTION 2:
“Why Is Cardio Bad For Me?”

Okay… that’s an over-statement. It’s not ‘bad’ for you… it’s just not nearly as ‘good’ for you as the media and magazines want you to believe.

Especially if you do it the way they suggest: Too long, too frequently.

Do it the way I suggest and watch what happens.

First, spend 80% of your exercise time doing ‘resistance’ training, not cardio… but rest very brief between sets.

My newest update to “7 Minute Muscle” is called “7 Minute Body”. It combines both “7 Minute Muscle” and an additional 100 or so pages of in-home ONLY workouts.

That way you can train in the gym… or in your home… and get it done in 7 to 14 minutes a day. Done!

You will be shaping your body and burning-off some major calories at the same time… all without boring cardio.

Then when you “do” cardio, do it the way I detail in “7 Minute Body”… use the 9-minute GXP Cardio Workout.

Add simple walking to this several days a week and your cardio is set.

GXP works because it is progressive and does not over-tax the recovery system. You warm up, then hit about 85% of your max effort, then cool down.

But the key is ‘when’ to do it… and that’s covered in my book.

I still enjoy sitting on my bike and watching TV, but I do that just to burn-off those last bits of bodyfat. Most of you do not need to do this.

It’s a waste of time for the masses… but resistance training is not.

Oh, one more thing: Runners have a far higher degree of heart attacks than non-runners. So cardio ‘can’ be bad for you if you over-do it.

NOTE: You can pick up “7 Minute Body” at 77% off…
but only if you get EODD…

More here:

The Every Other Day Diet <== Click-Here

HIDDEN QUESTION 3:
“How Does Pizza Help Me Shed Bodyfat?”

Sounds like a dream, doesn’t it?

Think again.

My dietary plan not only “lets” you eat pizza (or whatever your favorite foods might be) every week, several times a week… it DEMANDS that you do it.

What the…. ?

Yep. Here’s why.

First, I have you eat less on certain days and certain times. If done the way I suggest your metabolism (the rate you use fat, energy, etc.) will not slow down that much.

Then… at a specific time… boom! You eat a lot more food… and the best way to do this is eating your favorite foods.

First, they usually have more calories.. duh! Second, you’ll ENJOY the freakin’ process! Most “diets” fail because people hate them… too restrictive.

So I created my System from the ground up to ensure I never got bored with my eating… and the extra cals from pizza (or my favorite… Mexican… or Key Lime Pie… yum) actually boosts my metabolism sky-high.

Here’s an example:

Last week I ate the normal Every Other Day Diet-way… for me it’s the “Extreme Plan” (there are 4 Plans, each for different goals.)

So, after several days of lower-cal, lower-carb eating, I ate about 5000 calories of Mexican food (so good!) But the TIMING is crucial. You just can wing it. Don’t worry… I tell you exactly when to do it.

The next morning I saw more of my abs.

I went back to EODD-style eating, which I love btw… and then later had some Key Lime Pie… and what do you know? Leaner the next day.

Now I’m doing this as I “peak” — I have to be in top shape in December. The only time I stop this is 4 weeks prior to a photoshoot… but unless you want to be 5% bodyfat (and you probably do not) you never have to stop it.

Works like a charm.

Watch this and find out why:

The Every Other Day Diet <== Click-Here

Yours In Fitness,

J O N B E N S O N

P.S. Special freebie to those who watch my entire presentation on the page above… very nice… : )

[ Note: This article was written by fitness and nutrition author Jon Benson. Jon is a good friend of mine so I have his permission to share it with you.  I have personally reviewed Every Other Day Diet in addition to Jon's other products and I give them my highest recommendation. I'm an affiliate of Jon's and receive a portion of the proceeds made via the links in this article. A portion of the proceeds I receive are used to help expand Natural Health On The Web. This gives me the resources to expand so I can continue to create articles, blogs and offer you a free and reliable resource of natural health information. Enjoy the article.]

