And Jack isn’t just surviving, he looks as vital as when he was a young whipper snapper in his 70s.

So what’s the secret? There may not be one simple answer. To most people in the last few decades of his life, they know him for his juicer infomercials. But, LaLanne originally gained recognition as a successful bodybuilder. He owes his vitality to the power of strength training.

Many experts believe that strength training is the key to preventing age-related disabilities. As you age, if you don’t continue to use your muscles, you will lose mass. This has all kinds of implications, not the least of which is a connection to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and other chronic illnesses. This happens by slowing your body’s metabolic rate, which encourages fat accumulation, which in turn snowballs into various health problems.

Muscle mass usually begins to decline at around the age of 40. And by 50, your muscle mass can drop by a staggering 15 percent every 10 years. Strength training can put a stop to the decline.

The most important thing to realize is that it is never too late to start exercising. The human body has an amazing ability to respond to exercise at any age. In studies of men and women in their 80s (or even older), they gained strength just as rapidly as younger adults by doing resistance training.

Consumer Reports gives the following ways that strength training rejuvenates your health:

• Benefits your cardiovascular system
• Fights diabetes
• Strengthens bones
• Prevents cancer
• Builds bones
• Increases mobility

(via: Washingtonpost.com)

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Strength Training Key to Longevity

The health risk was even higher when the noise rose above an average daily exposure of 60 decibels. That accounts for about one in four people in western Europe. No comparable analysis was done on how many people would be affected in the U.S.

“Road traffic noise is the most important source of community noise so we felt it was important to look at this,” says the report’s author Theo Bodin. “I think what we have found is probably linked to the noise triggering stress. Previous research has found this, although we need to look at this issue further before we make firm conclusions.”

However, some experts think that these findings might be on shaky ground.

“It seems to me that they have found an association rather than a cause. Other factors, such as smoking, diet and deprivation, are likely to be playing more of a role,” says Alan Maryon-Davis, president of the UK’s Faculty of Public Health. “However, it is an area of research which merits further work.”

High blood pressure increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.

(via: BBC)

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Can Road Noise Cause High Blood Pressure?

• Less than 200 mg/dL is considered healthy.

• 200 to 239 mg/dL is borderline high cholesterol.

• 240 mg/dL and above is an unhealthy cholesterol level.

Many of our favorite foods contribute to high cholesterol. But there are some foods that can lower your cholesterol levels. Here are the top five as recommended by the Mayo Clinic:

1. Oatmeal and Oat Bran
Fiber is a key component in the fight against high cholesterol. Oatmeal contains soluble fiber, which lowers your LDL cholesterol, also known as the “bad” cholesterol.

2. Walnuts and Almonds
Walnuts and almonds are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, which help lower cholesterol levels.

3. Fish and Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, and albacore tuna have omega-3 fatty acids that help your heart in many ways, including lowering cholesterol.

4. Olive Oil
This Mediterranean dietary favorite contains antioxidants that lower LDL cholesterol. The Food and Drug Administration recommends about two tablespoons of olive oil a day.

5. Foods Fortified with Plant Sterols or Stanols
Sterols or stanols are substances that are in plants that help block the absorption of cholesterol. Now, foods are fortified with sterols or stanols, including margarines, orange juice and yogurt drinks. You find the substances naturally in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes.

These are just some of foods that can counteract the cholesterol produced by your body or eaten on a daily basis. Incorporate them into a balanced diet and you can enjoy foods like eggs and beef in moderation without guilt or worry of damaging your health.

(via: Mayo Clinic)

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Top 5 Foods to Lower Cholesterol

It’s estimated that in 2005 more than 27 percent of all Americans died of a heart-related ailment. To put it in even more dire terms, one American dies every 37 seconds from complications related to heart disease.

These statistics, while getting worse, aren’t particularly new. Heart disease has been the leading killer in the U.S. for every year since 1900 excluding 1918 when there was a flu pandemic.

Nutritionist Mike Roussell of the Naked Nutrition Network quotes a study that says there are four factors that “greatly increase your 30-year risk of developing heart disease.” At the risk of being overly cynical, did we need a new study to reveal these factors?

1. Excessive Weight – Yes, being overweight is a risk for heart disease. We all should know that by now. Right?

2. High Blood Pressure - Ditto. Consider meditation, or even simply a relaxing walk around your neighborhood with nothing but the sounds of your surrounding environment. Lowering your sodium intake is a good idea, too.

3. Diabetes – It’s been in the spotlight for a while now, but maybe people don’t know that it can be related to heart disease. According to the American Diabetes Association, two-thirds of people with diabetes die from heart disease and stroke.

So, eat what you should eat for every other health reason (fruits, vegetables, lean meats), and avoid refined carbs when possible (white rice, pasta, etc.).

