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April 2004 Vol. 9 No. 4

 “The greatest reward for a man’s toil is not what he “can get for it” but rather, “what he becomes by it”.  
Author Unknown-shared by Sensi Marcus DeValentino

Table of Contents:Cutting Down Calories Could Cut Cancer Risk in Half
Low Vitamin B-12 Can Cause Bone Loss
Exercise Reduces Breast Cancer
10 Lies About The Atkins Diet and The Surprising Truth
Three pathways to energy
Seven Hours Is Heaven
Why Exercise: A Few More Reasons 

Cutting Down Calories Could Cut Cancer Risk in Half  

 A study showed that women with anorexia were half as likely to develop breast cancer as other women. The study included 7,303 Swedish women before the age of 40, who were hospitalized for anorexia between 1965 and 1998. Women who were diagnosed with cancer before their first discharge from hospitalization for anorexia were excluded from the study. Conclusions of the study found that women prior to 40-years old, who were hospitalized with anorexia, had a 53 percent lower incidence of breast cancer. A severe restriction of calories may confer protection from invasive breast cancer.

Researchers have always stressed how potentially life-threatening anorexia is and have urged young girls to not stop eating in hopes of preventing breast cancer. However, it’s still unclear why the condition of anorexia is resulting in fewer cases of breast cancer. Factors that contributed to these conclusions include the fact that anorexic women eat less, exercise more, carry less body fat and stop menstruating, which results in lower estrogen levels.
Journal of the American Medical Association March 10, 2004;291(10):1226-30

Low Vitamin B-12 Can Cause Bone Loss  

According to research, older women with lower levels of vitamin B-12 are more likely to experience rapid bone loss. This study reinforced the importance of B-12 in protecting bone loss of women as they grow older.  Vitamin B-12 can be found naturally in animal products such as meat, shellfish, milk, cheese and eggs. It is required to produce red blood cells and maintain a healthy nervous system. However, little information is known about how B-12 affects bone loss in aging women.

Participants of the study included 83 women over the age of 64, who were not taking estrogen replacement therapy at baseline. Researchers took baseline serum samples and measured hipbone material density during two and six year follow-up examinations.

The results showed that women with the lowest levels of B-12 experienced dramatic and rapid hip bone loss compared with women with higher levels of B-12. Deficiencies of B-12 among many older women put them in a higher risk bracket for fractures.

Conclusions from the study showed that low serum vitamin B-12 levels are linked to increased rates of hip, not calcaneal, bone loss in older women.
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism March 2004;89(3):1217-21

Exercise Reduces Breast Cancer  

Reports have shown that excess weight and large sizes have been associated to a higher risk of breast cancer. It remains unclear the amount or intensity of exercise that is needed to produce this effect and at what age the physical activity must occur. The study consisted of a group of 74,171 women aged 50-79 from 40 U.S. clinical centers between 1993-1998 for the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study.

Information collected was based on factors such as medical, family history, physical activity, diet, height, weight and lifetime use of hormone therapy. In a four-and-a-half year follow-up of the study, breast cancer was newly diagnosed in 1,780 of the women. The study also revealed that women who participated in regular strenuous physical activities at the age of 35 decreased their risk of breast cancer by 14 percent compared with less active women.

This is further evidence that exercise before and after menopause are linked to breast cancer prevention. The effect was realized even with small increments of exercise equivalent to one to two hours per week of brisk walking. The results have shared similarities to those associated with decreasing the risk of cardiovascular disease among postmenopausal women and those with diabetes.
Canadian Medical Journal March 2, 2004;170(5) (Free Full Text Article)
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/170/5/78

10 Lies About The Atkins Diet and The Surprising Truth That The Low Carb Gurus Don’t Want You To Know About  

Low carbohydrate diets such, as Atkins, have always been controversial, but with the recent wave of new research and publicity, the controversy is now raging hotter than ever. One headline in the San Francisco Chronicle said that the battle between the low and high carbers had become so heated since mid 2002 that “Knives had been drawn.”

From my vantage point (as a health and fitness professional down in the trenches), it looks more like tanks, artillery and machine guns have been drawn! Tragically, the people being hurt the most by these “diet wars” are not the experts, but the dieters…full article ca be reviewed at: http://www.fitren.com/res3news.cfm?newsid=35
The Global Health & Fitness (GHF) Newsletter Vol. # 338 March 29th, 2004

Three pathways to energy: The Peak Performance Newsletter’s US Editor Owen Anderson.  

Anderson also has some excellent advice on how to jump clear of a marauding double-decker bus, which we urge readers to keep to hand whenever they brave their local High Streets!  As Anderson explains, the body’s ‘primary energy currency’ is a unique compound known as adenosine triphosphate, or ATP. All the energy contained in any food you eat - be it carbohydrate, protein or fat - must be stored as energy within ATP molecules before it can be used by any cell in your body.

Given the importance of ATP, you’d think the cells would stockpile the stuff big-time. Mysteriously, though, they refuse to do so, preferring instead to hoard carbohydrate and fat (don’t we know it!) and forcing your hardworking muscles to rely on ATP produced during exercise by means of three quite different metabolic pathways:

the ‘phosphagen system’ for 8-10 seconds of intense exertion; ‘glycolysis’ for strenuous activity lasting more than 10 seconds but less than two minutes;aerobic metabolism for anything longer.

Athletes use these pathways to a greater or lesser extent depending on their chosen discipline. The 100m ‘phsophagen-based’ sprinter, for example, has no need of the glycolytic or aerobic pathways (unless he is very slow). However, the converse is not true, and endurance athletes need to develop their glycolytic capacities, for reasons, which are just too complicated to explain here. You’ll just have to read the piece - and you’ll be glad you did! We’ve put the May 2003 issue back online. http://www.pponline.co.uk/prewp/htw-26.html

Seven Hours Is Heaven  

Seven appears to be the magic number when it comes to getting a good night’s sleep. A study recently revealed that people who routinely averaged 7 hours of sleep each night had the lowest mortality rates. Most people need between 6 and 8 hours of sleep each night, so listen to your body and get the amount of rest that feels appropriate for you.

Getting 6 to 8 hours of sleep per night can make your biological age as much as 3 years younger than your chronological age according to researchers

Why Exercise: A Few More Reasons  

1. Exercise helps an individual to avoid disturbed sleep patterns, by relaxing muscles, reducing stress and warming the body.
J. Nat. Cancer Inst. 89:948, 1997
2. Exercise reduces anxiety and depression.
Arch. Intern. Med. 159; 2349, 1999
3. Active women have a 30 percent lower risk of developing gall stones or requiring surgery than non-active women.
New Eng. J. Med. 341; 777, 1999