There’s a club you should join.

It’s called The Insider’s Club.

It is that club whose membership is based only on what secret goodies the members possess.

In our case, this is the Fatloss Insider’s Club. Only those in the know can join…. freee to them of course… : )

So, if you want to get rid of some lbs…

FATLOSS TRICK 1
Eat Pizza?

Today I went for some New York-style pizza here in Austin, Texas.

Do I feel ‘guilty’? No way… in fact tomorrow I will feel LEANER.

What the what?

I had to set up my body for this bit of metabolic trickery of course. You cannot just “eat pizza” and shed the pounds… I wish you could!

But my personal System for fatloss not only “allows” pizza (and all my other favorite foods)… it DEMANDS that I eat it.

Here’s another true story: I blew off my “feed meal” (that’s what it is called in my System) four days ago. I have been on a massive fatloss roll for weeks now and frankly I just did not feel like eating a lot.

That’s another benefit of my System… it really cuts your appetite and food-cravings down.

Anyway, the next day in the gym I fell on my face! I was weaker and not any leaner. I went home, ate literally about 6000 cals and presto: Leaner than ‘ever’ the next day and ready to train hard.

Learn how to use this System here:

The Every Other Day Diet <== Click For More Tricks!

FATLOSS TRICK 2
The 10-Minute Cardio Trick

If you want to just get into good heart health, you only need GXP Cardio (covered in the System mentioned above) 2-3 days per week for 9-15 minutes. That’s it.

However if you want to use “smart cardio” (not long, boring cardio) then you need a bit more. Just a bit.

It’s my 10-minute trick.

Start with just every other day. Then move to 4 days… and then 5.

If you are pressed for time, this is ideal. Even if you are not, it works like magic.

10 minutes in the morning ‘before’ you eat. Just make sure your heart rate is only about 65% of your max… in other words, you are not breathing super-heavy at all, but you are working up a sweat. That’s it.

10 minutes ‘before’ lunch. Just cut your lunch hour short by 10 minutes… that’s all. You don’t sweat enough to need a shower… don’t worry. Walking stairs works great, or walking outside… be creative!

Then 10 ‘harder’ minutes about 2 hours before you go to sleep. Get your heart rate up to where you are breathing a little harder.

That’s it.

You can even start with just two sessions of 10 minutes (morning and night) if lunch is out.

FATLOSS TRICK 3
Increase Your Fat?

Yep. I want you to eat more dietary-fat…. but I want you to replace some of your carbohydrates (starch like rice, potatoes, etc.) with healthy fats like olive oil, coconut oil and almonds.

Fat dulls the appetite and all three of the fats above actually help your body get rid of its fat-stores if you decrease carbs.

I have the plan laid out for you. More here:

The Every Other Day Diet <== Click For More Tricks!

FATLOSS TRICK 4
Think Resistance

Far better than cardio will ever be. That would be resistance training.

Either weight training or in-home resistance training using bands and bodyweight. Studies confirm what we fitness pros already know: Resistance training not only sculpts the body (cardio cannot) but it also burns 9-12x more bodyfat over the long-term than cardio.

But you need both. And both cardio and resistance training (in-home or in the gym) is worked into my book “7 Minute Body.”

You can get it when you pick up “Every Other Day Diet” for 75% off-retail… it is all detailed here…

The Every Other Day Diet <== Click For More Tricks!

Welcome to the Club!

Yours In Fitness,

J O N B E N S O N

P.S. I’m still giving away “Radical Fatloss Blueprint” along with EODD for a few more days. And I’m giving a lucky few the chance to pick up the Supplement-Kit that comes with Radical Fatloss for almost 100 bucks off… the video and details are here:

The Every Other Day Diet <== Click For More Tricks!

Sorry… EODD Readers Only…. so pick it up today.

Retirement-Age Workers Live Longer than Retired Contemporaries

Retirees who continue working after retirement enjoy better physical and mental health than those who stop working completely.