4. Smoking - Do you need a particular reason to stop smoking?

(via: Naked Nutrition Network)

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4 Factors That Increase Heart Risks

While this isn’t exactly new news, this important study provides a direct reason why these high glycemic foods wreak havoc on the heart and increase risk of heart disease. The researchers showed that after you eat a carb-laden food like a bowl of corn flakes or a Twinkie, your brachial arteries become distended, or swollen, for several hours. While it’s important for the arteries to have a certain amount of elasticity in them, over time, a sudden expansion of the arteries, which follows after noshing on a carb-filled snack, can cause a number of negative health effects, including reduced elasticity, which can cause heart disease or sudden death.

Medical professionals are not only warning against the consumption of high glycemic foods, but the results appear to be even scarier for those who binge on such foods and consume too much of them in one sitting. Their risk of death from a heart attack is greatly increased.

So what does this study mean for you? Doctors are recommending that when you eat carbohydrates, consume those with whole grains like oatmeal, whole grain bread, brown or wild rices and starches like sweet potatoes and legumes. Since these foods contain fiber in addition to a number of other essential nutrients, they result in a slow and steady release of blood sugar and don’t expand the arteries like the culprit “white” foods do. Toss in 30 minutes of physical activity every day and you’re the picture of perfect health!

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High Carb Foods Raise Risk of Heart Disease

The Canadian study came to its conclusion by analyzing the country’s national death registry. It started in 1994, and ended in 2004. While the overall number of deaths and hospitalization have decreased significantly, women have slightly edged out men at the end of the study at 50.7 percent of total heart-related deaths, whereas they accounted for 49.3 percent in 1994. Even with that number, the difference between men and women is much closer than one might think.

The successful decline in heart-related fatalities in the Canadian citizenry is attributed by the experts to two major reasons: a decline in risky behavior like smoking, and the use of preventative medicines that control cholesterol.

According to the study’s authors, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the world.

(via: Canada.com)

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More Canadian Women Die of Heart Disease Than Men

Researchers tested various combinations of music with silence on volunteers and found that songs that emphasized alternating between fast and slow tempos were most effective in improving circulation and heart health.

“We have seen enormous benefits in people who have had strokes or heart attacks. The power of music is just incredible,” says Diana Greenman, chief executive of Music in Hospitals, a UK-based charity that provides live music to hospital patients.

“I hear time and again of stroke patients who suddenly are able to move in time to the music after previously being paralyzed,” she adds

Greenman emphasized that music has to be tailored to the patients’ taste. No word on whether or not that could include hardcore or thrash metal. The examples given at the BBC website are all classical and opera, with Verdi’s Arias the most effective. It has musical phrases 10 seconds long, which appears to synchronize perfectly with the natural cardiovascular rhythm.

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Music’s Health Benefits Sing a Happy Tune

Prunes aren’t on the top of everyone’s favorite snack list. But the dried plum, often relegated to a snack that only our grandparents nosh on, should be on your menu as well.

Plums aren’t just good for regularity. Research shows that they also promote bone and heart health. A study revealed that the polyphenols, a chemical substance found in plants, found in prunes boosted the formation of bones and increases their density.

Researchers also found via animal studies that prunes may help keep your arteries clear, preventing heart problems. Experts believe that the prune’s flavonoids help reduce inflammation that plays a significant role in artery disease.

You know the saying “good things come in small packages”? It’s so true with the dried plum. Here are some of the nutritional benefits you get from just 10 prunes:

• 20 percent of your daily potassium and copper requirements
• 14 percent of your iron requirements
• 10 percent of your manganese and zinc requirements
• A significant source of vitamins A, C, E, and B-complex, including folate
• Lastly, prunes are best known as a high-powered source of fiber

(via: Real Age)

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The Nutritional Power of Prunes

What is Potassium?

Which foods are high in potassium?

• potatoes
• tomatoes
• avocados
• fresh fruits (bananas, oranges, and strawberries)
• orange juice
• dried fruits (raisins, apricots, prunes, and dates)
• spinach
• beans and peas

Remember, eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables is the best way to get enough potassium. Eating a plan-based diet will also help reduce your risk of heart disease, lower cancer risks, and lower risk of obesity.

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Consume More Potassium for a Healthy Heart

A new study examined the neck arteries of some obese and diabetic youngsters and found that their carotid arteries, which carry blood to the brain, showed thickening and stiffness known to increase the risk of strokes, heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems. The findings reinforces earlier research indicating obese children have adult health problems.

Researchers looked at the thickness of the kids’ intima, a layer of tissue that lines the arteries.

“If you have diabetes, the intima is thicker than if you don’t have diabetes,” says Dr. Elaine Urbina, director of preventive cardiology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and lead author of the report.

The kids in the study also were at a high risk factor for cardiovascular disease, such as higher blood pressure and high levels of cholesterol.

(via: MSN Health)

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Obese Kids’ Arteries are Hardening