With social security funds lagging, the economy at a standstill, and retirees’ pension funds going up in smoke, millions of senior citizens are doing what they never thought they’d be doing when they were younger:  Still working.

Working well into our sixties sure doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun.  But as it turns out, over-the-hill 9 to 5’ers are healthier than retirees whose lives are taken up by golf clubs, television shows, and trips to the grocery store.

According to findings recently published in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, people that hold temporary or part-time jobs in their later years suffer from fewer diseases, live longer, and have healthier brain function than people of the same age living the life of leisure.

The six-year study involved researchers interviewing over 12,000 participants between the ages of 51 and 61 every two years.  The questions mainly focused on what their employment status was, their overall health, and their financial situation.  A portion of the interview was also devoted to assessing the participants’ mental function to see whether or not it had declined in the intervening 24 months.

At the study’s conclusion, the researchers found that people who continued working suffered 20 percent fewer diseases, ranked an average of 31 percent higher on mental functioning scores, and were especially adept if they continued working in the same field they’d worked in prior to retirement age.

The University of Maryland researchers say the findings are significant, especially considering the number of retirees still working today.

The working trend is likely to continue tomorrow and beyond, as a recent Princeton Survey research poll shows that 75 percent of Americans plan on working into their later years.

When you stop and think about it, the researchers’ findings really makes intuitive sense.  Just as physical exercise strengthens our muscles and keeps us limber, the mental exercise that work provides increases brain power.

The best way to live a long and healthy life is to find a job that you love to do.  Because as the saying goes, do something that you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.

Sources:
msnbc.msn.com
philadelphia.bizjournals.com

A high consumption of omega-3 fatty acids reduce the risk of chest pain, study shows.

Omega-3 fatty acids are the object of the heart’s affection.  They’re the heart’s knight in shining armor, for they are at the ready to reduce and prevent long-term complications, like heart disease and heart attack, while easing the sting of short-term frustrations, like chest pain.

Every year, millions of people head to their local hospital complaining of chest pains.  Whether its tightness, burning sensations, rapid heart rate or painful swallowing, the symptoms of chest pain vary, and so too do the diagnoses (heartburn, heart attack, angina, pericarditus).

Thanks to omega-3 fatty acids, though, we can minimize the occurrence and risk of chest pains, even those that might be more serious nature.

According to a recent study published in the British Journal of Nutrition, people that consume high amounts of omega-3s slash their risk for chest pains by nearly 30 percent compared to people who eat small amounts of omega-3s.

These findings come from a group of Danish researchers who followed the health status of approximately 53,000 men and women.  Everyone involved in the study were considered healthy at the start.

That couldn’t be said at the end, though, as 1,150 people developed acute coronary syndrome in the intervening eight years.

But in yet another act of omega-3s riding to the heart’s rescue, people with the highest omega-3 levels were 30 percent less likely to be among those with acute coronary syndrome.  Acute coronary syndrome is an umbrella term for more specific heart-related problems, like angina or complications resulting from a heart attack.

Interestingly—to continue with my personification of omega-3s as a heroic figure a little longer— omega-3s did not ride to the rescue of women’s heart health.  The benefit only applied to men, as there was no association between reduced risk of ACS and the level of omega-3s in women’s blood.

But this doesn’t mean that omega-3s only have eyes for men.  In fact, when taking into consideration the totality of benefits omega-3s has for women compared to men, they may be partial to women.

For instance, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, high omega-3 levels enhances female fertility, decreasing a woman’s risk for premature birth, and may help prevent post-partum depression (a condition that’s more common in women than men).

Further, this being Breast Cancer Awareness Month and all, high omega-3 levels reduces a woman’s risk for breast cancer.

There’s no denying that omega-3 consumption is vitally important to your long-term and—as the aforementioned study shows—your short-term health.  Be on the lookout for them.  They prefer to hide in food sources (e.g. flax, salmon, herring, snapper), but they’ve also been spotted in supplements.  A favorite hangout?  Carlson’s Liquid Fish Oil.

With omega-3s constantly saving the day, nutrition is all too important to fritter away.

Sources:
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
nutraingredients.com
mayoclinic.com

Researchers Say Five Cups of Green Tea Reduces Stress Levels

Stress reduction can now be added to the many benefits of green tea consumption.

If you’re at all fascinated by numbers and whether or not they’re lucky or unlucky, the number five is right up there with the number seven in signaling prosperity.  Let me explain what I mean…

Earlier this year, I wrote about a study out of Japan that found that drinking five cups of green tea per day reduced the risk of getting various forms of cancer by 50 percent.

Two months later, and out comes another green tea study showing improved health with five cups per day.  What kind of better health?  Reduced stress levels.

Stress is sort of like death and taxes:  there’s no avoiding it.  Whether it’s something as simple as a worrying over a test, or something more serious like worrying about a loved one serving in the military, stress complicates life and complicates our health.  It’s so serious, in fact, that it can significantly increases the risk for chronic heart disease when not kept in check.  That’s where green tea comes in.

Now, the notion that green tea can relieve stress symptoms is nothing new.  Nor is the notion that green tea improves health overall, as you’ll discover by writing “green tea” in the search bar of this Web site or any other search engine for that matter.  But these reports have mainly been anecdotal; there hasn’t been any large scale studies demonstrating its stress-relieving capability.

That is, until now, because according to findings from Tohoko University Graduate School researchers, there’s a “significant” relationship between stress levels and how much green tea people drink.  Their findings aren’t based on some small scale study of 10 or 20 people, either.  Try over 42,000, with six to seven percent of those 42,000 complaining of chronic psychological stress symptoms.  Those stress symptoms were relieved, however, among those assigned to drink at least five cups of green tea per day.

The study’s complete findings are published in the October 2009 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

What makes green tea so stress-relieving?  The researchers aren’t sure, but past research points to the polyphenol EGCG.  EGCG is a very potent polyphenol that’s been associated with a variety of health benefits, like relieving fatigue and decreasing cancer risk.

Now, drinking five cups of green tea may sound like a lot, but it’s really not, especially if you start drinking it in place of things.  For instance, instead of a cup of coffee in the morning, try drinking a cup of green tea with two tea bags instead of one (the extra bag will supply an extra 20 mg of caffeine).  Instead of a water after a workout, try a chilled down green tea beverage instead.  The sodium and potassium will supply the electrolytes that are lost during rigorous workout sessions.

As far as what’s the best green tea to choose from, always opt for organically brewed tea, paying special attention to its “Sell By” date.  For the sake of taste – not to mention nutrition – you don’t want anything that’s been sitting on the shelf unopened for more than six months.  The further the “Sell By” date is from the date in which you’re purchasing, the better.  Once opened, the shelf-life reduces even further.

Sources:
nutraingredients.com
beveragedaily.com

Indoor Cycling May Decrease Migraine Pain, Episodes

Indoor cycling has shown to be an effective migraine treatment, study concludes.

Describing what a migraine feels like is sort of like describing what salt tastes like; it’s next to impossible without having experienced it first.  I’ve never had a migraine, and as difficult as it is for me to fully appreciate just how painful it is, I’ve watched people writhe in agony while in the throes of a migraine episode.  Believe you me, it wasn’t pretty.

For an estimated 30 million Americans, these ugly episodes are commonplace and almost anything triggers them.  From traffic lights to strobe lights, chocolate to cheese, television screens to movie screens, there’s no one cause; it’s different for just about everyone.

Whatever triggers them, the results are the same:  blood flow in the brain is reduced, leading to less oxygen flow, leading to restricted arteries.  It’s a big domino effect that severely impacts quality of life.

Most researchers believe that the trick to reversing a migraine is to increase blood flow to the brain.  Exercise sounds like it would do the trick, but oddly enough, past research has found that even a blood flow stimulator like exercise triggers migraines.

But according to research conducted earlier this year, there may be one exercise that reduces their frequency:  indoor cycling.

According to research published in the appropriately titled The Journal of Head and Face Pain, researchers say indoor cyclers, all of whom suffered from frequent migraines, reported having fewer migraines once they started an indoor cycling exercise program.

Here’s how the study broke down.  It involved 26 people, all of whom suffered from frequent migraines.  Over a 12-week period, they all participated in a controlled indoor cycling exercise program, cycling three times a week.  An oxygen-intake assessment was made at the start and at the end of the study.

After three months, amazingly, 24 of the 26 participants reported having fewer migraine episodes.  Not only that, but they didn’t have to take as much medication to treat them when they arose.  And when they did arise, they were less intense!

The researchers believe the benefit to cycling, besides the cardiovascular benefit, lies in indoor cycling’s apparent ability to increase oxygen intake.  At the start of the study, average oxygen intake was 32.9mL/kg/minute.  By the end, it increased to an average of 36.2mL/kg/minute.

The study was published in The Journal of Head and Face Pain and led by Dr. Emma Varkey of the Cephalea Headache Center in Sweden.

Indoor cycling is a great way to exercise.  It’s non-weight bearing, so people with bad knees or weak joints can get their hearts revved up without aggravating sore joints.  And as this study suggests, it could be just the trick to treating migraines.  Give it a try, and let me know if it works for you.

Sources:
emaxhealth.com
sciencedaily.com
cureresearch.com

Study Links Improved Health to Pet Ownership

Pet ownership is benefical to human health, study shows.

No one can deny that our pets, particularly dogs, are completely reliant on their human companions.  Without people like us, Fido the Foxhound wouldn’t have a thing to eat, Max the mutt wouldn’t have a thing to play and Piper the poodle wouldn’t have a place to sleep.  Sure, dogs are animals and will do what it takes to survive if they’re abandoned, but rarely do these dogs live healthy lives when left to their own devices.

But new research is suggesting that the same standard may apply to humans as well.  In other words, dog is not simply man’s best friend, but man’s best resource for maintaining, or improving, a healthy profile.

There has been no shortage of studies linking pet ownership to improved health, whether it’s lowering blood pressure simply by petting a cat, or by being less likely to die from a heart attack if you’re a senior citizen with a dog.  There have even been studies showing how pets can actually lower triglyceride levels in the blood.

These and many other examples touting the health benefits of pet ownership will be on full display at a conference in Kansas City, Missouri next month.  From Oct. 20 thru Oct. 25, veterinarians from around the globe will present a wealth of empirical data linking the health benefits of pet ownership at the International Society for Anthrozoology and Human-Animal Interaction Conference (what a mouthful!).

One of the studies presented there will be by researchers from the University of Missouri’s veterinary program.  Their analysis involved a group of older adults (not elderly, but older) to see if the participants’ pets could potentially improve their weight loss goals.

To assess whether or not there was a link, the researchers broke the volunteers into two groups.  In the first group, each participant was paired with a dog, while the other group’s participants were paired with a human.  Over the course of 12 weeks, each participant was asked to walk five days a week for at least an hour each time.  Whenever they went out for their daily stroll, though, they had to bring along their companion, human or otherwise.

Through weight measurements, time measurements and questionnaire assessments, the researchers found that the people with man’s best friend as a companion (i.e. dogs) improved their health by almost 30 percent (they walked at a quicker pace, lost more weight, their level of enjoyment from walking increased, etc.).  Those who walked with a human companion improved as well, but by a measly four percent.

What explains the difference?  Researchers think it has something to do with dogs’ inability to communicate…at least orally.  Human companions were much more resistant to walking, and expressed as much when they didn’t feel like going.

Now it goes without saying that you can still live an amazingly healthful life without a dog.  Circumstances, like young children or living arrangements, often make it impossible to purchase furry friends.  But as this study suggests, pets can serve as that extra push people need to begin an exercise program.  They encourage exercise, as opposed to discouraging it.

If you think this may be the case for you, then you need to start doing some homework.  Don’t just go out and buy one from the nearest pet store or dog pound.  Make sure that the dog you want fits your personality type.  For instance, if you’re a quiet, shy guy that’s not easily excited, then a Jack Russell Terrier is not your ideal.

Many Web sites offer this type of service free of charge.  Take full advantage of it and other resources before taking the pet plunge.

Source:
sciencedaily.com

Microwaves Cut Risk for Disease in Hot Dogs, but Not the Other Risk

Hot dogs are less likely to carry diseases like listeria after being cooked in the microwave.

So a new study was recently published in the Journal of Food Science that will come as music to the ears of frankfurter fans:  Hot dogs may not be as potentially poisoned with food-borne diseases as originally suspected.

As most people know, hot dogs bought in stores come fully cooked.  As such, when re-heating hot dogs, most people are not altogether concerned about how cooked the hot dog is after taking it out of boiling water, off the grill, or out of the microwave.

But too often, people underestimate just how “fully cooked” these frankfurters are when bought, as thousands of people become severely ill from the food-borne diseases these dogs are often dogged with.

According to researchers from the University of Colorado, though, they’re less likely to carry diseases like listeria after given a good nuke in the microwave.

What qualifies as a “good nuke”?  At least 75 seconds, so long as the microwave can generate at least 1,100 watts of power.

But this study shouldn’t serve as a go-ahead, or as a green light to start chowing down on hot dogs.  Not because they’re on the low end of the totem poll for nutritional protein sources, which they are.  And not because they’re loaded with preservatives to sustain shelf-life, which they are.  No, you shouldn’t eat them because they increase your risk for several types of cancers.

Hot dogs are burdened by the same problem almost all  processed meats have:  They’re loaded with sodium nitrites.  Sodium nitrites give cold cuts and meats their salty flavor, but they’re also responsible for increasing the risk for different stomach cancers.  In a study of over 200,000 people, researchers from the University of Hawaii found that people whose diets relied on processed foods like bacon, hot dogs and sausage increased their pancreatic cancer risk by 67 percent.

The study was presented in 2005 to the American Association for Cancer Research.

Any study that demonstrates how to reduce one’s risk for acquiring a food-borne disease I’m all for.  So at the very least, this study provides that.  However, let’s not forget that an absence of food borne diseases doesn’t equate to a reduced risk for long-term diseases like cancer.

As I’ve written in past postings, I highly recommend you avoid processed meat consumption entirely.  An occasional (and I stress occasional) hot dog won’t hurt.  In those rare instances, I recommend you consume extra vitamin C.  The vitamin C will help reduce nitrite’s ability to convert into nitrosamines when they’re absorbed.  It is this conversion into nitrosamines that increases the risk for cancerous tumor formation.

Mark  Twain once said that there are two things no one should ever have to watch:  the making of laws and the making of sausage.  Now you know why he said it.  On the sausage end, at least.

Sources:
Food Production Daily
Natural News

Doctors’ Advice on Weight Loss Does Little to Curb Childhood Obesity

Weigh-ins have little to no effectiveness in weight loss promotion among children.

When the average American teen eats fast food fare twice a week, when 92 percent of children don’t have recess year ‘round, and when only 30 percent of kids eat a fruit or vegetable every day, it’s no wonder why 25 million kids are obese.  Obesity has never not been an issue among kids, but today, it far surpasses anything we’ve seen in recent memory, and it requires urgent action (the obesity rate among 6 to 11-year-old kids is five times higher today than what it was 40 years ago).

If you have a child with weight problems, then you’re probably familiar with what your pediatrician considers a useful solution:  Your son or daughter walks in, gets weighed, then receives a mini-lecture on the dangers of child obesity and what he or she needs to do to combat it…in a kid-friendly way of course.  The good doctor then suggests to you, the parent, that weight levels need to be monitored by the school nurse for as long as it takes until the weight comes off.

Constant weigh-ins surely sounds inconvenient, but why fool with what works, right?

That’s just it, though:  Turns out they doesn’t work.

According to a study out of Melbourne, Australia and recently published in the British Medical Journal, doctor’s office weigh-ins has little to no effectiveness in weight loss promotion among children.

Researchers discovered this after following approximately 260 kids who were overweight or obese at the time of their weigh-in.  Each of them was randomly assigned to one of two groups:  One group with frequent weigh-ins and suggestions from their pediatrician (suggestions to their parents as well) and one group where the pediatrician was not involved at all.

After one year, the only difference found was that the counseled crew drank less soda (so not a total loss), but other than that, no statistically significant difference in weight loss.

Hard to believe, but this is the first time a study has been done to see if the doctor’s office weigh-in even works!

Every child is different, and there have no doubt been occasions in which doctor’s office weigh-ins have worked.  But what works far more often is a more active role among parents.  Parents have a much stronger influence on their kids and their actions.  And rightfully so.  After all, parents are the ones with their child the majority of the time, and parents are the ones that provide them with their food choices.

As such, it’s important to not buy foods that will make it easy for them to cheat.  “Clean house” of all tempting treats, as moments of weakness come regularly at that age (any age, really, but especially when young).

Exercise is the other important quotient in the weight loss formula.  But it shouldn’t be demanded.  None of this “Go exercise!” or “Go play!” stuff.  Far better to exercise with Jack or Sue.  Far better to play with Bobby or Jill.  Not only does this form a greater parent-to-child bond, but it’s something that the young son or daughter will look forward to doing.  And I can guarantee it will be something the son or daughter will look back on fondly as the years go by.

Sources:
msnbc.msn.com
clintonfoundation.org

UK Study:  Two-Thirds of Prostate Cancer Patients Receive Unnecessary Treatment

Is chemotherapy really necessary in many cancer patients?

When it comes to diagnosing people with disease, doctors often put the cart before the horse.  They overestimate the seriousness of the disease, putting a patient’s physical and mental health on edge and sapping their quality of life in the process.

Now I don’t mean to paint too broad a stroke on the medical profession; the overwhelming majority of doctors are highly qualified practitioners and serve the best interest of their patient.  But malpractice has become commonplace, too commonplace, as a recent study suggests 60 percent of people treated for prostate cancer receive treatment unnecessarily.

On the surface, this sounds absurd.  How can anyone receive unnecessary treatment for a disease as degenerative and progressive as prostate cancer (Worldwide, it is the fifth most diagnosed cancer; in America, it is second only to lung cancer in the number of cancer deaths annually)?

Well according to a new study that looked into whether or not this was happening, the aggressiveness of prostate cancer is demonstrated through the production of a particular protein.  When doctors find this protein in the blood, called Hsp-27, it’s a tell-tale sign that the cancer is advanced and will metastasize.

But when researchers reviewed the treatment profiles of 4,000 prostate cancer patients over a 15-year period, two-thirds of those that received chemotherapy did not have this protein in their blood.  In other words, the doctors could have taken less aggressive measures to treat the condition as opposed to chemotherapy, which kills both the healthy and the unhealthy cells.

The research was performed by researchers from the University of Liverpool and published in the British Journal of Nutrition.

The researchers did not point out how many people died in the course of their study, but it would be interesting to know, even if it can’t be ruled out definitively whether it was the chemotherapy or the pancreatic cancer that wound up killing them.

At any rate, this is just the latest reason for why it’s important to weigh all the options before committing to chemotherapy.  It’s an extremely invasive procedure, and as this study illustrates, is often used unnecessarily.  Should your doctor recommend chemotherapy, it may not be a bad idea to get a second opinion before making that commitment.

Source:
sciencedaily.com